It's late and even though I'm off from work tomorrow I'm ready for bed. Even so, I had to update quickly because I'm feeling so accomplished and I wanted to share.
I'm a member of GoodReads.com and one neat thing that they do is having drawings to give away Advance Reading Copies of upcoming books. Well, since it was obvious from my profile that I was a lover of the works of Carolyn Parkhurst, I was selected to receive an ARC of her upcoming novel, The Nobodies Album. When I received the book, I also received a letter telling me that the publishing group was running a contest for readers to rewrite the ending of the novel in 500 words or less. Since the novel centers around the idea of a author rewriting the endings of her novels, I thought I was a pretty neat contest. Plus 500 words would be incredibly easy to bang out. The prizes aren't anything fabulous, but the grand prize is a $400 Bose iPod Sound Dock and there are are four runner up prizes of $50 iTunes gift cards.
Anyway, fast forward to tonight. The contest deadline is at midnight. Only five entries to the contest have been posted, so the odds are looking good. But it's a quarter after ten and I'm sleepy, so I say to Frank, "Eh, I don't think I'm going to do that writing contest after all. I have less than two hours and I don't know, I just don't feel like it." Usually Frank doesn't give me a hard time about stuff like this, but tonight he insisted, "No! You have to do this! I believe in you!"
Alright, I know that last line is exceedingly corny and I'm pretty sure he just wanted to play Dante's Inferno on the PS3 in peace for a couple of hours while I worked. But nevertheless, what he said was enough to send me grumbling to my office where in a little over an hour I had written 475 words that I was extremely proud of. I posted my entry with 45 minutes to spare and I'll know by the end of the week if it was good enough to win a prize. But honestly, I don't care if I win anything or not, just meeting a deadline and writing something that I felt was quality gave me a great boost that I needed.
Now if only I had managed to get a workout in today ...
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Memorial Day Weekend
I'm up early this morning and for once I decided to put my writing goals ahead of my fitness goals. It also doesn't hurt that my iPod is out of juice so I'm charging it in anticipation of my workout once I'm finished here.
I hit a rough patch at the beginning of this week, but I'm proud to say that it didn't veer me off course with my exercising and eating. It did make me pretty sad and frustrated though. I guess we all have our moments where we let our self-doubts and the pressure from some imaginary course we're supposed to be on get to us too much. Some days I feel happy and really content with my life, but a lot of the time I'm struggling every day with feelings of not having accomplished enough in the last twenty-seven years and of severe hatred for my body. Even though I struggle with these daily I can usually overcome them, but every once in a while it breaks through and I have a rotten couple of days. Luckily, I'm always able to pull through thanks in large part to some wonderful, thoughtful friends who always seem to lift me up. I'm thankful I got through this bump in the road and hopefully it will be a while before I have another one. In the meantime, I've decided that I need to make a better effort to work on my terrible self-esteem, so I'm going to check out a book that a friend recommended to me and see how things go. Just one more thing to work toward to make a better, happier me!
This is a pretty quiet holiday weekend for Frank and I. We had planned to go away to Vermont to visit an old friend of mine for the weekend, but Frank got stuck working second shift for a couple of nights so we had to postpone. We were invited to a pot-luck picnic thrown by a family friend yesterday and we had a really great time. In anticipation of all the wonderful food that I knew would be there, I got up early yesterday and did an hour of cardio on the treadmill and an hour and a half of strength training with my balance ball. All in all, I burned 1,055 calories, so I was pleased. I'm sure I ate way more than that at the picnic, but we didn't wind up having dinner so I'm hoping it will all be okay in the end! I will say though that my eyes were much bigger than my stomach - after eating all that delicious food, all I felt was sick!
Today and tomorrow we don't really have anything planned yet. Frank has to work this evening from four until midnight, so I'm letting him sleep in a little. I'm hoping today that I'll be able to mow the lawn and maybe take the dogs for a walk in the nature preserve for some extra exercise. Tomorrow, I'd like to break out the canoe and take it out for the first time this season! It should be a beautiful day for some paddling!
Well, my to-do list is growing in the back of my head and it's heating up outside so I'd better sign off and get started with my day!
I hit a rough patch at the beginning of this week, but I'm proud to say that it didn't veer me off course with my exercising and eating. It did make me pretty sad and frustrated though. I guess we all have our moments where we let our self-doubts and the pressure from some imaginary course we're supposed to be on get to us too much. Some days I feel happy and really content with my life, but a lot of the time I'm struggling every day with feelings of not having accomplished enough in the last twenty-seven years and of severe hatred for my body. Even though I struggle with these daily I can usually overcome them, but every once in a while it breaks through and I have a rotten couple of days. Luckily, I'm always able to pull through thanks in large part to some wonderful, thoughtful friends who always seem to lift me up. I'm thankful I got through this bump in the road and hopefully it will be a while before I have another one. In the meantime, I've decided that I need to make a better effort to work on my terrible self-esteem, so I'm going to check out a book that a friend recommended to me and see how things go. Just one more thing to work toward to make a better, happier me!
This is a pretty quiet holiday weekend for Frank and I. We had planned to go away to Vermont to visit an old friend of mine for the weekend, but Frank got stuck working second shift for a couple of nights so we had to postpone. We were invited to a pot-luck picnic thrown by a family friend yesterday and we had a really great time. In anticipation of all the wonderful food that I knew would be there, I got up early yesterday and did an hour of cardio on the treadmill and an hour and a half of strength training with my balance ball. All in all, I burned 1,055 calories, so I was pleased. I'm sure I ate way more than that at the picnic, but we didn't wind up having dinner so I'm hoping it will all be okay in the end! I will say though that my eyes were much bigger than my stomach - after eating all that delicious food, all I felt was sick!
Today and tomorrow we don't really have anything planned yet. Frank has to work this evening from four until midnight, so I'm letting him sleep in a little. I'm hoping today that I'll be able to mow the lawn and maybe take the dogs for a walk in the nature preserve for some extra exercise. Tomorrow, I'd like to break out the canoe and take it out for the first time this season! It should be a beautiful day for some paddling!
Well, my to-do list is growing in the back of my head and it's heating up outside so I'd better sign off and get started with my day!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Well Rounded
Today was quite a balancing act, but I’m happy because despite the day being busy, I was able to accomplish everything that I wanted to.
This is my busy time of year anyway, and that coupled with the fact that two of my bosses are going to be out tomorrow and one will be out for all next week too made my task list expand exponentially. Because of all this, the attendees of my permit approval meeting somehow unanimously decided that I was going to move my meeting up 24 hours to that afternoon. What? Is that even allowed? But I knew that if I didn’t want applicants hounding me all week that I’d better hustle my butt and get my applications together. Of course in the mean time I had other requests – some urgent enough to sidetrack me and about 20 that are now sitting on post-it notes until tomorrow – to divert my attention, but I’m happy to say that I finished up my meeting preparations and sent the agenda to the printed moments before the meeting began. Also, we finished up the meeting just at 4 o’clock – I love it when there’s exactly the right amount of day to match the work that you need to do! I felt like I had conquered the work day. I even got a really nice compliment about how attentive I was to my permits from the regional supervisor.
Even though I probably should have worked through lunch with the mess I had going, I went for a power walk with Judy and Carmen. It was a beautiful day and we walked from Broadway up to Lark Street, through the concourse and looped back down. Even though I was huffing and puffing, I was pleased that I got my workout in. I’m pretty sure that I got a boost of whatever chemical I needed to get me through the rest of the day too.
I got home and had about 45 minutes before Frank got home and I knew we had to go grocery shopping, so I relaxed outside and read on my deck in the sunshine. I’m reading Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann – it’s a little slow and the prose is a bit heavy-handed for my tastes, but I’m enjoying the plot so far so I’ll stick with it and see where it goes.
Even though I was exhausted from grocery shopping and we didn’t get back home until close to 8 o’clock, instead of swinging through a fast food drive-thru or gobbling down something easy but not so healthy, I stuck to the plan for dinner. We had baked parch with broccoli and brown rice – delicious, although the next time I make perch I’ll leave it in the oven just a little bit longer.
So now that dinner is over and even though my bed has been calling me since around 9 o’clock, I’m sitting down to write to you all and now I’m off to spend some time -- at least 500 words worth of time – with At Setting. It’s been a long day, but I feel once again like I’ve conquered the day.
This is my busy time of year anyway, and that coupled with the fact that two of my bosses are going to be out tomorrow and one will be out for all next week too made my task list expand exponentially. Because of all this, the attendees of my permit approval meeting somehow unanimously decided that I was going to move my meeting up 24 hours to that afternoon. What? Is that even allowed? But I knew that if I didn’t want applicants hounding me all week that I’d better hustle my butt and get my applications together. Of course in the mean time I had other requests – some urgent enough to sidetrack me and about 20 that are now sitting on post-it notes until tomorrow – to divert my attention, but I’m happy to say that I finished up my meeting preparations and sent the agenda to the printed moments before the meeting began. Also, we finished up the meeting just at 4 o’clock – I love it when there’s exactly the right amount of day to match the work that you need to do! I felt like I had conquered the work day. I even got a really nice compliment about how attentive I was to my permits from the regional supervisor.
Even though I probably should have worked through lunch with the mess I had going, I went for a power walk with Judy and Carmen. It was a beautiful day and we walked from Broadway up to Lark Street, through the concourse and looped back down. Even though I was huffing and puffing, I was pleased that I got my workout in. I’m pretty sure that I got a boost of whatever chemical I needed to get me through the rest of the day too.
I got home and had about 45 minutes before Frank got home and I knew we had to go grocery shopping, so I relaxed outside and read on my deck in the sunshine. I’m reading Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann – it’s a little slow and the prose is a bit heavy-handed for my tastes, but I’m enjoying the plot so far so I’ll stick with it and see where it goes.
Even though I was exhausted from grocery shopping and we didn’t get back home until close to 8 o’clock, instead of swinging through a fast food drive-thru or gobbling down something easy but not so healthy, I stuck to the plan for dinner. We had baked parch with broccoli and brown rice – delicious, although the next time I make perch I’ll leave it in the oven just a little bit longer.
So now that dinner is over and even though my bed has been calling me since around 9 o’clock, I’m sitting down to write to you all and now I’m off to spend some time -- at least 500 words worth of time – with At Setting. It’s been a long day, but I feel once again like I’ve conquered the day.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Hard Work
Everything worth having is worth working hard for.
A cliché, it’s true, but as I like to say -- most clichés are there for a reason. And this one becomes less cliché the more that you really consider it in your own life.
Up until recently, I knew that it applied to getting in shape. After all, I’ve traveled this road before, put in all the hours of exercise and the months of counting calories. Only recently have I realized how true this is for being a successful writer too.
It’s no secret that becoming a successful writer takes a lot of hard work. And of course, that work involves writing: completing the necessary research and outlining, sitting down and making yourself write a terrible first draft, editing that into something beautiful that people want to read, being torn down, reworking parts – or the whole thing – until it finally becomes a well-crafted and whole piece. That’s all there is to writing, right? But the work doesn’t end there. There are so many more steps after the hard work of getting the words down on paper is done. Depending on your intentions for the piece, there’s finding reliable people to critique your work, locating competitions to enter it in, drafting a query letter, researching agents, marketing yourself. And don’t forget making time to keep writing every day, because the ideas don’t stop coming.
But as the saying goes – if it’s worth having, it’s worth working hard for. It’s what I have to tell myself when I struggle to find the time to balance everything in my life – this is what I want. I can’t let At Setting go by the wayside any longer. I have to work hard, first to complete the novel and then to find out what the next stages of its life will be – even if that means that it sits, unpublished but whole, on my hard drive.
Let the work begin.
A cliché, it’s true, but as I like to say -- most clichés are there for a reason. And this one becomes less cliché the more that you really consider it in your own life.
Up until recently, I knew that it applied to getting in shape. After all, I’ve traveled this road before, put in all the hours of exercise and the months of counting calories. Only recently have I realized how true this is for being a successful writer too.
It’s no secret that becoming a successful writer takes a lot of hard work. And of course, that work involves writing: completing the necessary research and outlining, sitting down and making yourself write a terrible first draft, editing that into something beautiful that people want to read, being torn down, reworking parts – or the whole thing – until it finally becomes a well-crafted and whole piece. That’s all there is to writing, right? But the work doesn’t end there. There are so many more steps after the hard work of getting the words down on paper is done. Depending on your intentions for the piece, there’s finding reliable people to critique your work, locating competitions to enter it in, drafting a query letter, researching agents, marketing yourself. And don’t forget making time to keep writing every day, because the ideas don’t stop coming.
But as the saying goes – if it’s worth having, it’s worth working hard for. It’s what I have to tell myself when I struggle to find the time to balance everything in my life – this is what I want. I can’t let At Setting go by the wayside any longer. I have to work hard, first to complete the novel and then to find out what the next stages of its life will be – even if that means that it sits, unpublished but whole, on my hard drive.
Let the work begin.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Small Achievements
Well, I'm not sure how I'm going to do for the weigh in tomorrow, but I am incredibly pleased with myself. Today marks my fifth consecutive day of writing on my novel, At Setting. Tonight alone I managed to write 1650 words! I knew all along that what I needed to do was to go back to basics. How did I manage to write 51,000 words in 30 days back in November? I had a plan - to write 2000 words per day - and I had a strategy that I knew worked - writing in 10-15 minute "sprints" with fellow writers in a chat room and then chat for 10-15 minutes in between. I'm fortunate enough to be part of an online group that runs sprints like these all year long and not just during Nanowrimo, so I finally tracked them down today and was welcomed back to the fold with open arms. Hopefully I will continue to write with them, at least a couple of times per week.
I've had writer's block in dealing with a particular scene for a while. In my novel, the heroine, Cora, has spent her entire life in a regulated and enclosed community. I was finally ready, after about two-thirds of the novel, to introduce her to the outside world for the first time -- but I was so overwhelmed in intimidated by the enormity of the scene I had set up that I had stage fright about it for months. Finally, this week I decided that I simply had to write it. No matter how horrible, cliched or awkwardly worded it may be, I had to get Cora's feet on the ground and let her see the outdoors for the first time. The biggest help in getting started on the scene was to simply take a notepad and write the scene outdoors. It was amazing how much easier the words came to me when I could close my eyes and experience the warm spring around me and then put it into words. Even though I only wrote about 2000 words total this weekend, and I think I can safely say that I have conquered the writer's block for now! I'm remembering why I fell in love with this plot and looking forward to continuing my work.
Tomorrow, I might have to focus on whether or not this back-to-basics idea might work with getting my diet and exercise under control. But for tonight, I'm off to bed.
I've had writer's block in dealing with a particular scene for a while. In my novel, the heroine, Cora, has spent her entire life in a regulated and enclosed community. I was finally ready, after about two-thirds of the novel, to introduce her to the outside world for the first time -- but I was so overwhelmed in intimidated by the enormity of the scene I had set up that I had stage fright about it for months. Finally, this week I decided that I simply had to write it. No matter how horrible, cliched or awkwardly worded it may be, I had to get Cora's feet on the ground and let her see the outdoors for the first time. The biggest help in getting started on the scene was to simply take a notepad and write the scene outdoors. It was amazing how much easier the words came to me when I could close my eyes and experience the warm spring around me and then put it into words. Even though I only wrote about 2000 words total this weekend, and I think I can safely say that I have conquered the writer's block for now! I'm remembering why I fell in love with this plot and looking forward to continuing my work.
Tomorrow, I might have to focus on whether or not this back-to-basics idea might work with getting my diet and exercise under control. But for tonight, I'm off to bed.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Week One
Well, today was weigh-in day, and although I was down a little over a half a pound -- not much, but better than being up -- I was completely embarrassed that being as heavy as I am I could only lose such a minuscule amount. This weekend was hard because there was a lot going on -- Hayle came up to visit for the day, we had my father's birthday, etc -- but there's always going to be a lot going on, so I need to buckle down and do better.
Lately I've been trying to just change my lifestyle to more active and less sitting on the couch or in front of the laptop. For example, tonight Frank and I went on a 45 minute walk, and stopped to talk to his cousin for a while and then we played frisbee with the dogs in the yard for a while, folded and put away all the laundry and then cooked dinner on the barbeque. I'm hoping now that the weather is nicer and it's staying light so late that we can have more days like today! I'm still working on tackling that 5pm -6pm disaster zone, but one thing at a time.
In writing news, I haven't been doing any ... yet. But I have decided that I was a lot happier when I was doing more writing and creative work so I signed up for May's writing contest in the group that I was participating in last fall, so I will be writing soon since there's a Sunday deadline. I think the deadlines are what I need and I'm hoping that those combined with the feedback will help me break the writer's block and finally finish the novel.
Today was a terrible day at work, but I've gotten so much better at distancing myself from the work stress and family drama that I feel great and happy after my relaxing evening. I'm ready to see what tomorrow holds.
Lately I've been trying to just change my lifestyle to more active and less sitting on the couch or in front of the laptop. For example, tonight Frank and I went on a 45 minute walk, and stopped to talk to his cousin for a while and then we played frisbee with the dogs in the yard for a while, folded and put away all the laundry and then cooked dinner on the barbeque. I'm hoping now that the weather is nicer and it's staying light so late that we can have more days like today! I'm still working on tackling that 5pm -6pm disaster zone, but one thing at a time.
In writing news, I haven't been doing any ... yet. But I have decided that I was a lot happier when I was doing more writing and creative work so I signed up for May's writing contest in the group that I was participating in last fall, so I will be writing soon since there's a Sunday deadline. I think the deadlines are what I need and I'm hoping that those combined with the feedback will help me break the writer's block and finally finish the novel.
Today was a terrible day at work, but I've gotten so much better at distancing myself from the work stress and family drama that I feel great and happy after my relaxing evening. I'm ready to see what tomorrow holds.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Challenge Day One
So, my big comeback didn't go exactly as planned. As I posted last time, my back kept getting worse to the point where I had to go in to Urgent Care to get some muscle relaxants so I was flat on my back for about a week. It was really frustrating because I wanted to work out but couldn't. And now that I'm finally back to normal, I'm just exhausted and don't want to work out! But hopefully I can make that change, because some of my girlfriends and I are having a challenge for the next five weeks to see who can lose the biggest percentage of weight. There's money and fabulous prizes at stake, so I really need to kick my butt in gear for this!
I'll admit - today wasn't a great start. But I'm still sticking with my goal of losing 20 pounds by my birthday and I think I can get there if I work really hard. I ate well today, but didn't get in much exercise, other than the fact that I had to park pretty far away from my building today. My intentions were to go for a walk during lunch, but it was raining and I didn't have an umbrella. By the time I got home I had lost all motivation. Tomorrow I'm going to force myself to get on that treadmill no matter what!
Food for today:
Breakfast: Banana, 1 tbsp Natural Peanut Butter
Lunch: Kashi Lemongrass Coconut Chicken Meal, apple
Snacks: 1 oz almonds, .5 cup Greek Yogurt, air-popped popcorn
Dinner: 4 oz ham steak, 1 cup Rice Pilaf, 1 artichoke
Dessert: Jello Chocolate Mousse
Calorie Consumed: 1411
Exercise:
Walking about 25 minutes to and from my car.
Calories Burned: ~100
I'll admit - today wasn't a great start. But I'm still sticking with my goal of losing 20 pounds by my birthday and I think I can get there if I work really hard. I ate well today, but didn't get in much exercise, other than the fact that I had to park pretty far away from my building today. My intentions were to go for a walk during lunch, but it was raining and I didn't have an umbrella. By the time I got home I had lost all motivation. Tomorrow I'm going to force myself to get on that treadmill no matter what!
Food for today:
Breakfast: Banana, 1 tbsp Natural Peanut Butter
Lunch: Kashi Lemongrass Coconut Chicken Meal, apple
Snacks: 1 oz almonds, .5 cup Greek Yogurt, air-popped popcorn
Dinner: 4 oz ham steak, 1 cup Rice Pilaf, 1 artichoke
Dessert: Jello Chocolate Mousse
Calorie Consumed: 1411
Exercise:
Walking about 25 minutes to and from my car.
Calories Burned: ~100
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Feeling Good
I apologize for the lack of updates, but sadly I started having pain in my lower back on Wednesday evening and this is the first time that it's felt good enough for me to sit up and type on the computer. Although I'm not sure if it's actually feeling better or if I'm just on so many prescription pain killers and muscle relaxants that I don't care if it hurts. Add in some allergy medication and you can only imagine how useful I've been today.
Naturally, exercise has been out -- although I did go for a slow paced walk on Thursday, trying to work the pain loose -- but I have been eating well. I'm hoping that by Wednesday when I have the day off my back will be feeling better so that I can try a hike with the dogs. It's supposed to be beautiful.
Since I haven't been able to sleep for the past couple of nights I've been remembering a lot of my dreams. I was waking up a lot during dreams because my back would have a jolt of pain, and I'm always able to remember my dreams more clearly if I wake up during them. I'm mentioning all of this because on Friday night I had a dream that was somewhat related to my novel -- not really related, but the emotion that I felt during the dream was something that I've been needing to capture so I can finish up the scene I've been stuck on for the past eight months. So it's time to get over the stage fright and write my way through it -- what better time than in a drug-induced haze?
Naturally, exercise has been out -- although I did go for a slow paced walk on Thursday, trying to work the pain loose -- but I have been eating well. I'm hoping that by Wednesday when I have the day off my back will be feeling better so that I can try a hike with the dogs. It's supposed to be beautiful.
Since I haven't been able to sleep for the past couple of nights I've been remembering a lot of my dreams. I was waking up a lot during dreams because my back would have a jolt of pain, and I'm always able to remember my dreams more clearly if I wake up during them. I'm mentioning all of this because on Friday night I had a dream that was somewhat related to my novel -- not really related, but the emotion that I felt during the dream was something that I've been needing to capture so I can finish up the scene I've been stuck on for the past eight months. So it's time to get over the stage fright and write my way through it -- what better time than in a drug-induced haze?
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Beautiful Spring Day
What a beautiful day! I used to be neutral toward spring since summer is my true love, but I've really been enjoying it more and more every year. It's still been chilly at night, but the days have been so warm and beautiful, all the trees are putting out leaves and I can't wait for the frost to stop so I can get my garden in! By this weekend I should have some plants starting to come up.
Today was a great day health-wise. My Mom came and we went for a walk at lunch time, and I ate well all day. I did have a piece of bread with dinner that I hadn't planned for, but even with that I definitely ate less than 1500 calories, which combined with the walk I took should have me in a great net-calorie range.
Once again, I failed at my writing goals. I didn't write a single word of my novel! I need to get cracking if I'm going to finish by my birthday. But the good news is that I found out that my parents are buying a new lap top and they plan on letting us have their "old" one, which is still much faster than Frank's old Dell. So now I'll be able to snag the Dell for my writing and set it up in my office. Starting now, no excuses! Even though my "no sitting down until 6 PM" rule has been working amazingly, I think at least until I get into a more comfortable routine with my writing I need to make myself write something as soon as I get home from work.
Today was a great day health-wise. My Mom came and we went for a walk at lunch time, and I ate well all day. I did have a piece of bread with dinner that I hadn't planned for, but even with that I definitely ate less than 1500 calories, which combined with the walk I took should have me in a great net-calorie range.
Once again, I failed at my writing goals. I didn't write a single word of my novel! I need to get cracking if I'm going to finish by my birthday. But the good news is that I found out that my parents are buying a new lap top and they plan on letting us have their "old" one, which is still much faster than Frank's old Dell. So now I'll be able to snag the Dell for my writing and set it up in my office. Starting now, no excuses! Even though my "no sitting down until 6 PM" rule has been working amazingly, I think at least until I get into a more comfortable routine with my writing I need to make myself write something as soon as I get home from work.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Making Progress
Well, I don't know about a miraculous comeback, but so far, so good! I went for a walk by myself on Monday during lunch break and today I went with Judy which means I really had to work. Yesterday I ate really well with my only slip up being sharing the last of a chocolate Easter bunny with Frank just to get it out of the house. Today was a little tough because we had a family birthday party, but luckily they wound up ordering Subway for everyone, so that made it about as safe as a party thrown by Italians can be! I was tempted to get a foot long chicken breast with ranch dressing, but instead opted for a veggie flatbread, which was delicious! I did slip a little and have a cupcake for dessert, but considering I had eaten light all day and taken a long walk I think that I was OK.
I haven't weighted myself since before vacation, and at this point I think I'm going to wait until next Monday. That will give me a full week back on track so I'm not just looking at bloated water weight and I can get an idea of where I'm at.
Before the party this evening I ran to the grocery shop to pick up some food for the week and I think I did an alright job. I've felt so lost and confused when it comes to food lately -- I'm never sure what I should be eating and what's good or bad for me. There are so many conflicting studies and so many people giving advice for one fad or another that sometimes it's hard to see through all of it and know what's true. I've been trying to make a change gradually over to more natural, whole foods and away from processed crap. I'm also very gradually trying to incorporate organic foods into my diet as well, but it's tough. Organic food is so much more expensive that it often makes me hesitate and often makes me put something back on the shelf and pick up the non-organic alternative instead. But I'm going to keep trying to work options in where I can, because really, if you won't invest the money in your health and future, then where will you invest it?
Now I just have to get Frank on board ...
Writing has been going terribly -- well, I guess that's the wrong work, because really the writing has been non-existent. I think I'm trying to start too late at night, because I get comfortable and don't want to put the work in later in the evening. It's also a problem because we only have the one computer with internet, so if Frank is using it for something I don't want to just snatch it away from him to work on my writing. Even though I like the internet access for research and support, I think I might just have to force myself to start writing on the desktop computer. At least it's in a quiet room with few distractions.
Goals for tomorrow:
- Log all my food
- Go for a long walk at lunch time
- Sit down and write for one hour after dinner
I haven't weighted myself since before vacation, and at this point I think I'm going to wait until next Monday. That will give me a full week back on track so I'm not just looking at bloated water weight and I can get an idea of where I'm at.
Before the party this evening I ran to the grocery shop to pick up some food for the week and I think I did an alright job. I've felt so lost and confused when it comes to food lately -- I'm never sure what I should be eating and what's good or bad for me. There are so many conflicting studies and so many people giving advice for one fad or another that sometimes it's hard to see through all of it and know what's true. I've been trying to make a change gradually over to more natural, whole foods and away from processed crap. I'm also very gradually trying to incorporate organic foods into my diet as well, but it's tough. Organic food is so much more expensive that it often makes me hesitate and often makes me put something back on the shelf and pick up the non-organic alternative instead. But I'm going to keep trying to work options in where I can, because really, if you won't invest the money in your health and future, then where will you invest it?
Now I just have to get Frank on board ...
Writing has been going terribly -- well, I guess that's the wrong work, because really the writing has been non-existent. I think I'm trying to start too late at night, because I get comfortable and don't want to put the work in later in the evening. It's also a problem because we only have the one computer with internet, so if Frank is using it for something I don't want to just snatch it away from him to work on my writing. Even though I like the internet access for research and support, I think I might just have to force myself to start writing on the desktop computer. At least it's in a quiet room with few distractions.
Goals for tomorrow:
- Log all my food
- Go for a long walk at lunch time
- Sit down and write for one hour after dinner
Monday, April 12, 2010
My Big Comeback
Or, Vicky finally gets her head out of the cookie jar and starts working towards her goals again!
As you can see, I failed to meet my goals on the week before vacation. Vacation itself wasn't so bad. Although I did indulge in some delicious food, with the sheer amount of walking that I did in Barcelona and Paris I'm sure that I burned more calories that I consumed. The week since I've been back, however, is a different story. A weekend of getting over jet lag and enjoying a decadent Easter dinner -- complete with splitting a bottle of Prosecco with Frank and two desserts -- turned into a whole week of gastronomical debauchery. I am ready to start blogging regularly again and to start working toward my health and writing goals.
I'm setting a couple of goals:
1. To lose 20 pounds by my birthday.
2. To be finished with the rough draft of my novel by my birthday.
The first goal is totally doable, as long as I stick to my guns. The second might take a little luck, but at this point, I've procrastinated enough and I need to push hard to finish.
Short term goals for this week:
1. Exercise for at least a half an hour every day.
2. No sitting down from when I get home from work until 6 PM.
3. Write at least 250 words every day.
I think my biggest challenge is going to be managing my time better. I always feel like I don't have time to accomplish the things I want to do, when in reality I waste a lot of time surfing the internet or watching television. Those things are going to have to take the back burner because, let's face it -- I'm not passionate about them, and they keep me from achieving the goals that I am passionate about - living a healthy lifestyle and becoming a more disciplined writer. I feel as though I'm in a rut lately, and the only way to get out is going to be to fill my time accomplishing the things that I want to accomplish. Not waiting around for the perfect situation to come to me.
So here I go again!
As you can see, I failed to meet my goals on the week before vacation. Vacation itself wasn't so bad. Although I did indulge in some delicious food, with the sheer amount of walking that I did in Barcelona and Paris I'm sure that I burned more calories that I consumed. The week since I've been back, however, is a different story. A weekend of getting over jet lag and enjoying a decadent Easter dinner -- complete with splitting a bottle of Prosecco with Frank and two desserts -- turned into a whole week of gastronomical debauchery. I am ready to start blogging regularly again and to start working toward my health and writing goals.
I'm setting a couple of goals:
1. To lose 20 pounds by my birthday.
2. To be finished with the rough draft of my novel by my birthday.
The first goal is totally doable, as long as I stick to my guns. The second might take a little luck, but at this point, I've procrastinated enough and I need to push hard to finish.
Short term goals for this week:
1. Exercise for at least a half an hour every day.
2. No sitting down from when I get home from work until 6 PM.
3. Write at least 250 words every day.
I think my biggest challenge is going to be managing my time better. I always feel like I don't have time to accomplish the things I want to do, when in reality I waste a lot of time surfing the internet or watching television. Those things are going to have to take the back burner because, let's face it -- I'm not passionate about them, and they keep me from achieving the goals that I am passionate about - living a healthy lifestyle and becoming a more disciplined writer. I feel as though I'm in a rut lately, and the only way to get out is going to be to fill my time accomplishing the things that I want to accomplish. Not waiting around for the perfect situation to come to me.
So here I go again!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Monday Fail
Well ... so much for my goal of not eating my face off because I'm going on vacation! Yesterday did not go well - I didn't even get a workout in. And I don't know if it was the processed food, travel anxiety or the fact that Frank had to get up super early to go to work, but I feel like I didn't sleep at all. So far, however, I'm resisting being bad. I had a protein bar and some grapes for breakfast and I'm planning on a trip to Subway for lunch. Tonight is Beer & Scrabble, so I'm going to try to eat a healthy dinner and skip the snacks so that I can have a delicious Hurricane Kitty (or two)!
Monday, March 22, 2010
Weigh In #2
For my second week:
I worked out 6 days, meeting my goal to work out at least 6 day this week.
I burned 2,445 calories, meeting my goal to burn at least 2,000 calories this week.
I wrote 1,831 words, falling just short of my goal of writing 2,000 words this week.
I lost 0 pounds this week.
All things considered, staying the same weight is probably the best I could have hoped for this week, so I'm happy with that. I really wish I could have eked out the measly 169 words to meet my writing goal, but in pretty typical fashion for me, I wrote myself to the brink of a big scene and then got stage fright to actually write it.
This is going to be a weird week since I'm (hopefully!) leaving for vacation on Thursday, so I'm not going to set any firm short term goals other than to work out Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, try to write at least 250 words and not to eat my face off just because I know that I'm going on vacation at the end of the week.
I worked out 6 days, meeting my goal to work out at least 6 day this week.
I burned 2,445 calories, meeting my goal to burn at least 2,000 calories this week.
I wrote 1,831 words, falling just short of my goal of writing 2,000 words this week.
I lost 0 pounds this week.
All things considered, staying the same weight is probably the best I could have hoped for this week, so I'm happy with that. I really wish I could have eked out the measly 169 words to meet my writing goal, but in pretty typical fashion for me, I wrote myself to the brink of a big scene and then got stage fright to actually write it.
This is going to be a weird week since I'm (hopefully!) leaving for vacation on Thursday, so I'm not going to set any firm short term goals other than to work out Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, try to write at least 250 words and not to eat my face off just because I know that I'm going on vacation at the end of the week.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Busy Sunday
Today was a perfect example of the phrase “If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail.” I knew that it was going to be kind of a weird eating day, but I had no plan and therefore I wound up eating poorly.
Frank had to work from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm and we had a confirmation/birthday party to attend at 3:30 pm. Since Frank works 50 miles from home and the party was only 5 minutes from Frank’s work, I decided that I would just get up with Frank in the morning and drive him in to work so that I could take his car for the day to run errands in the area and then pick him up and go to the party. Instead of preparing a healthy breakfast and lunch to bring along, I slept in and left the house without any food – not even a healthy snack!
After I dropped Frank off, I headed over to Panera to get something for breakfast and to do some work on my novel – as you can see from below, at least I made a good dent in that goal! I wound up having a whole wheat bagel with cream cheese and a coffee – not terrible, but I’m sure I could have done much better. I wrote until noon, at which point I did a little shopping and then decided to head over to a local park for a walk. At least I was able to get some exercise in, despite the non-routine day. Frank and I used to live near this particular park, so as I was walking the loop, I was thinking with dismay about how I used to go for runs in the very same area, back in my skinny days.
Apparently after that I had worked up an appetite, so I stopped and got a Southwest salad at McDonald’s – again, not terrible, but really, eating out twice in one day? I could have done a lot better.
I headed over to pick up Frank only to find out that he’ll have to work until 6:15, so I head to the family party myself. I walked straight in the door and into a glass of wine and some appetizers – at least I tried to munch on some raw veggies. Sadly, a scoop of ziti, two meatballs, a piece of bread, salad, two more glasses of wine and a piece of Happy Confirmation cake later and I think we can officially call the day a failure. At least I got to enjoy the company of some family members that I hadn’t seen in a while.
I don’t think the weigh-in’s going to go great tomorrow, since I’ve been up a little bit to begin with. But hey, look at how many words I wrote! I’m completely dragging my feet finishing up part two, I think partially because I’m scared of having to sit down and map out what I want to happen in the third and final part. I’ve been coming up with some more sketchy ideas, but I need to focus on where I want the plot to finish up. This is where exercise and writing really do go together, because I have a feeling I’m going to have to take a really long hike to figure out the plot layout. Hiking is definitely when I do my best thinking. I spent a lot of last November hiking with a scrap of paper and a pen in my back pocket and stopping periodically to lean against a tree and jot down some notes. I’m looking forward to it.
Calories Consumed: God only knows
Calories Burned: 250
Words Written: 1620
Frank had to work from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm and we had a confirmation/birthday party to attend at 3:30 pm. Since Frank works 50 miles from home and the party was only 5 minutes from Frank’s work, I decided that I would just get up with Frank in the morning and drive him in to work so that I could take his car for the day to run errands in the area and then pick him up and go to the party. Instead of preparing a healthy breakfast and lunch to bring along, I slept in and left the house without any food – not even a healthy snack!
After I dropped Frank off, I headed over to Panera to get something for breakfast and to do some work on my novel – as you can see from below, at least I made a good dent in that goal! I wound up having a whole wheat bagel with cream cheese and a coffee – not terrible, but I’m sure I could have done much better. I wrote until noon, at which point I did a little shopping and then decided to head over to a local park for a walk. At least I was able to get some exercise in, despite the non-routine day. Frank and I used to live near this particular park, so as I was walking the loop, I was thinking with dismay about how I used to go for runs in the very same area, back in my skinny days.
Apparently after that I had worked up an appetite, so I stopped and got a Southwest salad at McDonald’s – again, not terrible, but really, eating out twice in one day? I could have done a lot better.
I headed over to pick up Frank only to find out that he’ll have to work until 6:15, so I head to the family party myself. I walked straight in the door and into a glass of wine and some appetizers – at least I tried to munch on some raw veggies. Sadly, a scoop of ziti, two meatballs, a piece of bread, salad, two more glasses of wine and a piece of Happy Confirmation cake later and I think we can officially call the day a failure. At least I got to enjoy the company of some family members that I hadn’t seen in a while.
I don’t think the weigh-in’s going to go great tomorrow, since I’ve been up a little bit to begin with. But hey, look at how many words I wrote! I’m completely dragging my feet finishing up part two, I think partially because I’m scared of having to sit down and map out what I want to happen in the third and final part. I’ve been coming up with some more sketchy ideas, but I need to focus on where I want the plot to finish up. This is where exercise and writing really do go together, because I have a feeling I’m going to have to take a really long hike to figure out the plot layout. Hiking is definitely when I do my best thinking. I spent a lot of last November hiking with a scrap of paper and a pen in my back pocket and stopping periodically to lean against a tree and jot down some notes. I’m looking forward to it.
Calories Consumed: God only knows
Calories Burned: 250
Words Written: 1620
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Welcome, Spring!
Having grown up in upstate New York, I know that the vernal equinox can bring balmy weather, snow storms and everything in between. That's what I was overjoyed that today was absolutely gorgeous with high in the mid-70's and bright, sunny skies. Even though I probably should have spent the day inside planning for my trip, Frank and I decided to take full advantage of the weather while it lasted. I gave him a hair cut on the porch and we set out to take the dogs on a long hike. In the preserve, the bushes were just starting to get a tinge of green on them and you could hear red-winged blackbirds everywhere, which is a true sign of spring to me!
For dinner we decided to fire up the grill. We cooked scallops in a foil packet with wine, lemon and garlic, grilled asparagus marinated with olive oil and fig vinegar and grilled some parboiled potatoes with garlic salt. It may not have been the best meal calorie-wise, but it was all fresh, wholesome food and it was truly delicious!
Although today was overall a great day, there were a couple of things causing stress. First of all, my cell phone, an LG Vu, is broken. The touch screen is frozen up, so I can receive calls, but I can't get into my contacts, receive texts, send texts, get on to the internet, etc. I stopped in the AT&T store and although they aren't able to fix it, it is still covered under a warranty so if I call AT&T I can have a new one sent to me in 3-5 days. While I'm grateful for that, it still doesn't help me in the next couple of days. Once I make the call, I'll probably wind up switching my SIM card to my old phone so at least I can send and receive texts!
The second thing that has me worried and stressed is the fact that British Airways cabin crew are striking. As most of you know, I'm due to be leaving this Thursday for a trip to Barcelona and Paris guess which airline I'm flying? As of now my flight to Heathrow and the connecting flight to Barcelona are "Subject to Disruption" so I'm just praying that they won't get canceled. I have to call the airline tomorrow and see what my options are. For now, I'm just trying not to panic and going ahead with planning as if nothing was wrong.
Even though I ate relatively healthy all day, I didn't log my foods, so I have no clue how many calories were in my meals. I'm going to estimate for today. Still no more progress on the novel, but I'm driving Frank in to work tomorrow so that I can hole up in a Barnes and Nobel and add to my word count. Unlike my calories, it's easy to make up a 2,000 word deficit in one day!
Calories Consumed: ~1600
Calories Burned: 450
Words Written: 0
For dinner we decided to fire up the grill. We cooked scallops in a foil packet with wine, lemon and garlic, grilled asparagus marinated with olive oil and fig vinegar and grilled some parboiled potatoes with garlic salt. It may not have been the best meal calorie-wise, but it was all fresh, wholesome food and it was truly delicious!
Although today was overall a great day, there were a couple of things causing stress. First of all, my cell phone, an LG Vu, is broken. The touch screen is frozen up, so I can receive calls, but I can't get into my contacts, receive texts, send texts, get on to the internet, etc. I stopped in the AT&T store and although they aren't able to fix it, it is still covered under a warranty so if I call AT&T I can have a new one sent to me in 3-5 days. While I'm grateful for that, it still doesn't help me in the next couple of days. Once I make the call, I'll probably wind up switching my SIM card to my old phone so at least I can send and receive texts!
The second thing that has me worried and stressed is the fact that British Airways cabin crew are striking. As most of you know, I'm due to be leaving this Thursday for a trip to Barcelona and Paris guess which airline I'm flying? As of now my flight to Heathrow and the connecting flight to Barcelona are "Subject to Disruption" so I'm just praying that they won't get canceled. I have to call the airline tomorrow and see what my options are. For now, I'm just trying not to panic and going ahead with planning as if nothing was wrong.
Even though I ate relatively healthy all day, I didn't log my foods, so I have no clue how many calories were in my meals. I'm going to estimate for today. Still no more progress on the novel, but I'm driving Frank in to work tomorrow so that I can hole up in a Barnes and Nobel and add to my word count. Unlike my calories, it's easy to make up a 2,000 word deficit in one day!
Calories Consumed: ~1600
Calories Burned: 450
Words Written: 0
Friday, March 19, 2010
TGIF
Friday at last! I thought it would never come. I had a busy day at work today and my two hour meeting went an hour late, so I didn’t take lunch until 1 PM. I debated not doing a walk since I had no walking buddy and I left my iPod at home, but I decided to go for it anyway and then I was glad I did. What a beautiful day! For the first time in six months I actually feel warm outside. Tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer, so I’m hoping to get my workout in either with a hike or a long walk outside.
No writing today or extra exercise today, I took the night off since I know I have a lot to do this weekend.
Calories Consumed: 1332
Calories Burned: 225
Words Written: 0
No writing today or extra exercise today, I took the night off since I know I have a lot to do this weekend.
Calories Consumed: 1332
Calories Burned: 225
Words Written: 0
Thursday, March 18, 2010
National Hangover Day
Ugh, I had my cheat day yesterday and I feel totally crappy today. I didn't even exercise at all since I was having some pain in my hip from running the night before. So I needed today to detox - I drank a ton of water and sweated it out on the treadmill for an hour and a half and kept my eating and sodium light. I'm feeling much better already! Sadly, I didn't have time to work on the novel between the long workout session, making dinner and a hour trying to sort through a stack of bills that I've been putting off. But I'm planning a long noveling session this weekend -- I'm determined to meet that 2,000 word goal this week!
Calories Consumed: 1442
Calories Burned: 783
Words Written:0
Calories Consumed: 1442
Calories Burned: 783
Words Written:0
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Happy Saint Patrick's Day!
Well, predictably, I wasn't able to get up early enough this morning to work out. I'm going to blame it on still being so close to the time change. But since our dinner reservations are at 6:30, I'm going to make an effort to get on the treadmill for as long as I can before we go. I bet I can get an hour in as long as I book it home from work and change directly into my workout clothes. Then when I get back from dinner, it'll be time for some drunken noveling! My favorite kind!
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Run, Run
Is it just me, or does this week already seem like it’s lasted forever? I’ve been busy at work, but also really distracted trying to mentally prepare for my upcoming trip to Europe and everything else I’ve got going on this spring. I’ve been hibernating all winter, so I’m really looking forward to some trips I’m planning and just the nicer weather in general.
This afternoon when I got home from work, I did my second workout in the Couch Potato to 5K Program -- a 5 minute warm-up walk, and then alternating 60 seconds of jogging with 90 seconds of walking for a total of 25 minutes, followed by a 10 minute cool down walk.
I’ve always wanted to be a runner. I gaze at them longingly as they zoom by me on my lunch time walks. I always notice “26.2” or “13.1” stickers on the backs of cars. Call me crazy, but I’m even envious when, while driving to work in the morning, I see a runner wearing goofy pants and plodding along in sleet at seven in the morning. But every time I try to do this program, I completely psyche myself out and stop doing it. I just can’t bring myself to believe that pudgy me will ever be able to run for more than about 60 seconds straight. So I’m trying really hard this time not to let me negative mental attitude get in the way of me physically completing the program.
So far, so good -- although I find I’m a persnickety runner. First off, I have to have a full Nalgene of water, and it has to be luke-warm. I can’t stand cold water. Second, try as I might, I cannot listen to music while I run. I wear my iPod for the warm up, right up until it’s time to up that speed and then I tear the earbuds out frantically and focus on not passing out. I don’t know what it is, but I just can’t concentrate when I have songs playing. Also, I prefer to run in an empty house only. This is partly due to the fact that I like – or maybe have – to give myself little pep talks to pump myself up when I know my walk break is almost up. As the timer is counting down, I’ll start to yell, “OK, ten seconds to go. You can do this. Sixty seconds of running. You GOT this. LET’S GO!” Hey, if it helps me get over the mental block, right? And my dogs don’t seem to mind, they just look at me reproachfully from where they lounge on the couch. Lazy bastards.
The final reason that I like to run in an empty house is due to the speed at which I run, which is currently 3.5 mph. No, that’s not a typo. You read that right. Three. And a half. Miles. Per. Hour.
Now, before you tell me how your grandmother frequently power walks faster than that, I’d just to say in my defense that I think a big part of why I’ve failed at this program so many times is because I’ve tried to run too fast in too short an amount of time. So this time I decided to slow it down, even though I don’t want my husband (or anyone else, for that matter) to see me plodding along like and elephant that escaped from the zoo. Hence the empty house. Slow and steady wins the race, right?
Aside from my running adventures, today during my lunch break I was able to finish reading the rough draft of my novel, so no more excuses for not having a word count! Even though I didn’t have a lot of time tonight, I was able to get down a couple of words. It’s not much, just to save myself the embarrassment of having another goose egg where my word count should be! Hopefully I’ll be able to add to it tomorrow.
Speaking of tomorrow, I’m planning a cheat meal for dinner tomorrow night and I have a presentation that I want to go to during my lunch break, so I’m going to try to get up early tomorrow to get a workout in. This has never been a strong suit of mine, so we’ll see how it goes.
Calories Consumed: 1327
Calories Burned: 320
Words Written: 211
This afternoon when I got home from work, I did my second workout in the Couch Potato to 5K Program -- a 5 minute warm-up walk, and then alternating 60 seconds of jogging with 90 seconds of walking for a total of 25 minutes, followed by a 10 minute cool down walk.
I’ve always wanted to be a runner. I gaze at them longingly as they zoom by me on my lunch time walks. I always notice “26.2” or “13.1” stickers on the backs of cars. Call me crazy, but I’m even envious when, while driving to work in the morning, I see a runner wearing goofy pants and plodding along in sleet at seven in the morning. But every time I try to do this program, I completely psyche myself out and stop doing it. I just can’t bring myself to believe that pudgy me will ever be able to run for more than about 60 seconds straight. So I’m trying really hard this time not to let me negative mental attitude get in the way of me physically completing the program.
So far, so good -- although I find I’m a persnickety runner. First off, I have to have a full Nalgene of water, and it has to be luke-warm. I can’t stand cold water. Second, try as I might, I cannot listen to music while I run. I wear my iPod for the warm up, right up until it’s time to up that speed and then I tear the earbuds out frantically and focus on not passing out. I don’t know what it is, but I just can’t concentrate when I have songs playing. Also, I prefer to run in an empty house only. This is partly due to the fact that I like – or maybe have – to give myself little pep talks to pump myself up when I know my walk break is almost up. As the timer is counting down, I’ll start to yell, “OK, ten seconds to go. You can do this. Sixty seconds of running. You GOT this. LET’S GO!” Hey, if it helps me get over the mental block, right? And my dogs don’t seem to mind, they just look at me reproachfully from where they lounge on the couch. Lazy bastards.
The final reason that I like to run in an empty house is due to the speed at which I run, which is currently 3.5 mph. No, that’s not a typo. You read that right. Three. And a half. Miles. Per. Hour.
Now, before you tell me how your grandmother frequently power walks faster than that, I’d just to say in my defense that I think a big part of why I’ve failed at this program so many times is because I’ve tried to run too fast in too short an amount of time. So this time I decided to slow it down, even though I don’t want my husband (or anyone else, for that matter) to see me plodding along like and elephant that escaped from the zoo. Hence the empty house. Slow and steady wins the race, right?
Aside from my running adventures, today during my lunch break I was able to finish reading the rough draft of my novel, so no more excuses for not having a word count! Even though I didn’t have a lot of time tonight, I was able to get down a couple of words. It’s not much, just to save myself the embarrassment of having another goose egg where my word count should be! Hopefully I’ll be able to add to it tomorrow.
Speaking of tomorrow, I’m planning a cheat meal for dinner tomorrow night and I have a presentation that I want to go to during my lunch break, so I’m going to try to get up early tomorrow to get a workout in. This has never been a strong suit of mine, so we’ll see how it goes.
Calories Consumed: 1327
Calories Burned: 320
Words Written: 211
Monday, March 15, 2010
Technical Difficulties
I was having trouble with my internet connection last night, so here are my belated and backdated daily totals. I went on a long walk with my mother during my lunch break and I also read a lot of my manuscript before going to bed -- which actually might explain some very weird dreams that I had. I was really hungry yesterday for some reason, so the calories are a little high. I've planned a lighter day for Tuesday.
Calories Consumed: 1508
Calories Burned: 417
Words Written: 0
Calories Consumed: 1508
Calories Burned: 417
Words Written: 0
Weigh In #1
Here are the stats for my first week:
I worked out 6 days, meeting my goal to work out at least 6 day per week.
I burned 2,754 calories, meeting my goal to burn at least 2,000 calories per week.
I wrote 0 words, failing to meet my goal of writing 5,000 words per week.
I lost 5.4 pounds this week!
As they say, two out of three ain't bad. I'm pleased with the weight loss and ready to stay on track to lose more! I have been thinking, however that I might need to reevaluate my writing goal to something more realistic, at least until I get started. So my writing goal this week will be to write 2,000 words. The goals will stay the same this week.
I worked out 6 days, meeting my goal to work out at least 6 day per week.
I burned 2,754 calories, meeting my goal to burn at least 2,000 calories per week.
I wrote 0 words, failing to meet my goal of writing 5,000 words per week.
I lost 5.4 pounds this week!
As they say, two out of three ain't bad. I'm pleased with the weight loss and ready to stay on track to lose more! I have been thinking, however that I might need to reevaluate my writing goal to something more realistic, at least until I get started. So my writing goal this week will be to write 2,000 words. The goals will stay the same this week.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Happy Daylight Savings Day
I’ve been sitting here trying to convince myself that my Jello Sugar-Free Chocolate Mousse is just as good as Frank’s leftover party cake and I thought I would update for the weekend. I took the day off from working out on Saturday, but I ate lightly so I came out to only about 1250 calories for the day.
Today has been pretty relaxing, just overshadowed by the fact that it was really an hour later than it felt like. My parents came down to visit for a while this morning and after they left I knew I had to get a workout in. So instead of sucking it up and getting the workout done, I put on my work out clothes, tied my sneakers and then did everything else I could think of that did not involve the treadmill. I paid bills, balanced my check book, ran the dishwasher, folded and put away two loads of laundry – eventually it was almost 4 pm and I still hadn’t started! So I finally made myself get on the treadmill … and it was GREAT! I did 45 minutes of walking and jogging and then 15 minutes of strength training on the balance ball and using free weights. So I’m feeling good and ready for my first weigh-in tomorrow morning.
I’ve spent some time this weekend reading my manuscript. Right now I’m about two thirds of the way through. Some things are a lot worse than I remember and some things are surprisingly better. There are definitely holes and inconsistencies in the plot, as well as scenes that need to be paced better, but the important thing is that despite being away from it for so long I still feel like this story is worth telling. I’m excited to move forward with it starting this week.
Calories Consumed: 1426
Calories Burned: 450
Words Written: 0
Today has been pretty relaxing, just overshadowed by the fact that it was really an hour later than it felt like. My parents came down to visit for a while this morning and after they left I knew I had to get a workout in. So instead of sucking it up and getting the workout done, I put on my work out clothes, tied my sneakers and then did everything else I could think of that did not involve the treadmill. I paid bills, balanced my check book, ran the dishwasher, folded and put away two loads of laundry – eventually it was almost 4 pm and I still hadn’t started! So I finally made myself get on the treadmill … and it was GREAT! I did 45 minutes of walking and jogging and then 15 minutes of strength training on the balance ball and using free weights. So I’m feeling good and ready for my first weigh-in tomorrow morning.
I’ve spent some time this weekend reading my manuscript. Right now I’m about two thirds of the way through. Some things are a lot worse than I remember and some things are surprisingly better. There are definitely holes and inconsistencies in the plot, as well as scenes that need to be paced better, but the important thing is that despite being away from it for so long I still feel like this story is worth telling. I’m excited to move forward with it starting this week.
Calories Consumed: 1426
Calories Burned: 450
Words Written: 0
Friday, March 12, 2010
Week's End
On my lunch break today I went for a walk with Judy again. I mapped our walking route yesterday and it's nearly three miles! It's great to get a workout in during the day so that when I got home I could just relax - it's been a long week.
I'm proud to say that even though we have a ridiculous amount of cake in the house -- some from Frank's birthday party and some that he decided to bring home from a party they had at work -- I've resisted it completely. Which is a great accomplishment, considering my undying love for frosting! Hopefully this trend will continue through the weekend.
Today I printed out the 92 page draft of my novel. I think that part of my problem was that it was so much to sit and read on a screen, so having the paper copy will really help. When I saw how thick it was, it actually made me really proud that I wrote so much and even more determined to finish what I started. Who knows, if I work really hard this weekend, I might even still make my goal of 5,000 words written for this week. Although honestly, I'll be happy if I just get the thing read!
Calories Consumed: 1355
Calories Burned: 436
Words Written: 0
I'm proud to say that even though we have a ridiculous amount of cake in the house -- some from Frank's birthday party and some that he decided to bring home from a party they had at work -- I've resisted it completely. Which is a great accomplishment, considering my undying love for frosting! Hopefully this trend will continue through the weekend.
Today I printed out the 92 page draft of my novel. I think that part of my problem was that it was so much to sit and read on a screen, so having the paper copy will really help. When I saw how thick it was, it actually made me really proud that I wrote so much and even more determined to finish what I started. Who knows, if I work really hard this weekend, I might even still make my goal of 5,000 words written for this week. Although honestly, I'll be happy if I just get the thing read!
Calories Consumed: 1355
Calories Burned: 436
Words Written: 0
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Birthday Party, Take Two!
Well, Frank's Birthday celebration with his family certainly went much better than the celebration that he and I had Tuesday night! I knew that we would be having Pizza Hut for dinner, so I planned my day eating light for breakfast and lunch so that I could have a couple of pieces, some salad and a little slice of birthday cake, which worked out really well. I also went on a long walk with a co-worker at lunch to get in my workout. A lot of it was uphill and I was definitely sweating, but it felt great! Plus, it never seems as bad when you're working out with someone. Especially a chatter-box like Judy - she did all the talking so that I was left to my huffing and puffing! I think I might have over done it a little though, because my "injury" has been acting up a little tonight. Maybe tomorrow I'll plan on doing some lower-impact strength training instead of cardio.
Even though I've been doing well with my weight loss goals, I'm really unhappy with how the writing end of things are going -- which is nowhere, so far. There just haven't been enough hours in the day. I need to set aside two hours this weekend exclusively for catching up on my plot. Once I feel comfortable, I know I'll be able to bang out at least a couple hundred words per day.
Calories Consumed: 1663
Calories Burned: 456
Words Written: 0
Even though I've been doing well with my weight loss goals, I'm really unhappy with how the writing end of things are going -- which is nowhere, so far. There just haven't been enough hours in the day. I need to set aside two hours this weekend exclusively for catching up on my plot. Once I feel comfortable, I know I'll be able to bang out at least a couple hundred words per day.
Calories Consumed: 1663
Calories Burned: 456
Words Written: 0
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Update
Sorry about the cliff-hanger last night! The good news is that I’m doing fine. The bad news is that I guess I now have to tell the story on my blog, huh? I am going to warn you that this may be a case of too much information for some people and it’s definitely not for the squeamish!
Frank and I had a great time at his birthday dinner. I wound up using it as my cheat meal and I really made it count – we went soup to nuts at his favorite restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We also split a bottle of wine, so by the time we got home we were feeling pretty happy, so I’m sure you can imagine where the night was leading for two consenting adults. We’re going along when all of a sudden I feel something wet. I check around a little and then tell Frank to turn on the light. Instant carnage! My hand was covered in blood and blood was pouring onto the carpet. I panicked, started screaming and ran to stand in the shower. It’s good to know that even faced with unexpected hemorrhaging, I thought to make as little mess as possible. Why can’t most men apply this to their every day lives? But I digress.
I was having a “does not compute” moment – which was shared with Frank, I believe, as we both stood in silence for a full minute or two staring at the blood and trying to figure out what was going on. It was actually really confusing. I wasn’t in any pain … for a moment I thought I might be having some kind of surprise miscarriage, but I remembered that I’d just finished my period. Finally the bleeding slows down a little and I was able to turn on the shower and rinse everything off. After that I had to lie down for a little while because I still felt lightheaded and nauseated over seeing all the blood. By this point the bleeding had slowed down and we determined that it was caused by a laceration – actually, two lacerations, as I would find out today at the gynecologist.
Luckily, I didn’t need stitches and the doctor even gave me the okay to keep up with my exercise. My only order was no "fun time" for at least a week. I don't think that will be a problem – I’m pretty certain Frank is scarred for life over all of this!
Since I didn’t get in to the doctor until mid-day, I wound up staying home from work. I got in a good workout while watching The Biggest Loser on the DVR and my eating was great, especially considering I was home all day. I didn’t make any progress on my writing, but I am just about re-oriented with the novel, so I’m hoping to add to that word count starting tomorrow.
Calories Consumed: 1292
Calories Burned: 679
Words Written: 0
Frank and I had a great time at his birthday dinner. I wound up using it as my cheat meal and I really made it count – we went soup to nuts at his favorite restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. We also split a bottle of wine, so by the time we got home we were feeling pretty happy, so I’m sure you can imagine where the night was leading for two consenting adults. We’re going along when all of a sudden I feel something wet. I check around a little and then tell Frank to turn on the light. Instant carnage! My hand was covered in blood and blood was pouring onto the carpet. I panicked, started screaming and ran to stand in the shower. It’s good to know that even faced with unexpected hemorrhaging, I thought to make as little mess as possible. Why can’t most men apply this to their every day lives? But I digress.
I was having a “does not compute” moment – which was shared with Frank, I believe, as we both stood in silence for a full minute or two staring at the blood and trying to figure out what was going on. It was actually really confusing. I wasn’t in any pain … for a moment I thought I might be having some kind of surprise miscarriage, but I remembered that I’d just finished my period. Finally the bleeding slows down a little and I was able to turn on the shower and rinse everything off. After that I had to lie down for a little while because I still felt lightheaded and nauseated over seeing all the blood. By this point the bleeding had slowed down and we determined that it was caused by a laceration – actually, two lacerations, as I would find out today at the gynecologist.
Luckily, I didn’t need stitches and the doctor even gave me the okay to keep up with my exercise. My only order was no "fun time" for at least a week. I don't think that will be a problem – I’m pretty certain Frank is scarred for life over all of this!
Since I didn’t get in to the doctor until mid-day, I wound up staying home from work. I got in a good workout while watching The Biggest Loser on the DVR and my eating was great, especially considering I was home all day. I didn’t make any progress on my writing, but I am just about re-oriented with the novel, so I’m hoping to add to that word count starting tomorrow.
Calories Consumed: 1292
Calories Burned: 679
Words Written: 0
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
What A Night ...
Words Written: 0
Calories Burned: 381
Cheat Meals Eaten: 1
Bottles of Wine Split With Husband: 1
Wounds That Left Me Standing in the Shower Screaming and Gushing Blood: 1
I'm fine for now and I'll update with details tomorrow. I'm still a little in shock at the moment.
Calories Burned: 381
Cheat Meals Eaten: 1
Bottles of Wine Split With Husband: 1
Wounds That Left Me Standing in the Shower Screaming and Gushing Blood: 1
I'm fine for now and I'll update with details tomorrow. I'm still a little in shock at the moment.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Day One
Today is my first official day on track! I'm really excited and ready to buckle down and work hard. I weighed in, but I'm going to keep the weight to myself for now -- I'm hoping I'll eventually find it in me to man up and admit my weight to the internet. But for now, let's see where things go in the coming weeks.
As an additional motivation, I organized an impromptu "Biggest Loser" competition with some of my female family members. It's been fun emailing each other and talking about bad eating habits we want to break and favorite junk foods that we're resisting. Talking to them has also made me realize just how far I've come since I first started educating myself about nutrition. Sometimes I wish I could still plead ignorance so at least I'd have an excuse for why I put so much weight back on! I think the challenge will be great for accountability on the dieting end of things - especially because I suggested and am trying to organize it, so I feel like I should always be setting a good example.
Sadly, I didn't get very far in my writing goal tonight. And by that, I mean that I didn't write anything. It's been so long since I worked on the novel that I'm really going to have to spend more time than I had anticipated trying to reacquaint myself with the story. It's funny how something that came out of your own brain can seem so foreign, but there's so much that I honestly don't remember. I think I'm going to have to amend my writing goal. Instead of writing 5,000 words, my goal this week is going to be to read through the 92 pages of manuscript and take copious notes. That should get me on track to pick up where I left off by this weekend. I just hope the draft isn't too painful to read.
Tomorrow is Frank's birthday and I'll be taking him out to dinner to celebrate, which will be my first big challenge. We're going to his favorite Italian restaurant ... it's going to take a lot of will power and a little luck to be able to stay on track!
Calorie Consumed: 1309
Calories Burned: 350
Words Written: 0
As an additional motivation, I organized an impromptu "Biggest Loser" competition with some of my female family members. It's been fun emailing each other and talking about bad eating habits we want to break and favorite junk foods that we're resisting. Talking to them has also made me realize just how far I've come since I first started educating myself about nutrition. Sometimes I wish I could still plead ignorance so at least I'd have an excuse for why I put so much weight back on! I think the challenge will be great for accountability on the dieting end of things - especially because I suggested and am trying to organize it, so I feel like I should always be setting a good example.
Sadly, I didn't get very far in my writing goal tonight. And by that, I mean that I didn't write anything. It's been so long since I worked on the novel that I'm really going to have to spend more time than I had anticipated trying to reacquaint myself with the story. It's funny how something that came out of your own brain can seem so foreign, but there's so much that I honestly don't remember. I think I'm going to have to amend my writing goal. Instead of writing 5,000 words, my goal this week is going to be to read through the 92 pages of manuscript and take copious notes. That should get me on track to pick up where I left off by this weekend. I just hope the draft isn't too painful to read.
Tomorrow is Frank's birthday and I'll be taking him out to dinner to celebrate, which will be my first big challenge. We're going to his favorite Italian restaurant ... it's going to take a lot of will power and a little luck to be able to stay on track!
Calorie Consumed: 1309
Calories Burned: 350
Words Written: 0
Motivation
I've read so many places that one of the keys to successful weight loss is motivation. People who write down and focus on the reasons why they want to lose weight are more likely to achieve their goals and keep themselves in shape. And sure enough, when I sat down to make a list of the reasons I want to lose weight and get in shape, I put together this together fairly quickly:
To be more attractive to Frank. I'm sure everyone who knows what a feminist I am are picking up their jaws off the floor, but hear me out on this one. Frank has always loved me through thick and thin -- literally -- and has never made a peep about my size or made me feel anything but completely attractive and appealing. I am the one who is constantly disagreeing with him, belittling myself and feeling self-conscious because of my weight to the point where I'm afraid that it would affect our relationship. I would love to be able to gain my confidence back and look and feel attractive for him.
To have a healthy pregnancy. As most of you know, Frank and I would like to start a family this year. However, there were recently a whole slew of articles released discussing the dangers of obesity during pregnancy. Obese women are more likely to difficult pregnancies with increased instances of gestational diabetes and preeclampsia, and are also at a higher risk to have babies with certain birth defects like spina bifida, heart problems and cleft palate. And on top of that, obese women are also 28% less likely to become pregnant in the first place! In case it wasn't clear enough before, I definitely need to focus on losing weight before I even try to become pregnant for my sake and the baby's sake.
To be able to buy clothes that fit and look good. I'll admit it, I've never been much for fashion, but who would be when going clothes shopping is enough to make you feel terrible about yourself? I want to be able to walk into a store knowing that they'll have my size. I want to try an outfit on knowing it will look great -- not bulge out in weird ways or strain at the seams when I sit down.
To keep my good health. This is a game a lot of overweight people play in their 20's -- I may be obese, but I'm healthy. My blood pressure is fine. I don't have any diseases. I feel okay. But in the end, you always lose this game and with bad consequences. I have diabetes on both sides of my family, including my father who was recently diagnosed and has since lost over 70 pounds. I know that at the rate things are going, it is coming for me too. Instead of ignoring it, I need to do something to cut it off before it even gets started. I want to add years to my life and actually be around to enjoy it!
So those are my main reasons for wanting to achieve the health side of my goals. But when I tried to come up with a similar list for why I want to finish my novel, I found the reasons to be a little more elusive. After some thought, here's what I came up with:
To do something for me. I've been writing all my life, since I was old enough to draw pictures and dictate stories to my parents, but never as little as I have recently. Which is understandable -- in the last four years there have been a lot of changes. The transition from being a bachelorette to being part of a team, dropping out of grad school, buying a house, starting a career path instead of just holding down a job -- all things that are normal for your twenties but that start to eat up a lot more of your time and energy. Somewhere along the way I stopped keeping a journal, which I had done most of my life. I stopped writing little stories, poems and jotting down ideas on scrap pieces of paper. I lost that private part of myself that I had nurtured and guarded for years, that part that was the essence of me. Finishing this novel and writing regularly will get that part back.
To make me think more. There is nothing more exciting and gratifying than that moment when you suddenly realize what happens next. Nothing even comes close. But on the flip side, there is nothing more agonizing than trying to understand where the story is going. For me, the only way to string together the plot is with lots of hard thought. I go for long walks to think about my characters, how they are feeling, what they want While in the shower, I ask what I want the story to say, what is the take home message to the readers? As I sit in a boring meeting at work and work out the inconsistencies and plot holes in the story. I dream about worlds I've created. In short, my mind is getting an amazing workout. It's all too easy to be a mental loafer, grinding out permits at work, browsing the web, letting the television entertain me. I need to have my brain actively and creatively engaging something.
To hone my craft. Practice makes perfect, like they say. This is especially true with writing. Writing every day will help me develop a stronger voice and a more consistent tone, teach me to shut up my inner editor and allow me to make the mistakes that I need to make in order to grow as a writer.
To be more attractive to Frank. I'm sure everyone who knows what a feminist I am are picking up their jaws off the floor, but hear me out on this one. Frank has always loved me through thick and thin -- literally -- and has never made a peep about my size or made me feel anything but completely attractive and appealing. I am the one who is constantly disagreeing with him, belittling myself and feeling self-conscious because of my weight to the point where I'm afraid that it would affect our relationship. I would love to be able to gain my confidence back and look and feel attractive for him.
To have a healthy pregnancy. As most of you know, Frank and I would like to start a family this year. However, there were recently a whole slew of articles released discussing the dangers of obesity during pregnancy. Obese women are more likely to difficult pregnancies with increased instances of gestational diabetes and preeclampsia, and are also at a higher risk to have babies with certain birth defects like spina bifida, heart problems and cleft palate. And on top of that, obese women are also 28% less likely to become pregnant in the first place! In case it wasn't clear enough before, I definitely need to focus on losing weight before I even try to become pregnant for my sake and the baby's sake.
To be able to buy clothes that fit and look good. I'll admit it, I've never been much for fashion, but who would be when going clothes shopping is enough to make you feel terrible about yourself? I want to be able to walk into a store knowing that they'll have my size. I want to try an outfit on knowing it will look great -- not bulge out in weird ways or strain at the seams when I sit down.
To keep my good health. This is a game a lot of overweight people play in their 20's -- I may be obese, but I'm healthy. My blood pressure is fine. I don't have any diseases. I feel okay. But in the end, you always lose this game and with bad consequences. I have diabetes on both sides of my family, including my father who was recently diagnosed and has since lost over 70 pounds. I know that at the rate things are going, it is coming for me too. Instead of ignoring it, I need to do something to cut it off before it even gets started. I want to add years to my life and actually be around to enjoy it!
So those are my main reasons for wanting to achieve the health side of my goals. But when I tried to come up with a similar list for why I want to finish my novel, I found the reasons to be a little more elusive. After some thought, here's what I came up with:
To do something for me. I've been writing all my life, since I was old enough to draw pictures and dictate stories to my parents, but never as little as I have recently. Which is understandable -- in the last four years there have been a lot of changes. The transition from being a bachelorette to being part of a team, dropping out of grad school, buying a house, starting a career path instead of just holding down a job -- all things that are normal for your twenties but that start to eat up a lot more of your time and energy. Somewhere along the way I stopped keeping a journal, which I had done most of my life. I stopped writing little stories, poems and jotting down ideas on scrap pieces of paper. I lost that private part of myself that I had nurtured and guarded for years, that part that was the essence of me. Finishing this novel and writing regularly will get that part back.
To make me think more. There is nothing more exciting and gratifying than that moment when you suddenly realize what happens next. Nothing even comes close. But on the flip side, there is nothing more agonizing than trying to understand where the story is going. For me, the only way to string together the plot is with lots of hard thought. I go for long walks to think about my characters, how they are feeling, what they want While in the shower, I ask what I want the story to say, what is the take home message to the readers? As I sit in a boring meeting at work and work out the inconsistencies and plot holes in the story. I dream about worlds I've created. In short, my mind is getting an amazing workout. It's all too easy to be a mental loafer, grinding out permits at work, browsing the web, letting the television entertain me. I need to have my brain actively and creatively engaging something.
To hone my craft. Practice makes perfect, like they say. This is especially true with writing. Writing every day will help me develop a stronger voice and a more consistent tone, teach me to shut up my inner editor and allow me to make the mistakes that I need to make in order to grow as a writer.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Game Plan
Since I’m just starting out, I want to set myself with some short-term goals and come up with a game plan for success.
Goal # 1 – Lose Weight and Get in Shape
Long Term Goal: Lose 60 pounds
Sort Term Goal: Lose 25 pounds by Memorial Day (~2 pounds per week for the next 12 weeks)
Plan: Log my food each day and keep between 1200 and 1400 calories, no more than 1600 calories. I’ll allow myself one cheat meal per week. Exercise at least a half an hour for at least 6 days per week. Burn at least 2000 calories per week.
Goal # 2 – Become a Disciplined Writer
Long Term Goal: Publish my novel, At Setting
Short Term Goal: Finish the rough draft
Plan: Write 5,000 words per week until the draft is complete.
At the end of each day, I plan on posting my number of calories consumed, number of calories burned and number of words written.
Tomorrow morning I’ll weigh in and begin my first week!
Goal # 1 – Lose Weight and Get in Shape
Long Term Goal: Lose 60 pounds
Sort Term Goal: Lose 25 pounds by Memorial Day (~2 pounds per week for the next 12 weeks)
Plan: Log my food each day and keep between 1200 and 1400 calories, no more than 1600 calories. I’ll allow myself one cheat meal per week. Exercise at least a half an hour for at least 6 days per week. Burn at least 2000 calories per week.
Goal # 2 – Become a Disciplined Writer
Long Term Goal: Publish my novel, At Setting
Short Term Goal: Finish the rough draft
Plan: Write 5,000 words per week until the draft is complete.
At the end of each day, I plan on posting my number of calories consumed, number of calories burned and number of words written.
Tomorrow morning I’ll weigh in and begin my first week!
Friday, March 5, 2010
An Introduction
So here it is, the obligatory introduction post!
I'm sure everyone reading this already knows me, but on the off chance that a friend of a friend wanders in (or I become a world famous author) I thought I would do a formal introduction. My name is Vicky. I'm 27 years old and live in the Catskill Mountain area of New York with my husband Frank, my beloved dogs Autumn and Midge and our naughty cat, Oscar. I work in the environmental field and accordingly am typically a tree-hugger and an outdoor freak. I love camping, hiking, showshoeing, canoeing and just enjoying the outdoors in general.
My other passions include: traveling, which I do whenever I get an opportunity and can afford it -- and sometimes when I can't -- reading, writing and fitness. Well, the last isn't really a passion as much as it seems to have been a life-long concern and struggle. Actually, you could probably say the same for the writing too.
Which brings me to the purpose of this blog: I've made a decision that I am ready to work hard to achieve my goals! First, I want to get into shape and lose weight. I know I can do this, because three years ago I lost over 60 pounds for my wedding, but like so many others, I put back on every pound that I lost. This made me completely ashamed and discouraged me for a long time, but I am finally ready to kick back into gear and do what it takes to lose the weight again. Second, I want to finish writing and editing my novel. I know I can do this, because four months ago, I participated in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and wrote over 50,000 words in 30 days, roughly one half of a novel. Sadly, I have not touched the novel since early December, which also makes me ashamed and discouraged. But I am ready to dive in, reacquaint myself with my novel and finish the story that I love so much.
Clearly in order to reach my goals, I need to move forward from past losses AND successes. I have learned from my past mistakes that I can't rest on my laurels, nor can I wallow in my pity. Planning and ACTION are the only things that will make me achieve my goals, and I hope to use this blog as an accountability tool so that all of you can follow along to witness my journey and hopefully cheer me on!
Welcome!
I'm sure everyone reading this already knows me, but on the off chance that a friend of a friend wanders in (or I become a world famous author) I thought I would do a formal introduction. My name is Vicky. I'm 27 years old and live in the Catskill Mountain area of New York with my husband Frank, my beloved dogs Autumn and Midge and our naughty cat, Oscar. I work in the environmental field and accordingly am typically a tree-hugger and an outdoor freak. I love camping, hiking, showshoeing, canoeing and just enjoying the outdoors in general.
My other passions include: traveling, which I do whenever I get an opportunity and can afford it -- and sometimes when I can't -- reading, writing and fitness. Well, the last isn't really a passion as much as it seems to have been a life-long concern and struggle. Actually, you could probably say the same for the writing too.
Which brings me to the purpose of this blog: I've made a decision that I am ready to work hard to achieve my goals! First, I want to get into shape and lose weight. I know I can do this, because three years ago I lost over 60 pounds for my wedding, but like so many others, I put back on every pound that I lost. This made me completely ashamed and discouraged me for a long time, but I am finally ready to kick back into gear and do what it takes to lose the weight again. Second, I want to finish writing and editing my novel. I know I can do this, because four months ago, I participated in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and wrote over 50,000 words in 30 days, roughly one half of a novel. Sadly, I have not touched the novel since early December, which also makes me ashamed and discouraged. But I am ready to dive in, reacquaint myself with my novel and finish the story that I love so much.
Clearly in order to reach my goals, I need to move forward from past losses AND successes. I have learned from my past mistakes that I can't rest on my laurels, nor can I wallow in my pity. Planning and ACTION are the only things that will make me achieve my goals, and I hope to use this blog as an accountability tool so that all of you can follow along to witness my journey and hopefully cheer me on!
Welcome!
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