A Rolling Stone...

In some ways I have been busy busy! This last week was one of my busiest at work, with the beginning of our new fiscal year. I've been running 2-3 times a week, where it really should be 3-4. I'm starting to feel it.
When it comes to heat, I am the biggest whiner ever. So, since Summer has officially landed in Oklahoma, I have been trying to run on the cooler days of the week, or run late at night. That just doesn't work for keeping up our training schedule. I am just going to have to buck up and go! For now, it's just 30-35 minutes and as long as we stay out of the hottest part of the day, I'll live.

I've been doing decent on the food part (I don't like calling it a "diet"). We have had a few treats, but I lost 2.2 pounds this week, so I don't feel guilty about enjoying my favorite treats. I am on Week 3 of making our own bread. Each loaf gets better and better! We took a trip to the health food store so I could get some dough conditioners. While we were there, I got some wheatberries. So, this loaf is a Honey Wheatberry loaf. Yum! I'm working on getting it "store-bought" fluffy and each time it's poofier. The main thing I enjoy is the heartiness of the bread and the healthiness. It's not low-cal, but it's made from all ingredients I can pronounce and find in the grocery/health food store. No corn syrup, no weird preservatives, just delicious Wheat bread. Right now I am 2/3 wheat and 1/3 white. I started at a 50/50 mix. The main reason is trying to get the bread fluffy. Once I can figure that out I'll go to 100% whole wheat. My goal right now is to get a grain mill, so I can make my own fresh flour. I would also love to experiment with other types of flour.I would also like to go out on a limb and make some other bread, like sandwich buns, but we have to be careful about the amount of bread we eat. We are still trying to drop the pounds. :)

Both of us are pretty good about only bringing "good" food into the house. We don't buy tempting things and we try to keep a lot of healthy snacks and easy dinners on hand. We buy plenty of delicious, healthy foods to take for lunch everday. This morning we ran some errands and stopped by Subway on the way back to the house. It's sitting in the fridge, waiting for lunch. I am pumped for one of my favorite dinners (healthy or not) Fajitas! Pete will grill and we will add some veggies and enjoy an awesome flavorful dinner tonight. Yum!

Run for your lives!!!

Weigh-in day was slightly disappointing. I gained almost half a pound. That's not terrible, but I've really been on a roll lately and I was hoping for another 2 pound loss. I shouldn't have expected it, because I really ate like crap 3 out of 7 days last week.

Running went really well. I am finally getting into it and enjoying it! The last run of week 5 was a 20 minute run, with no walking. It was tough and I did walk a little bit, but only after the 10 minute mark (which is longer than I've ever run in a single stretch). I think I made it tougher on my legs by trying to hold back and go slow. It isn't my natural stride and cadence, so it felt unnatural and my calves tightened up quickly and without relief. Next time, I just need to go at my natural stride and it should be better on the legs.

Besides just counting calories, I am trying to pay attention to what I am eating. After watching a slew of food documentaries like "Food Inc", "King Corn" and "Killer at Large", we decided to pay closer attention to what is IN the food we eat. We have been to the Health Food Store, but it was pretty overwhelming if you don't know what you are looking for. They carry vegan, gluten-free, diabetic, grass-fed, non-dairy, whole wheat, low carb, organic...you name it. Mainly, we are looking for locally grown food with all natural ingredients.
We took a trip to OSU-OKC Farmers Market Saturday morning. It was great! Produce was aplenty and they even had local chicken, beef, lamb, eggs, milk (and milk products like yogurt)! We only purchased some grass-fed beef short ribs and some local raw honey. We will definitely return.

The next best way to know what we are eating is to make it ourselves. So, with some encouragement and advice from a co-worker, I set out to make some delicious wheat sandwich bread. I found a wonderful recipe that I tweaked a little. I substituted some Flax meal for some oil and added some rolled oats and sesame seeds. It came out pretty good, if I say so. There are no unpronounceable ingredients or secret sweeteners, just good old-fashioned bread. It costs about $.50 a loaf, so even if some of it goes bad, it is really cost effective. My next try will be making some sandwich rolls for our turkey burgers. Yum!

High Flying Day

We had a high flying day! We went to Rocktown Climbing Gym in Bricktown and had a blast! I am so glad many of our oldest and best friends were there to share in the fun! Everyone was encouraging and supportive. I hope to do it again, soon. Okay, maybe in the fall when it's not as hot. :)
 It was hard work, but completely fun. You don't even realize how much work it is, until you're done. I posted a bunch of pictures on facebook.One friend took some video, so hopefully I can post one before long.

Today was weigh in day. I lost 2 more pounds this week. That's the best pace I can shoot for. Fast enough that I feel like I am making progress, slow enough that it's not like a fad that I will just bounce back from it if I stop being diligent.

After Rock Climbing, we went to Louie's for some post climbing food. I think there are four of us who may try to run a 5K- just for the heck of it!  I'm excited. I think it will be a blast!

Progress is slow but steady and I'm happy with that. Thanks again to all my friends and family who are all super-supportive! It helps so much!

Wellness Champion

During my exploration of the Healthy Sooners website, I see a bubble "Want to promote wellness? Become a Wellness Champion!" So I did! I am now the Wellness Champion for Financial Services at work! Cool, huh? I'm not sure what my duties will be, however I am hoping they will set up contests and rewards I can use to motivate my co-workers.

Running has been going so well- extra well! Our last run of Week 4 was Wednesday evening and we both did awesome. It was my best run yet! I think I'm finally getting the hang of it. Tonight I was motivated to exercise, even though Pete's on night shift. Normally, I'd just walk, but this time I ran a light run- by myself. That was a pretty big deal for me. I went to the park and ran- with no one watching. :)

I am feeling optimistic this week. Tomorrow morning is official weigh in day, so we will see if my progress matches my mood.

A Lofty Goal

A lofty, yet tangible goal has been set. It was like a sign sent from e-mail heaven delivered right into my inbox
"Register Now for the First Healthy Sooners Fun Run!" August 28th Pete and I will be participating in a 5K! My C25K program is finally coming together and meshing with an actual 5K in Norman! I am so excited to keep plugging along with our training regimen. It's the first annual run, so maybe we can make it a new tradition for us! I'm stoked!

Hello, Summer!

I will probably mention how HOT it is 100 times until September. Sweaty, yucky, humid hot. I'm not going to let that stop me. I managed to lose a little more weight this week (2.2 pounds altogether). That made me happy and proud. It is also boosting my confidence. I always try to have good self-esteem, but my body confidence is growing. We went to a wedding Saturday night and I dressed in a cute strapless dress. We danced the night away and did the Electric Slide, the Twist and several other dances. Pete was twirling me around the dance floor like never before! It was more fun than I have had at a wedding in a while...and I LOVE weddings. :)

We ran at 11am on Saturday. It was not a good time, weather-wise. It was already steamy hot. From now on, we are going to have to go near dawn or dusk. I'm wimpy in the heat. Tonight, while Pete is working, I went our for a dusk walk around the neighborhood. It's a good moderate exercise to do on my off days from running. It may seem boring, but I enjoy walking. I'm hoping to keep improving in my C25K. I didn't finish the last 5 minute run Saturday. Hopefully, by the time we run again (Probably Wednesday), I'll have the stamina and the weather will be slightly more cooperative.

Quickly

I haven't posted since weigh-in day this week. It's been hectic! I'm down another pound. It's going slowly on the scale, but I did buy some new clothes- a size smaller!! woot

I participated in a Research study last month, and was paid for my time- so I went out to get some summer clothes and get a pedicure (my favorite indulgence) with my windfall. I bought pants a size smaller than I have been buying, so that was encouraging. I'm feeling so confident I might actually get some shorts to wear running. I currently run in capri's (like Yoga pants), but it's getting so hot!

Pete and I re-ran week 3 and now it's time to move on to week 4. I am apprehensive, but optimistic. We are going to have to start scheduleing our runs either early in the AM or late in the PM. I am a wuss when it comes to hot weather. We are looking at 100+ temps this weekend.

Right now, drinking enough water seems to be my biggest issue. I really need to get some discipline on that. If you have any ingenious suggestions, let me know. Thanks so much for everyone's encouragement and support. It means the world to me!

-Di