Public Service Announcement

05/05/10

282.5 lbs

Honestly, I don't remember what came after the point so I'm splitting it down the middle and calling it a .5.  Don't hold it against me.

Do you know what today is?  If you said Cinco de Mayo, you're wrong.  I mean, you're right, but you're wrong. 

Today is Love Another Blogger Day.  (<==for me anyway)

Last night I was catching up on my blog reading and came across two blogs that are kinda opposite ends of the spectrum.  One had a success and one had a fail.  In the universe of diet karma, these seem to cancel each other out, but in fact, I believe the success happened so it could be an encouragement to the one that failed.

Here's blog #1  It's All About The Walls.  This is my friend Amanda who has been sitting at a plateau for weeks.  In her blog she maps out how things coulda gone wrong and she coulda thrown in the towel and quit.  She didn't, she just waited, albeit not so patiently, and finally, the scale moved and moved in the right direction.  YEA Amanda!  What a break through moment!  If you're a habitual dieter as I have been in the past, you'll know that plateaus SUCK EGGS.  So, finally pushing through one (and by 2 pounds even!) is like nothing short of a miracle.

Then there's blog #2 It's just Me, Drazil & Sheniqua.....This is my new friend "Me".  Well, actually, there's a trio rolled into one here I think of her as Drazil most of the time.  Anyway.  Reportedly, there's been a scale buster  in Drazilland and that is never fun.  Not seeing a scale move is one thing, but to see it move in the wrong direction is another.  This is a hard working girl who's busted her "patootie" to get where she is and even has rewarded herself with a tummy-tuck at the end of it all.  And now, after a month of little life things, there's some gain-age on the homefront.  I don't know how much, but really, is there any gain-age that makes us happy on the scales? 



If you watch The Biggest Loser and follow the tweets like #TBL or #BiggestLoser, then you're bound to know about all the insane crying that happens when the show is on. Now kids, if you don't know this by now, I am not one to really appreciate any emotional display other than snarkiness or ranting. However, that damn show has brought me to near hysterics for three weeks in a row!!!! I've been trying to figure out why because I haven't been sad OR happy when the waterworks have begun. I figured it out last night.

I am touched by the genuine feelings these contestants are sharing. Now, I'm not tearing when they're tearing. Actually, when someone else cries on TV, I get a little annoyed. I'm tearing at the stories, the triumphs, the struggles, the overall genuine real humanity of a weightloss battle. Well, that's what's going on here. A little genuine dose of reality in the bloggin world.

My bloggin heart really loves these ladies and all the blogs that I stalk or read occasionally.  I think that those of us who have good days are here to encourage those of us who don't have good days.  I am willing to bet that for every bad day, there's a good day to match it and that's where we should get our strength, encouragement, motivation, and overall warm fuzzies. 

Amanda, meet Drazil.  Drazil, meet Amanda.  You two need each other right now.  And we all need you!

There.  I've done my good deed for the day.

-jafg

The Blondes and SAG

09/01/09

285.2 lbs

--yesterday's weight--

Sometimes I'm at a loss for words.  Like today for example.  For my faithful few, however, I will do my best.

I went out with Skinny Athletic Girl and the Blondes Saturday night.  I had a blast!  Heard a great band, played Darts, I totally suck at Darts, btw, and drank Michelob Ultra.  I'm not a big beer fan but this wasn't too bad.  Plus it's supposedly a low carb, lower calorie beer.  So, what the hell, right? 

I had a decent hair night and the make-up looked great.  I was pretty happy with the outfit, a nice purple top with jeans and cute shoes.  Jewelry was rockin as always.  Overall, I walked out of my diggs with a pretty healthy chunk of postive energy. 

I'm mostly on time when I arrive and SAG's house.  More positive energy.  She opens the door and Damn.  She's 5'11" and is all legs.  The fitted dress she wore barely came below her "bum".  I couldn't fault her for it because she looked H-O-T.  I'd like to look that H-O-T one day!  If I had a body like hers, I would totally dress like that just to pick soymilk up from the grocery.  I would.

To make matters worse, she's gotten the P90X thing and is talking about her workouts and how sore she is.  Of course, I'm thinking I should be sore from working out, not her.  She says she's finally getting definition in her calves to which I reply "Finally?".  I couldn't help it. 

I found out what the P90X thing is...it's a 90-day regiment of complete muscle confusion.  It's supposed to really smack your body out of and into shape.  I know a Bride who's currently on the program.  She's always on Facebook about it.  It's tiresome really.  The status updates, not the plan.  Well, maybe the plan, too, but I wouldn't know.  I don't use it. 

The Blondes arrived and thank GAWD they are not wearing skimpy dresses.  The Blondes could totally wear little skimpy dresses, I assure you.  Oh--I call them The Blondes because I'm not blonde and they are...I can't reveal much more than that to protect my secret Fat Girl identity.  Anyway, The Blondes are wearing jeans and tops, all looking much more fetching in their clothes than I am.  But, I do have a great hair accessory.  Kudos for me.

We're out for the evening having a grand old time.  We all love the band.  Great band!  Wish I could share the name, but alas, I've got my secret identity to think about.  Close to closing time, we head up to After-Hours bar.  This place seems like a good idea at the time everybody's saying "Yeah, let's go!" but they're not.  They're really not. 

Every drunk girl and boy out on a Saturday night happen to be at After-Hours bar.  We're all packed in like Sardines.  It's horrible.  Really.  I'm separated from my posse by a sea of entering and exiting drunkards.  I'm being felt up by some dude sitting by a chick too drunk to notice.  Sounds like fun, doesn't it? 

Continuing with the story...I finally make it across the great divide and perch at the bar feeling a little safer.  You can smoke in this club so both service and an ashtray are immediately available. It doesn't get much better than that.  We're all pretty content, SAG and The Blondes have latched on to two guys.  These are former "friends" of SAG.  Conversation is flowing.  Then, the boys have a few friends join them.  This is the moment I stop enjoying myself. 

All the sudden these three asses wedge themselves between me and The Blondes and I get completely shut out.  Don't misunderstand me.  I really don't care about the attention or lack thereof, I care about the complete lack of acknowledgement that I was even part of this group.  Why don't these boys do the decent thing and pretend to include me in the convo?  Well, I did the only thing a respectable girl could do in my position.  I lit another cigarette and let it billow in their faces.  I was going to accidentally burn them, but I didn't get the opportunity.  My girls saved me.  These skinny girls walked away from their fanclub and pulled me with them.  Now that's cool.

It may seem like I don't like SAG and The Blondes, but that isn't true.  They're my peeps.  I heart them!  Besides, even if I were on the same level of H-O-T-ness as they are, which I am already in my own way, there'd still be something to bitch about.  We're girls.  It's what we do.


-jafg

Soy Joy

08/14/09

283.2 lbs

Hmmph.


I had fun last night! I had pizza for dinner. With pepperoni and sausage and mushroom. My favorite. I didn't gorge on it like I could have. Two pieces with dinner and one piece later as a "midnight snack". I may have had a few cocktails. I didn't drive. You shouldn't either if you partake of libations.

I also had some friendship bread with my midnight snack. And a glass of soymilk. Thank GOD for soymilk. I'm not joking when I say that either. I brought some with me to work this morning. Actually, the whole half gallon. I find it soothing on days like this. It's cool and refreshing.

When I first was introduced to soy milk, I was skeptical. I bucked up and picked up the glass that was poured for me, gave it a sniff, and then took my first drink. It was vanilla soymilk. It was nutty and sweet and just plain delish. That's when I became a convert.

I couldn't get enough. I still can't. I read the ingredient list one day and realized that Vanilla SM has a lot of sugar. Not surprising, just something I'd not really thought about before. I branched out to Plain SM. I don't buy the "light" versions, because they lose the word 'organic' when they add the word 'light' and they also get ingredients I have to "sound out". Hooked on Phonics Worked for Me! Sorry. It just happened. Anyway. I'll opt for less ingredients for more fat or calories any time. Well, I do use Splenda.

I have no real insights on the world of weight today. I think everyone, fat or skinny, generally feels like shite the day after a night of one too many.


-jafg

P.S.
I'm not taking the stairs at work today.

There's Really No Point

08/13/09

281.4 lbs

Holding steady.

I really love chicken salad. And bananas rolled in cinamon. If you haven't tried that, you should. If you're feeling REALLY daring, try a little sprinkling of nutmeg on some watermelon. MMMMM-MMMMM!

I'm socializing with Athletic Skinny Girl tonight. I wonder if that means dinner, too. I've not been as tight about what I eat. I splurged on a chicken salad 5-foot long roll-up yesterday with avacado and cashews. It wasn't really 5-foot long, but you get the picture. Today, chicken salad and fruit plate. YUMMMM. The mayo is not low-fat. The fruit, while it does contain fiber, also has a high sugar content. Dinner for the past two nights have had both rice and 1/2 a sweet potato.

This morning, I had a sausage-and-cheese-bagel-dog-thing (about the length of my index finger) and a slice of someone's Friendship Bread. Yeah, it's time to make that stuff again. I'm bringing mine to work tomorrow and leaving it downstairs. Damn Friendship Bread.

I'm dwelling on food. Food Glorious Food. If you say the word a lot, it starts to sound funny. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. Food. I could say the same thing about the word Nibble. Nibble. Nibble. Nibble. This is a really intelligent train of thought.

Moving on. I've got a pool that I can use and a gym that I can use and even a personal trainer than I can use as part of my concierge service where I live. The kicker? It's all at no additional cost to me. Why aren't I using these services? Well, I hate being in a bathing suit. I don't get up early enough to go to the gym when no one's there. I should try, I guess. But, I love my sleep and morning cigarette more.

I'm full of rationalizations today. I can rationalize my way out of anything. It even sounds good, too! Like, I could completely convince you to think like me if I tried hard enough. It's a gift. And a curse. (I love MONK)

-jafg

Sweet Defeats

08/04/09

286.2 lbs.

Yeah. The weight-truth sucks sometimes. I recently visited some friends at the beach and was given a starter for Amish Friendship Bread. If you don't know what it is, you're missing out. If you do know what it is, then you know my predicament. Once you make your first loaf you're hooked. It's awesome. You can add nuts, different flavors, and pretty much make it anything you like. I just made some banana walnut version of it. OMG. It's to die for. On top of that, the local grocery store had my favorite ice cream pints on sale for $.99. Less than a dollar a pint, People! I bought 2. Okay, 3. Over the course of the weekend I've consumed ice cream (only one pint) and freakin' awesome banana nut friendship bread. This is not part of healthy living.

I'm also on a budget. A tight one. It's difficult to shop healthy and cheaply at the same time. The trick to really good, healthy eating is the number of ingredients in a pre-packaged food item you may be buying. The more ingredients an item has, odds are the less likely it is to be healthy. This is true of the "diet foods" as well. But...have you ever noticed how the less ingredients something has the more expensive it is to purchase? Herein lies the rub so to speak.

I'm a fan of locally grown products. I'm a fan of organic products. These are actually more expensive to purchase than their counter-parts. On some things I won't budge. I will only buy organic soy milk. Fortunately, most stores now have 'store-brand' organic soy milk so I'm pretty good on that. I really prefer to buy eggs from hormone-free, vegeterian-grain-fed chickens. Occasionally, I will break down and buy the cheaper ones, but only when I really have to watch every penny.

I'm trying to buy ingredients for meals to prepare at home and trying to be healthy while doing it. Here's some pointers. Sweet potatoes are better for you than white potatoes and are just as filling. Brown rice has all the fiber retianed while white rice doesn't. Frozen veggies are cheaper than fresh veggies most of the time and you get more bang for your buck. Veggies from the frozen food section really aren't that bad unless you're buying the ones with the cheese sauce. Speaking of cheese, the firmer the cheese is the healthier it is, also (that's true for "female health" as well). With the exception of goat cheese and feta; these aren't too bad in moderation. Moderation is the key. [Insert annoying cliche' alarm, here.]

A good grocery list is a lot like core-wardrobing. You get maximum variety with minimum ingredients. Pick up a few light-cooking magazines. Maybe invest in a healthy cookbook. Read the the ingredient lists and figure out which repeat themselves most often. Taylor those to your tastes and there ya go! You've got a start for a week's worth of menus.

I'm fortunate enough to live in an urban environment where I can shop at several stores that are close to where I live. It's important to review the grocery flyers you get in the mail or in the paper. Figure out where the best deal is spread your shopping over a few days. This is awesome for me because I'm never motivated to go out and get what I need. It's so much easier to just pick up dinner on the way home. Especially when I can buy a pizza that's already cooked for about $7 (I won't say where to avoid any temptations tonight). Or a burger for that matter. Or Bar-B-Q. See, I'm already moving in the wrong direction.

Okay. So, I have been taking the stairs! Only a few times has the elevator been used. One time I was going with someone else and just used the elevator with them (next time I'll be stronger) and the other time I was really freakin' hot from being outside for lunch (southern heat has high humidity) and just plain took the lazy way up to my workspace. I'm being honest! Give me some credit for that!

I still have ice cream in my freezer. I can't imagine I'll part with it down the drain either. I'm going to have to incorporate more movement into my daily routine because of this. I can say that the next batch Friendship Bread I make will be brought into work and shared with everyone else's hips. What are friends for, anyway?


-jafg


P.S. I have my first real follower! Thanks, Peace Turkey, for the words of encouragement! Congrats on the gym membership. You're a stronger woman than I am.