Christmas Carnage

I took some time off from writing over the holidays. But now it’s a new year, and you may be happy to know that one of my resolutions is to write more. So here we go…

I had a blast this Christmas. I enjoyed having time off work, spending time with my family, and just plain relaxing. It was what Christmas, in my mind, should be. But I must say, one of the best parts about Christmas this year was the food. And oh, was there plenty.

I planned on using my willpower to get me through the shortbread cookies, midnight mints, mocha Nanaimo bars and many others – and it did work for the first couple days. But on Christmas day, my willpower flew out the window alongside bags of wrapping paper from the gift-opening that morning. I definitely over-indulged on pre-Christmas dinner treats and used the “it’s Christmas!” mantra to justify it. After that, it was all downhill for about 5 days. Bring on the truffles and the fluffy loaves of white bread. It’s Christmas, and I can do whatever I want.

Whoops.

Thankfully I was spending Christmas at my parent’s house. My Mom loves going for walks every day, and therefore, by extension, so did I. However, I wouldn’t really classify it as a “walk.” I would call it “move as fast as you possibly can without breaking out into a run.” So we walked when the weather allowed us, and I attribute that to the fact that I only gained 1 pound over Christmas break.

I knew deep down I would never be able to maintain weight loss over Christmas. I would have been over-the-moon to maintain my current weight, but I’ll accept 1 pound. In fact, I think it’s appropriate since I should have to work extra hard to make up for that second helping of mashed potatoes and gravy.

I’ll do a full weigh-in post on Wednesday, as usual, and hopefully I will have made some progress towards dropping that pound. I leave for Mexico in 26 days (uh-oh that sounds a lot sooner when I write it down), so I am going to be making a big push in the next 3 and a half weeks.

Oh, and I have to also mention the turkey we ate on Christmas, because it deserves a special mention. My Dad went to pick it up from a nearby farm and we could not believe our eyes when we saw it for the first time.

It was 34 pounds. It barely fit in the oven.  It took over 10 hours to cook.

But boy oh boy was it ever delicious.

Weigh-in Wednesday – Weeks 4 & 5

Weight

Total weight lost this week: 3.0 pounds

Total weight left to lose: 32.0 pounds

Total weight lost to date: 8 pounds

BMI

BMI points lost this week: 0.4

BMI points left to lose: 2.2

I’m back!! This week’s weigh in accounts for last week as well (when I forgot to weigh myself). So, 3 pounds of weight loss in 2 weeks. Ummm… ok, not as good as I always hope for (is this a trend?), but again a loss is a loss. I suspect the majority of the 3 pounds was lost during week 4, because week 5 sure was a doozy. I went to two Christmas parties (see: alcohol, carbs) and gorged on some food (albeit excellent food) while some friends were in town this weekend. So I only have myself to blame.

I do feel better though, and I can tell that I am losing weight. It’s not so much about my clothes fitting better, it’s just a feeling I have inside. I can’t describe it, but I can tell I’m on the right path.

In other news, I have replaced my love of mandarin oranges with my love of grapefruit. I have been eating at least one per day either for breakfast or a snack after dinner. I just can’t get enough. I’m sure in another week I’ll be back to mandarin oranges again though, which is good because we have about half a box to go through.

My Christmas baking is going to begin tonight. I thought about doing sugar-free, flour-free, healthy Christmas baking. But, I have decided to go a more traditional route and will limit myself much, much more than previous years. I’m not going to lie, during Christmas I have had nanaimo bars and midnight mints for breakfast. I figure if I can avoid doing that this year, I should come out on the other side just fine. Sweets are fine, it’s the portions that are not. That will be my mantra as I enter the Christmas season.

Ok, that’s all from me. Happy Wednesday everyone.

The Thursday After

Yesterday was Wednesday, which meant I was supposed to do a weigh-in post. Unfortunately I had a crazy hectic day yesterday that made me completely forget to weigh myself! So I will be doing a double weigh-in next week (weeks 4 and 5) to keep you updated.

Last night was my staff Christmas party in Vancouver. It was a grand ole time. The food was italian (yikes – carbs!), but it was oh so good. I had a spaghetti appetizer and a steak entree. Delicious. I’m heading back to Victoria this afternoon, and will hopefully be able to squeeze in a gym session tonight. Here’s hoping.

Sorry, this has to be just a quick update post. Fear not though – I’ll be writing again tomorrow… promise!!

Weigh-in Wednesday – Week 3

Weight

Total weight lost this week: 2.0 pounds

Total weight left to lose: 35.0 pounds

BMI

BMI points lost this week: 0.3

BMI points left to lose: 2.6

 

I lost a solid 2 pounds this week, and I think it’s a win. I’m not seeing a dramatic drop in weight, like I experienced when I did the South beach diet; however, since I am doing weight training, I feel like a 2 pound loss is worthy. For right now it’s not so much about the weight, and more about how I look (and more importantly, how my clothes fit).

Once again, my goal for next week is the 3-4 pound range. Let’s see if I can finally do it. I hope so.

Christmas is fast approaching and I am getting excited. I love the holidays, always have and always will. Tonight I’m putting up the Christmas tree in our apartment. It’s one of those small, fake trees with lights pre-strung. We aren’t allowed real trees in our apartment (something about a fire hazard…), but I find our fake one to be quite enjoyable.

But with Christmas joy comes Christmas food. And with Christmas food comes Christmas pounds. That is one thing I’m not looking forward to. But I think I’ve come up with a few ways to conquer it (more on that later).

Happy Wednesday everyone!

An Addiction

I have a new addiction. Don’t worry Mom, it’s nothing bad.

It’s mandarin oranges.

My boyfriend and I recently bought a box – the first of the year – on Tuesday. We walked in to the grocery store, and there in all its glory was a giant stack of boxes – all filled with mandarin oranges. And they were on sale (bonus!)

I knew we had to have it – even though we walked to the grocery store and the box would surely make for a less than comfortable walk back. I didn’t care, because all I could think of in that moment was how fast I could get home to eat one.

I’m not sure why I like them so much, although I do have two theories. First and foremost is that they remind me of Christmas. I’m a huge fan of the holidays and I know they are starting once mandarin oranges arrive. The second reason I like them so much is the convenience factor. The little pieces are so much easier to eat than a regular orange. I know that sounds weird, but it’s true.

I have been eating two a day since Tuesday, and only eating two is a feat of will power. Luckily for me, I see no harm in eating fruit twice a day. I believe I’m still being healthy, and they make me happy, so in the end it’s a win-win scenario. All I know is that eating two mandarin oranges is better than eating a lot of the other Christmas chocolates and candies on store shelves right now.

So there we have it. My current food addiction. We will probably be done the first box before Monday, so I guess it will be back to the grocery store for me.

I am also going to be on the lookout for grapefruits soon… they make for the perfect breakfast!

Happy Friday everyone!

Weigh-in Wednesday – Week 2

Weight

Total weight lost this week: 1.0 pound

Total weight left to lose: 37.0 pounds

BMI

BMI points lost this week: 0.1

BMI points left to lose: 2.9

 

Well I said last week I was looking to lose about 3-4 pounds this week. Obviously I didn’t quite make that goal, but a loss is a loss once again. This week I lost one pound, a low number, but in the end I am actually kind of happy about it. See, I went to Vancouver on the weekend to celebrate a birthday. It was my first time eating out and traveling since I started this blog, and although I had a fabulous time, I had a harder time watching what I was eating. The alcohol probably didn’t help either…

Then on Monday, to everyone’s great surprise, it snowed in Victoria. 10cm was enough to shut the city down and my road was even closed for a few hours before the salt truck could get to it. I am not a fan of driving in snowy conditions, so I unfortunately had to skip the gym.

I’m back on track today though – the snow should hold out until tonight (another 10cm), so I am going to hurry to the gym after work and get my sweat-on.

The 9 to 5 Sedentary Lifestyle

sed·en·tar·y

adj.

1. Characterized by or requiring much sitting

 

I have a job that requires zero physical activity. I sit at my desk, and that’s pretty much the whole meal deal. This means I live a sedentary lifestyle from 9 to 5. This can be a major contributor to weight gain because for 8 hours I am burning a very minimal amount of calories.

I am now trying to find ways to incorporate exercise into my daily office life. One, which I have already starting doing, is to take the stairs and completely cut out the elevator. Other than that though, I have trouble thinking up other ways to keep active while at work. I may have to resign myself to the fact that having an office job means no physical activity during the day.

One summer I worked for the provincial government, and they had introduced this workstation that was mounted on to a treadmill. Each employee could sign up for it and have their phone calls transferred to the station. It was a novel idea, but to be honest, I don’t think I would be able to get much serious thinking done as I was speed walking on a treadmill. Maybe it’s just me, but there is no way I would have the coordination to do something like that.

In addition to no longer taking elevators, I am going to start drinking more water at work. I likely don’t drink enough, and although it’s not linked to physical activity, drinking more water is a healthy thing to do.

Does anyone else find that sitting in the office all day can be a bit of a downer? Any advice on how to get active during the day?