Whaaaaaa!!!

I feel like a big baby going to the ER for back pain but O M G!!! I've had a baby and didn't feel anything like this.

I picked up Sprout in the middle of the night and walked in to the living room.  I was just about to put Sprout down when my middle of the back completely seized up.  I felt like I couldn't breathe and was utterly paralyzed--probably from the excruciating pain and because I was terrified I would drop the baby.

Jake rushed out after I screamed and quickly grabbed Sprout.  I was a blubbering mess and in total denial about what was happening. 

After arguing that a heat pad would miraculously cure the pain for about a half hour, I gave in and went to the ER.  

I just hate going to the ER.  I guess I feel silly, but the doctor was great.  He made me feel better and said that people don't realize how severe back pain can be and that I would only get better with medication.  

So, here is my diagnosis--thoracic spine strain.  Hurts like a son of a bitch and I hope I feel better ASAP so I can get back to jogging and most of all, hold my baby!!  

Anyone else throw out their back?  How long to recover?  Any spiffy tricks on how to get it to relax and stop the spasms?  

I feel so lame!  I was supposed to do day 2 of week 4 of Couch to 5K.  That's definitely a no go today!

I was born a travelin' gal!

In just a few days I am about to travel to Hotlanta!  Haha, okay, okay, Atlanta, GA.

And guess who's going with me?

Mr. Sprout!  

Well and the hubs, of course :o)

We are going to watch my husband's best friend get hitched and hopefully visit a few sites.

I'm super pumped about it.

The hubs....ehh....

He's nervous.  After all, we are traveling with a 5 1/2 month baby who could get cranky and start crying on a plane.

On a plane where you can't escape.

On a plane where everyone will look at you and point at you and laugh at you and well, you get the point.

I was once one of those childless travelers.  

I'd think "UGH!  A baby on a plane?!?!  Are they nuts!!??"

And then of course, "Shit, hope they don't sit close to me!"

So, I know as soon as Drake giggles with glee or screams for food, someone is going to roll their eyes and want to change flights ASAP.  I was totally THAT person.

Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry!!!

But now, I have a kid and quite frankly, will NOT let having a kid keep me at home.  Sprout has been out and about since he was about 2 weeks old and once he was 2 months old, we started going out a lot more.  I'm sure someone out there just gasped and is calling me a bad mother.  Oh well!  Your opinion!

I have a theory that the more you have your kids out and about, the more they will get used to it, understand what it's all about, blah, blah, blah.  And as they get older, it will be increasingly more FUN to go and do things!  

I have cousins in Las Vegas and they take their kids EVERYWHERE.  I want to to do that.  

Do their kids have melt downs?  Absolutely.

Do their kids make a stink over nothing?  Totally.

Didn't we all do that at some point when we were a kid?  Of course.

So I don't really fret.  If anything, I make a joke about it and carry on with taking care of my kid.

Sprout, Jake and I are headed to the South!!  Can't wait to be in Georgia and can't wait to go to what will undoubtedly be a beautiful wedding!  It's going to be a blast and I get to put my 'travel agent' skillz to work :o)

Oh and holla!  I cut my hair for those of you who don't follow me on Facebook.

More than just getting healthy...

This blog is more than just all about me getting fit and healthy so I can keep up with the totally cute, adorable, fantastic, awesome, beyond amazing Sprout.

It's also about making the RIGHT decisions in my life.

My husband is going to college to get his BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing).  

It's a HUGE deal, but it also means we are gobbling up more debt.

It's not fun, but we feel it's necessary so he'll be more satisfied at a job.  He's passionate about the field and I think he'll be great in it.

I've hinted on Facebook that I am truly excited about some changes.  So I'm finally getting around to writing about it ;o)

Well, not only are we getting healthy in a nutritious way, but we are getting healthy financially.

I stumbled upon Dave Ramsey - google him now! - and wow!  Just in a few days I already feel like our lives have changed.

 

I read his book and sat down with the hubs and we made our first REAL budget.

I feel kinda stupid because I always did have a budget, or so I thought, but my eyes were opened when I had to allocate every single dime in Ramsey's Zero Budget.  Holy crap we wasted money on stupid shit.

Needless to say, it's going to be tough.  But it's going to be worth it.  It's going to suck come Christmas time when I can't buy everything in the world for the people I love, but they will love it when in a few years, I'll be able to treat them to some nice things because I won't have to rob Peter to pay Paul.

I'm just looking forward to seeing my very first student loan ever be paid off vs. waiting until 2030 as it suggests.  I would be 48 years old if I kept paying on my student loans as I am today.  Dude - that's 'old'!  

So long story short, I'm pumped!!  I've already had a challenge by going to Costco and NOT buying Sprout clothes or trying something scrumptious from the freezer aisle.  It was hard to say NO, but I did it!  I'll have to post more about this as we go through the steps Ramsey sets out in his book.  Just like losing weight, there will be some fails, maybe even epic fails, but as the saying goes 'fall 7 times, get back up 8'.

Cancer is a Bitch

Of all the places it could have happened, my Mom told me she had lung cancer inside a Wal-Mart.

I still have the image of my hands fiddling with the hangers burned inside my mind.  I can see the checkouts and fluorescent lights beating down on me.  I could feel the anger bubbling, trying to escape.  After all, I had tried to get my parents to quit smoking multiple times to no avail. I wanted to BLAME someone, something!!

That was nearly 15 years ago.

After undergoing both aggressive radiation and chemotherapy treatments at same time, I'm happy to report that she annihilated that lung cancer and made it her 'bitch'.  At the same time, I was a pretty awful teenager and tried to drown out her treatment side-effects by yelling at my Dad and since he was still smoking, I told him that he was in fact killing her.  

Yeah, I actually said that to my dad.  And I regret it to this very day. 

Since then, people I've known have continued to be affected by cancer.  And honestly, I think once someone is diagnosed with cancer, they constantly have it in the back of their mind that it might come back - maybe not in the same form, but somehow, cancer will strike again.

And that's how I'm feeling right now.

I was recently told that someone close to me found a lump in their breast and has to undergo a biopsy.  This person has had cancer before and I could tell that they were scared or at least considerably anxious about what the results will be.

After they told me, I was numb.  

What should a person feel when they are told this?  Angry?  Sad?  

The eternal optimist inside me says 'Well, no sense in worrying until we actually know what the lump is....afterall, people get cysts and all sorts of weird things that grow in their body harmlessly.'  <Insert plastic smile here>

But in all honestly, I'm scared.   I'm scared that it might actually be cancer and it might take this person's life.  And I'm also mad as hell!

Mad that yet again, I am back thinking about how it will affect ME and I'm not even the person that may/may not have to have cancer treatments.  I'm all worried about how MY life will be changed.

Uhhh...hello!  It's going to change their life more than anyone's!!!  

Cancer is selfish.

Cancer makes me feel selfish.

Cancer is...

Hopefully, all is well and the lump is just that - a lump.  Nothing malicious about it and worse-case scenario, it can be safely removed, end of story.  

But until we know the results, Cancer is there, lurking in the back our minds.  

Weigh-In Wednesday #2

Linking up with Heather from Pretty Strong Medicine and her gals, Amy, Bailey and Ash!

HOT DOG!!

I was pretty happy with what the scale said this morning!

Here are my stats:

Current Weight:  271.6
Previous Weigh-In:  274.4
Week's Loss:  2.8 lbs!
Total Loss:  6.6 lbs!

My little mini-goal in my head was to get out of the 270's by the time I head to Atlanta which is next week Friday.  I am hoping I can drop at least 1.7lbs so I'll at least be 269.9.

I don't know why the 270's bother me so much since I've actually been heavier.  I lost weight before my pregnancy because I nearly got to 290 - very scary as that meant if I did get pregnant at that point, I'd 100% be over 300 lbs by the time I had Sprout.  It wasn't going to happen, hence my call to action.  

So what am I doing right and what am I still needing to work on?

Portion Control - Guess what ya'll - I.  Eat.  Out.  Not a lot, but it happens, especially on the weekends.  I know I'm not great at picking the most healthy thing at a restaurant so I always challenge myself to NOT eat it ALL.  Even if that means just eat half my sandwich or cut down the number of slices of pizza I would normally eat.  Every little change helps in my book and as I become comfortable, I will stretch myself to try healthier choices.

Working Out - Dude, I am rocking this!  I'm uber committed to this Couch to 5K thing.  I am repeating week 3 as I was feeling very uncomfortable jogging a full 3 minutes and week 4 has me jogging 5.  I've realized the heat and humidity does have something to do with my endurance so looking to try to work out when it's cooler.  Unfortunately, Missouri weather is highly unpredictable.  This morning it is GORGEOUS - nice and cool with a wonderful breeze.  Yesterday - hot, sticky, gross, but very pretty.  I can never tell if I should workout in the morning or in the evening.  For now, I'm sticking with the AM.  I feel better the rest of the day when I get a morning workout in.

Dude - I'm a sweaty mess right here.  I always feel so ugly when working out :o(

Weekends - This is where I struggle.  Every weekend we have something going on that involves eating out.  Yes, I am portion controlling, but I'd really like to learn how to make healthier choices and avoid eating out when it's not an absolute must.  Sunday we went shopping and it happened to fall into lunch time.  Instead of just waiting an extra 20 minutes to get home, we stopped and got some fast food.  Granted, smaller portions so a minor win, but still--fast food!  Ick!  Trying to get away from that!!  

Meal Plans - I'm totally sucking here.  I was reading Pretty Strong Medince's post on food wasting and I am a total food waster!!!  It's got to stop.  Not only is it good money going down the drain, but by not having a solid meal plan, it's causing us to fall back into old ways when we are in a pinch.  Not good!

So here's my goals this next week:

#1 - Eat out only once for Father-in-law's Bday Party at an awesome Mexican Place!  Yum!

#2 - Make a meal plan and stick to it.  I've been considering challenging myself to only spend like $30-40 a week on groceries - does not include diapers/formula.  Anyone do this before?  I've been pinning like mad trying to come up with recipes I could do this with....

#3 - Try a new food!  I've been eating Whips! Strawberry Mist yogurt and I think it's time I try the real fruit.  Yes, that's right, I don't eat Strawberries.  I remember my grandma trying to get me to eat them by dipping them in sugar, but I was such a picky eater when I was a kid that it was a no go.  Well, it's time to give them a whirl!

Photo from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strawberry

Hit me up with some food ideas everyone - how do you save on your grocery bills?  Any tips/tricks to creating a meal plan for the week?  

A funny thing happened this weekend...

I'm so pumped to write about this weekend!

A few things happened that seriously rocked my world!

#1 - I had my best workout in the Couch to 5K program yet.  Sad thing is that my dang phone died about midway through...whomp, whomp...  So I have no idea what my actual stats were.  However, I still completed workout 3 of week 3 because I knew the distances I was supposed to be able to achieve during the time intervals.  And guess what?!?!  I ROCKED IT!  

Like, I seriously did!  (Okay, valley girl, settle down!)  I don't think I've jogged a full 1/4 mile since probably high school or roughly 13 years ago.  So for me to be able to do it not just once, but twice was freaking fantastic.  

I've also totally realized that I am scared shitless of jogging more than a quarter of a mile at one time.  My head is already telling me that I won't make it and that I'll fail, my ankle will give out, blah blah blah.  Well guess what!  I probably will suck it up the first few times, but that's OKAY.  I realize now that the Couch to 5K program isn't about mastering every workout, it's about seeing improvement.  If you struggle with one week, do it again!  

My awesome view working out early Saturday

#2 - Even though I'm not seeing a big poundage loss (I've actually been trying since June to lose weight so that's why 3.8lbs isn't really blowing up my skirt if you know what I mean), I'm finally seeing it in my clothes.

Saturday we were off to visit my friends and visit my college alma mater.  I, of course, was stressing over clothes cause I didn't want to feel super fat, especially since it might be pretty ripe with humidity that day.  And I tried on some pants that had previously been snug and they were...wait for it....wait for it....LOOSE!  Not like falling down loose, but loose enough I had to wear super cute underwear so if I bent over in public they wouldn't see plain whitey tighties.  Yes, that's how my mind thinks....

This totally made my day and boosted my confidence.  I'm really enjoying these tiny victories that will lead up to the BIG victory.

#3 - I always swore that when I had children that I would still have my own 'life'.  I didn't want my child to be all consuming and therefore I forget who I am, I lose all my friends, my marriage goes in the tank, etc etc etc....

And having lunch with some girlfriends on Friday made me realize my child is the center of my world right now and that does NOT mean that everything else goes down the drain.  

I'm still me :o)  I still love my husband and make time for 'us'.  I still go out with my friends and visit people.  And I'm quite content and actually pretty dang happy about it all.  

I think what's helping me, is that:

A) I pack pretty light compared to other parents. 

B)  I've always told myself that I'd include my child in whatever I could - hence him flying to Atlanta, GA with us in a couple of weeks.  He LOVES visiting people right now and seeing different things.  Granted, this will eventually change and he'll want to cling to Mom and Dad - every kid goes through that stage, but we'll deal with it and he'll be better for being so out and about.  

C)  Even though Sprout is pretty much the center of my world, he's the center of my world WITH my husband.  We both love watching him, interacting with him and sharing those private moments away from everyone where he looks up and you know he just KNOWS you are his Mommy.  LOVE!

But having lunch with my friends did open my eyes to the fact that DUH! - I'm not single any more and I have a family.  It still hasn't sunk in.....

I love it when he falls asleep on me!

Thanks for reading!

Spoonful of Sarah

Goodbye TV! I shall miss you! Sorta...

Having a kid can suck you dry - financially that is!

Before having Sprout, I used to think, man we don't have money just laying around.  How are we going to afford childcare?

Well, let me tell you, we can afford it and it AMAZES me how much money we just wasted before having him.  Ugh...the things we could have saved up for or paid off!  Oh well, hindsight is always 20/20, eh?

Sprout has definitely made me re-evaluate my health and happiness, which also included my finances.

My parents struggled when I was growing up, but they were still able to have a savings account.  My Mom always said 'Pay yourself first!' even if it was only $5 a week.  It adds up overtime if you leave it alone.  They sacrificed a lot so I could have things they didn't have growing up.  

I'd of course, like to do the same--give things I didn't have while growing up (without becoming a spoiled brat!).

So that leads me to saying goodbye to TV.  I said goodbye on June 11, 2013.  A month later and guess what??  

I don't miss it.  

Sure, it was nice to watch marathons of HGTV shows and getting lost in some of my guilty pleasure like re-runs of America's Next Top Model.  SMIZE!!  My husband will say he doesn't like these shows yet somehow he would manage to learn the names of the hosts or models...

But it also led to me sitting for hours, avoiding working out, cooking a healthy meal, the list goes on and on.  

Now, I will admit we do subscribe to Hulu and Netflix, but I really only find myself catching up on Supernatural occasionally.  Sorry hubs - I love me some Jensen Ackles!  

Pic from doblelol.com

Just look at those perfect teeth!  I know, I'm weird - who freaking obsesses over teeth?!?!

Anyway, other than sneaking in the occasional Supernatural episode, I find myself thinking "Hmmmm, what's a gal to do with herself?"

I finally am nesting in my own damn house, 2 years after moving in...

It feels good!

I feel like I MOVE more!

I feel like I'm not SITTING constantly!  

I just feel FREE from the damn couch and the damn TV!  I do NOT miss it!

I feel LIBERATED!  

I also feel really stupid for not realizing just how much time TV took up part of my life.  I don't want my child glued to the TV and it seems as people get older, the only thing they do is watch even more TV.  I don't want to be that person.  I want to be out and about, rocking my wrinkly butt to concerts, parks, malls, whatever.

So in the end, not only did ending TV free up some $$ for diapers/formula (oh the delusions I had about breast feeding!), but it's freeing up time for me to spend with Sprout, the Hubs, friends and other family.  And more importantly, it's freeing me from the couch.  

Weigh-In Wednesday #1

I've been dreading this post.

I've been a bad, bad girl lately.

It all started Friday when my Internet went down.  I was good and had a healthy lunch on the go - soup and half a sandwich!  Yummmmmm!

But then came dinner and the awful, sticky, "humid as balls" as my bestie says, Missouri Summer.  I was in a truck with no air conditioning and dammit I was thirsty and wanted a Coke....so that somehow meant I was going to eat McDonald's.  Ugh...

But I woke up Saturday determined to not fall back into the eating out rhythm that gets me into trouble.

I joined my friends at the zoo for several hours and believe me, I got a nice workout going up and down hills pushing a stroller.  Dang kid isn't even 6 months and he's heavy!

What a face!

At the Seal Exhibit - too cool!

Packed a nice lunch and I did indulge in some Dip 'N Dots, but it maybe amounted to a scoop of ice cream.  It was a nice treat since I was sweating buckets and hoping my friends weren't noticing.  Sigh...another reason I want to lose the weight - won't sweat so damn much!

But then came Saturday night and I was STARVING!!!  So we ate out, again.  

Then came Sunday and by golly I wasn't going to eat out and then guess what, I did.  I had Denny's withe the In-Laws.  Which was actually really nice after walking around a flea market.  But soooo not on my meal plan!

And McDonald's followed yet again.  So what I was hoping to see on the scale obviously reflected a super shitty weekend filled with nasty, greasy (omg so delicous!) food.

And because of this, I wanted to avoid writing this post.  Heck, I even avoided the blogs I follow!  Not that they know me, but I was afraid they'd figure out I was a fraud, a failure, or Lord knows what!  

But I can't avoid this blog, mirrors, pictures, and my friends forever.  So here I am in all my glory!

I look so freaking happy in those pictures!  Geesh!  It's like my cat died or something.  Note to self: SMILE!

So the one silver lining to the past week is that I have been doing my workouts.  I'm doing the Couch to 5K and just started week 3 and guess what - I jogged for a whole 3 minutes without dying.  Honestly, can't tell you how much I thought this would NOT happen.  3 minutes ain't a lot compared to me running a whole 3 miles at once,  but it's a start.

And even better!  I figured out why I was letting myself eat so poorly.  I thought I wasn't seeing any improvement on the track.  Then Monday night I reviewed my stats, I realized it was all in my head.  My walking speed has gotten much quicker and my jogging is picking up too.  I'll have to get my stats together and share.  But as soon as I found that out I was like DING-LIGHTBULB!  Thought I was failing so I sabotaged myself.  SABOTAGE!  

Ugh...

One thing I'd like to know - how to jog faster!  I really am super slow.  I'm trying so hard to not look down and maintain a good, or hell decent!, posture.  Any tips are most welcome!  

Oh and shout out to Amy @ Write this Down, Bailey @ Being Bailey J, and Ash @ A Step in the Right Direction for sponsoring Weigh-In Wednesday.  Check out their blogs and others that follow them!

Scared...

That about sums it - Scared!

About what you say?

What am I NOT scared of?

Okay, well I guess I'm not really that scared of THAT many things, but I am shaking in my boots about losing weight.

Will I change?  Will people not like me?  What if I lose some of my friends?  What if I find out I'm not really as happy as I thought I was?

What if...What if...What if...!!!!

Drivin' me nuts thinking about all those questions!  

But after reading one of my favorite blogs, Mama Laughlin, I realized guess what - the answer to most of those questions is "Yeah, that'll probably happen, and that's okay!".

I will change because more doors will be open for me --  I'll be able to buy cute clothes!

Thanks Pinterest - I'd sure love to wear me some boots like that!  Legs too fat right now :(

I'll be able to run after this guy!

Hi Sprout!  

I'll probably kiss on this guy more!

The hubs beardin' it!

And hopefully my friends will see AND LOVE a new and improved me!  I'll be more passionate about life - hell, I'll be more active and less lazy!!  AKA - more time with Sarah and I won't dread visiting them because I don't want them to think "Wow, Sarah's put on a lot of weight."  

Change is good, but change can be scary as hell!!!

Quarter, Quarter, Half!

I love potatoes.  I love potatoes even more with KETCHUP!  Yummmmmmmmmmm!

And guess what?  I still eat potatoes and lose weight, but I gotta like not eat ten pounds of fries and chips.  

Instead I take A potato, that's right ONE single, lonely potato and serve it to both hubs and I.  

I chop it up into cute little pieces, take a weeee bit of olive oil in a pan and saute them up with some Mrs. Dash.  

I don't believe in totally getting rid of a food, but I will say I don't eat potatoes every meal, even though I'd love to!!

So even though I want to chow down on some starchiness, I rein it in and I am trying to adhere to the quarter, quarter, half rule.

What's that you say?

Well, here's a lovely pic of last nights dinner as a perfect example!

My picture taking is kinda crappy...ugh!

So, my plate is HALF veggies (holy shit!  my mom would be so proud!), a quarter starch, and a quarter lean meat.

Now, obviously I am not a dietitian or some nutrition goddess, but this seems to work for me.  I roasted the green beans in a bit a olive oil (not a lot!), sprinkled on some salt, pepper, and garlic salt (heavy on the pepper) and tossed about half way through cooking - roughly 15 min.

The other veggies were frozen in a California Blend (whateva the heck that means), sprinkled with Spicy Mrs. Dash and tada!  Pretty tasty.  My two little potato slices were left overs and I didn't eat them really cause they tasted like poo.  Bleck!  

Gotta admit - for a reformed picky eater - I was pretty proud of that dinner and it tasted damn good.

I read somewhere that we are used to eating when we grew up with.  To change that, we have to at least eat something like 7 times before we can think of it as a staple in our diet.  So..that's my goal - change my staples.  I eat like zero fruit and that's gotta change.  CHANGE I SAY!

So yeah, that's it.  That's what I got today folks - I had one great meal that I feel was 100% healthy and that I'd be damn skippy about if my child grew up liking and eating on a regular basis.  

Here's me and Sprout now!

I'll be so happy when I don't hate photos of myself.  Sigh....

Distractions, Distractions - They're EVERYWHERE!

Lately I've been feeling frazzled.

Nothing seems to be organized and I don't get things done in the time I want them.

I don't always eat what I should or workout when I should.  I like my sleep dammit!  

Plus Baby Sprout has been sick...

And a million other excuses I could give, but why?

They are all DISTRACTIONS!  I could eat better, I can focus more on my work, I can find the time to organize all I want!  I'm just not following through...hell, even my damn blog seems disorganized to me!  

So...it's time.

Time to set some damn goals and stick to them.  

Here goes!

#1 - Plan your meals ahead so they are 1/2 Veggies/Fruit, 1/4 Protein and 1/4 Carb/Starch.  

Now, not EVERY meal will be like this, but dinner sure as hell needs to be reflecting this.  As I get used to it, I can start trying to change my lunch, but for now, let's start with revamping my dinner plate.

#2 - Complete Couch to 5K - Trails for Tails on September 8

I've been a pinning fool today trying to find 10 minute workouts I can do in the morning during my morning 15 minute break.  10 minutes is 10 minutes and on my non-jog/run days, it'll be a good way to keep me limber and burn an extra 100 calories.

#3 - Stop watching so much damn TV!

Now, I will say my husband and I recently did something drastic.  We canceled our satellite service.  GASSSSSP!  I know!!  But guess what - I don't miss it.  True, I do have Netflix and Hulu Plus, but I'm not sitting on Saturdays watching damn HGTV for 5 hours straight only to realize I haven't done a damn thing all day.  Believe me - not having satellite helps me to get motivated and MOVE which is what I need!

#4 - Blog at least 4 times a week.

Why is it important to blog?  Well, for one, it keeps me accountable.  Number 2, seeing people read my blogs kinda gives me something to look forward to and interested in my workouts/eating habits.  But really, it just makes this journey kinda fun!  We all need a little fun in our lives!

#5 - Do something from Pinterest and Share!

This should be easy considering just this week alone, I've done 3 things I saw/learned on Pinterest.  We'll see if I can keep up this momentum, but really, just doing one thing a week keeps me happy.  I'm ready to start making my house into a super cute home.  I feel like it's kinda mish-mashy right now.  Bleh :(

I've also added some weight loss goals too to my Blog Page.  Gotta keep myself in check and feel good when I finally hit the goal!

Shrimp is the fruit of the sea!

"Shrimp is the fruit of the sea."  Or so says Bubba in Forest Gump.

Shrimp is also supposed to be a pretty dang healthy protein, so I figured what the heck - let's give it a whirl!

Now, I am not typically a fishy kinda gal and typing that out sounds weird! but I am trying like heck to get outside my comfort box.

Why?  Because I will get Bored.  That's right - Bored with a capital B!!  

If I get bored, I want to eat my trigger foods like pizza and ice cream and plain chips with ketchup.  Yummmmmm!  

Plus, I've also figured out that the reason people stay at a healthy weight is not just because they exercise, it's because they eat a balanced diet and are active in general.  They are sitting around on their ass watching TV all day while stuffing their face full of their favorite food, whatever that might be.  Too much of anything isn't good!

So I digress...back to shrimp.

I was in Target and came across Campbell's Scampi Sauce.  Hmmm...I like shrimp scampi!  So, DING!  Light bulb went off!

I could do a shrimp scampi pasta - easy peasy!

Now I know, pasta?!?!?!  Isn't that like the alpha carb?  Yes and No.  

See there is this awesome pasta out there called Dreamfields and it rocks my world.  I don't know the specifics but it some how 'protects' carbs so the only digestible carbs (the important ones) comes to a count of FIVE.  Not bad considering most pasta is like 40+.

So back to my pasta idea.

I got me my sauce together, cooked my shrimp and thought TOMATOES!  Why not roast up some fabulous tomatoes?!?!

Sliced thin with some garlic, olive oil, salt & pepper

Smelled awesome while baking!!  Baked at 400 for roughly 20 minutes.

Added some freshly grated Parm --WAY less cheese then I normally would use.  Go me!

And once those beauties were out of the oven, I through my shrimp scampi + pasta + sauce together and the tomatoes on top.

This picture looks super yellow - not sure why.  Grr!

And hooray!  A pretty healthy dinner and man was I ready to sink my teeth into it.

Calorie Countdown:
Pasta Dish
Sauce - 70 cal per 1/4 cup
Noodles - 190 cal per 2 oz.  It looks like I have more than 2 ounces on the plate above but I weighed it to be accurate.
Shrimp - 84 cal per 3 oz of shrimp
Total Calories:  344 

Tomatoes:
Depends on tomatoes, but around 30 calories (includes oil used).

So my meal was under 400 and I was excited because that meant a little dessert (Skinny Cow)!

Unfortunately, the dinner was a bust.

Tomatoes were good.  Shrimp Scampi was good.  Tomatoes with the Shrimp Scampi - YUCK!

So shit....I didn't eat very much.  And was bummed.  Dammit!  I wanted it to be freaking amazing!

Oh well....

The upside to my weekend was on Saturday.  Baby Sprout, husband, and I went to the track to start week 2 of Couch to 5K.  I was doing it!  Really doing it!!  And then Sprout got hot, so back to home we went with only 11 minutes left.  So instead of quitting, I got back out in the sun and finished when we got home.  Husband watched Sprout so I could finish, and then he took his turn and finished.  I could have given up - I had a good excuse to do it, but I said NO!  Not quitting this time!!!  Take that fat!

Bloglovin' Giveaway!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Okay, it was somewhat sad when I saw I had 0 Followers, but then I was like oh yeah, this is like post 4.  I can't expect to have a zillionish readers after 4 posts.

But whomever follows my blog first on Bloglovin, I'll send a handy, dandy surprise.  I'll email you for your information, but I guess this marks my first 'surprise' giveaway!!

Woot! 

So the 4th came and went - Baby aka Sprout got a cold this week and it culminated to a bad runny nose, watery eye, and general crankiness yesterday.  Poor dude is exhausted today and it didn't help he had a horrible visit to the doctors.  :(

Looks like he has another ear infection!  Seriously!?!?!  How is it that every kid these days seems to have an ear infection?  Grrr...

And I was getting a little scared that my ankle was going to blow up like a balloon last night cause it was sore, but it didn't.  I woke up this morning feeling spry as ... well... a 30-something?  Ha!  Lame.....

But I ate pretty decently yesterday afternoon - had one burger, a little dab of beans and potato casserole.  A few chips and I literally mean a few.  But I did cave in and had two cookies and 1 scoop of homemade ice cream.  The cookies weren't as yummy as I thought they'd be and the ice cream was okay.  I don't think I was in a dessert mood - which is odd.... but good!!!

I had a very interesting conversation with a friend while they visited for a bit and want to blog about it next week.  I'm still processing it but for those of you who've ever been plus sized, you'll totally want to stop by and read it.  You'll know exactly what I am talking about.  I know, I know - tease!  I'm just not ready to write about it yet.

Ummmm...and don't Google 'Tease' images and expect to find a cute little quote like 'Don't be a tease' - instead you get nude women.  Oops!

Happy 4th of July!

I'll keep the post short and sweet, after all - who isn't outside blowing up stuff today?!?

Jake and I got our workout in this morning - woot!  

I was sure glad we did it early and got it over with before it started to get hot.  There was just enough of a breeze this morning that it felt amazing and I didn't get overheated which is always a worry for me.  

I'm hoping as I lose weight and get in better shape, I won't be so susceptible to the heat.  I freaking overheat when it's cloudy and I'm in the shade sitting if it's over 95°F!  Ugh!

Anyway, here we are after we pretty much completed the workout.  My face is always red as a tomato.  Fun!

I definitely am not a runner.  Quite frankly, I'm pretty sure my 'jog' is a fast walk for some.  Oh well, I'll get there - it's not how fast I get to the end, it's the journey, right??

The great thing about working out in the morning, especially on a holiday, is that you don't feel quite so guilty when you eat a little naughty something later in the day.  We've eaten a great breakfast and lunch, so when we get our little scoop of homemade ice cream later tonight, I won't feel the need to beat myself up.

Too many times do I find myself 'cheating' and then say oh what the hell and give up, blow my food plan totally out of the water, or stop exercising the next day.  I can't think like that because honestly, that's what got me into this mess - giving up after one little fall.  Nosirreebob!  Not going to happen this time!!

Happy Independence Day!

Review: iPhone App - IntervalTimer

Back in 2012, Jake and I joined a boxing gym and LOVED IT!  The first 15 minutes were basically plyometric exercises and then 30 minutes of intervals of boxing and other exercises.  The last 15 minutes were dedicated to abs and honestly, by that time, I was so beat I was lucky to participate in half of the ab exercises.  But I felt pretty damn good that I went from ZERO ability to doing a sit-up to rocking them out right before I quit due to my pregnancy.

What I really liked about the workout is that it kept things mixed up.  My body never knew what it was in for, which I contribute to part of my success.  Now, I never got to my goal weight because Baby came along and even though I had intentions of working out my entire pregnancy, I got scared and stopped probably around 5 or 6 months.  Hence - weight gain!!  Which, duh, I was pregnant, it was going to happen.  But I didn't stay as "fit" as I'd like to have been.  

Anyway, so at the gym they had an alarm they could set for intervals or rounds of boxing.  I had asked around where I could find such an alarm and usually got blank stares at the stores I visited.  Either I described it totally wrong or they truly didn't have it.  

But thank goodness for smartphone apps!!  I found an app appropriately titled IntervalTimer.

I love it!  It's exactly what I needed.  I downloaded a ton of other 'interval alarms' but they either were too convoluted or didn't meet my needs.  This one was actually free and just what the doctor ordered.

Here's what it looks like:

Opening and Lock Screen

Basically, what I did was set up some go-to workouts.  I set up some that are 15 minutes or if it was on the weekend and I wanted a longer workout, I set up some longer times.  

For my Workout 3x5 Plyometric (ignore the typo in the screen shot!), I set it up to do three 5 minute sessions.  I do 5 exercises - 1 minute for each exercise.  I then do that 3 times for a total of 15 minutes.  This is a great way to squeeze in a high powered, but short workout and it really gets your heart rate up.  

Settings of workout and intervals

The app will let you set up High and Low intervals.  Because I can't do 3 rounds of plyometrics back to back, I set up a 'low' interval so I could jog in place, get a drink of water, tell myself I won't die, and in general give me a breather.  Then back to it!!  

When I'm boxing, I usually do 3 minutes of boxing and then 1 to 2 minutes of some other exercise and repeat it as many times as I feel fit that day - usually based on how much time I actually can dedicate to working out. 

Oh and the app will let you play music you've downloaded too.  Only downside to this app is I don't think they make it for Androids.  Sorry!

Now I am no expert on exercising, but I did have a trainer once and she taught me a LOT.  I mean a LOT a LOT.  And she always used to tell me during my reps or when she had my jogging fast that anyone can do one more second or one more rep. 

 So, set yourself a goal and try to reach it.  If you struggle, tell yourself....

 "Anyone can do one more second, one more minute, one more lap, one more rep, etc".  

I can't tell you how many times this has kept me going!  

Oh and PS - I am going to review MyFitnessPal and Couch to 5K, but I am still getting used to those apps and their functions.  Last night I did workout two of Couch to 5K and somehow my phone rebooted so I was pissed as hell.  I was struggling as it was because I was pushing a stroller and damn, if that doesn't make the workout ten times harder!  So, it was either user error (more than likely!) or the App has some bugs.  We'll find out!

Here's me wishing I didn't pick the hilliest freaking route ever!!!  Not a pretty sight!  And at this point I still had a big hill to go up yet...ugh!  

My fabulously rainbow shoes!  I love color!