The Kat Files

I have completed the first week of my happiness project. Honestly, I feel I did pretty well. Even though I still have not created my official resolutions chart, I tallied up my accomplishments.  My trend these past few years has been to allow stressful situations or my busy lifestyle to influence my health and fitness decisions.  I realized as I was making my resolutions that my life is always going to be busy, and that stressful situations arise; however, those two factors are not a free pass for me to not take care of myself the majority of the time. It really boils down to choices.

My week started off really great. My little guy’s birthday was Monday. To celebrate, my husband and I took him to Chili’s for dinner. Since we had planned this ahead of time, I planned my meals throughout the day to bank some extra calories for a restaurant meal and a couple of bites of dessert. Earlier that morning, I did a 20 minute cardio interval DVD and my run/walk interval training. Tuesday and Wednesday I continued eating well and exercising. Thursday I hit a bump or a few bumps throughout the day. And, amazingly that day snowballed and led to a stressful event. Of course, I blamed it on the fact that I did not get out of bed earlier, as I had done successfully the previous three days.

Thursday was my little guy’s Supplies and Hi’s Day at school. He would have the opportunity to meet his teachers and drop off his school supplies. I’m convinced NOW that I must have a “sabatoging demon” that resides in my body. Of all the days to lollygag in bed, I choose the busiest day of my week to do it. Reluctantly, I dragged myself out of bed. I was cranky because I did not get up earlier. I still managed to do my strength training. However, I had to wash my hair, so I got even crankier for not getting up earlier. Even though I dislike getting up early, I am MUCH happier when I do because it allows me the time to do the things I need to do to keep me healthy. The day proceeded with other activities, and I was irritable and antsy all day. Everything managed to aggravate me. Even going to Books-a-Million didn’t even help. I skipped an opportunity to get a mocha latte. Why? It is August, and they still had the July newspaper with all the book reviews. I already read July. I wanted August! I had a mental temper tantrum. I couldn’t wait to get home. Once home, I made a cup of coffee and ate about 15 M & M’s. Then at 6pm, all hell broke loose.

My husband always goes out in the backyard when he gets home to spend time with the dogs. My little dog, Comet, spends the majority of the day inside. However, when my husband gets home, Comet wants to be out there with the big dogs, too. Apparently, in the short time he was out there, he ate something poisonous. When Comet came inside, he started vomiting and collapsed. He went into a trance-like state and wasn’t breathing very well. After calling the vet, we quickly left home headed for an emergency vet hospital in Mandeville, which is about 30-40 minutes away. It was an extremely stressful drive. There were lots of tears, lots of fear, and lots of prayers. Thankfully, we made it to the hospital in time.  Comet stayed overnight, as well a Friday night. We took him home on Saturday afternoon. He is doing well considering his liver was assaulted, his blood wasn’t clotting, and he almost died.  

Now, I could have used that stressful event to make the choice to eat poorly and not exercise. However, I chose to keep my resolutions. I also decided not to get irritated with myself if I didn’t honor one of my resolutions. Soooo, I didn’t get up earlier; however, I still exercised, ate well (minus the M & M’s), and drank enough water. I would do better tomorrow. And, I did do better. In fact, I even lost a pound this week, which puts me at 142.5 pounds. Remember, I’m working on getting to 135 pounds by August 29th.

Okay, share time. I tried a new recipe on Sunday. The recipe is “Bacon Cheeseburgers to Die For.” I wouldn’t really go that far, but they were good. Even my little guy liked the burger. He can be picky. I’ve attached the link: http://www.justapinch.com/recipe/cookin4me/bacon-cheeseburgers-to-die-for-better-than-gourmet/beef?k=bacon+cheeseburgers+to+die+for&p=1&o=r.  I opted to use water instead of beef broth. I may try the beef broth the next time, as well as making my bacon bits a little bigger.

Something that I discovered that makes me happy: Double Chocolate Biscotti. Not terribly high in fat/calories. I enjoy one when I’ve had a good day (eating/exercise) and want something sweet without the guilt. Keep in mind: having one of these treats everyday lessens the happiness quota.   

Also, I want to share how I’m becoming a 30 minute runner using a run/walk interval program. The program is outlined in the book Running and Walking for Women Over 40 by Kathrine Switzer. The running schedule can be used by both men and women. It is designed to help you become a 30 minute runner in ten weeks. I started Week 4 (walk 6 minutes/run 4 minutes, repeat 3X) today. If I continue successfully, I see a road race on the horizon.

“Life is the sum of all your choices.”  ~Albert Camus