The Kat Files

Week Two Update: Mission Weight Loss

July 15, 2012 by katloyacano

Woo-Hoo! I got to move a marble to the Pounds Lost container. I lost ONE pound this week. I know it may not seem like a lot; however, it is the first step. This week was much better. Out of the seven days, six of those days I ate ALL the specific foods I needed to add into my diet. I switched from eating hard-boiled eggs to scrambled eggs, added all kinds of healthy stuff to my oatmeal, created a daily checklist, and cut out drinking coffee every day. I LOVE coffee, but it’s hard for me to drink it without some sugar and using one Truvia packet just doesn’t do the trick. So, I am temporarily cutting it out and will revisit it again later. The only coffee I had all week was a Mocha Latte with whipped cream at BAM. For me, Mocha Lattes are a taste of heaven. YUMMY!

I finished reading Jackie Warner’s book and will be using it for reference for the next couple of months. Ideally, I would love to lose a pound a week. However, I’m not setting a goal date to lose all the weight (too much pressure for me). This is not a diet that I will be on for a set amount of time just to lose weight. This is about creating a healthy lifestyle for myself and my family. My energy level is up, my attitude is great, and I’m ready for the next step.

“Energy and persistence conquer all things.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

Posted in Health and Fitness | Tagged healthy living, weight loss | Leave a Comment »

Mission Weight Loss: Week One Update

July 9, 2012 by katloyacano

I thought eating the specific foods for the first two weeks on the “eat clean” program was going to be easy. After all, with the exception of whey protein (never tried it before), I’m a fan of those foods. Nope. Out of the first eight days, I only managed to eat everything on the list two of the eight days. Most days I got in six of the eight items. For example, I ate the eggs, oatmeal, veggies, fruit, and drank water; however, I didn’t drink the whey protein or green tea. Another day, I may have gotten everything, but the oatmeal. It is hard. Well, it’s hard for me.

I discovered as I reviewed the week, one reason I came up short is because I don’t eat on a set schedule. I don’t eat before my morning workout. Sometimes, I may not eat breakfast until 9:00AM or 9:30AM. Therefore, a mid-morning snack is not necessary for me. The next time I eat would be at lunch. So, in order for me to do better this week, I really need to plan out my meals ahead of time to make sure I can incorporate all these foods. Thank goodness I only have to do this for one more week.

While I’m discussing food, I must confess I find unsweetened Almond Milk disgusting. However, I am drinking it with the whey protein powder (chocolate flavor). This combination makes a remarkable difference.

As for my cardio workouts, I did workout five days. However, I did not workout at maximum effort or with intervals. As much as I love walking with my dog, he slows us down with all his sniffing and marking his territory. So, we are no longer exercising with Comet. Instead, I will take Comet for his own walk later in the evening where he can get his groove on at his own pace.

As for my weight (153 pounds), I did not lose or gain. So, I don’t get to move any of my marbles. Am I disappointed? Not really. I didn’t expect to lose anything this past week. If anything, I worried I had gained weight because my guys and I had gone to a family BBQ on Saturday. I indulged by having three Mike’s Hard Lemonade and two or three brownies.

A new week has started, and I’m ready. My goal for this week is to ramp up my cardio, and to eat everything on the list everyday.

“Exercise is king. Nutrition is queen. Put them together and you’ve got a kingdom.” ~Jack Lalanne

Posted in Health and Fitness | Tagged fitness, Food, goals, health, weight loss | Leave a Comment »

Accountability

July 5, 2012 by katloyacano

Reluctantly, I got up this morning. Yes, you heard me correctly… reluctantly. Before getting out of bed, I was having a chat inside my head about pushing off my morning walk until this afternoon. Blah, blah, blah! I know better than anyone in my household that an afternoon walk would not happen. However, after the second time hitting the snooze button and getting snuggly back under the covers, my little guy walks into my bedroom totally dressed for our morning walk and stands at the edge of the bed. He asks me ever so sweetly, “Mom, aren’t you going to get up, so we can go walk?” Thank goodness for my little guy. Andrew is my hero today for making me keep my word. It’s all about accountability. I need to not only do what I say I’m going to do, but I also need to be held accountable.

So, I groggily got up, dressed, and the two of us along with Comet went for our walk. What a wonderful way to start the day! I feel so much better. Now, I have to do another task I told myself I would do…finish clearing school stuff out of my scrapbook room, so I can actually work on my scrapbooks.

“A duty dodged is like a debt unpaid; it is only deferred, and we must come back and settle the account at last.” ~ Joseph Fort Newton

Posted in Health and Fitness, Inspiration | Tagged accountability, commitments, exercise, walking | Leave a Comment »

Let the Games Begin

July 1, 2012 by katloyacano

Today is July 1st. Today, I begin my “eat clean” program. Today, I begin exercising AGAIN. Today, I start my hiatus from Facebook and Pinterest. Today, I go to the movies to see Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter. Well, I have to have some fun today.

I woke up this morning at 6AM. My husband, Comet (my little dog), and I went for a walk. After taking a shower, I ate two hard-boiled eggs, 1/2 of a grapfruit, and drank a cup of coffee with one packet of Truvia and a splash of half & half. Usually, I add some extra sugar or chocolate syrup, but not this morning.

I am following the health and fitness advice from the book This is Why You’re Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever) by Jackie Warner. For the first two weeks, I may continue eating the way I have been eating; however, I must start implementing the following foods in my diet:

eggs (two daily)
oatmeal (one cup daily)
hormone-balancing, detox veggies (2-3 cups daily)
fresh fruit (2 servings is 2 whole fruits daily)
water (two to three litters daily)
whey protein shake (8-ounce serving daily)
green tea (evening)

Even though I know I can eat crap for the next two weeks, I’m not using that as an excuse to go crazy. I have already started eliminating processed foods from the grocery list, as well as eliminating the extra sugar in my coffee. Of course, I will be eating peanut M & M’s at the movie theater later.

As for exercising the next two weeks, I need to perform cardio only five times a week for a maximum time of twenty minutes each workout. I will not do any resistance training in the first two weeks. My cardo workout must have maximum effort and include intervals. The first two weeks is prepping me for the “eat clean” lifestyle and the circuit type workouts I will be doing to lose weight.

This morning, I also weighed myself. I weighed in at 153 pounds. I checked my training log when I started running in August 2011. I weighed 143.5 pounds. My reaction: speechless, shocked, angry, sad. How did I let this happen? My only answer…complacency, emotional eating, not exercising, excuses. So, today I decided I want to weigh 125 pounds, which means I will need to lose 28 pounds (impressed with my math skills). A few weeks ago I found a cute idea on Pinterest to track your weight and stay motivated. It was weight loss jars. I decided to create my own using plastic ziploc containers and marbles.

Weight Loss Containers to track pounds lost.

Danielle LaPorte makes a very good point (and provides some inspiration) in a short video (Your Word Is As Powerful As You Say It Is) she made for the blog PositivelyPositive. Today, is my day to make a commitment to myself. The only way I will be successful at losing weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is by keeping my word to myself.

“The secret of success ….do what you say you’re going to do.” ~ Danielle LaPorte

Posted in Health and Fitness, Inspiration | Tagged commitments, Danielle LaPorte, fitness, health, Jackie Warner | Leave a Comment »

Bid High, Bid Often (Work = Happiness)

June 26, 2012 by katloyacano

Aaaah…. another successful Auction at WYES-TV in NOLA. I spent the last two weekends working as a director on the Art Auction. Happiness! WYES-TV is one of my favorite places to work. My connection with the public television station developed in 1991. I took a class at the University of New Orleans called UNO Video. Through this class, I did volunteer work at the station to gain valuable television experience. I started out as a floor director for Membership Drives and the two annual Auctions (Showboat & Art). Later, I learned floor producing, and directing. Eventually, I became a staff member (Associate Producer). Out of all the jobs I have worked, it is the job I like the most. Not just for the work, but also for the people. You know who you are….M & M! WYES is like a second family. And, I’m fortunate to be able to freelance there twice a year, and sometimes more if the work is available. I’m already looking forward to my next project.

Happiness is doing work you love with people who make you smile. ~ Kat (my first quote)

Posted in Happiness Project, Life | Tagged happiness, Work | Leave a Comment »

I Call This Meeting to Order

June 19, 2012 by katloyacano

Good Morning, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to our first meeting of Sugar Addicts of America. My name is Katherine, and I am a sugar addict. Yep, I am addicted to sugar and want to try to break that addiction. Now, let us bow our heads and pray.

Back in April, I picked up a health/diet book by Jackie Warner called This is Why You’re Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever).You don’t have to say it, so I will say it for you. Funky title. Agreed. However, after thumbing through this book several times on my visits to BAM, I decided to purchase it. Jackie Warner is a personal trainer based in Los Angeles. I own her fitness DVD Workout and have exercised with it several times. Although I have not completed the book, I’ve learned so much already.

One of the main components of the book is understanding your body’s chemistry. She writes about how your hormones and organs are affected by the foods and beverages you consume, which determine weight loss/gain. One of the main culprits of weight gain and medical problems attributed by weight gain is SUGAR. Not just the refined sugar that you spoon into a cup of coffee. It includes sugar in all of its disguises: high-fructose corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, sucrose, and the list goes on. Sugar is hidden in so much of the packaged and processed stuff we consume. Even the skim milk I drink has 12 grams of sugar per cup.

I will not pretend for one minute that the information I’m reading from this book is all brand new to me; however, I will admit that it has opened my eyes about how much sugar is being put into our food and how much sugar I’m consuming on a daily basis, as well as the negative effects it is having on my body. All my other heath/diet books, as well as my nutritionist, recommends skim milk. It’s suppose to be healthy. It is healthier than whole milk, but it still contains too much sugar.

So, my plan is to finish the book. It is full of menus of the right things to eat, as well as circuit training routines. The book does state that you are allowed to eat two treat meals in a one week period. For example, you eat clean from Monday through Friday, and then can enjoy two treats during the weekend. This does not mean unhealthy eating all day on Saturday and Sunday. You may want to have a cheeseburger for lunch on Saturday, and a slice of cake at your friend’s party on Sunday. It takes planning, and planning takes time. You have to make the time to be healthy. And, being healthy doesn’t mean you have to be skinny. It means eating clean and being active. It means making good choices when fueling your body.

I’m giving myself until June 30th to finish the book, throw out the bad foods in my house, buy the good foods, and get familiar with the fitness routines. Come July 1st, I’m going into rehab mode to kick this sugar addiction and to drop this unhealthy weight I’ve been carrying around for the last few years.

“The groundwork of all happiness is good health.” ~ Leigh Hunt

Posted in Books/Reading, Health and Fitness | Tagged books, fitness, health, Jackie Warner, nutrition, resolutions, sugar, This is Why You're Fat (And How to Get Thin Forever), weight loss | 2 Comments »

Zombie May-nia

May 1, 2012 by katloyacano

I LOVE horror movies. I grew up watching Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Blob, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, as well as all the classic monster movies. My favorite cartoon as a kid was Scooby-Doo. He and his gang were always solving mysteries involving ghosts, monsters, and curses. Vampires were the most fascinating to me. They never aged, could change into animals, had hypnotizing abilities, wore the best clothes, and lived a lavish lifestyle. Of course, they did have some limitations…at least the vampires in films and literature from my youth. Now, they sparkle in the sun and feed mainly on animals or get their blood from a blood bank.

While vampires still hold some allure for me, I have become somewhat obsessed with zombies since the premiere of the AMC television show The Walking Dead. Based on a comic book, the premise of the show is about a group of people surviving a zombie apocalypse. The Walking Dead has made the zombie quite popular. Well, The Walking Dead doesn’t get all the credit. Zombies have been around for quite awhile. The show is just keeping them in the limelight for right now.

Since I have been exploring the zombie culture, I have discovered there is a Zombie Research Society, a 5K adventure race with zombies, zombie walks in various places (New Orleans included), a film being made locally, a Facebook event page for a Zombie Apocalypse, as well as a month devoted to Zombie Awareness.

Yes, MAY is Zombie Awareness Month. And, I’ve decided to devote my leisure time this entire month becoming more aware of the ZOMBIE. The zombie books I will be reading this month include: The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith, and World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks. I have compiled a list of zombie movies ( Zombie Movies 2012) to watch throughout the month. My list doesn’t even scratch the surface when it comes to zombie movies. Netflix has 55 pages designated to zombies. Who knew? My list consists of movies that were suggested by Rob Zombie (musician and horror filmmaker) and some zombie film sites. If funds are available by the end of the month and my brains are still intact, I may just have to throw a party to celebrate my new-found awareness of the Zombie.

“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.” ~ Seth Grahame-Smith, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Posted in Books/Reading, Movies | Tagged books, movies, Zombie Awareness Month, zombies | 1 Comment »

Living Life in a Waiting Room

April 9, 2012 by katloyacano

Happy Easter! And, welcome to the season of new beginnings. This is our opportunity for renewal or starting over. Recently (this weekend), I reevaluated my resolutions for the new year after being in a mental cocoon for the last couple of months. I’ve come to realize that my actions since the new year have not aligned with my thoughts, dreams, or goals. I’ve basically been in a holding pattern…sort of a waiting room. Basically, I’ve been waiting to start living to my full potential instead of really living.

While reading The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle, I have discovered I may be a “habitual waiter”. I want to improve so many areas of my life; however, I’m waiting for just the right circumstances. Unfortunately, I’m wasting my life in the process. So, I’m ready to pick up where I left off. I don’t want to wait anymore to start living. For me, most of the waiting comes from FEAR. The “what if” thoughts creep in causing me to stall and become stagnate becoming an observer instead of a participant.

No proclamations will be made at this moment about how I will go about leaving the waiting room of my life; however, reclaiming the motivation to exercise, eat better, and clear out all the clutter (physical and mental) will be the first step. According to Tolle, waiting is a state of mind. It is inner conflict between the NOW and the future. Everything points to being PRESENT.

I took my first step today. This morning, I completed a 20-minute upper body workout and walked a mile. When I weighed in (first time in months), I was surprised my weight was 148.5 pounds. I really believed I would have crossed the threshold of 150 pounds. Although I’m relieved, it doesn’t warrant cartwheels and confetti. I’m about four pounds shy of weighing what I weighed when I gave birth to my youngest son. And, he’s now ten. However, it is a start or a start over. Exercise and healthy eating must be part of my life like family, work, sleep, etc. It should not be something that has to be squeezed in or negotiated. Instead, it should be seen more as a gift.

“Most of us go through life as failures, because we are waiting for the “time to be right” to start doing something worthwhile. Do not wait. The time will never be “just right.” Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.” ~ Napoleon Hill

Posted in Life, Spirituality | Tagged choices, healthy living, waiting | Leave a Comment »

I’m Addicted to My Old Self

February 26, 2012 by katloyacano

Last night, I completed the book Why God is Laughing? by Deepak Chopra. The first part of his book is a fictional story about a comedian named Mickey Fellows. The story teaches Mickey about himself. Afterwards, Chopra includes a section called “The Path to Joy: Ten Principles of Spiritual Optimism.” This section explains the lessons Mickey learns along his spiritual journey and gives us a guide to discover joy and spiritual optimism.

Four years ago, I read A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle and participated in a ten week on-line class with Oprah and Eckhart. The idea of a spiritual journey took root. I had read books on spirituality in the past; however, I really didn’t know how to utilize the information in my life. I was in a rut and burnt out, especially with work. Many days I felt like I was on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Interestingly, it took another year, another reading of A New Earth, a repeat of the on-line classes, and discovering Wayne Dyer’s work on spirituality to really start my journey to spiritual enlightenment. Through both spiritual teachers, I learned a great deal about EGO (edging God out) and being “present.” EGO is responsible for fear, among many other unflattering human qualities and emotions. And, I soon discovered it had been FEAR holding me back all this time. So many times throughout my life, FEAR was the factor helping me make many of my decisions.

While I have not totally eliminated FEAR and the EGO from my life, I have made progress at keeping them at bay. When I make decisions, I ask myself if my decisions are based on FEAR or driven by the EGO. Currently, I’m struggling on a personal level. Frankly, I assumed all my burn out was related to work. My weight, daily routines, uncertainty about what I really want to do with my life have me stuck in another rut. Chopra’s book has explained why I’m stuck. Addiction. I’m addicted to my old self. I’m stuck on things that never bring me what I really want. Now, I have to figure out how to break the addiction. While all ten principles have valuable insights, Chopra’s sixth principle deals with inertia and getting unstuck. That’s where I’ll start. I’m optimistic I WILL eventually get out of this rut.

“Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, the providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets: Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it./Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!” ~ W.H. Murray

Posted in Books/Reading, Spirituality | Tagged enlightenment, optimism, ruts, spirituality | Leave a Comment »

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Positive Living

"Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behaviors. Keep your behaviors positive because your behaviors become your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny." ~Gandhi
Run/Walk Schedule

Week #1: Walk 30 minutes a day, at least three times a week.

Week #2: Continue week-one workout but pick up the pace, pump your arms. Break a sweat!

Week #3: Walk 10 minutes. Run 1 minute. Walk 2 minutes (repeat this 3-minute session 5 times). Walk 10 minutes.

Week #4: Walk 10 minutes. Run 2 minutes. Walk 1 minute (repeat this 3-minute session 5 times). Walk 10 minutes.

Week #5: Repeat Week #1 due to setback.
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The Kat Files

Finding Adventure in Everyday Life

Week Two Update: Mission Weight Loss

Mission Weight Loss: Week One Update

Accountability

Let the Games Begin

Bid High, Bid Often (Work = Happiness)

I Call This Meeting to Order

Zombie May-nia

Living Life in a Waiting Room

I’m Addicted to My Old Self

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Run/Walk Schedule

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