A Merry Life | Weight Loss Blog - Healthy Living - Fitness - Food » Thoughts

Remember

Mary — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:41:04 +0000

You have one life to live. One body to experience it in. Don’t let anything or anyone take away from your short experience on this earth. Wise words to think about. Indeed. Thanks Shelley D. Remember is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has more »

Remember is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!

Confessions

Mary — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:19:41 +0000

I’m feeling the need to write a post with some things I need to say. Here it goes.

I can’t stick with anything eating wise.

I’m jealous that Kepa gains muscle faster than me and can lift more.

I laid on the floor to stretch at the gym the other day and hit my head on a barbell when getting up. I had a headache for hours.

Losing weight is hard for me. Probably because of the first confession. But still, it’s hard.

I feel big right now. I haven’t gained any weight on the scale but the muscle building stuff makes me feel rather large. I want to skip the next two weeks and get to the “cutting” part of LiveFit Trainer.

I hate when people say “losing weight is easy” because it makes me feel like a huge failure. So does keeping this blog.

I probably still should be in therapy for disordered eating and thinking. If I hadn’t moved I’d probably still be going.

I feel like I can’t afford things I want. I probably can but feel as if I can’t. This includes race entry fees (erm, the triathlon) when it’s down to choosing between the fun stuff and dentist appointments.

I love JuJu but she is driving me insane today.

I’m a hypochondriac at times. Last week I was sure I had skin cancer. This week the spot that convinced me is completely gone.

I don’t wear makeup 90% of my life. I’m not brave or special for that fact. I’m not brave for putting photos of myself fat in a bikini online. I’m not brave at all and hate when that word gets applied so loosely to people including myself.

I love my job but hate working from home. I miss the office environment. Being alone all day is such a bummer.

I don’t know what I’m doing half the time. I have no clue what I’m doing or planning to do with this blog or really my future. I used to love uncertainty but now it bothers me.

It hurts my feelings a lot when people leave me mean comments. You’d think I have a thicker skin by now but I turn into my 12 year old self every time it happens.

I read GOMI and it makes me not want to blog.

Wow. I feel better. And slightly embarrassed because I know people will read this. But still, I feel better. Blogging = cheap therapy?

Confessions is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!

February 2012 Weigh In

Mary — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:23:44 +0000

I’ve been really busy with work and life lately. I even forgot to blog yesterday! I guess if my options are to blog or go get my workout in… I’m going to choose the workout.

We also had to go pick up JuJu’s deworming medicine and chose to cycle there instead of driving. We are doing that a lot more now that the weather is nice. It takes longer, obviously, but saves money and gets us some exercise. That’s fun for me. I love biking so much!

February 2012 Weigh In:

And because it’s the first of the month, I weighed in this morning:

Previous: 215.0

Current: 212.4

Change: -2.6

Wow.

That’s a bit disappointing. If it was for a week I’d be happy. But for the month? Boo.

I know that there are reasons for my slow & lack of weight loss. 1) Emotional eating that happened in the past week that took away some of the previous loss. 2) I’m doing a muscle building program at the moment.

Okay I guess it seems silly to be doing a program that is about building muscle when I’m trying to lose weight too. But the muscle building period has given me tangible results. I can see where my body has put on muscle (barely but it’s there) and feel it too (which is soo strange to me). I am stronger this month than I was last month. I can lift more weight. Muscle building might not be friendly to the scale, but it is pretty cool.

Well it would be cool if you could see muscle under the piles and piles of fat I have on top. And beside. And under. And next to the muscle. ;) Ah fat, go away!

But the muscle building is slowing as livefit has added in cardio. And in two weeks it will be all about burning fat rather than building muscle. Next month it will be all about circuits and cardio which will melt the fat off and leave me with my hard earned muscle. That’s the plan at least.

I haven’t been setting goals but I think this time I will. My goal is to lose 10 pounds by next weigh in. More like 2.6 a week rather than 2.6 a month, but I’m confident I can do it with the right program and consistent healthy eating.

Well I’m off to lunch and the gym. It’s leg day which I love so I’m going to hit it hard! Woohoo!

February 2012 Weigh In is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!

20 Questions

Mary — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 03:31:19 +0000

It’s really beautiful in Auckland right now. I think we deserve it after weeks of cold, windy, rainy days during what is supposed to be summer. I’m glad the sun is finally shining!

My workout plan for the day involved a strength workout at the gym and 30 minutes of moderate intensity cardio. I hit the gym this afternoon but couldn’t stand doing cardio there. Bike rides and walks outside all the way please! I’m taking advantage of what nature is offering right now.

I came across this survey on Clean Eating Chelsey and felt like doing it too. I used to looooooove surveys back in the days of Myspace (oh how times have changed) but rarely do them anymore. Indulge me for a minute as I answer 20 questions:

1) What is one of your favorite ways to spend a Saturday?

visiting farmers markets!

long bike rides

hanging out with JuJu & Kepa

2) List your top three favorite TV shows.

Parks & Recreation

Project Runway

Top Chef

And The Office but I’m not liking the current season.

3) Would you rather be in pictures or take them?

Take them! I love taking photos but don’t really like being in them. I think I get that from my mom. ;)

4) Why do you blog?

I blog because it’s a creative and emotional outlet. If you’ve read for any length of time you probably know that I’m a pretty emotional person who likes to think. This means I’m often needing a place to vent, share, ponder, create and a blog is the perfect place for that. I always say I would blog even if no one reads it, and I truly mean that. I mean I did technically blog for several years without anyone reading (oh the days of livejournal and xanga… I’m feeling internet nostalgia).

I also love the people I’ve met through blogging and the things I’ve learned. Being part of blogging communities has helped me grow as a person.

5) Share five websites that you visit regularly…

Facebook

Twitter

Pinterest

Gmail & Google Reader

Bodybuilding.com (since I started LiveFit)

6) If you could have lunch with one person from your Twitter list who would it be?

If I can only pick one (instead of everyone coming to NZ for a lunch party) I’d pick Jamie Eason.

7) List a few of your favorite snacks.

peanut butter & banana

peanut butter & banana sandwich (ha)

chocolate protein balls

protein shake

cashews and raisins

chobani and cereal (but I can’t have that in NZ sadly)

8 ) Do you have a pet? If so, what kind?

JuJu and Senior Kitty!

JuJu is a Rottweiler + Pit Bull cross.

Senior Kitty is well, a kitty. He does not like baths or being photographed.

9) Which three material possessions would you struggle to live without?

my laptop

my iphone

my glasses and/or contacts

10) What’s your favorite drink?

water

11) Do you enjoy cooking?

I love cooking and wish I had a better kitchen to do it in. I’ve taught myself how to cook a lot of things over the last couple years by learning and experimenting. I’ve documented a lot of it on my food blog.

12) Do you have children?

Do fur babies count? If not, then no. Kepa and I want kids in the future but I’m happy to wait a while.

13) What are your favorite hobbies?

blogging

reading

photography

working out (I really do enjoy it)

14) Would you consider yourself to be shy or outgoing?

I’m shy, I think. I’ve got some social anxiety stuff happening in my brain most of the time so it’s hard for me to meet new people and terrifying to be in front of large groups of people. I’ve had people argue me on this point before though because I’m very friendly and seem outgoing because I like to talk to people individually. I guess I’m just shy in my mind. ;)

15) If you could change one thing about yourself, what would you change?

My lack of consistency in things I start. This is something I can change and I’m trying to change it!

16) Who is your favorite actor/actress?

Reese Witherspoon and Emma Stone for actresses. Ryan Gosling for actor.

17) What’s the coolest thing you’ve done this week?

Bought a sewing machine so I can accomplish one of my goals for 2012: learning to sew!

18) Do you live near your family or far from them?

FAR! I live so far away from my family now. I’ve done it before so you would think I’m used to it but it makes me incredibly sad to be far away from my family. I try not to think about the fact that I won’t be near them when I have babies because it makes me want to cry. (I’m such a baby.)

19) List three of your talents.

Writing. I might not seem like the best writer (I probably should put more work into my blogging) but I am a halfway decent writer. I like words.

Crafts/diy/photography/artsy fartsy stuff. Nothing super specific here but I’m good at these kinds of things that involve design and artistic flair.

Cooking. I’m actually a pretty decent cook. Who knew? (I had to ask Kepa for help on this question and he said I’m a good cook. Win!)

20) What is your greatest attribute?

I’m willing to try new things. I know a lot of people aren’t and like to stay in their comfort zones, so I feel like my willingness to try different and new things – even if they don’t work out – is a great attribute.

This was fun! Anyone else want to do it? :)

20 Questions is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!

When Things Go According To Plan… And When They Don’t

Mary — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:57:40 +0000

All is right in the world today.

For me, part of recovering quickly (after some tears) from things that are hard or sad or just don’t fit with my plans is accepting that some things I can’t change. I’m getting better at that and accepting that even if I make lots of plans things won’t always go according to my wishes.

Also helpful? Making silly faces before working out.

Things that did go according to plan this week:

completed LiveFit workouts every day

bumped up weights in certain exercises – stronger all the time!

brought my bike out and rode it a few times

only ate out once this week

ate multiple servings of fruit & veggies each day (mmm, nutrients!)

Not on my plan exactly but other good things from this week:

Greatist featured my blog in their 60 must-read health and fitness blogs. I’m pretty honored to be on a list with such great company!

Got some super cool stuff from Polar which I’ll post about later. (*disclosure: I’m a Polar Ambassador*)

JuJu & Kitty are getting along:

So yeah, things are great really. Active, eating well, hanging out with the hubs, pets are getting along, weather is nice. I really can’t complain and focusing on the positive (and the funny) helped me get over my negative feelings yesterday.

Sometimes when things don’t go according to plan – dinner fails to come together or I miss a workout or a bill wipes out my savings account – and my first reaction is to be and stay upset about it. I come from a family where things get beaten into the ground and if you are mad/upset you stay mad/upset for hours or even days (not my mom, because she is cool). It’s in my nature and my habits from the past to stay upset for a LONG time once I get upset, but that really doesn’t do me or anyone around me any favors. I’m working hard these days to let myself feel my emotions (be upset) when things don’t go according to plan but not wallow in it for longer than I need to. Moving on is important and something I’m getting better at honestly.

How do you react when things don’t go according to your plan?

When Things Go According To Plan… And When They Don’t is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!

Lunges, Biking, & Paula Deen

Mary — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 02:50:43 +0000

Hi friends! Lately whenever I sit down to right a post my thoughts are all over the place. So I’m just going to write one of those posts that is a little bit of everything just to dump the thoughts out of my mind.

Lunges

I was terrified of my workout today after last week’s encounter with lunges. I was worried I would hurt myself so I even changed my workout split so that legs were only one day this week instead of two.

It was fine! I went through the workout with no major problems. I upped the weight on lunges a bit and did them slower (and not quite as many). It ended up being fine that way and I made it through the workout strong. I’m feeling quite accomplished after conquering the lunges!

Biking

I’ve finally started riding my bike again! Hurray! Expect more long bike ride adventures to come on the blog once we start going for longer distance rides. I started riding for short trips this week instead of taking the car and it has been nice so far. I’m so happy to finally have great riding weather! At some point I want to invest in better clothes for rain riding to eliminate some of the excuse, but it’s just unpleasant to ride in rain with normal clothes.

Speaking of bike related clothing… I totally want both of these shirts I saw on Etsy:

Paula Deen & Diabetes

So Paula Deen has diabetes and she is admitting it now. I remember a few months ago rumors circled that she had Type 2 Diabetes but they quieted down for some reason. Now she is openly admitting she has had diabetes for 3 years. Why? Because she is now partnering with a pharmaceutical company that makes diabetes medicine! Yikes, right?

I’m not Paula Deen’s biggest fan for a lot of reasons and this is just another one. She has a disease that kills people, takes limbs, lowers quality of life… and is preventable! It’s also something that you can combat with things like diet and exercise rather than expensive medication (type 1 is a different story obviously). Lifestyle generally causes diabetes, as it no doubt did in Paula Deen’s case, and a change in lifestyle can manage diabetes. But instead she keeps making food with high calories, sugar and fat, and promotes medicine for money. She could instead use the opportunity to change her lifestyle and teach others a huge lesson in real health. But no. Money is more important.

In short, it literally makes me sick.

Sunshine

I guess my brain didn’t have that many things stored up to talk about after all. I’m going to go out and enjoy the sunshine a bit… or maybe just take a post workout nap. Catch ya later & have a great day!

Lunges, Biking, & Paula Deen is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!

Calorie Counting Peace

Mary — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 03:19:53 +0000

I think I’ve finally made peace with counting calories.

I’ve always hated counting calories. It felt tedious, annoying, and BORING. I hate hate hated doing it and tried everything to lose weight without counting calories. That never worked for me as with intuitive eating I became great at maintaining a weight loss but horrible at losing more. But I still persisted because counting calories just wasn’t something I wanted to do.

Lately (as in last week) I’ve finally made peace with counting calories. It’s not something I plan to do forever obviously but I am comfortable enough with it right now that I can totally keep it up for however long I need to get to a healthy weight. It doesn’t have the same negative feeling attached that it once did.

So how did I do this?

I let go of the idea that I need to eat different things all the time. I think in a way being a blogger and reading food blogs made this hard to do. For a long time I felt like I needed to eat like the bloggers and constantly be trying new recipes and new foods and eating a ton of varied things every day. I’ve finally learned that is not true and this is the thing that freed me to start enjoying the calorie counting.

I calculated the measurements and calories of my normal meals. There are some thing I love to eat. I was eating those things more often anyway so recently I just wrote down all the things I liked eating and how much of each thing made a meal. Then I worked out the calories on these items. I now have a list of several 300 ish calories breakfasts lunches and snacks that I love to eat. All I have to do is plug in the info to my current daily calorie count. This takes most of the work out of calorie counting for the majority of the day which makes me happy and makes me feel content with calorie counting.

I made it easy and gave myself wiggle room. Since I now really only have to calculate calories for one meal (dinner) or the occasional new and different snack or breakfast, calorie counting doesn’t seem as hard. It doesn’t seem as tedious. Once I finally accepted that it’s okay to eat the same things over and over I figured out a way to count calories that works for me.

It’s a form of peace that means I know what I’m putting in my body rather than guessing and hoping for the best (ah, intuitive eating) until I really learn the right amounts of food that I need. Calorie counting isn’t really as bad as I made it out to be. Nor that I’ve made peace with the idea and the process I’m feeling good and eating well for my goals.

Do you calorie (or point) count? What do you like about it? Or do you hate it?

Calorie Counting Peace is a post from: A Merry Life! If you aren't reading it via RSS or on amerrylife.com it has been stolen!!