Watching Extreme Weight Loss...

Wow... I don't usually like reality shows, but this one I'm enjoying. I'm picking up tips and trying to incorporate some of the things I'm learning from it.

What is my biggest obstacle?

Believing I'm safe. Believing I don't need to hide behind my weight. Believing I don't need to fill myself up with food to make up for the lack in my life. Believing I'm enough as I am.

Believing in me.

Believing I am worth taking care of.

Believing I am of worth.

I know it in my head, but every time I overeat I'm really saying there's something wrong with me.

Diane Gaston review...

A Not So Respectable Gentleman? http://www.amazon.com/Not-Respectable-Gentleman-Harlequin-Historical/dp/0373297017/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1341876740&sr=8-3&keywords=diane+gaston

Love it!

The problem with all of Diane's books?

They're done too soon! I'm not ready to leave yet! I go so far as to break up the reading so it lasts longer.

Whenever I read one of Diane's books I always feel like part of the pleasure is a mini vacation to the Regency period. She's also famous for visiting the seamier side of the Regency. Though she has a Duke, an Earl, Lords, and a Baron her hero is the bastard son of the Duke's father which puts him in the pale. Regency romances often abound with wealth, but Diane's characters often are not. The heroine is being married off to a dirtbag because her father is a lousy gambler and a louse. A secret betrothal, betrayal, and desperation make for a page-turning read.

There is a love scene and lots of chemistry for those who worry about that.

When I started reading romances, again (I took several years off because I was tired of the formula and/or poor writing), Diane's The Mysterious Miss M was one of the first I read, and I was hooked. She's on my very short must-buy list.

Carpe diem... writing...

Laundry, of course, will need to be done.

Otherwise, I have some transcribing I need to work on, a good morning activity, when my brain isn't quite engaged yet.

Then there's a bit of reading I want to do, which is also research for my own writing. I'm going to finish Diane Gaston's latest book. I'm loving it!

And lastly, I've lots of writing to do. My brain was essentially absent last week. I have the beginning and the end written, so it's time to finish filling in the middle.

Rumor has it 64,000 computers were to go dark at midnight, last night, due to malware. All kinds of sites were offered to have your computer scanned. Unfortunately, I can't use any of them because of the nature of some of my work. So, please God, watch over my computer and keep me connected to my friends.

Update: I'm here! Thanks God.

Thank Goodness It's Sunday #110...

~Steven Curtis Chapman's Long Way Home

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1p-QfgkLow

~Rain off and on means cooler temperatures while it's here. Before and after it's a boiling pot, but enjoying the in between.

~P.Croissant yumminess. :-)

~Reading Diane Gaston's A Not So Respectable Gentleman? Loving it!

~Carl came in 6th at Daytona! Whoohoo! Unfortunately, NASCAR is on TNT, so I'm watching via a leader board on Yahoo Sports. Thanks, Yahoo!

My Heroes... the Founding Fathers...

What a remarkable group of men, along with the women who stood with them.

This year, every week, I'm going to study one of the founding fathers and share something I learn here on my Saturday Heroes. I'm looking forward to the adventure.

What I know, off the top of my head: The founding fathers were not seeking to go down in history as traitors or heroes. They wanted to create a better future. They didn't want to die for their cause; they wanted to live for it. They believed liberty was worth standing for and fighting for and sacrificing everything, if necessary, and they followed up their belief with action. They talked about it, planned for it, and did what they could to help their dream take shape, grow, and not simply survive but thrive.

It they could do what they did for a country, it must be within my power to do the same with my life.

New friends needed...

From Tuesday's post:

Really?

Dumbest piece of advice in a weight loss tips article: "Get new friends. If your friends prefer pizza, wings, nachos and beer on a regular basis, find one’s who are like-minded and want to be healthy. Research has suggested that friends enhance (or can hurt) success."

Really? This is what you suggest? Really? First "friend" to go is this writer.

This is what I see right with this advice: If your friends make your life miserable, then you really do need new friends.

That's it.

I've written and deleted several paragraphs, several times. Why is this such a huge trigger? As I type I find myself becoming angrier and angrier.

The writer is a narcissist. Their way is the right way. Do what they tell you to do because they know what's best. People are expendable. No, the writer didn't suggest that people should be permanently done away with, but they did state clearly that people are interchangeable and that friendship is all about eating and nothing else. What other people do is why you're having a problem. Such a narcissistic thing to say.

Actually, I feel really sorry for this writer. If that's how they see people, then how sad for them. They don't really understand friendship and probably don't really have any friends.

Had I read this article a few years ago, I would have trashed the whole thing as nonsense because of this one glaring red flag of narcissism. I'm able to be more discerning now. I'm able to pick out what is good and recognize what is unhealthy.

No, I'm not saying eating pizza, etc, on a regular basis is healthy. It isn't. However, the food choice is not the problem here. The writer is advising others to ditch friends because of their food choices. Following the path the writer has laid out to it's idiotic conclusion: I'm allergic to bran. All my friends like going out to eat and regularly order whole grains, be it whole wheat, oatmeal, brown rice, etc. So, I should ditch them... I'm going to end up with no friends.

What the advice should have been: If your friends like going out for pizza, etc, then find something healthier on the menu. Exercise some self-control and don't match them bite for bite. Grow a backbone, accept personal responsibility, and find alternatives that work for you.

Friends want to gather together; what do they do? Somewhere in the mix is food. Food is great for bring people together. It's an ancient tradition to break bread together. It isn't a bad tradition. Treating it like it's an unhealthy tradition is ridiculous and quite frankly unhealthy.

Oh. This is leading to a whole new post of its own. :-) How fun.

Week Fifty-Four of REAL...

Reminders: REAL - Reduce stress Exercise Adequate sleep Lower caloric intake

What Navy SEALs are required to do to make it into BUD/S: http://navyseal.s5.com/requirements.html

RIght up front: Never in a million years could I do what is required. However, I needed to start somewhere. Considering how fit the SEALs are, I figured it was a good place to start. So my SEAL puppy reps consist of girls' pushups, crunches, and flutter kicks, a SEAL training basic. I started with doing one of each. I've worked up to 33 and working at slowing it down.

The 29th: weigh in: 236 lb. SEAL puppy rep. Two-mile walk. SEAL puppy rep. Did not sleep well, last night. Woke up cold, with a charlie horse in my calf. Easily solved with foot circles. I haven't been as careful about taking care of the ankle.

The 30th: weigh in: 237.4 lb. Shoot. Sigh. Two-mile walk and only a third of my physical therapy. Manuscript is due, so editing, editing, editing...

July

The 1st: weigh in: 236.4 lb.

The 2nd: weigh in: 235.6 lb. SEAL puppy rep. Two-mile walk. SEAL puppy rep.

The 3rd: weigh in: 236 lb. One-mile walk. Physical therapy.

The 4th: weigh in: 236.8 lb. SEAL puppy rep. Two-mile walk. SEAL puppy rep.

The 5th: weigh in: 236.8 lb. Waist circumference: 39". No walk. With all the rain, I knew my allergies would be a mess, even with allergy medicine. Still did my physical therapy.

Learned something new about myself, or maybe I knew but didn't want to face. I knew I hid behind my weight. I'm also finally able to admit that sometimes the eating isn't about hiding so much as filling up a space inside. Or maybe even the hiding is about not wanting to acknowledge the space inside...the space where I'm not good enough...something to consider.

The first picture was taken in February 2012. The second picture was taken in June 2012. Inspiration, at least to me:

Happy Rebellion Day!

Otherwise known as the Fourth of the July. :-)

Interesting list of diet tips from Yahoo...

Well, actually it's from The Post Game. I'm posting it here, so it's easy to find again. I'm only posting the ones I'm able to use.

http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/training-day/201206/61-easy-ways-lose-weight

Goal. Okay, this one is kind of a no brainer.

Tea. I can't help but wonder if this is more about lifestyle than actually drinking tea. Drinking tea means being willing to wait for it to steep.

Weightlifting. Muscle burns fat. Yep. I do this one. I've kept my weights pretty light and increased reps. I'm now holding to the same weight and reps but lengthening the time I hold an extended stretch. Instead of trying to whip through the exercises, I'm slowing down. I know what the writer suggests; I also know what my physical therapist would allow, not to mention what's practical. I've heard doing exercise in intervals is great, but if my exercise isn't done in the morning, it won't be done the rest of the day.

Protein. I have noticed upping my protein in my diet means I'm not so hungry. I try to be smart about it. I also discovered I need it throughout the day. I'm learning variety is a must.

Water. I had kidney infections on and off throughout my childhood. The only way for me to end the cycle was to drink 6-8 cups of water every day. I've learned to drink water when I'm hungry to check and make sure I'm actually hungry and not thirsty. I'm surprised by how often I wasn't hungry but thirsty.

Portions. I did not understand portions. I finally started ordering my food from Schwan's. Yes, I know how silly that sounds. Schwan's provides single portion servings. Yes, it was expensive, but it gave me an opportunity to learn what I needed to learn: What a portion looks like and how calories vary, so one has to be aware of what's in the portion. Yep, I'm able to see the different angles once it's laid in front of me. I do a lot of things from the end to the beginning. Now, I'm able to buy the basic ingredients and create a healthy portion, knowing what it's supposed to look like.

Weigh daily. Yep, I do that because it helps me be aware. I realize my weight goes up and down, but when it's creeping up I'm able to step back and question why and explore what is within my power to change.

Eat breakfast. It really does make a difference for me. I often have dinner for breakfast, something I learned in Thailand. Rice was part of every meal, so it always felt like dinner.

"Eat the bulk of your meals in the A.M. Then eat progressively less throughout the day." I've noticed this helps. Setting this pattern has helped me break the habit of snacking in the evening.

Don’t grocery shop hungry. I've heard this advice since I was a little girl. Really. I also find it better to shop in the morning, on a less busy day. The busier the store is, the more stressed I become, and the more likely I am to buy more, especially the treats.

Bake, don’t fry. I have never fried anything. I'm afraid of hot grease. Really.

"Fidget. A study published in the journal Science showed that those who fidgeted more often -- for example, changed their posture frequently -- weighed less than those who didn’t. This extra movement was termed NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis)." I kept this one because I'd never heard of NEAT before. I grew up being criticized for being a "teetering snipe." I learned to hold still. No, I'm not blaming my excess weight on learning to hold still, but it didn't help. I'm learning to fidget again.

Laugh. The deep, from your middle kind of laugh. I don't do this every day, but I'm doing it a lot more often.

Don't clean your plate. The writer's reasoning is that "every little bit counts." Actually, this is a mind game. You're teaching yourself you have enough and a little bit more.

"When out to eat, split a meal." I usually ask for a box when I order my meal and put half in the box as soon as it arrives. Something else I enjoy doing is sharing. My sister and I occasionally will order a meal to split between us. We both have food issues, so this is actually not only an exercise in eating healthier but also in knowing our food is safe -- we'll have enough to eat that will be ours alone.

"Skip dessert." NO. I left this one in because it's important to know yourself. If I feel deprived, then I was binge later. I've mentioned before that I not only reward myself with food but I also punish myself with food. Dessert can be something as simple as a piece of Dove chocolate.

"Don’t socialize around the food tables at parties." This is unreasonable. Food is a common social point. Instead, figure out the tricks that will work for you. I try a little of all the things I want most. After that, I'm allowed to have a little more of what I liked best. Then I allow myself to eat all the celery and carrots and snap peas I want. I also drink a lot of water.

"Keep chips, dips, and other high fat junk foods out of the house. It’s not about willpower; it’s about being realistic." Again, I left this one to illustrate the importance of not sabotaging yourself. If I don't have treats, I feel deprived and will overeat "healthy" food. I have learned to keep only my favorites with which I'm able to exercise control. I used to have no self-restraint regarding Oreos (before they changed their packaging, and now they always taste stale YUCK). An open bag was an empty bag. I don't believe in wasting food either. I love Dove chocolates. I'm able to keep myself to 3 Dove Promise pieces a day. I've also found I like the 100-calories treats. Again, it helps me visualize portion sizes. 100 calories of popcorn is a whole lot different from 100 calories of chocolate-dipped graham crackers.

"Use smaller plates and bowls." This is something else I've heard for years. I collect place settings and enjoy changing out which pattern I use. It makes meals a bit more of an occasion.

"Slow down. It takes approximately 15 to 20 minutes for your stomach to sense it’s full. If you wolf down your food like a starving dog, you’ll likely out-eat your hunger." I like how the writer put this: "out-eat your hunger." Yep, I've done that. They say you shouldn't do something else while you're eating, but I find it the easiest way to slow me down.

"Plan ahead. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." Yep. This works.

"Put yourself first. Many people (women in particular) put everyone else ahead of themselves and let their health fall by the side."

"Remember: It’s not all or nothing. If you fall off the bandwagon, jump right back on. Don’t let yourself continue to fall until all progress has been lost."

Wake up early to exercise. Yep, I do that.

Dumbest piece of advice in the whole article: "Get new friends. If your friends prefer pizza, wings, nachos and beer on a regular basis, find one’s who are like-minded and want to be healthy. Research has suggested that friends enhance (or can hurt) success."

Really? This is what you suggest? Really? First "friend" to go is this writer.

This is going to end up with a post all it's own.

Carpe diem... lots to do...

I hand wrote out a list as a note to myself. Then it dawned on me I needed to write my Monday post and the two would be the same thing.

Laundry

Prepare Formats and Cover Art Inputs for remaining contracted books and plan future books

5 scenes for Mark's Grace and beginning outlining

Finances

Read Diane Gaston's newest A Not So Respectable Gentleman? My reward.

Done. Cool.

Thank Goodness It's Sunday #109...

~A different version of Mikeschair's Someone Worth Dying For

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ-pz1rc900&feature=related

As I listen, I feel this song down to my soul.

~Thank you, God, for inspiring musicians.

~My sister, for sharing the fun in her kitchen.

~Another book off to the editor.

~NASCAR I really do love it. Unfortunately, Carl came in 20th, fuel issues. Next time. :-)