We went for a family run/bike ride this morning, and we'll head out to swimming lessons in a bit. Nick is not excited about swimming again, for whatever reason. He's very nervous about the water, so fingers crossed all goes well.
We're splurging a bit on dinner tonight, and opening up one of our nicer bottles of wine. Given that we haven't been able to go out to dinner in about 4 months due a babysitter challenge, we've been trying to make the most of our time together on the weekends.
Here's our menu for the week. As always, keeping things simple on busy weekdays, so you won't find much variety or exciting choices on our menu. ;-)
- Saturday - We had risotto, using up remaining chicken
- Sunday - Easter dinner of steak, salad & potentially bread on the side
- Monday - Leftover risotto
- Tuesday - Tacos
- Wednesday - Spaghetti & meatballs
- Thursday - Rocky chicken & pasta (or leftovers)
- Friday - Shrimp & pasta
And, on to my confession. Despite my best efforts (or, not, as it would appear), I've lost exactly zero pounds since January 1st. I know that turning 40 has had some impact, but I'm also just not consistently keeping my calories low enough, or working out often/hard enough. Something has to change. I've gained 15 pounds since I started this job. Travel, stress, and an abundance of delicious (free) food, plus a lack of time to exercise, means it's a big challenge. But, I'm now in the "overweight" category, and really unhappy with my physical appearance.
It's time to dust myself off, stop making excuses, and really get focused. The biggest changes I see that need to happen are as follows:
- I can get in a morning workout 3x/week during the work week, and then Saturdays & Sundays. My body really requires that level of exercise to be fit. And, I must make running happen again - it's the best way for me to consistently lose. I'm already working out on almost every Saturday & Sunday, so this is mostly a weekday morning change. Right now, I'm averaging about one morning/week.
- Lunch. Before starting this job, I always packed a lunch. I only had the options of the food I brought, and knew exactly what was in it. Although I have given up treats at work, it's still not enough. I need to make smaller lunch choices, and eliminate a few of my regular snacks.
- After work. I get home & I'm starving before I make dinner. I often eat a bunch of healthy carbs, & then have no calories left over for a healthy dinner. Or, I go over my calories. Neither is good. No junky snacks after work - hummus & veggies are a good option for me.
- Generally, lower my calories into the 1400 calorie/day range I've been trying for. Consistently. I'm 40 now. Time to cut back, because what I used to do to lose weight is no longer working.
And, there you have it. Losing weight, getting back in shape & being fit are my big goals for the upcoming months!
How about you? Any success on the health & fitness front? I may go back to blogging more about fitness (I used to have a running blog, but stopped after I wasn't running consistently.) I may turn it into a more general fitness blog & link to it here. We shall see!
Happy Easter! I'd love to be 40 again when it comes to weight loss ;-)! I noticed a big change in my metabolism after 60; I lost a lot of weight a few years, but it took twice as long as it ever had, and it's much more difficult than it ever was (like, impossible) in the past to keep it off. Besides giving up meat and dairy at the beginning of the year, I'm back to counting calories and upping my exercise. And the needle on the scale barely moves. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteThat's terrible news. I hope I find the magic solution. I'm willing to give up meat &/or dairy, but neither have ever moved the needle for me, especially if I'm working out a lot. Now, reducing carbs. . . that's always been the recipe for success. It's just hard to do!
DeleteWell, I've got a dozen years on you...I am just not that good at depriving myself of food. So the answer for me is to exercise more. As you probably know from your past efforts, it is quite "addictive," and once you get into a weekday routine, you'll want to keep it up. My only other trick is to eat more real food (especially fruit and veg) and minimal packaged foods. No matter how hungry I am, there is a limit to how much healthy food I'm willing and able to eat in a day. I overeat less if I know I can eat another bowl of lentil soup or a second serving of oatmeal - somehow the urge just isn't there :)
ReplyDeleteI love working out. It's more about time management in my life. It's such a positively reinforcing thing. You work out, you feel better. You eat better. You want to work out. You have more energy. It's all about making it happen! Oh, and couldn't agree more on the healthy food side.
DeleteI am once again starting over in the area of losing weight. I lost almost 40 lbs about 12 years ago by religiously counting calories and exercising. I am starting that again. I downloaded the free myfitnesspal app on my phone and it calculated how many calories I need to lose weight and I can input my food and exercise in it and I have used it religiously this past week. I lost 3.8 lbs! I am going to keep it up! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI've used myfitnesspal for years, and recently switched over to loseit, as I have a friend using that as well. Nice work on the tracking & losing - that is awesome!!
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