The Kat Files

Finally, my weight is in the 130’s. Woot! Woot! I lost three pounds this week for a weight loss total of 15 pounds. I’m officially 138 pounds, and more than half way to my weight loss goal. I have more marbles in my “pounds lost” container than my “pounds to go” container. YES!

I completed my ninth week of eating clean and exercising on a regular basis. I have been using a food journal from a book by Kathy Smith that I’ve had for years. After the tenth week (starting tomorrow), I will have to make more copies. I am thinking about copying another ten weeks. During the next ten weeks or 11 weeks if you count this upcoming week, I will start creating menus. I have not been able to plan my meals in advance, so I want to work on that as a mini goal for the remainder of my weight loss journey. I also continue to struggle with drinking enough water. I want to be more consistent with my water intake. So, this will be another mini goal.

I feel like I am doing really well with my eating in social and restaurant/take-out situations. Once a month from January through November, I play Pokeno with ten other women. Each month one person hosts dinner and dessert. The hostess for the month is also asked to provide plain and peanut M & M’s. Thursday night was Pokeno. Our hostess for the month prepared Chicken Parmesan, Caesar salad, and bread for dinner. She brought a chocolate bundt cake and Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream for dessert.  Even though my treat meals are generally on the weekend, I decided there is no reason I cannot have my treat meal on Thursday night in lieu of having one on Saturday night. I ate both dinner and dessert in moderation. I will confess I ate too many peanut M & M’s because I adore them. The portion I ate would be equivelant to a small bag you can buy at a checkout counter at a supermarket. I don’t regret it. The last time I ate peanut M & M’s was at last month’s Pokeno. The way I look at it, I get to indulge once a month.

My hubby and I ordered Chinese take-out on Friday night. Again, I made the decision to eat a treat meal on Friday instead of Sunday. I ordered as sensibly as you can when it comes to Chinese food. I had Shrimp with Lobster Sauce (5 medium/large shrimp & 1/2 cup of sauce), 3/4 cup of white rice, one eggroll, and a fortune cookie. In the past, I would have ordered a pint of shrimp lo mein, crabmeat delight, an eggroll, and a fortune cookie. It’s all about making choices and eating in moderation.

Yesterday, I went to visit my parents. I called my mother ahead of time to let her know that I would be bringing my lunch, so we would not have to order out. As far as I was concerned, I already had my treat meals for the week. And, I’ve eaten clean all weekend with the exception of one peanut butter/chocolate chip cookie I enjoyed at my little guy’s Scout Court of Honor ceremony. My hubby baked them for the reception afterwards. It is unrealistic for me to think I can eat clean 100% of the time. However, it is realistic for me to think I can eat clean 93-95% of the time. Food is a big deal with socializing. I’ve learned these last nine weeks to make better food choices when socializing and eating out at restaurants.

As for fitness, I’m right on track with what I want to accomplish and have been getting the right amount of cardio and strength training per week. Although…I did skip my workout Tuesday morning because I was on the phone Monday night until 11:30PM with my oldest son who is stationed in Alaska. I didn’t get to sleep until about midnight, so I had a hard time getting out of bed at 4AM. I’m not going to apologize for taking a rest day, especially since I had the opportunity to talk to my son the night before. However, I will admit I felt kind of off all day. I really look forward to my morning workouts.

My schedule for this week is to run/walk on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday (bonus day). Walk 10 minutes, run 8 minutes. Walk 2 minutes, run 8 minutes (repeat twice). I’ll walk/bike and strength train on the other days. In the next few weeks I will start researching races. I would like to run a 5K soon. It has been almost a year since I ran my last 5K. It would be nice to have a fitness goal.

Looks like rain and cooler temperatures this week. Hope everyone has a wonderful week full of happiness and endless possibilities.

“Everything in moderation, including moderation.” ~ Oscar Wilde