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September 06 OK.... I have been beaten but I refuse to give upHow many months it has been not blogging and not working toward a goal. Oh telling myself I am going to start tomorrow. Tomorrow never comes but one thing is for sure those pounds sneak right back up on you. I am back up to 254, bummer but it is my own fault. I am making a pact with myself. Back to eating, exercising, and enjoying life. Pat and I have had a great summer. We bought some peddle bikes and we rode them basically everywhere we could. We were conserving fuel, saving money, and exercising. Bike riding is soooo much fun! I love it, but I hurt my back about a month ago and that basically put me back so many months. Basically I gave up and started eating, my will power diminished. I am done eating poorly. I don't want to have a "cheat day" that turns into a week or two of eating everything. I am so happy Biggest Loser is starting in 11 days!!! Motivation from that show is amazing and it is awesome to see the changes I make by watching the show. If only it could be on 52 weeks per year! Well, I am planning on a bike ride tomorrow to the farmer's market to check out some of the local produce. I can get my cardio out of the way bright and early and then focus my energy on the other things I need to accomplish this weekend. I am going to try to get better at blogging, if for nothing else to help my own psyche. I feel like a failure. How disappointed Bob and Jillian would be to see how far I fell off the wagon. How frustrated I am to feel my clothes tight on me, AGAIN! So, the plan I have is to start journaling my eating and exercising here daily, putting my thoughts and feelings down so maybe I can get things off my mind, clear my conscience so I don't eat my sorrows, happiness, or blah days away!
On a happier and more upbeat note, Pat and I will be celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary on Monday. WOW! Seven years, though not 20 or 30, still a great accomplishment for both of us. He is such a good man, loving, and FUN to be around. Happy Anniversary Baby! You truly are my knight in shining armour!!!! We went to Red Rocks to the 3 Doors Down concert on Tuesday.... AWESOME!!!!! That is all I can say about that :o) We had so much fun, definitely a place to go to a concert if you ever get the chance!!!!! The boys are both on Varsity Football this year! GO CATS!!!! I am so proud of them. It is amazing how fast they grow up. We have a junior and a sophomore and then our daughter is going to be the BIG 20... I cannot believe I have a 20 year old daughter... is that crazy or what? I also am almost finished with school.... Nov 24, 2008 I will receive my BSHA.... OH MY!!!! It is almost surreal! But a HUGE accomplishment, none the less. I hope that one day I can feel just as accomplished getting to my goal weight. It is a long hard road, but so was going to school fulltime and trying to be a good mom and wife. I think I may have failed the past two years on the good mom and wife, but I did the best I could I think. Trying to find a way to be successful at this life long struggle, just like most.
Well, I look forward to this new weightloss challenge. I look at it as new because I cannot dwell on the past.
Determined to succeed!
Vangie May 27 It doesn't get easierWell I wish I could say it gets easier but alas it does not. I am finally down to 249 but stuck at that for a month now less than fifty pounds from my main goal and I am sucking wind hard.................. It seems like the better I do the easier it is to blow it. If only we all had bob it would make it easier they make it seem so easy on biggest loser but the hard truth is that it isn't. You try and try you fail and fail skinny people can't understand hell i don't understand I work out more than most people I know yet still I exist as a porker. Alas enough with the crying tommorro is a new day and a new work out I hope everyone is well. May 26 Rough couple of weeks...We are fighting the internal and external fat-seeking food groups! No joke. Tomorrow is a new day and both Pat and I are resolved to get back on the wagon and continue our journey. We have had a couple of bad weeks... stress eating, eating to eat, eating things we should not be eating, trying to ruin all of our hardwork. But this time.... we are stopping the vicious cycle once again and going to start eating better before all the pounds and inches have found us once again. I have to say, we are still exercising but we are eating the calories burned, instead of watching the things we put in our mouths and the quantities. So, here we go again...this time, just like all the other times we have to motivate each other because we really don't have anyone else. I have put away my baker's apron and have decided I cannot bake those yummy cookies and cakes because we eat them :( So, back to the WW boards for recipes we can eat, no more trips out to eat for awhile. It will save us money in this crappy economy. The good thing is exercise is always free, so no excuses about not being able to afford it. We can afford the exercise and our bodies and souls will be much happier for it. As difficult as it is to get on the scale I am a much more motivated person when I see the numbers going down then when I see them going up. The evil scale and I will have to become friends... is that even possible? It seems like it is always so much easier to lose weight when the BL is in season. The motivational factor of the show is amazing!!!! I guess it is a good thing we have them DVR'd time to break out the last season and find the motivation we had for a good three months! My sister is still getting married in August and I have found a really cute shirt I would like to fit in by that date, so I have put it in a place I can see it and I am hoping that will give me some motivation, because I will look totally HOT in it and I would love for my husband to be proud of my accomplishment... especially in the weight department. Well, I am off to finish some work.... getting some sleep and then getting up in the morning to do a cardio workout before work so when I get home tomorrow night I can focus on homework and feeling good about my food choices throughout the day!!! For any who are lurking.... leave us a message... we would love to hear from you!!!!
good night May 13 Long time no blog....How time passes. I am playing with the same 6 pounds.... for the past month. Why? I think I am self sabatouging myself. I get to a weight and I am excited and then I slow down my progress. I realize I must continue to have motivation, but I am finding motivation to be a hard concept to grasp. School is going well, 5 classes left to my degree.... it is so close yet so far :o) Pat is doing AMAZING!!! I cannot say enough good things about him. He is down 30 + pounds and kicking butt. I feel so much better when I am exercising and eating right and in all honesty eating right is not the problem, it is the motivation to exercise. Pat says 25 minutes and who does not have 25 minutes of down time when they can do a little cardio or a ball workout? My life is full of excuses.... and that would be me. I would prefer to sleep rather than exercise or do something that does not require as much energy. Sad fact but a true one :o) I am working on getting back on track this week and so far it has gone pretty good. I have not exercised.... but have worked on eating habits. Positive self talk is something I am trying to do more often. I see changes in my body, in my face, and in my outlook. Stress is an evil creature and one that makes me want to eat something sweet... not sugar free sweet but real live rich and sweet.... knowing I should be eating fruit or a sugar free treat but sometimes the sugar fix is needed. Is this an excuse? I don't know. I want to believe it is not. I want to feel it is ok to eat something that may not be good for me but stop at that one instance, not fall into the old way of thinking I can start again tomorrow. If I am not careful, tomorrow will NEVER get here. I find it easier to eat healthy at work when I take breakfast, lunch and snacks. I know I can always go to Subway for a great lunch or supper. I know I can eat my oatmeal for breakfast, a banana for snack and start my day with a large glass of ice water... I treat myself once or twice a week to a nonfat, sugar free latte...I have downgraded my size from large to medium and now can usually feel just as satisfied with a small. With the nicer weather I hope I will feel better about going out for a walk with the dog. I am really going to make an effort to blog more, it helps me with motivation and when I started this journey it certainly was not to quit when the motivation waned. I will be successful... I will be proud of me and I am hoping my husband can be just as proud of me...goals accomplished for both of us. April 02 Winners to be announced April 8, 2008According to the website that is "the" day. I think this journey has been amazing. It is not necessarily about winning the contest. To me, it is about being a part of something bigger. Knowing that when I see those numbers during the show of the weight loss challenge that I have been a small part of it all! I am not saying winning would not be AWESOME, but in the end it will be pretty exciting watching it from the sidelines too! Pat and I have had our ups and downs with the whole motivation thing. I have played with three pounds due to that lack of motivation. I am fully aware of how difficult this journey has been for all of us. One thing that I have learned is many or most of us are emotional eaters. I read on one of the websites that one must come to terms with this, recognize the triggers, and be able to move past it. I, for one, am a closet eater, if no one sees me do it then it is ok. WRONG!!!! It is not ok because in the end I am lying to myself. I work hard in the gym to not reap the benefit. I eat right until I decide I don't want to. Then I obsess about the food I want to eat. Now, this week I have some how regained my motivation. Thinking about Mother's Day and how I would like to be 10 pounds lighter by then. I don't know if I can do it, but it is a small goal I can work towards. I have found strength in many of the "friends" I have on Spaces. It is fun to see the results, read the blogs, see how creative EVERYONE has been. I will not feel sad for not winning because in the end, we are all winners. We are lighter, healthier, and more motivated then we were before the challenge. Would we do it again.... every time they have it. When we reach goal we would still be cheerleaders for those who are just embarking on the journey or who are trying to win the battle against obesity. I proudly tell everyone how this challenge has helped me to "get it" I am not saying there will be those days when I put the wrong things in my mouth but there will hopefully be more days where I have the resolve I need to make healthier choices. :o) The cake that Pat has in the picture for his birthday is actually a low fat cake. It is a Jello cake  ... he likes extra jello. I made the cake with applesauce instead of oil, egg whites only, used sf Jello and Cool Whip Free as the topping. It was yummy and did not make us feel guilty for eating such a wonderful treat! Another thing this challenge has done for my entire family is make us eat healthier. I know teenagers would prefer eating out, going to fast food, and eating tons of sweets but not my boys! My youngest, Trevor, does not like to eat out too much. Lately if we do go out to eat he will say we eat out too much, LOL, now that is an accomplishment. Pat and I have made our children more aware of healthy eating habits. They know our country is considered the most obese in the world. What a sad state of affairs, hopefully those who are on the journey will continue and we can irradicate this deadly disease, because regardless of what those without a weight problem say, obesity is a disease. We can all attest to this. Well, I am going to step down from my soap box.... but these are my thoughts. I wish everyone the best in their continued adventure. I am still looking forward to continuing with everyone who wants the same. Stay tuned.... I will post another night regarding the AWESOME, EXCITING, and somewhat sad episode this week. Good night all!!! March 27 Slow and steady wins the raceAs difficult as it is to believe that statement... it is true. We are trying to get back on track. Emotional eating is an evil creature. Some days it is easy to say, "NO" and mean it. There are other days when it is just better to eat the bad food and feel guilty about it later. This past weekend was a good weekend for the most part. Our daughter came home for the weekend, it was so good to see her, and hard to let her go when she had to leave on Monday. I had taken off Friday and Monday, so I got to spend some extra time with her. It was nice to have her here just to hang out with. The rollercoaster ride we took was due to extended family issues. We also had some drama at the house. Some one tried to break into our house... while we were in it... it was a scary prospect, but we have gotten through it and are more careful each night before we go to bed. I have to say, it is an eye opening experience to realize just how difficult it is to stay the course. I think about what I m going to eat, plan out a daily menu and sometimes, well most times, I figure out a few days in advance. I am really liking oatmeal for breakfast. I was reading an article on smoothies and think I will try one this week. I think this may help me get over the need for a shake, it will be cold and smooth and yummy. I am on day number three of working out. I have averaged about 3 1/2 miles per day. I am shooting for 15 miles or more for this week. I don't know if many people go through daily bouts of wavering motivation. Like the other day, all I could think about was a double cheese burger. How good it would taste, how much I would hate the fact that I would gain weight, water weight if nothing else. But it may be worth it. I was reading something on Kae from the Biggest Loser and she said something that really made sense to me. "Is it worth the amount of working out you will have to do if you eat it?" There are not many things out there I can honestly say are "worth" the amount of exercise I will have to do to make up for the extra calories.
Pat is doing good. I know he has felt he is not doing well, but he is so strong and many times more motivated then I could ever think to be. He has been working his butt off... there is a reason for this. We are planning a trip to Hawaii or the Bahamas in January 2009. We both want to look good in our bathing suits, LOL. The kids are going with us, it should be really fun. Another motivating factor, for me, is my sister's wedding in August. I would like to feel more comfortable in my skin. To do this I need to continue my "slow and steady" weight loss. As many know it is easier said then done. We all love food, to some food has this hold on you that is difficult to let go. I am a food-aholic. I admit it. I can attest that food can cause me to have an anxiety attack, food can help me feel good for only a moment, food is something I eat to energize myself, food will make me stronger just as it could make me weaker. The choices I make, in regards to food, are what make me what I am. Making better choices leaves me feeling full longer, helps my body work better and use my energy stores to help me lose this excessive weight. I may fall off the mountain but I will end up climbing back up to the top and dancing around at my accomplishment. I have accomplished so much since January 1, 2008. Prior to that date I was having difficulty going up the stairs (13 of them), I could eat a large meal from any fastfood place and a large ice cream dessert without thinking twice about it. I can now get on the new treadmill or the elliptical and go at least 60 minutes if not more. I am no longer winded to walk up the stairs or walk out to my car from my office. I prefer, on most days, to have a piece of fruit or some sf/ff pudding for dessert. I drink at least 96 oz of water a day. I don't drink as much soda as I once did. I love to cook things that are healthy for my family. My accomplishments outweigh any joy I get out of eating poorly. I can splurge once in awhile but need to focus on the race to a longer, more healthy life. More time to spend growing old with the man I love and the kids we have raised. Weight loss is only one element of who I am, currently it is a large portion of my day. But in time, I know this too shall pass and I can look back on this journey as one where I learned so much about me, my strengths, and my weakness'.
Biggest Loser was AMAZING!!! Way to go ladies. I was not at all surprised to see Dan go. I was surprised he moved to Los Angeles. I hope he realizes his dream... that would be cool for him. I could not believe Ali lost 6 pounds she is the woman! Kelly is doing well, also. I am not sure who I am rooting for, definitely not any of the blue team members at this point in time. Well, I should finish this so I can do something else with my evening, LOL. I already worked out so stop thinking I am wasting my time blogging instead of cardio, LOL. Talk to ya later!!! March 24 wow what a bad weekMan oh man!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a bad week. I have eatn bad all weekit seems. More like three days but still I have been working so much and resting so little that my focus has slipped some. I really wish I could be better. There has been alot of drama lately and it amazes me how fastyou can go back to old habits, this is how it always goes with me I lose alot of weight and then eat bad one day that turns into two and so on so on. Man I hope I can stop the trend because it sucks. I hope everyone is doing good Vangie is still hanging in tough and im so proud of her. March 19 Two days in a row, will wonders ever ceaseTwice in one week.... leave it to me to get online more than once this week. Well, a short update. Pat will be down loading some more pictures, if I can bribe him  He is working out even as I type. I have started working out when I get home from work this seems to be working better in my schedule and I am not up half the night trying to wind down. I have been looking at other's spaces and some are just awesome! I know there are many who will continue the challenge until they meet their goal. I loaded a video where Jillian talks about failure... if you get a chance you should listen, she says some pretty insightful things. The weather has been so beautiful, but it is not uncommon for us to get snow in April. I feel pretty good today. I am still motivated and to a certain degree it is helping me in other aspects of my life. Work was getting to be stressful, but with the exercise, the proper eating, and a whole new perspective work has been ok. Well, I have a story I need to post about how food has a huge hold on my everyday life... but I need to get some other things done. So I will leave that for another blog, ha ha ha! Have a good night!March 18 A good week for the Morgans!!!It has been a good week for us! Pat got a year older... I think he got more grey hair, LOL. Just Kidding! I was down 1.4 pounds, which was good as I had stalled out due to losing motivation for two weeks. Pat is still kickin' butt! I wish I could say I was jealous, but I am VERY proud of his motivation. This past week we have been busy, working out, LOL. Most of my workouts are now at 90 minutes and averaging 4 days per week. I would like to try for at least 5 days this week and keep up that pace. I need to do more strength training, which I am working on. I just feel like cardio makes me sweat more so therefore in my own little mind I think I am burning more calories. The boys have finally realized how different our eating habits have become. We went to Applebee's, we all got burgers (big mistake). By the time we finished our meal, Pat and Trevor were feeling ill... I only had half of my burger and chose a salad. But, we were all pretty ill by the evening. Lesson learned... When you are not used to eating greasy, fat soaked food, go for the healthier option. You will be glad you did!!
Did you all watch the Biggest Loser tonight... the make-overs were fabulous! Kelly was barely recognizable!!!! They all looked superb! I am so glad Dan cut his hair... he looks so much younger and more "Rock Star" then he did!!! Sad to see Brittany go, but it was a no brainer considering she was up against the ENTIRE "non-existent" blue team! It is not that I don't like Jay, but he was a bigger threat to the game then Brittany. I do hope Brittany will be able to lose more now that she has gone home... she looked pretty good in the update! I am not at all surprised that Mark won the challenge but Ali made a pretty good showing!!!! I thought for sure she had it in the bag!!! I am also in LOVE with Ali's new cut... Well, I hope everyone is doing well and staying motivated!!! I know I don't get on but once a week, but I think about blogging more but time slips away! :o) My plan is to visit some sites this week to see how my "friends" are doing!!!! So... see ya later!!!! Good night!! March 11 Gone but not forgotten!Oh my goodness.... I cannot believe how long it has been... so much for trying to win the contest by keeping my site updated, LOL. Not like I had a chance to begin with, but it has been fun. The last 3 weeks has been busy! I have done ok, had a rough week, last week. I have not lost any in total but have been playing with the same 6 pounds... yes 6 pounds for the past two weeks. I got off kilter just a bit. I did not exercise and my thinking went from being focused on the goal to eating things and telling myself I can work it off. Which I did work off the poor choices I was making but with water weight (which it was mostly that because I could lose and gain 4 pounds in one day) I have struggled, up and down, my rings are fitting tight but my clothes do not feel different. This week I realized where I went wrong. I also decided that one meal out of the week would be something I really wanted to eat but in a smaller portion size. Pat and I can share an entree at almost any place we eat. So, that is a no brainer, we just have to find something we both want, LOL. I feel I am back on track. I am focused on eating like I was and not making excuses. Motivation is so difficult for me. i am wanting the weight to be gone now, but know that is not a possibilty. So, back to the drawing board. Back to focusing on what is going into my mouth and the amount and continue to get my exercise in. On a great note, Pat bought us a treadmill and a new weight contraption thing... LOL It has a smith machine, LOL, that is all I can remember. But it is nice. So, now we have the elliptical and the treadmill and the new weight set-up, it is so cool to go down and work out!!!!
Pat is doing AMAZING!!!! He has an image issue that he is getting smaller...muscle-wise but what he does not realize is he will get smaller but he will get more defined. He is looking... fabulous (in my best Jim Carrey Grinch voice) I am so proud of him. His total loss is 25 pounds... yep I am jealous! But he is working HARD... twice a day workouts. Eating like a champ! Making me feel oh about 2 inches tall because he is driven to succeed. He has his bad days, but they are fewer than mine. He LOVES the new "gym" in our basement... we are looking into a new wall mount TV but I think that can wait. :o)
We are looking forward to continuing our weightloss journey and I plan on continuing to blog our progress, and other funny, strange stories of our lives... PLUS our take on the contest! Anyone who reads this please let us know so we can continue to check up on you also... and to those who are lurking....let us know you are there!!!! Have a good "Biggest Loser Night" We wish all continued success on your journey!!!! February 19 Uphill battleEmotinal Eater Coming Through. I think this will be the toughest thing to conquer. When I hit an emotinal low the low self esteem comes rushing back. I tell myself how worthless I am and how this battle with obesity will NEVER be won. This is the first time since the beginning of this journey that I have felt like giving up. Trying again when I have more time or less things on my plate (no pun intended). I look back at my entire life and see where I have failed due to my own detrimental thoughts. It is so frustrating to be so negative, yet I don't know any other way. Yet, another learning curve, something that will take time to master.
In my heart I am willing to learn how to react to these feelings in a more positive way. I truly only hurt myself when I get that defeatist attitude. I am proud of my accomplishment, so far. I am proud that my clothes are fitting loose and I have more energy. I need to remind my self of all the positives of this healthy lifestyle I am learning. This journey is one of hard work. I would not say it is a sacrifice to learn a better way to care for myself. It is time consuming in a good way. I have learned some really great habits. I was thinking today. before my pity party. about how easy it is to eat healthy, exercise, and make better choices. I am amazed at the fact that I now think before I go out to get something "quick and easy" aka fast food. I don't know why but now I feel like I get it... but to a certain degree, I do. I went to the store today and headed straight for the Hostess aisle... yum a lemon pie (calorie count something like 800) or a couple of Ding Dongs for the drive home to satisfy my hunger....I have to say I did not buy anything like that... headed straight to where I needed to go and then was out of the store. This is a victory, nothing less. Something I should be proud of! So, in all my ramblings I admit, I am an emotional eater. I am working on a different outlet to get past the lowest of lows so I can continue to have a positive self image and continue with more positive choices. I have things I want to be proud of, to some it may seem like my victories are VERY small, but to me they are another hurdle I have cleared. I don't want to back slide and gain weight. I like the idea of the scale is going down as my enthusiasm and drive are moving upward. Emotional Eater be gone... if only it were that simple! February 18 What a week!!!Down 3 more pounds!!!! I cannot believe it!!! So that makes a total loss of 12 pounds. Pat told me when I have lost 20 I can get my hair done... LOL. It needs it bad, but it is giving me some incentive to stay on track, only 8 more pounds! I took the weekend off from exercising, I really was not feeling well. It helped! I got some much needed rest and I am feeling better.
Today was a busy day and I still got in my 60+ minutes of cardio!!! I know I did not eat so well last week but I learned a good lesson. I like to eat what I want but there are repercussions to doing that too much. That is how I got to the weight I am. Slowly but surely it is coming off. I am feeling better due to the change in my eating habits. I intend on staying on track this week to see what happens with the scale! I don't know that I am going to lose another three, time will tell  I have not tried any new recipes lately. Pat made a really nice Valentine's meal. He did not get to enjoy it as he had to go to work but it really was good. Steak, red potatoes, scallps, salad.... it was yummy! I am thankful he is such a good cook... much better than I am, LOL. It is late I should get some rest!!! Keep working toward your goals!!!! February 10 Exercise, anyone????Today has been a better day for both Pat and I. We got up had our usual oatmeal. We then watched a movie, drank our first round of water, and decided who would start cardio first. I won, LOL. So, I did my hour of cardio then he got on the elliptical while I did my heavy ball strength training. I took Bob's advice from an earlier episode and did it while sitting on the big exercise ball, to work my core muscle group a bit harder. It was a GREAT work out! The elliptical says I burned 565 calories and I know I burned a bunch more with the strength training. I know that many will say how awful the theater popcorn is, but I honestly did not eat very much of it, any is too much. At any rate, I am sure the scale may reflect this as well as the high fat burger and fries I ingested but that is the reason to work out harder in the coming week. I don't want the scale to move in the wrong direction! So, all I can do is eat healthier and move more, and learn from the experience. If I gain then I will work harder to get it going in the right direction.
We had Subway today for lunch, it was really good. I made some sf/ff pistachio pudding with some coolwhip free... it was yummy. In fact I liked it better than the blizzard I had yesterday!!! Now that says something, if only I had thought of it prior to eating the Blizzard. If you feel a sweet craving coming on... try this one, it is worth the five minutes to make it, LOL AND with the cool whip free in it, it is like a mousse and VERY creamy. For supper, we are grilling some chicken breast (boneless/skinless) marinated with some lemon pepper, franks red hot, and worchestire (spelled wrong) with that we will make some veggies and some potatoes with some dry ranch and olive oil cooked in the oven. So, today is not a bad day... plus I have my workout in early...so I can relax for the rest of the day!!!!! Well, night, LOL. All in all it has been a good day... may the good days keep coming  Another week down ...Down another 1.8 pounds! Yeah me! This is really good considering we went to Olive Garden! I did not choose the best meal that would help with my better eating habits but I also did not really enjoy my meal, so I only ate half of it, at most, which as we all know is PLENTY! The good thing was there was not an opportunity to take any home as we were not in town. This past week, I worked out harder than I have been because of the overnight trip and not eating too healthy for a few days. I did take into consideration the extra calories and knew there was NO WAY I was going to gain this week!!! I am soooo glad I have learned at least that much. It has been so cold that I just want to come home from work or class and go to bed, but my drive has gotten me to make it down the stairs to the elliptical and catch up on some shows that I have missed due to our busy schedule. Thank heavens for DVR, LOL. Every day is a struggle for me to eat healthier and most days I accomplish that goal. Today was a "free" day for Pat and I. BAD, BAD, BAD.... we went to the movie had some popcorn and diet coke...our sons went with us and when I said not butter on the popcorn my son said, "No butter?" So, I gave in and got butter. Another hour on the elliptical will not kill me, right???? Well, it gets worse from here, we decided on greasy burgers, fries AND a BLIZZARD....can you say I think I gained 2 pounds???? Yep, more time lifting weights and cardio. But you all know the saying, "You play, you pay" I will be paying for this "free" day for the next week. The positive side... at least I know what I have to do to get these calories off, before I would have just said, "oh well." Learning from experience is a valuable lesson, if you learn at least something. The further we get in this journey the more positive choices we make, THIS IS A HUGE PLUS! We were talking about my sisters wedding tentatively scheduled for August. Imagine how much weight we could lose by then... really impress not only ourselves, but the family too. Bonus!!!! Well, it is late and I am getting sleepy. I will no doubt be dreaming of the elliptical and weight training with Pat... I really think he is just as persistent as Bob and Jillian! Oh, hope you all got to watch the entire episode this past week. We missed it due to the Super Tuesday coverage and only got to see the 2 minute recap. I am pretty sure that the Blue team is slowly unravelling, Jackie looks GREAT!!!!! I am so glad she is doing something productive with the children in her community. Childhood obesity is such a HUGE problem in America! I hate to say it, but I think they made a big mistake by making Dan angry. He has put up some big numbers and will probably continue that trend. I do believe he is IN IT TO WIN IT!!!!
Well, good night! Keep up the good work toward your goals and I promise, I will try to be better at blogging the Biggest Loser saga from the Morgan Household!!!! February 02 ProgressTime flies. I have, however, lost 7.2 pounds. It seems like I have lost more inches this time around. I wish I had, had the foresight to have measured myself at the beginning so I could compare them now. But when we decided to do this I was not enthusiastic about putting any pictures up, thus the baggy sweatshirt and sweat pants, let alone having numbers to connect to body parts. Now, don't get me wrong. I am still not brave enough to let anyone take a picture of me with bike shorts and a sports bra on. I am however going to get some new pics up of me in more fitting clothing. Nothing helps motivate a person then having to look at themselves to view what others see. I know I am my biggest critic, but I am also my biggest fan.
This past week has had it's ups and downs. We had three birthdays this past week in the office... oh my, you would think they could have combined them , but no, we had cake, ice cream, bagels.... The bagels were easy to say no to but when one of my co-workers brought me a small piece of cake
with some ice cream I threw caution to the wind and dug in!!! Bad Bad Vangie, as Pat would put it! I was not impressed by the cake (I did eat it, though) but the ice cream was delicious!!! I am not a huge fan of ice cream, but this was really good. So, of course I worked out a bit harder that night and felt the pains of guilt. The rest of the week was pretty good. I stayed away from things that I knew would trigger a distructive path, more ice cream, for example  Was I angry with myself for "falling down"? YES! Did I learn something? I want to think I did, only time will tell. I exercised at least 5 times for 60 mins/day. I will update my workout log, I still need to do more strength training, hopefully this week will prove to be the week I incorporate more into my workouts. This week has been crazy!I am feeling better about myself and just wanted to say that I can actually touch my toes again!!!!!! You can laugh, it makes me chuckle. For the longest time I could not bend and get my hands past my knees, HONESTLY! But the other day I got up and leaned over and there I was touching my toes... my back did not hurt, my muscles did not pull. Hey this working out thing has it's advantages! Well, besides making me sweat... So, my defining moments this week were: I am now down 7.2 pounds AND I can, once again, touch my toes! At 40 years old that has got to mean something. January 27 While Pat's away, Vangie will play???Has anyone ever fought the everyone's gone and it would be sooooo easy to eat something not so healthy. I say not so healthy because there are things that when eaten in excess are bad for you. It has been over a month since my last visit to Runza, my favorite fast food burger place. My son also happens to work there... that could be why I like to go there :o) Well, today Pat went back to work, he will be gone at least 36 hours....plenty of time for me to stray! I found myself today looking for something to satisfy my need to eat... I was bouncing between a blizzard, going to get a "value" meal at Runza, or baking something.... my passion... anything baked!!! YUMMY Well, after looking, searching, and then feeling guilty for even thinking of doing something detrimental to my weight loss, I chose a better option, a sugar free hot cocoa. It hit the spot! It did not increase my calorie intake and in the end while I was sipping on it and watching a movie I felt as though I had won a battle. One in many to come, mind you, but a battle none the less. So, I had to blog about it.... kind of patting myself on the back. Yeah me! It seems when Pat goes off to work, my mind starts wandering to unhealthy habits, a true fight within myself to not give in. I am not saying I will not go out to eat at a fast food place, ever again. I am saying that if I choose to do that I will have to plan for it. Since I had (not so good ) Mexican food yesterday, it is probably not a good idea to over indulge again this week. My elliptical said yesterday that I burned over 650 calories during my workout.... AMAZING. I know I cannot count on the bike to be accurate but something about getting that number higher with each workout. It is a motivational thing. Well, back to my hot cocoa, movie, and homework! January 26 Long time, no blogIt has been a week since I posted, Pat has been online filling in our workouts... updating the site! Thank heavens he keeps everyone informed! Well, I left off with Trevor's birthday supper. In all honesty, I felt I did pretty good! I stayed away from the bread, had a healthy burger with all the fixins and fat free cheese, it was pretty darn good! I had one scoop sugar free ice cream, which was actually REALLY good! I also had a small piece of cake. Before I would have had a huge bowl of ice cream with a huge piece of cake, so slowly but surely I am learning! I kind of waned on working out this past week. I took Sunday off, decided I was too tired on Monday night after working all day and class, so I decided I would wake up early Tuesday morning to get the workout done early rather than later! I like working out in the morning but some days I would prefer to sleep in, LOL. I got up Wednesday and did 60 minutes on the elliptical, had planned on working out after class with Pat doing some strength training, I was extremely tired so I did nothing that night. Are you getting the picture that I am making excuses????? Thursday decided what was the point and I would work out in the evening... which I didn't do. Heck... I am not doing well, LOL. So, last night my husband was my motivator. He told me at 9pm that I did not workout so I had to get at least 30 mins of cardio... so he pulled me off the bed and down to the elliptical I went. Instead of 30 minutes I did 60 mins on Level 7, which I had not EVER done. I was glad when it was over, but proud that I had been motivated to get it done!!!! Pat told me I would appreciate the push when I weighed in today at Weight Watchers and I did appreciate it!! I was down another pound. I felt like had I exercised all my days I would have done better on the scale, but 1 pound is definitely moving in the right direction. The problem with weight loss is it is so slow  I find myself wondering if I will ever make it to a healthy weight. Is that a pity party or what? I know the work it is going to take to get to my goal is an amazing amount of self control, motivation, and perseverance! Pat is strong when I want to be weak and though we talk about eating bad food we are working on making the smarter choice, though I have to admit, lunch today was not a healthy choice (Mexican food) and after we ate I felt over full and it was not actually worth the extra fat and calories! So, now I am definitely working out a little extra for that choice! I know we are not supposed to deny ourselves things we like, but I think my tastes are changing... I would prefer to eat a huge salad instead of a high fat meal. I know I have not lost a lot of weight but my clothes are fitting MUCH better. So, even though the scale does not say I am lighter my clothes tell me that I must be doing something right!  I was completely bummed that the pink team had to go home, but have to say they looked FABULOUS!!! I am not sure I agree with throwing a weigh in but in the end it is all a game, right? Someone has to win that money, right? I am at a loss at who I am going to root for now, I am sure by the end of the next show I will have a team chosen. I am rooting for the PINK team to win the second prize at the finale, which I would love to attend but since Pat and I are not web designers, it may just be a fantasy... but a good one to have, a good motivator to continue on the weight loss journey (just in case). Well, I was thinking it does not matter if we win or lose because in the end we are winners even if we are not Biggest Losers! I think this contest is long enough to get some good habits formed, make life changes not just short term changes. I am going to continue to blog even after the contest is done, if for nothing else to hear myself think and type, LOL Well, I have some work to do and a workout to get done with... I will try to be more diligent in blogging... let anyone who reads this know the ups and downs of not just the scale (which changes daily! Pat has banned me from daily weight checks) but of my habits, good and bad! On a side note, Pat is doing REALLY well, he is working out even when he is sick! I don't know if he will workout today, he is really not feeling very well... but he always feels like good or bad he should at least try. My feelings on this are if you are sick, let your body heal and then worry about the workout! Perhaps this is why I have failed at the weight loss game, no?January 24 personel thoughts01/24/08 I wonder if when we all lose all this weight and learn how to eat healthy what McDonald's will do hmmmmmmm
01/26/08 I wish with all my little chubby heart that Bob would come up with a krispy kream diet..........
January 23 WORKOUTS01/23/08
Vangie 60 min. cardio in the am. Pat 60 min cardio am shoulder and 30 min cardio in the pm
01/24
vangie's off day. Pat 34 min cardio with heavy bag workout. and hour and half of basketball (god I'm old) and arms
01/25
Vangie 60 min cardio in the pm. Pat 1:10 cardio and abs
01/26
vangie did 60 min cardio. Pat did 20 min cardio some heavy bag work then 40 min cardio
1/28
Vangie did 40 mins of cardio, level 7
1/29
Vangie did 60 mins of cardio, level 7
1/30
Vangie was lazy and tired and did nothing after her night class but go to sleep.
1/31
Vangie did 60 mins of cardio, level 7
2/1
Vangie did 70 mins of cardio, level 7
January 18 My anchor....WOW, what a compliment from my wonderful husband. He is amazing in himself. We have been married for 6 years, he has helped me raise three children, taken them as his own when he adopted them shortly after we were married. He gives of himself to make me happy and puts up with my multiple moods, LOL. He works long hours on a train and then gets to his away from home terminal and works out, sleeps for a little bit and then gets up and works out again. He gets back on his train and comes home to do the same thing here! There have been times when I was extremely jealous of his motivation. With this challenge we have joined I have noticed that my motivation is right on track. I may say I don't want to workout but in the end I get it done. I can only be accountable to myself and Pat, we are a team. Pat is my rock, without his guidance I can tell you I would not be able to get on my elliptical or do the strength training he puts me through. So, in essence, he is my Rock, the one I can't wait to see every morning.
 He is my soulmate the love of my life.... you all get the picture.Well, today was a good day! Day number 5 of consecutive workouts, all days consisted of cardio and two of the days strength training. I have been pretty proud of how we are doing. We may not win the challenge to go to the Finale, our website building ability seems to be lacking when we look at other sites. But in the end we intend to continue this lifestyle. I am so glad it is Friday.... Another week of healthier eating and feeling really good about how we are progressing. Tonight we made some ff/sf butterscotch pudding....that is our treat. I can honestly say I am not hungry so I will not be partaking..... maybe tomorrow Oh, before I forget our youngest is going to be 15 on Monday... we are celebrating tomorrow.... we gave him the choice what he wants to eat, he wants burgers, hotdogs, tatertots, chocolate peanutbutter cake, and vanilla ice cream. OH MY!!! So here is the plan for Pat and I. We got extra lean ground sirloin and some extra lean ground turkey breast to make the burgers and whole wheat heart healthy buns, lettuce tomatoe and all the fixins. Hot dogs and buns and tatertots. The cake is a homemade cake and from experience I can tell you it is YUMMY!and not exactly the healthiest thing; butter, sour cream, sugar... you get the picture!!!!!! So, we have tried to lighten it as much as we can and we bought no sugar ice cream. Both Pat and I are in agreement that if we keep our bad carb intake (bread and tater tots) down then we can have a small piece of cake and a scoop of ice cream to help celebrate. I think we have a good plan, I will let you know how well we did tomorrow. Well, it is off to finish the movie with the "boys." Talk to ya tomorrow! Vangie |
we will miss them|
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