Last week was a week of celebrating. I am very and truly blessed to have such a wonderful family and a great bunch of friends. I worked on my birthday, but didn't get a lot accomplished. My team and friends from India called and emailed me throughout the day. My first phone call of the day was them singing "Happy Birthday" to me. I also had friends here sending their wishes to me. It was a fun day!
Last night we had the fam over and some friends to try out our new grill. We grilled up some salsa burgers. They were so yummy!! Luckily for me we made a bunch so we had some for lunch again today. :)
Not a whole lot else to report on. Crap! I just realized that it is 3/29 and I have only made one new recipe this month. Guess I better get my bum in gear.
Weight loss results: Holding steady = good on a birthday week where I have been eating a bunch of crap.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
You Know it's Been a Long Time When...
You know it's been a long time since you have been running when:
1. You can't remember how to put the harness on your dog.
2. You can't remember what your 2 mile route is, so you end up on the 1.5 mile route, which is ok because,
3. You and your dog are ready to stop after 1.5 miles.
Yesterday Zoey and I took advantage of the beautiful morning and went for our first run of the season. It was so nice to be outside! This weather is perfect - not too cold or warm to run, and comfortable to be outside without a jacket. I love it! Too bad the forecast claims it won't last. But it's Minnesota, so what do I expect?
After the run, I went on the exercise bike. Yes, I'm insane. But for a reason - my friend Andrea and I are going to be doing a mini triathlon this June. The tri is .5 mile swim, 15 mile bike ride and 5 mile run. It's called "Swim-Bike-Run Like a Girl With a Kick." Andrea did it last year and had fun. This year they are offering the "with a kick" version - longer distances - and somehow she "convinced" me to do the longer one. I figure this is a great one to get my feet wet with. It's low competition, and you swim in a pool instead of a lake (so if you get tired you can take a break), and it's fairly low cost compared to others. I'm looking forward to it.
Miles run this year: 7.9 miles. Miles to goal: 92.1.
1. You can't remember how to put the harness on your dog.
2. You can't remember what your 2 mile route is, so you end up on the 1.5 mile route, which is ok because,
3. You and your dog are ready to stop after 1.5 miles.
Yesterday Zoey and I took advantage of the beautiful morning and went for our first run of the season. It was so nice to be outside! This weather is perfect - not too cold or warm to run, and comfortable to be outside without a jacket. I love it! Too bad the forecast claims it won't last. But it's Minnesota, so what do I expect?
After the run, I went on the exercise bike. Yes, I'm insane. But for a reason - my friend Andrea and I are going to be doing a mini triathlon this June. The tri is .5 mile swim, 15 mile bike ride and 5 mile run. It's called "Swim-Bike-Run Like a Girl With a Kick." Andrea did it last year and had fun. This year they are offering the "with a kick" version - longer distances - and somehow she "convinced" me to do the longer one. I figure this is a great one to get my feet wet with. It's low competition, and you swim in a pool instead of a lake (so if you get tired you can take a break), and it's fairly low cost compared to others. I'm looking forward to it.
Miles run this year: 7.9 miles. Miles to goal: 92.1.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Week 5 Results
During Week 5 I rode our exercise bike for a total of 150 minutes and 29 miles. And it's a good thing that I started exercising again: May 2 is the annual Run of the Mills 5k run and then somehow Andrea managed to talk me into doing a mini triathlon on June 13. Time to really get this butt in gear! Since the start of my diet/life change I have lost 3 pounds.
Last night I played volleyball. My mom slightly freaked out when she found out that I was playing (concern for my back). During the middle of the third game I thought to myself, "Huh, how would I get home if I threw my back out again?" Thankfully everything was fine. We lost, but I am still in one piece.
I forgot to post last week about a new recipe I tried: Barley and Vegetable Saute from Betty Crocker. It was pretty darn healthy and not bad. Ben's comments were: "I've never seen so many Lima beans in one place before." and "This looks like peasant food." But he ate it several times (it made a lot) since it was low in calories, high in protein and pretty filling.
Last night I played volleyball. My mom slightly freaked out when she found out that I was playing (concern for my back). During the middle of the third game I thought to myself, "Huh, how would I get home if I threw my back out again?" Thankfully everything was fine. We lost, but I am still in one piece.
I forgot to post last week about a new recipe I tried: Barley and Vegetable Saute from Betty Crocker. It was pretty darn healthy and not bad. Ben's comments were: "I've never seen so many Lima beans in one place before." and "This looks like peasant food." But he ate it several times (it made a lot) since it was low in calories, high in protein and pretty filling.
Monday, March 16, 2009
The Smell of Grilling is in the Air
You know you're a Minnesotan when even though there is snow on the ground you are outside grilling.
The last few days have been very warm. I believe it has been 50 something. As a result most of the snow is gone. Yesterday it seems like everyone was outside at some point. Around dinner time Zoey and I headed out for a walk. There were several grills going. It really made me hungry! My favorite griller was a lady in one of the townhouses. She was outside in her driveway with a mini Weber (you know, the kind that is like 1 foot in diameter). I guess it was a tad windy out for such a little guy. She was holding a large piece of cardboard up to block the wind. Such a funny sight!
As a result of the snow melting, everything was super wet. Zoey had mud everywhere. She was going to get a bath, but Ben wasn't home and I doubt I should have been lifting her and there is no way she willingly goes into the tub. Besides, I knew the next morning she would get muddy again. So, I took a wet towel and wiped her down.
Now, the question is, is spring here to stay? The last several years I have gotten a bunch of snow for my birthday...
The last few days have been very warm. I believe it has been 50 something. As a result most of the snow is gone. Yesterday it seems like everyone was outside at some point. Around dinner time Zoey and I headed out for a walk. There were several grills going. It really made me hungry! My favorite griller was a lady in one of the townhouses. She was outside in her driveway with a mini Weber (you know, the kind that is like 1 foot in diameter). I guess it was a tad windy out for such a little guy. She was holding a large piece of cardboard up to block the wind. Such a funny sight!
As a result of the snow melting, everything was super wet. Zoey had mud everywhere. She was going to get a bath, but Ben wasn't home and I doubt I should have been lifting her and there is no way she willingly goes into the tub. Besides, I knew the next morning she would get muddy again. So, I took a wet towel and wiped her down.
Now, the question is, is spring here to stay? The last several years I have gotten a bunch of snow for my birthday...
Friday, March 13, 2009
A Million Things
Ok, not quite. But since it has been a long time since I have posted, this might turn out to be a long one. :)
1. Today was day 1 of being drug free. Getting out of the car and bending too far forward or backward still causes some pain, but everything else is great! So glad to be back to normal. As I am able to move more I will start to add back stretches and exercises to strengthen those muscles to hopefully prevent any more outages.
2. Holding steady/down slightly on my weight. Overall I am down almost 2 pounds from when I started. My cardio has just been on the exercise bike since I haven't been able to jump in too deep with a sore back yet. Hope to get back to my videos this week.
3. The other day when I was at the kitchen sink I looked out the window and saw a very impressive sized pheasant. Moments later he flew away with his hen. How cool!
4. Zoey went to the vet yesterday. She has gained 12 pounds since last year. Yikes! It's a combo of not running 2-3 miles each morning (at our old house she got free rain of the woods for our morning walk. Now she is on the leash for a brisk 1 mile walk), and she seems to love her food. We used to just fill her bowl whenever and she would just eat what she was hungry for. Now she'll eat whatever we put out for her. So, we are back to measuring her food. When the weather improves we will start taking her to the dog park again so she can run. In a few months we will take her back for a weigh in.
5. I found out yesterday that I am for sure going to India in April for work. I am so excited to have the chance to be going back there. The hard part will be to work while there. I have such wonderful friendships with so many over there that I truly wish I could just hang out with them. But alas, as long as the General is footing the bill, I will have to be productive.
6. I'm supposed to be working on my book and sales page and stuff. But I'm feeling a little lazy, so I'm wasting time by updating my blog. Not that this is a waste of time, it's just that I'm "supposed" to be doing something else.
Ok, so I only made it to 6 things, not a million. Oh, well. I doubt you would have made it past #100. :)
1. Today was day 1 of being drug free. Getting out of the car and bending too far forward or backward still causes some pain, but everything else is great! So glad to be back to normal. As I am able to move more I will start to add back stretches and exercises to strengthen those muscles to hopefully prevent any more outages.
2. Holding steady/down slightly on my weight. Overall I am down almost 2 pounds from when I started. My cardio has just been on the exercise bike since I haven't been able to jump in too deep with a sore back yet. Hope to get back to my videos this week.
3. The other day when I was at the kitchen sink I looked out the window and saw a very impressive sized pheasant. Moments later he flew away with his hen. How cool!
4. Zoey went to the vet yesterday. She has gained 12 pounds since last year. Yikes! It's a combo of not running 2-3 miles each morning (at our old house she got free rain of the woods for our morning walk. Now she is on the leash for a brisk 1 mile walk), and she seems to love her food. We used to just fill her bowl whenever and she would just eat what she was hungry for. Now she'll eat whatever we put out for her. So, we are back to measuring her food. When the weather improves we will start taking her to the dog park again so she can run. In a few months we will take her back for a weigh in.
5. I found out yesterday that I am for sure going to India in April for work. I am so excited to have the chance to be going back there. The hard part will be to work while there. I have such wonderful friendships with so many over there that I truly wish I could just hang out with them. But alas, as long as the General is footing the bill, I will have to be productive.
6. I'm supposed to be working on my book and sales page and stuff. But I'm feeling a little lazy, so I'm wasting time by updating my blog. Not that this is a waste of time, it's just that I'm "supposed" to be doing something else.
Ok, so I only made it to 6 things, not a million. Oh, well. I doubt you would have made it past #100. :)
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Week 3 Results
Due to my back occupying most of my time, I haven't done much. I haven't even weighed myself recently, so I have no clue how I'm doing on that. I'm hoping to get back on track for Week 4.
As a side note, this is my 100th post.
As a side note, this is my 100th post.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
One of Many
I believe that there are thousands of idiots in the world. On Friday, I joined that number.
For those that read this regularly, you will know that I have had some back issues for the past few weeks. Slowly I have been getting better. Thursday night we got some snow (about 5 inches). After my walk on Friday morning, I decided to be the thoughtful little wife and clear away the snow at the end of our driveway from the snow plow. Not a good idea. At all.
I hadn't done too much when I felt and heard a pop in my lower back. I seriously just wanted to collapse in the snow. But since Ben was still asleep and the neighborhood is pretty quiet until 7, I figured I might be in the snow for a long time. I didn't want to add hypothermia to my list of ailments. So I made goals: Make it to the garage. Get in the house. Get my boots off. Make it to the couch. Wake up Ben.
I have never fainted, but I think I might have been close to that. Several times the room went black. I was nauseous and hot. I finally made it to the couch. Laying down helped, but my muscles kept seizing up. I have never been in so much paid before.
With Zoey's help we woke up Ben (so glad we taught her how to speak). He got me an ice pack and some ibuprofen. He checked to see when urgent care opened. Then we got to go to the clinic. That was a very painful process. Getting in and out of the car brought me to tears. The doctor was very nice. He ordered up x-rays to make sure nothing more serious than a muscle thing was going on. For x-rays I needed to get undressed. Not fun. But thankfully, the x-rays looked good and I was sent on my way with a couple of prescriptions.
I am feeling a ton better. My muscles have stopped spasming randomly. And the pain has diminished greatly. I still have trouble sitting down and standing up.
Through this whole ordeal, Ben has been awesome. I am so incredibly thankful for him. He has been sure to get me everything that I need. He has made sure I am taking my medications on time. He has helped me get to couches. And he has even helped me to get on and off the toilet (that has to be the worse piece of "furniture" to get on and off of with a sore back - it's so low!). He has also been extremely thoughtful on things I hadn't even thought of: he moved my towel to the top rack so I don't have to bend to get it; he moved my shampoo, conditioner and body wash so I can get to them without too much hassle. And the entire time he hasn't complained or even given me a hard time (since it was my fault that I am in this situation in the first place). I honestly don't know what I would have done without him.
For those that read this regularly, you will know that I have had some back issues for the past few weeks. Slowly I have been getting better. Thursday night we got some snow (about 5 inches). After my walk on Friday morning, I decided to be the thoughtful little wife and clear away the snow at the end of our driveway from the snow plow. Not a good idea. At all.
I hadn't done too much when I felt and heard a pop in my lower back. I seriously just wanted to collapse in the snow. But since Ben was still asleep and the neighborhood is pretty quiet until 7, I figured I might be in the snow for a long time. I didn't want to add hypothermia to my list of ailments. So I made goals: Make it to the garage. Get in the house. Get my boots off. Make it to the couch. Wake up Ben.
I have never fainted, but I think I might have been close to that. Several times the room went black. I was nauseous and hot. I finally made it to the couch. Laying down helped, but my muscles kept seizing up. I have never been in so much paid before.
With Zoey's help we woke up Ben (so glad we taught her how to speak). He got me an ice pack and some ibuprofen. He checked to see when urgent care opened. Then we got to go to the clinic. That was a very painful process. Getting in and out of the car brought me to tears. The doctor was very nice. He ordered up x-rays to make sure nothing more serious than a muscle thing was going on. For x-rays I needed to get undressed. Not fun. But thankfully, the x-rays looked good and I was sent on my way with a couple of prescriptions.
I am feeling a ton better. My muscles have stopped spasming randomly. And the pain has diminished greatly. I still have trouble sitting down and standing up.
Through this whole ordeal, Ben has been awesome. I am so incredibly thankful for him. He has been sure to get me everything that I need. He has made sure I am taking my medications on time. He has helped me get to couches. And he has even helped me to get on and off the toilet (that has to be the worse piece of "furniture" to get on and off of with a sore back - it's so low!). He has also been extremely thoughtful on things I hadn't even thought of: he moved my towel to the top rack so I don't have to bend to get it; he moved my shampoo, conditioner and body wash so I can get to them without too much hassle. And the entire time he hasn't complained or even given me a hard time (since it was my fault that I am in this situation in the first place). I honestly don't know what I would have done without him.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
