5 Weeks In...

I neglected to post last week...not because it was a bad week (-3.2 last week), but because things got really busy at work and at home.  This week has been a tad more manageable, and despite what I thought was a potentially awful week, I weighed in at -2.2 today.  Overall that puts me at -18.4 pounds!!! I'm pretty excited about that, and I've been hearing some really nice, completely unsolicited compliments from people that I don't see very often.  Those comments are always a nice incentive to keep at it even when it gets more challenging.

Speaking of challenges, I've been challenging myself to move more.  I took the comment from an anonymous reader to heart after my last post...instead of seeing it from the "work" perspective, I'm doing more activities that are "play."  To that end, I've added tennis back into my routine.  My older brother is a tennis pro (not on the tour) so it's silly not to take advantage of that resource.  He's been really great about staying on the court a little longer at least once a week to help me get back into it.  That's not to say that it's been easy though.  I was a Division I tennis player, but you'd never know that now.  I feel like I'm learning to play all over again.  It's embarrassing knowing where I used to be, but I'm making great strides to get back to my former glory every time I take the court.  And you know what?  It has actually been FUN!

I've also started taking my dog for much longer walks whenever I can.  Now that it's staying lighter later, I still feel like there's some daylight to play with when I get home so Oreo has been seeing more time on a leash around the neighborhood...and making more doggy friends.  These "play" activities make it a lot easier to get out there and exercise - and I'm much happier for it.

Here's to another good week...

Valentine's Day, Schmalentine's Day

Admittedly, my opinion on this "holiday" might be a tad jaded based on past experiences, but as a whole, this can be a tough day for everyone.  If you do have someone special to celebrate with, then you're saddled by the commercial nature of the entire day: expensive restaurants, beyond expensive flowers, calorie-killer candies, silly stuffed animals with no future purpose, etc.  If you don't have someone special, the day is an often painful reminder of what you don't have but may wish that you did, i.e., someone to share life's memories with.

I suppose I fall into that second category.  I'm not ashamed to admit that I'm a tad jealous of those that have someone to shower them with flowers and candy...but it's not something I'm going to change in the next 9 1/2 hours.  I used to laugh at my now-married older brother when he called himself "Single For Life (SFL)."  Yet I've begun to embrace that moniker for myself.  If you had talked to me a decade, or even just 3 years, ago and told me I would still be single in 2011, I would have thought that was ridiculous.  Getting married and perhaps starting a family was always something I dreamed about since I was a little girl.  But through a series of life events and relationship failures that's exactly what I am.  SFL, baby!  (These days I'm not too sure I'd want kids anymore, but a husband?  Yes, please.)

That doesn't mean that I'm not celebrating Valentine's Day though.  I can't remember if the tradition began last year or the year before, but given my SFL status, my parents have started inviting me along to their Valentine's dinner each year.  I'm still up in the air on whether that is sweet or just plain sad.  (I'm guessing it's probably just sad, but I'm holding on to the hope that it's sort of sweet too!)  This year, the dinner is tonight.  And because my poor mom is actually suffering from a nasty head cold, it'll just be me and my dad.  Yes, that's right...I have a Valentine's "date" with my dad tonight.

Anyway, for those of you that have a special someone, forget the commercial nature of Cupid's holiday.  Instead, I hope that this year's Valentine's Day is a celebration of the love between you and your significant other.  And if you're not currently paired up with someone, take a moment to celebrate all the wonderful things that you have to offer someone someday.  It's a day for love.  And that means loving yourself first!

xoxo

Week 3 Wrap-up

This is going to be quick because I'm tired & heading to bed soon after a bitter trivia defeat tonight.  I'm pretty sure the winning team was cheating.  Who does that?  Is nothing sacred anymore?!?  There are two games whose names I would never besmirch: trivia and Jeopardy.  How can you feel good about winning when you know you cheated to get there?

Anyway, the point of this post is a WW update so I'll leave the bitterness of my loss behind...for now.  So this week was only a -1.8 pound week.  I guess I should still be happy about that since a loss is a loss, but I was hoping for more.  That puts me at a 13-pound total loss though and I'm definitely happy about that.

I need to start working out though, and that's the part I've been dreading most.  If anyone has any suggestions about how to actually LIKE working out I'm all ears!

Okay, bedtime...g'night!

Showing My Age

Even when I was much younger, I typically wasn't one for all-nighters or even staying up super late multiple days in a row.  As I've gotten older, that has become even more true.  More often than not I'm in bed by about 10pm.  (I know...hang on to your party pants, people!)  Even on the weekends, unless I'm out somewhere, I'm usually in bed by 11 and awake by 8am.  I'm not sure if that makes me incredibly lame or if it just means I'm a responsible adult.  This weekend though, both Friday night and last night, I didn't get to bed until after 2am...the result???

I'm clearly not cut out for staying up so late and adding alcohol to the mix to boot!  Yesterday, after a late night on Friday, I knew I needed to do something to rest up for the night since a going away party for an acquaintance didn't even start until 11pm.  My solution was to take TWO naps during the day yesterday.  (I'm talking serious, 2 hour naps...none of that catnap crap.)  If you have to sleep an extra 4+ hours DURING the day just to prepare yourself for an evening out, you're getting old.  Clearly I'm getting old!

In addition, aside from my intolerance for late nights, I also discovered last night that I'm also now that person at the bar wishing it wasn't so darn loud (and perhaps even complaining about the noise level).  I've always loved music, and it's one thing to "feel" the rhythm of music in your soul...it's an entirely different thing to feel the beat of the music pulsing (literally) through your blood because your whole body is vibrating.  That's how I felt last night.  The dance floor vibrated to the beat, the sink in the bathroom shook with the noise, and my head felt like scrambled eggs sooner rather than later.  When did that happen to me???  A little ringing ear syndrome at the end of the night was never a big deal in the past.  Last night, however, for a good hour at the end of the night I found myself wishing/praying they could just turn the volume down a little bit.  I've never been particularly good at reading people's lips and shouting in my ear at the top of your lungs so I can hear is necessary, but also painful.  Ultimately, while I had fun with my friends it also gave me a headache.

Growing old isn't very fun and I feel like I need a nap already...  *yawn*

Week 2 Down

Another weigh-in day...and another success.  Not as big a success as last week, but I was still down another 2.6 pounds this week for a total of -11.2 lbs.  That's not so bad for two weeks!

Then again, I definitely went "off plan" tonight.  After work I decided to hit up Art Walk with a couple friends.  We had dinner at Cafe Nola in the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) and I couldn't resist the delicious roll with orange/cranberry flavored butter.  The grilled chicken salad was delicious, but the candied pecans couldn't be good for me...and neither could the Gorgonzola cheese.  I followed it up with one little Yuengling later.  Tomorrow's scale reading is going to kick my ass but I have a week to make up for it so I'm hoping it'll be alright.

P.S. - I really love Groundhog Day.  It reminds me of growing up in PA and this groundhog that used to always come around the house.  I dubbed him "Gregory the Groundhog."  While he's no Punxsutawney Phil, he was still awesome!