Satisfied on Saturday

One half cup of oatmeal cooked with one cup of nonfat moo, some walnuts and a banana were for breakfast today. Snack was one orange and cup of hot green tea. Lunch was 2 corn tortillas with turkey lunchmeat, and half a tomato with jalenpeno sauce. Snacked on one small gala apple with peanut butter. And, too much peanut butter after that. One teaspoon. Then another. OMG it was so good. I had to stop! Dinner was fried potatoes with soy sauce and about a cup of soybean sprouts, along with a cup of nonfat moo. Small handful of nacho cheese tortilla chips. Oops! Not bad overall today. Just trying to use up what I have before buying more food. Trying. Goal is use up the items in the fridge, then the freezer, then the canned goods in the pantry. Would really like to do this.

How did I do today? I'm not sure. I think okay overall. But, probably could have done better. Here's the low-down:

Breakfast:
*2 slices of wheat toast (as opposed to one)
*with nutella spread
*one orange
*one cup of nonfat moo
*instant coffee with cream and sugar

Snack:
*one small gala apple

Lunch:
*ham and cheese melts on 2 corn tortillas, jack cheese, and seasoned with hot sauce and tomato slices on top, about half a tomato, maybe 4 oz. of cheese, and one serving of ham lunchmeat
*one banana
*a handful of nacho cheese tortilla chips, why did I do that? It was a craving!

Snack:
*mushrooms, about a handful
*celery, about 2 stalks
*2 T. hummus with jalepeno and cilantro

Dinner:
*fried rice with kimchi and soy bean sprouts, it was brown rice, fried with a little bit of leftover kimchi, and about a cup of the soy bean sprouts, along with soy sauce and sesame oil and seeds, not bad!
*one cup of nonfat moo
*one slice of leftover orange from morning

Exercise:
Zumba for about 40 minutes because I was late and the substitute Zumba instructor stopped 5 minutes early~I didn't dare weigh myself on the scale today. I'm too scared. I was going to do yoga tonight but I didn't get myself moving in time to go. Yeah, sometimes I get in a little bit of a funk, so today was kind of one of those days. I was happy to run into Cathy this morning as I was leaving the gym she was at the ATM machine. And then I took some time in the jacuzzi at home. Yes, it was a pleasant day; I even got to read a book. This book is by John Wimber on Intimate Prayer. Well, actually, it is more like a little booklet. Anyways, wow! There are so many jewels packed in that little book. Maybe I can share one with you. Hmmm...let's see. The reward of intimate prayer is not the answer but in intimacy alone with the Father. Well, I'm not sure if I am recalling it accurately, but I think that was the jist of the idea. Anyways, this is not a book review blog, this is a health and fitness blog!! Stick to the topic please. (Just kidding~) Thanks for reading. Have a nice day!! Leave me an encouraging note!!

My Trip to Wholesome Choice

So, like I said, I needed to buy some healthy snack alternatives to eat, since I was starting to eat cookies at least twice this week! So, off to Wholesome Choice I went, in search of healthy foods and some good deals.

I cannot believe what I found there this afternoon when I went! And, I am so pleased!! They had gala apples on sale, so I got some of those. They also had Valencia oranges on sale, so I grabbed some of those too. I found some hummus for buy one get one free, so I grabbed that. The carrots were a one or two pound bag for 59 cents!! And, the celery I'm not sure, but I think was super cheap too. I alos picked up a package of mushrooms for 99 cents. Alltogether I paid under $10, or just around $10 for all that yummy, delicious, and healthy produce. I also got some roma tomatoes for 59 cents a pound or some outrageous figure like that!! I'm not kidding. And, I'm so happy (about the savings I accrued today). I feel so blessed to have gotten a week's worth of fresh produce for my healthy snacks for $10. I'm not sure I've ever gotten such a good deal before from the market!!

But, I'm not done with my story! There's more!! So, as I was departing the market, the man from Salvation Army was there, taking monetary donations. And, he looked Hispanic to me. I cannot ignore this man! So, I talked with him in Spanish and told him that I was sorry that I didn't have any cash on me (which was true). And, then I asked him (in Spanish) if he would like some fruit? He said yes, so I gave him a banana, an orange, and an apple. I'm not sure who felt happier afterwards, him or me. I think I walked away from that situation feeling like a total winner!! I love when God gives divine appointments or little opportunities to bless others. I know a year ago I might have felt annoyed that this man was standing in front of me, begging for money. But, God has done a work in my heart and changed me. Yep. This is my story!!

Thursday Review

Today's breakfast:
*one biscuit with margarine and strawberry spread
*one cup of nonfat moo
*one tangerine
Snack:
*one cup instant coffee
*a lot of biscuit cookies from Trader Joes :(
Lunch:
*one cup of chicken tortilla soup, homemade
*one small handful of crushed nacho cheese chips as soup topping

Snack:
*one tomato
*2 celery stalks
*2 T. cilantro and jalepeno hummus
*one small gala apple
*one cup of hot green tea with brown rice blend
Dinner:
*vegetable soup in tomato broth with fish
*small portion of nonfat vanilla yogurt

Exercise:
*one hour Zumba
*142??? When I weighed myself tonight at the gym the scale said 142. Is it possible? Could I have seriously gained 5 pounds in 5 days? God, I hope not! I don't think so. I feel the scale is wrong! My clothes aren't feeling any tighter than usual. And, I haven't eaten 5 pounds worth of food, have I? I know last time I weighed myself in the morning I got a smaller number!! I should try that again!!

So, overall, I am pleased with my eating today. I know I messed up with the tea biscuits from Trader Joe's, but what's done is done. And, I did go out and buy fresh produce from Wholesome Choice, so now I'll be munching on healthy snacks this week for sure!!

A Wise Woman Once Told Me...

Last night Nackwon encouraged me to snack on celery!! I think she is right!! I am snacking on those tea biscuits (again) and I'm sure they're not good for the waistline!! She mentioned that celery also helps you sleep better at night. I haven't heard of that before, but, I think I had better buy some fresh celery and baby carrots today at the market!! Seriously. If I care about my health, and if I care about my waistline, I should heed the words of Nackwon!! I am planning on buying some celery, carrots and hummus today!!

Oh Noooooo

Uh-oh! I need to be careful!! Today I ate these delicious biscuit cookies from Trader Joe's. If I only had 3 or 4 cookies then that would have been fine. But, I snacked, and snacked, and snacked. Uh-oh is right. I better be careful.

If that was the only mishap then maybe I wouldn't have reason to worry. However, yesterday I also took a mis-step. Were they those chocolate fudge cookies again? Actually, that might have been Sunday; I'm not sure. But, I know I need to watch what I am putting into my mouth! Always.

Why am I so concerned about what I eat nowadays? For one thing, I lived almost a decade or longer without taking thought to what I injested. Consequently, I gained nearly 50 some pounds!! Secondly, I didn't lose all this weight for nothing; I mean, I didn't lose all this weight only to gain it all back again. So, it is necessary for me to pay attention to what I eat and to eat well, so that I might maintain a healthy weight from this day onward.

On a positive note, after our meeting tonight I went to the gym and worked on the elliptical machine for one hour and burned 550 some calories. I like when that happens!

So, yeah, this is my story!!

God Helps Me Everyday

I am very aware of the fact that my weight loss success up until now has been in large part due to God's grace on my life. Sure, I did the work of choosing which foods to eat, and what exercises to do, but God is the one who gave me success by His grace. I could not have done it without Jane, and without God. This is true. I mean, God gave me the ability to have any kind of self-control. And, yes, I did stumble along the way too. Nevertheless, God enabled me to pick the right foods. God enabled me to have the desire to say no to over doing it on the sweets or bread factors.

I mean, when I lived in Korea, I used to eat the equivalent of 2 donuts in the morning sometimes! I would walk across the street to the local bakery, and buy like 2 pastries from there. OMG~there were so delicious! However, I had no idea or concept at the time of what I was doing to my body!!

Tonight, I ate Flame Broiler for dinner. I chose the brown rice bowl with chicken and veggies. I asked for the white meat and dark meat combo (well they gave it to me as a one time special). Anyways, I never thought about my food choices before. Nor did I make any kind of connection between what I put in my mouth and what my body turned out in physical appearance.

And, losing weight is not just about physical appearance, although that is definately one positive outcome. But, just as important, if not more, is the health factor or health benefit that comes from losing even 5 pounds. I know deep in my heart some obesity related health risks may have been averted. And I am so thankful.

So I am rambling. But, I'm just trying to say, and acknowledge that God is the One who helped me along the way on this journey, whether I had realized it at the time or not (and most likely not). And, I will still need Him now and in my future to continue helping me along the way, to maintain and or lose more if the body wants to.

So, I thank God for redeeming my body. My prayer is that He will help you also on your weight loss and health journey. I know this: God wants to help us!! Amen.

I'm Not at a Plateau Anymore

137 tonight at the gym with just a towel and flip flops on. I cannot believe it!! So, this tells me that my coach, trainer and friend, Jane, was right! She said to remain faithful and to keep eating right, and my body would do its thing. Well, those are my words but her concept!! I was around 139-141 for at least 3 months if not 4 or more!! I would have to check my actual records in order to know for certain. What I do know now, is, that, it is highly likely that my body will get down to at least 135 soon, and possibly 130 by the end of the year if not sooner. I feel like this is a strong possibility!!!

On another note, working out at the gym today was challenging. I did the elliptical machine for one hour. At the 30 minute mark I was ready to be done. But, I also wanted to push myself for another 30 because it's good for the heart and I like burning calories!! So, I did the 60 minutes in total, knowing that my body had rested enough. I hadn't been to the gym since Friday morning, so by Sunday afternoon my body should be able to hit the gym hard again. I could have given up like I did on Friday morning, but I didn't this time.

And of course, the usual jacuzzi time afterwards. That's my favorite part, indeed!

Sunday 10/23/11

Half good, half so-so:

Breakfast:
*one biscuit easy with the butter and strawberry preserves
*one tangerine
*2 scrambled eggs with tomatoes, green onion and garlic, seasoned with salt and tapitio hot sauce
*topped the eggs with one half of an avocado
*one cup of nonfat milk
*one cup of hot green tea

Lunch:
*leftover chicken and rice-vegetable soup
*salad with turkey meat, cucumber and bean sprouts topped with easy sesame soy giner dressing
*one apple with 1 or 2 T. of peanut butter
*small serving of nonfat vanilla yogurt

Trying to drink plenty of water and may go to workout at the gym this afternoon. What's for dinner? Who knows?

Why did I just eat those chocolate fudge cookies? I'd been doing so well so far today. Grrr. One mistake. Little foxes spoil the vine. Grrr. Next time (tomorrow) hopefully I will do better! Anger, regret, acceptance, resolve.

Lazy Saturday

Ah, today is becoming a lazy Saturday! I love and hate when this happens!! Anyways, foodwise, so far so good. Breakfast just a simple slice of wheat toast with nutella, one orange, one cup of hot green tea. I ran out of milk so will have to go to store later to get some. Mid morning snack was a banana and another cup of hot green tea. Yes, I love green tea! So far dong fine. Now if I could only get my butt moving and doing something, then all would be well. He he.

Victory in Sight?

I totally enjoyed Jane's Zumba class last night (Thursday). But, getting up this morning and out the door on time for Dawn's morning Zumba class proved to be difficult. I think I did it last week, but this week I think the weather was affecting my mood. It is so overcast in the morning, it's like pulling me down a little bit. Or, maybe because I have a major decision to make in the next 10 days that is stressing me out a little. Maybe I feel a combination of all these. Whatever the case, I made myself get to the gym. Well, I was running late, so I got sidetracked with an errand, and then got myself to the gym. And, dance class was over by then. So, I opted for the elliptical machine.

I was hoping for one hour on the machine, but, after 30 minutes, I had to quit. My body was done! All I can think is that my body needs, or needed, a time of rest from last night's dance class. Last week when I was exercising every day for an hour, I was going in the evenings and allowed like a 24 hour rest in between most of the workouts.

Ok, so now for the success part of my entry. I don't know what compelled me, but I decided to check my weight on the scale this morning. 137?!! Really? I was elated. Esctatic. Unbelieveable! Just last night at the gym I thought the scale said 140 or 141. So, morning time is best time to take my weight! Ha ha. Yes, I'm 137 now. And, it makes me feel like a million bucks. Well, it also motivates me to continue on this road. It makes me want to keep eating the right foods and it makes me want to keep exercising.

Wow~thanks God for helping my body come down to the 130s range. I want my body to glorify You, too.

That's all for now.

Exciting Day

I woke up and changed up my breakfast today.

Today's Breakfast:
*One slice of wheat bread
*One tablespoon of nutella spread
*One orange
*One cup of non fat milk
*One cup of hot green tea
*Multi vitamin and fish oil supplement, fiber tablet too

Today's lunch is packed:
*One apple
*One banana
*Ham sandwich meat
*Non fat vanilla yogurt
*Cheddar cheese, 1 or 2 oz., for a mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack most likely

Thursday Redemption

Yes, Wednesday was a little bit of a fall from grace; I ate the whole slice of the dreaded cheesecake! I'm sure it must have been around 400 calories or more for that one slice. So, today (Thursday) I had a much improved day.

Breakfast
*Oatmeal
*Non fat milk
*Walnuts
*Cup of instant coffee with powdered cream and sugar

Lunch
*Rice noodle Vietnamese soup with beef
*Served with peppers, basil, cilantro and bean sprouts

After Lunch Dessert
*non fat frozen yogurt from yogrutland (chocolate, strawberry and taro flavors)
*topped with blueberries, strawberries and carob/chocolate chips

Late Afternoon Snack
*Hot green tea from Starbucks
*Petite Vanilla Scone (it's my other weakness)

Dinner
*steak fajitas with sauteed veggies (onion and peppers)
*no tortilla
*one cup of nonfat milk

Exercise
*Zumba with Jane for one hour. My favorite time of day. And, she played Waca Waca song. One of my current favorites!!

My diet lacked enough fruit today, but, at least I didn't gorge out on cheesecake!! I was definately tempted today by all the sweets at Starbucks. I got a petite vanilla scone which has around 140 calories because you only get like 3 or 4 bites out of it!! I'm laughing because some of their other desserts and breads contain 300 or more calories!! Uh, yeah, I'm not doing much of that anymore! At least in theory anyways!!

Tomorrow is Friday. Another day to try and live right. Morning Zumba class with Dawn. And, that's all that I have planned for the day. Study and/or prepare for my ESL class. Maybe a little bit of both. And, try to eat healthily. This is my life. And saving $1.00 a day for next year's cruise with Vineyard!! I think that would be so fun to go on a cruise with Vineyard! Oh yeah!!

Fail!

Last night I attended an informational meeting at Biola for prospective grad students. I am considering getting my Masters in TESOL (teaching English to speakers of other languages). The meeting began with a dinner. They served us salad, pasta, breadsticks, dessert, and drinks. I had just a tiny bit of salad with Italian dressing, a tiny bit of pasta with the red meat sauce (we had 3 kinds to choose from, one of which was a cream sauce), one breadstick. Dessert was cheesecake with strawberries and cream. I succombed. Fail. But, today is a new day. And, I'm failing again. Well, lunch at a Vietnamese restraunt with rice noodles in a soup, that was so delicious!! And, Yogurtland afterwards for dessert. I chose just a little bit of chocolate, strawberry and taro flavored yogurt along with toppings of blueberries, strawberries and chocolate chips!! My portion was not that much though, so that's a good thing. Sort of. When I was finished, I was like, oh I want more!! But, I didn't get seconds after that.

Yes, so last night was a failure. And, after the meeting I was still hungry so I came home and ate even more! But, it was the leftover steak fajitas I had made the other day, minus the tortilla. So, I did feel good about that. And, a cup of non fat milk.

I think I understand now the truth of the saying, "we are what we eat". If I want to pack on the pounds again, all I have to do is throw out everything I've learned about food the past 10 months out the window. No way, Jose! Not even. I'm hanging on. I WANT to eath healthy. And, I WANT to do good. I may have "blown it" last night with the cheesecake (even a few bites would have been better than eating the whole slice), but, I am not a loser! I can start again now. Right now. This is my moment. And, this is my day.

Waca-Waca
...when you get down get up wo oh, when you're down get up ya ya...waca waca...oh this is Africa!...

I'm So Angry!

The other day someone told me she had gained the weight she had lost! I don't know why, but I felt so mad inside. Why didn't she keep the weight off? Well, I should have talked with her more so that I could know and understand her story. But, as of now, I do not know her story. Why did she lose the weight? How did she gain it all back? What was that like for her?

And, I think it's not just her story in particular that makes me angry. But, I've heard of stories of other women, women that I know, who have made great strides in this area only to fail again. It makes me so sad for them! And, it makes me determined not to fall into the trap that they fell into.

I know how important what I feed my body is now. I have to constantly say "no" to sweets. For example, I am in a Starbucks Coffee Shop right now, and would I not just love one of their desserts? Yes, of course! Absolutely. And, once in a while is probably not going to cause me to gain 50 pounds. However, I mostly choose other foods because it is in my body and health's best interest to do so.

This is just where I am at today. I think when others around me who used to be thin and then become big again, hits close to home. I'm afraid of that happening to me. I love this new body that I have. I wouldn't even mind if I went down 10 more pounds if my body will do it. I can't imagine what it would feel like to lose 50 pounds only to gain it back.

Yes, I think I both fear that happening to me, and am projecting what I might feel if that did happen to me. I would feel sorrow and anger towards myself for regressing. A-ha; now I'm getting somewhere!!

So, I am motivated to maintain what I've gained thus far, and I welcome more poundage shed if possible. This is my story.

Nuts, Fruits and Other Things!

Yes, my breakfast this morning was a bowl of oatmeal. Made with non fat milk. And, topped with a little bit of trail mix. If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you'll know that trail mix is one of my loves/weaknesses. I know, it's not ALL bad, and contains some healthy fat, so I shouldn't be so apologetic for it.

But, mighty proud of myself for lunch. I packed for lunch today the following: a banana, an orange, an apple, some yogurt, and some turkey deli lunch meat. Can you say happiness? I'm at a Starbucks now, drinking an iced green tea with splenda. I'm in heaven! The only down side is that my eating times are a little bit irregular today! Well, only lunch is a little bit later than usual. That's all.

I'm not sure what time dinner will be. The plan is Zumba class at 5:45 tonight. And, dinner will be steak fajitas (with onion and peppers). Not sure yet what else to make with it. Beans? Rice? Other?

Doing my best to eat healthy each day.

So So Sunday

Invitation to lunch at Cathy's house today. How could I say no? Lovely time with lovely friends!

Turkey sausages for lunch with apples and carrot sticks. So very nice for my waistline, minus the chips. On the plus side, I didn't pig out on the chips, but I did have enough.

Dinner was a goulash type of ground beef with a mixture of veggies in a tomato sauce. The veggies were a quarter of a medium potato chopped, some cabbage, and some zucchinni. And a cup of milk. Non fat milk.

Snacked on low fat yogurt and trail mix.

And, ate more trail mix after that. Began with one serving of trail mix. But, later had another palmful and then another. So, overall eating today was satisfactory minus the trail mix indulgement.

Well, tomorrow is Monday. It's a new day. Time to exercise again, Mon-Fri. and to focus on eating right. Am curious what my weight is now after last week's intense workouts and eating focus.

Love the new clothes friends have given me. I feel so blessed. Jane, April and Jill have all made contributions to my clothing attire, and it has helped me so much! I feel tremendously blessed, and grateful.

Green Tea for Breakfast

I love green tea! My 1st favorite brand is Kirkland's green tea, from Costco. My 2nd favorite green tea is the brown rice blend from the Korean markets. M-m-m!!

So, today's breakfast was one scrambeled egg, with one cup of mixed veggies like zuchinni, onion and cucumber. One orange, one slice of wheat bread with nutella spread, and one cup of non fat milk. One cup of hot green tea too. One multi-vitamin and fish oil supplement; I'm set.

I'm thinking that this is kind of a lot for breakfast. I'm thinking that I could split it up into breakfast with a part of it, and then a mid morning snack with the other part. I'm also thinking of eliminating egg every day. I am thinking of changing out the egg into a whole grain cereal of some sort, or maybe some fruit, nuts and yogurt. The options are endless. I am wanting to decrease the amount of cholesterol I consume.

Temptations

Temptations, and by this I don't mean the Rock Group!!

Today I was strongly tempted by chocolate fudge cookies in the cupboard. But, like my friend Laura said, I will feel better if I put my head on the pillow without having eaten them. And, like Sandra said, I should resist!!

Well, I did have a snack. And, I am realizing that I should get some more healthy snacks in the house! Things like what I call finger veggies; those are veggies that can be eaten with your fingers, like carrot sticks, celery and what not. And, some hummus for dipping. Yes, I think a trip to the store for some healthy alternatives for when those food cravings come is a trip that is in order!

So, as for my evening snack tonight, I found a grapefruit I had in the fridge. So, I ate that. And, then I had a small handful of trail mix. It had nuts, dried fruit, and candies in it (M & M's). So, my food choice was better than fudge cookies. Not veggies, but, decent choice more or less.

Balanced Dinner

Here's what I had for dinner tonight. Nothing fancy. Just rice, meat and a side of veggies. (I stirred it all together to make sort of like a goulash). Also, I drank a cup of milk. Nonfat milk. The rice is mostly brown rice with a little bit of white rice mixed in with it. And, the meat is ground beef, fried then simmered with a can of stewed tomatoes. I think the tomatoes were "Mexican style", which just means flavored with Mexican seasonings like oregano and cumin. I sliced 2 different kinds of zuchinni: green and yellow. Then I seasoned them with a little oil, salt and fresh garlic. I placed them in a 425 degree oven for 10 minutes. I think they needed more time to cook.

This meal overall is allright. I'm sure I could do better with the meat. For example, I could have eaten a more leaner cut of meat. But, I was going through my freezer and trying to use up what I already have rather than buy up new things. So that is why I chose that. Same thing with the rice. I did buy some brown rice last week, but I happened to still have a little bit of a white and brown rice mixed, so I had used that. I am trying to just use it up!! Probably I could have cooked the veggies without the oil. Then I could have saved some calories and fat. Maybe next time I will change the way I prepare the veggies.

I am being tempted right now to eat some chocolate fudge cookies I have in my pantry! I should get rid of them but I will probably use them as rewards for my students.

Every time I "overcome" my temptations, it is like exercising my self-control muscle. Someone told me that. Katie told me that. I like that.

I am getting closer and closer to my goal. My goal is to get down to 130 if my body will cooperate! So far, I've been steady around 141 to 139. I am hoping that my efforts last week in both eating and exercise will pay off. Everything I eat counts!! Those little decisions I make can have an impact on my final outcome. I have come this far so far. I just feel like why should I stop now? In other words, now that I am so close to a thinner, slimmer body, why not go all the way? I've blogged about this before. I'm just saying, again!!

Thanks for reading my blog. May YOU too stay on track. Together, we can have healthier lifestyles. Let's take good care of our temples!!

In love,
Monica

A Week In Review~

This past week my friend and I made a goal of eating right all week long and to exercise daily. As for me, I did it!! I exercised starting Monday until Friday every day!! This is a 1st for me all year long!! I took 3 Zumba classes, and went on the elliptical machine for one hour on the other 2 days of the week. Today is Saturday, and my body is a little bit sore. I think it is a good kind of sore though. My plan is to rest today and tomorrow, and then go at it again next week.

My eating is all right overall. When I eat a sandwich, I make sure the bread is wheat not white. And, I use mustard or something fat free, not mayonaise. I've been drinking a lot of water and take a daily multi vitamin.

My current weight this week fluctuated between 139 and 141, which is where I have been for like the past 3 or 4 months!! I'll just keep plugging along and see where my body will take me.

Until next time...

How Am I Supposed to Live Without You?

It's the famous song by Michael Bolton. But, it resonates in my heart and mind this weekend as one of my close friends in health and fitness has other things she is attending to this weekend! Thus, this leaves me searching for other avenues of support.

I Can't Get Noooo Sat-tis=fact-tion~

So, today I am like totally satisfied with myself overall. The only "down" side of the day was drinking the instant coffee which contained sugar and creamer already in it. That kind of coffee is my weak spot.

Breakfast today was the typical one scrambled egg, one orange, one cup of non fat milk, one cup of hot green tea, one slice of wheat toast with some nutella spread (probably too fattening), and one cup of cooked veggies.

Drank the instant coffee in the morning as a mid morning snack.

Lunch was a salad of spinach, cucumber, green beans and lean ham lunch meat (only 60 calories for the ham). Drizzled with 2 tablespoons of dressing from Trader Joes, the sesame ginger soy dressing (only 35 calories for 2 T). Also ate a 6 oz. portion of lowfat yogurt and about a half a cup of strawberries.

Drank iced green tea and an americano. I put some non fat milk in the americano along with one or two packets of splenda.

For dinner I made a fish and vegetable spicy stew, and served it with a half cup of cooked white and brown rice mixed, and some kimchi and a cup of non fat milk. Totally satisfying.

Exercise today was one hour on the elliptical type machine. I did it in 4 fifteen minute increments (just like they did on the Biggest Loser a few weeks ago). I burned somewhere between 500 and 550 calories in that one hour workout alone. My favorite part of working out is by far the jacuzzi time afterwards!! This has always been my truth.

I am pleased with myself today. I am hoping to hit the gym EVERY DAY this week (Monday through Friday) for one hour of cardio or toning classes. My other goal is to focus intensely on eating right throughout the week. One day down, 4 more to go. I'll tackle the weekend after that.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Thanks God for redeeming my body from what it was to where it is, and to where it may be going. I love Jesus because He 1st loved me!! Amen.

Lose 5 pounds in One Week!

I am at 141. Last Friday I went to my Zumba class and weighed myself then.

Sooooooooo, this week my friend and I are trying to lose 5 pounds in one week. Yes! We are being focused on food and exercise!! For one week only we are going to totally watch what we eat. We are going to eat lots of lean protein and veggies, and say no to sweets and things. Then, we are also going to exercise like every day and take a good mulit vitamin.

Saturday night I bought some things I would need for eating this week. I got a dozen eggs, some low fat yogurt, and some fruit and brown rice.

On Sunday (yesterday) I began the intense plan. Well, I went to a Korean worship service Sunday morning, and for lunch we ate white rice, kimchi, an egg side dish and some miso bean sprout soup. The rice they served you was like a whole plate full, so I ate about half, or just over half of it. The good news is that I didn't eat all of the rice, but the bad news is that I did eat more than half of it. Originally I divided the plate into just a half amount of the rice served, but it was so delicious, especially with the kimchi, so I ate a little bit more than the half. But, then Sunday's dinner was a healthy spinach salad with lean chicken meat, and I didn't really snack on anything all night.

So, I am back on track (hopefully). And, today (monday) I have been eating well overall. I did have one cup of coffee though, the instant kind, with sugar and creamer. But, I am going to the gym tonight and will work out at a high intensity (hopefully). So, it is like my "last chance workout" on the Biggest Loser.

Yea, the other day my friend and I were watching the Biggest Loser. One of the activities they had to do was a 4 quarter contest in 15 minute increments. The winner was the team that burned the most calories. They had to work hard each quarter. This workout has inspired me to do the same in my own workouts. My goal tonight is to replicate this type of workout. And then hit the jacuzzi.

My Busy Life

I just came back from the gym right now. I asked my roommate if she wouldn't mind if I came home 15 minutes later than usual, or if she wanted me home at the usual 11:00 pm. She said later was fine so I got to use jacuzzi after my workout. The jacuzzi is always my favorite part of working out!!! True!

So, my exercise tonight was using the elliptical machine for 30 minutes. I burned around 250 calories. I really needed to burn calories today, especially after the way I ate today!

Speaking of eating, I did good overall. But, I notice that I am doing "little things" that could be preventing me from progressing further in my weight loss goals. For example, in the afternoon I drank a Caramal Salted Mocha from Starbucks. Granted, I made it a "skinny", meaning made with non fat milk, and asked for the smallest size, which is a tall. I also asked for fewer pumps of the mocha, so they used 2 pumps instead of 3, and I asked for light whip. But, I also had a salted caramal bar, which was delicious! It was like 4 bites of 200 heavenly caloric bliss in my mouth. You would think that was enough, but later I succumbed to a petite vanilla scone from Starbucks too. They are one of my absolute favorites. These sweet treats are okay, but, these little things need to be watched and monitored.

I guess I feel this way for so many reasons. Before this year, I never thought about these things. And, my weight, or lack of a proper weight, reflected this. So, now that I am more aware of the reality that we really are what we eat, I desire to make a concentrated effort in my personal well being. In addition, I have lost 50 pounds this year so far, so why would I want to gainit all back? No, I definately do not want to gain my weight back. So, I do need to be concerned about my weight and think about what I put into my mouth. So, this is where I am coming from.

My lunch was a ham and turkey sandwich from subway with veggies, and mustard no mayo, with the veggies on a wheat roll. But, I didn't get the chips nor a cookie, which I would have easily done a year ago! And, I might have even had 2 bags of chips just because I could. Gross! (But, true!) Anyways, I was tempted to get a cookie, it looked so fresh and delicious. But, I didn't (but, I had 2 sweets from Starbucks instead so, it's a good thing I didn't eat that cookie from Subway).

My dinner was a bowl of fresh vegetable soup. I used a variety of veggies and chopped them up in a tomato broth with a little bit of sage, salt and hot sauce. It was pretty good. I used broccoli, cabbage, zucchinni, onion, potato and peppers. Drank with a cup of nonfat milk, and had some strawberries afterwards.

I think I am not drinking enough water though. So, I should try to improve in this area tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, the game plan is Zumba in the morning and working in the afternoon. Should try to pack something for a lunch.

I notice that I am making positive deposits in my physical life. That is, I am eating right (for the most part), and exercising (as I am able with this new crazy schedule). I miss Zumba so much! But, I realized that I can dance on my own even without a class. I just have to do it! So, that is the next thing I am thinking about these days.

I cannot believe there are people all around the world reading my blog. If you are from another country, why not leave me a pleasant comment? How are you doing? Why do you read my blog? Which parts of my blog do you enjoy or relate to? Anyways, hope you have a nice day, and I'll try to write again soon!! God bless you!

My Journal

Breakfast: 1 slice of wheat toast with 2 T. nutella spread, 1 orange, 1 cup of hot green tea

Lunch: 3 beef and potato tacos with onion, rice and beans, grape juice, Munched on 2 chocolate chip cookies. Too much sugar definately!!

Dinner: 1 egg omelette style with mixed veggies (tomato, zuchinni and onion), jalepeno sauce and cup of nonfat moo

Eating today not too great but not too bad. The fried corn tortillas for the tacos was probably the worst thing I ate today. And, I didn't eat just 1 or 2 tacos, which would have been more acceptable. But, I ate 3 tacos!! So, too many carbs in the corn tortilla, AND, too much fried food from the fried taco. But, so good!! Just cannot be a habit.

Starting a new program of eating tomorrow. Trying to focus on cutting down fat this month. Want to begin each day with cup of warm water with half a juice from lemon. And, breakfast smoothie of grapefruit and nopales, or substituting cabbage!

On the one hand, I have made amazing progress this year with my weight and body size. On the other hand, I've come this far, I may as well go all the way now and get slim and trim! This is why I am wanting to focus on getting rid of my belly fat now. I have a friend, Maria, who is helping me and teaching me a few "tricks" I can do. I hope it works!!