Colleen the Chocolate Fiend's Disney Life (comments welcome)

[C_leen]

Cheerio!

So I have wanted to take DS to WDW since he was born in 2001. So after years of dreaming, I announced that we are going this September. Our package is booked and we are off to WL on 9/21 -9/27. I cannot wait to walk into the WL lobby & know I have 6 days to hang out and experience WDW with my family from such a great lodge hotel!

My main problem is I don't stay vigilant about exercise or watching my emotional eating. Whenever I slack off not exercising every day, then my mood starts to falter which kicks in the emotional eating. At age 37, this is my cycle & no 'diet' is going to save me from myself. Something will happen, and I will react with food. My best bet is to eat right and be active to offset my mood with exercise highs.

So 3 weeks ago with my WDW trip all organized & having read TUG to WDW from cover to cover, it was time to focus on my weight loss goals. I'd like to be at #145. This is still high for my height (not quite five foot four), but my body doesn't like to lose weight. I believe I have a slow metabolism possibly impacted from my use of birth control. Since my scale read back #169 this spring, losing 24 pounds is a good goal. I want to succeed. I can always lose more later for my 20th reunion if I want to! So I started with a BMI of 29.

 

[C_leen]

Well I was pretty high on my decision to lose weight this first week. I started a Pilates class which I liked & I went to the gym 3 times. I walked the other days of the week. Since I hadn't been to the gym in 8 months I was very proud of myself just to walk in the door!

I lost 3 pounds. I was really able to not snack at night. I was raised on snacks in the evening, so this is a tough habit to break. Also at night my husband's stress can set me off on an eating binge, but I was able to let it slide. I was really proud of my first week's effort.

 

[C_leen]

My ds turned 6 on May 4th. I was so busy I can't remember if I exercised or not! My parents also came in to celebrate from MI. On Saturday I tried a Body Pump class at my gym. My friend who talked me into Pilates also met me to coax me through my first Body Pump. I really liked it, but by Saturday night, I was stiffening up.

My DH took me to see "Spiderman 3" on Saturday night. He tried to have me hold his buttery popcorn. I declined!

#163.5 on 5/5, so I lost 2.5 pounds.

 

[jjk]

Hi ,just catching up on Journals,thought id stop by and say hi well done on declining the popcorn.have a good week

 

[C_leen]

Well the Saturday Body Pump class may have been too much for me. I'm not sure if doing something that knocks me out for 3 days is wise. Sunday was a rest day as I was pretty stiff. Monday I just did Pilates & I noticed I was cramping up and felt sort of weak. Tuesday I walked my dog on my 2 mile route. Today I hit the gym for 45 minutes. I was still feeling a little sore, so I didn't overdo it. I'm thinking of taking Body Pump on again this Saturday, but not using the weights during the leg lunges. My legs hurt the worst and recovered the slowest.

Now my weight is all over every time I hop on the scale. This is the week of my 'period.' Even though it is light due to the nuvaring, I still get acne, want to eat sweets and comfort food, and get a little emotional.

I'm trying to take it easy on myself this week as I know even if my weight doesn't come down this week due to my period, if I stay true to my eating right and exercising, next week could be a great week! Right on cue, I started craving chocolate on Monday. Since I have been shopping carefully, there wasn't any chocolate for me. So I stole ds's chocolate bunny. Luckily the Easter Bunny knows my affinity for chocolate bunnies and bought a smaller one. Once again, ds forgot all about the chocolate bunny, but I didn't. The good news is it took me 2 days to eat it. The bad news is I did eat the whole thing.

I need to post here that DH is aware that I am on a mission. He's been trying to sabotage a bit. He brought home some of my favorite candy last week and then dragged home a pint of Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia. I shared the candy with ds to just get it out of the house. For Cherry Garcia to even remain in our freezer for a week is amazing! But with my period, that was finished up yesterday evening. I am not sure I've ever managed to actually get the recommended separate servings out of a pint before! Usually I eat a pint in one sitting... So this is not a diet, this is my life. I'm going to eat Cherry Garcia now & again, but how nice to be eating a more normal portion!

Weight today: 162.5 (down 1 pound this week)

Also picked up a brochure for a massage therapist just down the street from my house. I've promised myself a massage when I get to #155. I'm going to post her flyer as a motivator!

 

[C_leen]

Hello!

Well as I expected, I am wore out this week! I had another rest day on Thursday as I could hardly stay awake. It was all I could do to make it to my son's bedtime at 8:30! Slept through until 5:30 AM so I guess my body just needed some rest. I have to be patient as I've cut back on calories and greatly increased my activity level these past 3 weeks. At least when I am sleeping, I can't eat! My eating is still pretty OK despite my period. I ate a tootsie pop and a few andes mints last night, but I was able to stop!

I snuck off to the gym this morning. There was a lady in front of me wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt! What a motivator! Got a solid cardio and worked my legs on the weight machines. I determined that the gym does offer daycare on Saturday morning after 8 am. I could make the 9 am Body Pump class despite dh going on fishing excursion.... I'm thinking about doing it! I'm just going to not use the weights for the squats and lunges.

So I am pretty happy to be winding up my week 3 on Saturday. I am literally attacking my weight from 3 proven angles: reduced calories, increased cardio exercise, and weight training.

I am going to a concert tonight. My husband and I rarely go out! So I'm going to celebrate with one glass of wine at dinner. Hopefully I can stay awake!

 

[crystalcml]

Way to go Colleen! Great Job! That is a big step in the right direction when you can have a couple of sweets and then stop! Right on! Keep up the Awesome work!

 

[C_leen]

Hello everyone!

Thanks for the comments!

So Friday my husband surprised me with a lovely Greek restaurant I had never been to for a Mother's Day treat. I had a nice glass of wine from Spain. We shared a cup of lemon orzo soup, then we shared a house salad. Yummy dark greens & vinaigrette dressing. Oh, and of course we had saganaki! Then we shared eggplant fries & I had a serving of grilled lamb chops. I was pretty tickled as since we were sharing and the serving sides were small (tapas style), I was not over eating! So I had a chocolate phyllo dessert and a cup of coffee too. It was too sweet & I didn't eat it all! It was a wonderful meal!

I did make it to the 6:55 am Saturday Body Pump class. It was a little easier this time around. I am not half as sore as I was last week this time. I'm planning to go again next Saturday morning for my third time.

End weight: 162.0

 

[C_leen]

Hello!

Well we had friends over for Mother's Day. Ironically my scale died today. It has been a trusty thing as I've had it 14 years. I was tired today & took a catnap while watching "Happy Gilmore." No exercise though all day I planned to walk and my cooking just ate up my entire morning. I am not half as sore as I was last week from Body Pump.

I did good all morning eating and I did not over eat at our big meal.

My trouble was around 8 PM I started snacking. Not horrible as I did stop, but I need to dispatch the brownies ASAP as they are difficult for me to decline them. My plan: When I get home tonight, I will cut them and place them in individual bags, then freeze them. They will be placed each day in my son's back pack for his snack or in his lunch bag on the days he brings lunch. I think I can get rid of them this way by Friday. Then we went over to my neighbor's and I drank 2 more wine coolers while we played Mexican Train. It was the perfect night to be outside, but we didn't get to bed until 11:30 PM. I have had 2 late nights this weekend and I am wore out! I didn't work out this am, so I will have to walk tonight.

Pilates class moves to Tuesday nights starting this week. But I've done some good exercise planning. I printed off the couch potato running program from coolrunning.com recommended here. I also printed off the class schedule at my gym so I can plan a little more variety into my work outs. I think I am going to try spinning after 3 weeks of Body Pump. I also have alittle journal that I make an exercise plan in each week and review what weights I am using on the machines. I try to adjust the reps or the weights as needed to keep challenging myself.

Goals tonight: Buy scale & walk dog 2 miles. I should have time tonight as we are eating left overs from huge meal yesterday, so I don't have to cook.

 

[mabenoab]

Hi Colleen,

Just popping in to say hi! and Good Luck with your weight loss goals. Just keep sticking with it, and the pounds are bound to come off. You and I share a same "tough time" of day....evenings are my trouble spot, as is the occasional glass of wine. Love it.

Hang in there!!

Beth

 

[C_leen]

Hi there!

Thanks for the positive reply Beth!

Well I am super tired as my period winds down. I have been sleeping on my own without my sleeping meds, so I wonder if this is a side effect from ending insomnia? Oh well, at least I am not snacking when I go to bed so early! Last night I did buy the new scale. I bought one with the body fat analysis, but of course I can't figure out how to program it. I keep reading the directions and the scale is not responding to my button pushing like the directions claim it should. My old scale only registered to the half pound, but this one is much more techy.

During dinner my husband had some bad news about his job. I looked at myself eating some bread, and I just stopped. I told myself that this is really not my stress and there's no reason to eat my way into a peaceful state. So I picked up my dinner plate and threw out the bread. Now I did eat my saved piece of strawberry pie, but I ate it after dinner instead of waiting for the evil night snacking time. I did not snack last night & went to be by 9 PM. No walking the dog either. Poor Peanut. Hopefully my energy will recover.

I have Pilates tonight, so that is not too tiring of a work out.

Weight today: #161! I am down 8 pounds. My BMI is 27.6 now. I'd sure like to see #160 this week. That is my second stepped goal.

 

[C_leen]

Cheerio!

Last night I signed off my work computer at 4 PM & did Leslie Sansone-style walking with weights for 40 minutes while watching 'Oprah.' I've felt bad that I've been so tired this week, so I let the TV show carry me through the exercise. Poor Peanut, no walk again as it was raining! Pilates last night was great. Much harder as the owner of the studio taught us. I also found out that we get $10 off massage rates as members of the pilates studio! I can't wait to hit #155 as that is my reward! I decided my new scale is my reward for my weight loss thus far. I made some headway figuring out my techy scale & it told me my body fat is 33.9% (well, at least that's what I think it said!). Frankly, that's not as bad as I thought it was going to be.

What else has changed in 3 weeks? Well, I think my calves toned up in week 1. My knees now look more athletic. I see a little bicep definition, and the top of my shoulder looks good too. Pooh tummy is not hanging quite as it was - definitely lost some of this unhealthy fat. But what has amazed me the most, is there is a gradation now between upper thigh and buttuck. Yup, the butt has gone up. Now that I am on week 4, these small changes really motivate to keep on exercising and eating right. Luckily dh is out of town so I can secretly inspect self from all angles in the bathroom without getting caught!

I ate great yesterday. No snacking. I did get all of the brownies out of the house and did not eat any more! I took ds to Moe's and had a vegetarian burrito for dinner. I drank a San Pellegrino water. Love that stuff as I feel like I am having a fancy drink but no bad repercussions.

Wednesday morning I did Leslie Sansone-style walking again with weights for 30 minutes. I also plan to do something tonight after work. I don't know if ds & I will try to roller blade or I'll walk poor Peanut a few miles. Thursday - Saturday will be my gym days this week. I am thinking about trying a spinning class next week to really up my cardio. It only costs a dollar extra at my gym. Sticking with the tough Body Pump has really helped my exercise self esteem.

I've been reading some of the WISH journals and everyone is so honest and motivating. I feel like this is a great group of people tucked away on the DIS boards!

 

[C_leen]

So last night I think I walked Peanut a half mile before it started getting dark. I also was a clutching post for ds as he tried out roller blading. Poor thing was terrified.

Dinner last night I really tried to cut some calories. I ate 2 bowls of salad & 2 glasses of skim milk. I did not get hungry through the night! I watched part of a movie and I realized that I was comfortable just sitting there not snacking.

DS home sick from school today. DH out of town until tomorrow so no gym for me. I'm thinking of doing Leslie Sansone walking with weights again, but maybe for an hour.

Weight: #161

 

[jjk]

Hi collen,way to go with not snacking i also struggle with this ,hope your ds is feeling better

 

[C_leen]

Thanks for the motivation Beth!

DS home sick again today. I did manage Leslie Sansone walking for 30 minutes with hand weights last night. I did some squats and lunges too. I am trying to do some a bit this week as my legs really hurt doing these at Body Pump. I am going to the gym this afternoon now that DH is home to watch ds.

I ate another vegetarian meal last night. Another successful night of no snacking! Weight: #160.8. Well I am going to bust it at the gym the next 2 days, so Saturday will mark end of week IV.

I have never watched "The Biggest Loser" before, but it seems I am catching it on TV now. I wish they showed these folks working out more. I am also trying to catch the Celebrity Fitness show on VH-1.

Last week I was on E-bay seeking summer dresses for cheap. Instead I bid on a navy corduroy dress made by Talbots. I figured it is a classic 'pull on and go to work' dress that I can wash! Trouble is, size 10. I prefer my clothes loose, and a month ago my size 12's were getting snug. I was putting faith in myself. Well I won the dress & it arrived last night. I tried it on this morning. I could wear it now, though it fits a little closer than I would like. I was pretty excited! Well, I couldn't get it OFF! No DH to help me get out of this &^%$&#$ dress! Finally I managed to free an arm & it slid off. Well I hung that dress on a hanger cracking up! I can't wait until fall to wear it! After that, I pulled on my medium sweats for the gym. They are a little tight (undie line and tummy pokin' out). Buy hey, that's what I am workin' on! Last night I ordered a pair of size 10 summer pants from J. Jill. Another test! If those fit, time to dig through the closet and rearrange!

 

[C_leen]

Hi there!

I did hit the gym Friday afternoon as DH could watch sickly DS. I did go to Body Pump class on Saturday. This was my third class. I upped the weights in one area, the deltoids. Next Saturday I plan to up the weights in the arms a little. My legs are still weak and can't take all of the lunges and squats, but I am getting better. Saturday, end of week IV, I was very excited to see #159.8 on my new scale! So I made my second goal of #160. I feel very proud to have lost 9 pounds in 4 weeks.

My eating on Friday & Saturday was excellent!

So Sunday flu achy & sick to my stomach. Of course I am coming down with DS's stomach bug. I could only eat crackers. No exercise of course. Sunday night, DS starts vomiting. Monday, relapsed DS & sick to stomach me are staring at each other in utter boredom. Tuesday, DS & I are still stuck in the house with each other. The only good thing is we snuck down to the library last night & I loaded us up with 'new' kid videos so he is amused today. I am trying to at least catch up with some work from home. Pilates is not in the picture for me tonight. So here is my gentle work out week re-penciled in. Although I'm not really eating food, my weight is holding at #159.8. I am not going to set a weight loss goal this week as I don't think that's fair to my body. Maintenance week due to illness is more than fair.

Wed. - 30 min walk inside (near bathroom!)
Thurs. - pilates 20 min tape (working downtown)
Fri. - 30 min walk
Sat.- Body Pump @ gym

 

[DreamBeliever]

Hi Colleen,

You've already lost 10 pounds! Next time you go to the grocery store, lift a 10 lbs bag of potatoes ~ it's a great way to visualize your weight loss.

Clearly, you're on the right track to reach your goal

 

[C_leen]

Cheerio! Thanks for the well wishes Dream Believer!

Well, with DH not home, it was a good time to clean my closet. I got rid of a lot of stuff, then tried some questionable stuff on to see how things looked. Two 'new' pair of cropped pants entered my work wear group. I also found 3 possible options to wear to a wedding in August, so I was a little tickled for my Disney budget.

I read a book last night. Got hungry at 10:30 PM so I ate a serving of Ritz bitz cracker sandwiches, in bed! Tonight, no snacks! Paid bills and cleared paper all evening in my office. Energy level up thanks to some caffeine today.

I worked out with some Leslie Sansone marching today and only 4 pound hand weights for 30 min. Did some lunges and squats too. I really broke a sweat. I'm still 'off' from the stomach bug.

Not much appetite for fruit or veggies yet. Bx: diet coke and slim fast meal bar. Lunch: Well I forgot to eat. At 2:30 PM I opted for another diet coke & toasted a whole wheat waffle with a bit of peach jam on it. Dinner: deli stuffed green pepper and Propel water. Weight holding at #160. Since most foods still not holding an interest for me, I cleaned out the fridge & tossed before DH got home. The betrayor brought home cheesecake when I was sick. Ironically I don't like cheesecake, so I was able to . Anyway, it was a pretty painless cleaning session. Since I've been trying to eat right for almost 5 solid weeks, there wasn't much interesting except for how slimy expired cottage cheese looks.

I picked up a decent meal to cook Thursday as DH coming home. Tomorrow plan to do 20 min Windsor Pilates tape in the am.

 

[C_leen]

Cheerio!

I did roll out of bed Thursday & did the 20 min Windsor Pilates tape. I broke a sweat in a few sections, so I need to start slipping that into my routine to sneak in some action...

Had a big meeting at work yesterday. Since I've been cleaning my closet, I pulled out a silk shirt to wear with my pearls & I wore the shirt tucked in! I didn't have an appetite, so I drank a carnation instant breakfast mix on the way in. I made myself eat a half sandwich and a little serving of pasta with veggies for lunch. I did not manage to stay out of the cookies, I had 3. DH and DS got tired of waiting for me to pick them up at the rental car, so I had to swing in ang meet them at Hooters. Not much healthy here. I stuck with an iced tea and ate half of a cobb salad with fried chicken cut up into it. DS ordered a piece of chocolate cake. I had one bite & didn't like it! I was OK with one bite...

I got my bob slightly sassed up last night. I showed my stylist a picture & she went to town. I didn't sleep well last night, so at 4 am I just got up, brushed my teeth, and went to the gym. I felt great, so I did all of my weight machine routine and 40 minutes of cardio (elliptical 15, arc trainer 15, and bike 10). So I burned off at least 2 of the three cookies from yesterday. I saw that they are offering a spinning class at 8 am on Memorial Day, so I've decided I am going to try it out Monday. I have the day off, so I might as well try something new at the gym.

So here it is 6:45 am & I just ate some oatmeal. Weight: #159.8. Tomorrow is Body Pump. I promised to up my arm weights a bit...

 

[C_leen]

Hello!

Friday I cooked the meal we were supposed to eat Thursday. I managed just one serving of the pork tenderloin. For once I didn't overcook it. Craving sweets something awful & finally succumbed. Had DH get me a peppermint patty. He got me 2 & a container of Cherry Garcia. Talk about a saboteur in my midst. So I immediately gave one of the peppermint patties to DS. I had just the other peppermint patty & that was enough.

I did up my weights at Saturday's Body Pump. I couldn't do all the reps on everything as I fatigued my muscles much faster, but I am sore today, so I know I pushed myself. I also walked a mile on TM before the class started just to wake up. Had a 3 egg veggie & cheese omelet with 1.5 slices of raisin toast at breakfast. I did snack on some whole grain goldfish at the pool. I wore my hot pink swimsuit to the pool. Pooh tummy & thighs a work in progress, but all in all my body is coming around.

I tried on 2 of the dresses that I might wear to August wedding for DH. We decided halter dress too casual. I decided a 12 petite navy sleeveless cocktail dress would be OK. The material is stretch, so it will just have to stretch less in August (ha ha!). DH offered to finance a new outfit which was kind. He knows I have been stretching every dime to cover WDW trip. He has no idea we are staying at WL. I think I'll just get new shoes & maybe invest in a shawl or shrug of some sort instead of buying another dress I'll never wear. I know this dress was worn for my first Xmas work party post baby (2001) and then I wore it to one wedding, so it has never traveled to MI for any family event. We ate out at Joey's Seafood last night. I did not overeat. I sipped on DH's beer. This way I got a taste, but didn't feel obligated to have an entire beer. I had 1/4 pint of Cherry Garcia last night. I sat outside on my neighbor's back porch savoring it. I'm watching their dogs, so I have been sitting on their glider keeping them company a bit.

Rainy today. Need to get ready for church. Weight still holding at #159.8. This is a tough weekend as we've been eating out a fair amount. Tomorrow I have a cook out with friends. My goal is to see #157.8 by Saturday. DH is home this week so I'll have to push up my exercise since I'll have the opportunity. I double checked and Spin Class Monday at 8 am!