Dear Santa...

Dear Santa,

If you could please just let me wake up on Christmas morning and be 60 pounds thinner, that is all I want from you. I will even leave you extra yummy, gooey cookies, some carrots for Rudolph and a large glass of CHOCOLATE milk! And I promise if I wake up and I am 60 pounds thinner, I will strive to maintain by making healthier lifestyle choices and running every day. That's not too much to ask is it?! I've been extra good all year long after all...

XOXO,
Nicole

Okay, I know I haven't blogged for a while and it's mostly been from lack of motivation and partly because I just have been so busy with other stuff. I have a plan though, and I'm excited about it. First off though; Is it really December already?! I'm confused because I'm not sure we even had Halloween, much less Thanksgiving!

So I got a little book from my brother Chris called the Master Cleanse. Some people call it the Lemonade Diet. It was written quite a few years ago but is huge in Hollywood right now because of all the great benefits from it. Not only does the average person loose 2 pounds a day on it, but the health benefits from it are HUGE, not to mention that it makes a person look like they've lost ten years from their face when they're done. Chris did it and he got GREAT results and looked amazing when he was done. At least ten years younger! I've always believed that fasting and "cleansing" can be really healthy for you. My problem in the past is that I never did it right and therefore it turned out bad. You definitely have to do it the right way or it can backfire and cause major problems.

Anyway, I'm not going to go into a lot of detail right now, but my plan is to do it in January after the holidays are over with. I'm hoping it will jump start my weight loss plan and that I will feel so fantastic that it will motivate me to keep going and running and running some more until I have reached my goal weight once and for all. Google it. You'll be impressed..

In the meantime, I don't plan on stressing too much this month about things. I don't want to gain any weight this month either so I'm just going to really try to keep things under control, relax and enjoy the Christmas season, and then get serious in the new year...That's my plan stan..Merry Christmas to all, and to all a GOODNIGHT!

KEEP TRYING!!

I decided to wait and start my Isagenix cleanse after all of this moving and work was over with. I cleansed on Monday but was so tired and drained by the end of the day and I felt sick as a dog on top of it. Then I decided since this week is so chaotic with us moving out of our model and I had SO much to do that I need a lot of energy for, I am going to wait until we're done.

The last three days we have worked all day long moving and hauling stuff to the dump and back and forth to storage and bla bla bla...Needless to say, I literally have hardly stopped all week. We finally got everything ready yesterday for the garge sale that takes place tomorrow and Saturday so now today I will spend it getting caught up on my own house work and laundry since I will be working all weekend. But in the midst of everything, I have still been jogging and have been eating a lot better as well. I also saw the doctor on Monday and he had me do a blood test and put me on the medication I needed to get my hormones in line so hopefully I can get pregnant again someday. I'm also really excited about that because I think it also affects my weight loss when my hormones are out of whack so I'm hoping that it will all help. We'll see...I just keep singing the song I learned in junior high in my head and it sometimes helps...TWO-THREE-FOUR- "I'm not judged by the number of times I fail, TWO-THREE-FOUR, But by the number of times I succeed, TWO-THREE-FOUR, And the number of times that I succeed is in direct proportion, to the number of times I fail and KEEP TRYING!!" He he he...

Tissue Please...

I don't know what my problem is this past week but I have felt very frustrated and unmotivated. I started out last week feeling pretty good. I wrote my goals for the week down on my board, started out running every day and really had some high hopes in making it a great week and one that really counted.

Well by the time Friday arrived I didn't run. I just didn't feel like it. And normally when I don't feel like, I do it anyway. Then, I was going to run Saturday for sure. When Saturday came along, not only did I not feel like it, but I could have cared less on top of that. I just felt so down for some reason.

There was nothing in particular that happened to make me feel that way. I think the reason I did was because last week I decided to weigh every morning just to see if it made a difference in helping me to focus at all. Well I hadn't weighed in almost two weeks and I didn't feel at all like I had lost any weight, but I guess there's that little hope in me thinking that I might have. I mean, after all, I was running EVERY, SINGLE day for almost two months. You would think that that would have made some sort of difference.

Well when I stepped on the scale on Monday morning of last week and it showed two pounds HIGHER then when I started, that kind of got me down. I didn't let it get to me too much at first because I knew that the previous week was a bad one and that I had eaten a lot of crap that I shouldn't have. Good thing when I weighed again on Tuesday morning, it was at least back down the two pounds to what it previously was. Then I went on to weigh every single day through Friday and every single day showed the exact same number. And I was eating better and less then the previous week. I know because I was writing it all down. Needless to say, I was discouraged.

Yesterday was a new week, a fresh start. So you think I would have started it off right, right? Yeah, well, I didn't. Toby woke up at 5 am for some reason and when he wouldn't go back to sleep we finally got up and when downstairs. Of course he was really fussy all morning because he woke up too early and I felt SO down and depressed for some reason myself. Well being the Mom and adult, I of course can't burst into tears like I felt like doing. I was just trying to hold myself together and be happy for his sake but he was still so tired so I finally decided to take him back upstairs and try to get him back to sleep.

When we went up to my room and I turned off the lights and got in bed with him to lay him down, he started flipping out and throwing a big fit and crawled to the bottom of the bed while I lay at the top of the bed and burst into tears myself like a two year old. I couldn't help it! And I couldn't stop it for some reason! He even stopped crying because he was so stunned that I was crying and thought I might be kidding at first. When he crawled back to the top of the bed to see what my deal was, I tried like mad to pull myself together because I didn't want to alarm him. I told him I was okay and tried to stop crying but when you have a little sweet two year old give you a big hug and say "it's okay", it made me cry even harder! I was out of control!

Well, I finally pulled myself together, for his sake if nothing else, and I got in the shower and got ready for work while he played. Then I took him to Amy, said a prayer that I would have a better week and get a lot accomplished, and I went to the office.

Being at work helped me to take my mind off of everything and I was starting to feel a lot better. Then I got home yesterday and immediately started feeling that depressed feeling again that I hate! I decided to get on the phone and make a doctors appointment once and for all. I know my hormones are out of whack and I need to get on the same medication I was on before that fixes my pituitary so that I'll start having normal cycles again. I feel good knowing that that is set up. I go in this Monday.

This morning I woke up and have felt on the verge of tears all morning. Then I got an email from a friend saying her father was killed in a head on collision and that did it for me! I burst into tears again. It just breaks my heart! I just heard yesterday about another person I knew who's daughter had just died as well in a auto accident! You just never know when your time is up!

Anyway, I'm drinking coffee right now and Toby's eating breakfast. I'm really going to try to head downstairs here soon and get on my treadmill and get on track with that again. I also just got my Isagenix cleanse in the mail yesterday and will be starting the 9 day cleanse this Monday. I'm hoping that that will give me a little boost with weight loss and my health. Even though it's not easy to do, I really need to. And in looking back on the past week, I have decided I'm definitely NOT going to weigh every day. Once a week should be good for now.

WOW! What a difference it makes...

This past week has been an eye opener for me for a couple of reasons:

1- I started the week off by writing out my goals for just this week in a place where I saw them every day

2- I started keeping the food journal that I've been saying I was going to do

Okay, to start with #1. Writing out my goals. WOW! What a difference that made in my week to help me stay focused! What I did was I have a big white board hanging on my basement wall where my treadmill is that's been there forever. I decided to write my long term weight loss goals on it and then I also wrote my goals for just the week as well. I then wrote in big letters all over it, my goal weight (125) and "I AM A RUNNER" all over it. Like the Secret and most motivational programs teach, you have to Believe it if you want to Achieve it and part of starting to do that is to write it down in places you'll see it and read it all the time and it can be on the forefront of your mind everyday. Well I've always talked about doing that and knew it would probably help but WOW! Let me tell you, IT HELPS!!!

Every morning when I would go downstairs and get on my treadmill to run my mile, there- staring me in the face, were my goals. So when I was running and feeling good, I also got to review and concentrate on my goals as well. And having my goals for the week there kept me focused and reminded of what they were! Normally I, like most of you, would start off the week motivated and with really good intentions but by mid week I would get so wrapped up in life that the motivation and whatever my good intentions were, had completely worn off! BOY WAS THIS WEEK DIFFERENT! And it's all because I wrote it down and stayed FOCUSED! I'm excited about this (if you can't tell)!!! WRITE IT DOWN IN A PLACE YOU CAN SEE IT EVERY DAY!!! I just can't emphasize that enough!!

Okay, onto my #2 reason. The food journal. Again, I had read over and over again and heard by people I know that this can help. Just keeping a simple food journal of what you're eating every day. Well I've also in the past said I was going to do this but never did. Finally last week I bought a little notebook and started writing down what I ate. And because I had that on the white board as one of my weekly goals (Keep food Journal) I was reminded every morning to do it, so I did.

Let me just say this, when you know you have to write every little thing down that you put in your mouth, no matter how small, it makes you think twice before you eat that extra little cookie or buy that little mint truffle in the grocery line. I was honest with what I put down and I'm not going to lie, I noticed I eat a lot of crap that I don't need to be eating. Sugary stuff that PACKS on the extra calories! And Tabby was right, when you look back at all the crap you're eating, it kind of pisses you off! And it makes me want to eat better and make healthier choices. This is the only body I have and I want to stick around for a while. I have a lot of goals and dreams in this life that I want to live out and I need my health to do it.

Okay, aside from all of that, I'm also jogging my entire mile at a 5! When I started running it was taking me 13 minutes and 40 seconds to get through it. Now I am down to 12 minutes!! Yeah! I also ordered Isagenix yesterday and I'm going to do the 9 day cleanse when it gets here. I'm excited to do that too. Aside from being emotional for some odd reason, I'm feeling pretty excited. And I can't wait to write down my new goals for this week on my board too. It's given me new hope! And something to remember: "Brain cells come and brain cells go, but fat cells live forever". Unfortunately...

I figured out Victoria's secret...

I know what Victoria's Secret is. The secret is that nobody older than 30 can fit into their stuff...

I went and walked around the mall Sunday with Toby in his stroller. I needed to get out of the house and it was raining so I thought, why not go to the mall where it's indoors and warm and where I can walk around in stores with cute clothes to inspire me? The first store I went into was Victoria's Secret. I browsed through all of there super sexy lingerie and tried to imagine myself in it. Needless to say, I'm not THAT imaginative.

So today is Monday. A clean slate, fresh start to a new week. A chance to make this week really count. I'm going to try to run my mile at a 5 the entire time, cut my portions in half and hopefully loose maybe two pounds by next Monday. I haven't weighed in a while and have been getting a little pre-occupied and off track a bit so I plan on weighing in this Friday as well. Then from there I'm going to start weighing every Friday. That's my plan. I'm also going to start writing down what I eat every day. I got a little notebook to do it. I also got some Green Tea pills that I started taking that are supposed to be really good and help boost my metabolism. We'll see. Good luck to all who are in the same boat as me; and trying not to sink it...

Bla Bla Bla...

I've been blogging and jogging now for just over a month and I'm excited. I started jogging a few days before I started the blog and I am now jogging my mile with ease and have upped my speed as well. I am also very faithful with doing it every morning of the week except Sunday. I've only missed maybe two other days from that. I started jogging at a slow 4.5 pace on my treadmill and a 1% incline and that was hard for me. I am now jogging half my mile at a 4.7 and the rest at a 5. When I first started, a 5 was way too hard for me and now it feels great! All-in-all I am feeling really good and I keep debating about whether or not to up my length or just stay at my mile and keep improving my speed and incline. I'm loving doing a mile every, single day because I know I will do it. I can always find 15 minutes a day to work out and don't have any excuses. In the past when I would say I was going to work out for a half hour or an hour and then didn't find the time, I would get frustrated and usually stop all together after a couple of weeks. Right now if I do a mile, every single day, I'm jogging 6 miles a week no matter what. I've also been researching and reading a lot about how good it is to workout 15 minutes a day and how much it can change your health and weight. I'm not sure what to do but right now I'm just sticking with the mile. That's what feels good and I know I can stick with. Any suggestions would be much appreciated. I think I'm also going to try an interval running that Amanda was telling me about that is a 12 minute run but apparently you go super fast and then slow and then fast (something like that) but it kicks your butt and is supposed to be equivalent to an hour long workout. I need to read the details still but it sounds good to me.

Anyhoo, Maci has been being completely ignored this past week. I thought I might be pregnant because I was feeling SO tired and unmotivated. Needless to say, the little pink line did not appear on the pee test and then I came down with a head cold, which explained it all. I just hadn't been feeling great and with the cold weather hitting us out of nowhere as well, all I've wanted to do is cuddle up in front of my fireplace with a good movie and do nothing. That's not all I've done, but that's all I've wanted to do. I have a really good plan though that I'm going to do with Maci soon that I know will keep me motivated. More to come... I just need to get feeling better and then I'll get back on track. Bla bla bla bla...I'm going to bed.

Aaaaaaaaahhhhh!! The TASTES of Fall!!

Today is the first rainy, cold wet day we've had since fall's began and all I can say is "aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh". I LOVE it! It's dark and grey outside but still feels so warm and inviting because of all of the golden colors that are starting to appear everywhere you look. It's so beautiful and mysterious out there and makes you just want to cuddle up by the fire with a good book and savor every moment of it! I've got my house decorated for fall, the fireplace on, and a pumpkin spice candle lit in my kitchen. Is there any season more beautiful?

Well with fall comes all of the holidays that are right around the corner. With holidays comes all of the good, irresistible food that we all feel perfectly okay with eating because after all, "tis the season" right? RIGHT! It is the season. When it's cold outside it's only natural to want to make and eat warm, yummy food that not only warms the body, but the soul as well. It's comfort food and was in no way mistakenly named so. And I have always been one that loves to bake around the holidays and make all of the fun holiday treats right along with the rest of you.

I just want to say that in my opinion, there's nothing wrong with any of it. As a matter of fact, it's SO right! It's the time to be grateful that we all have warm houses and loving families to be with and that we are all so fortunate to have the good food to eat in the first place, let alone the good memories that come along with it. With all of that being said, there are plenty of ways to make it through the holiday season and to really enjoy it as well, without gaining holiday weight. It all comes down to portion control and movement. It's easy when it's cold outside to put off that workout routine and stay snuggled and warm underneath the blankets instead. It's also easy to hide some extra fat underneath the comfy sweatshirts and sweaters that we get to wear as well. But the thing that's NOT easy is when the holiday season is over and we have to look at ourselves again knowing that Spring is around the corner and we have to loose the weight that we packed on. That's the NOT fun part that we all dread. So here's my plan to still enjoy the holidays and all the warm, yummy treats that come along with it, but not the extra pounds:

1) KEEP JOGGING! Movement of any sort is SO important, especially in the months when we tend to move the least. I plan on always trying to be more active in my day to day routines and I'm going to get a little watch with a beeper on it that will go off each hour to remind me to get up and move around for a minute or two if I haven't already. (See previous post on Metabolism boosts).

2) PORTION CONTROL! There's nothing wrong with eating! It's the portions we eat that we have to pay attention to. Remember: Smaller portions lead to a smaller butt!!! It's not rocket science!

3) ONLY EAT WHEN HUNGRY! This means to wait until you're truly hungry to eat and plan meals accordingly. Also, if you do plan on having a dessert or a treat afterward, SAVE ROOM for it! Don't eat until your full and then try to squeeze in some dessert just because it sounds good. It's not even enjoyable, nor does it taste as good when you do that. So if I want dessert afterward, I'm going to stop eating before I feel satisfied to save the room for it.

4) DON'T EVER, EVER EAT UNTIL YOU ARE STUFFED! This is SO important not only to prevent weight gain but for your health as well. It's something I have practiced doing for a while now. You need to quit eating before you get to that stuffed, uncomfortable feeling. In order to be able to asses when that is, you need to SLOW down and enjoy the food. Put down your fork between bites, take sips of your water between bites and savor the food. Isn't that how it's supposed to be eaten anyhow?

I'm also going to try to continue to boost my metabolism in natural ways and I'm still going to do the Isagenix 9 day cleanse soon, probably this month, to give me a little energy boost as well. I'll keep you posted as to when and will blog about it of course. I also have a little experiement I'm going to try with Maci that I think might help to keep me motivated...More on that to come...

So get out there, enjoy all of the wonderful, fun things that come along with fall and the seasons and most importantly, HAVE FUN and take time to cherish the scents, the scenery and the TASTES! Ta ta for now. I'm off to bake some pumpkin bread...