August 25, 2010

Another great day! Has been so nice out this week and cooler! LOVE it! Got up around 7:30, had coffee and read my Bible study. Yesterday I got in a 30 minute walk. Total steps for the day was 6000 even! I am sure it could be a few more or less who knows how accurate my pedometer is. Seems to be close though. Today I did not walk...well, I did but in the pool and not on the sidewalk! So my step count will be under today. I walked around the pool 30 minutes (broke it down into two 15 minute sessions) and then I did some other exercising for 30. It was nice since I was the only one in that pool today! Also had lunch afterwards with David. With all his overtime lately this was the most I have seen him except when he is sleeping LOL! Well, maybe not quite that bad but close!
The foster kittens are doing well. Two have bad eyes that concern me. They don't seem to be getting better. They looked like they were clearing up there for abou a week but got cloudy again. I txt Mona about it. I actually think Bubba may be over his infection! Now he just needs some more weight on him and he can go to the adoption center! YAY! His sister, Lily was adopted already last week. Not sure if I posted that already or not.
Have a great evening!

August 23, 2010

Nice morning! I heard weather man say sunshine but I see clouds LOL! And that is fine! Cooler temps that are Fall-like, which most of you know, is what I LOVE! When it is hot I don't feel like leaving the AC comfort of my home, even if it is to drive to the pool! But today I am starting again...as Dr. Oz would say a YOU-turn! I woke up around 6:30, read my Bible and prayed. Then had breakfast. A decent one at that. Life cereal. My 2 hour blood glucose reading was 95....pretty good I'd say. I am tracking this close again. I really, really, REALLY want off the Metformin and other meds. I think because my doctor has been so....uninterested? or whatever a better word may be in what I HAVE been able to do this past year that I allowed that to discourage me. I slacked off this summer and I gained back some weight. Not a whole lot but it was hard to get it off the FIRST time now I have to lose it again! I am looking for that person inside me that was excited to go walking or to workout just a few months ago. Have you seen her? She did come out this morning to go for a walk around the subdivision! She looked happy, even smiled and talked to a man in a wheelchair on her way around. I hope she plans to stay around now. ;-) I think she will!

weds July 14, 2010

Happy Weds! I was up at 4:00 a.m. this morning! LOL! I don't know why I stayed up...at least until 6 and then I took a 45 minute nap! Ha ha! But I found out there are exercises shows on the PBS channel at that time of day! I did one that is all chair exercises and then i did one that was called "Morning Stretch". I liked the first one but the second one the woman moves too fast and is not very good at explaining what you are to do. I only did 15 minutes of the second one. There is a Yoga one that comes on at 6:00 so maybe I will try that one next.
On Monday in addition to what I already put in the blog, I rode my exercise bike 45 minutes.
Tuesday I did workout #5 on Kim Lyon's 3rd DVD Stand Up and Shape Up and then 15 minutes on the bike.
Of course you know what I did today so far! :-)

I feel pretty good. I have to get bloodwork done later. Not a fasting one so I did have breakfast this morning of a cup of blackberries and 2 eggs over easy (cooked in spray oil!) and of course I had my coffee!

I have been praying about starting First Place 4 Health. They have a group at church that meets on Sunday nights or Tuesday mornings. I think it would be good for me and would help work on all the areas of my life and not just food and exercise. I will post in here about that when I start.

Sorry this post is not too exciting! I will try to get back here this afternoon and list my foods from the last couple days.

TTFN!

Back to blogging

The past two months have shown me that unless I blog---I am not accountable to myself or others in my weight loss journey. Two family reunions in a row have really wreaked havoc on my weight, plus whatever I was (or rather wasn't) doing before! I have gotten lazy again in several areas of my life. SO! I am doing this blog again! I know you are all thrilled beyond words LOL!

This morning so far--I had the last of my homemade cinnamon rolls (this was before my revelation!) And I have made a salad using millet, cucumber, tomatoes, green pepper, red onion, olive oil and vinegar. Seasoned with a dash of seasoned salt.
Weight I reallllllllly don't want to reveal but ok---244.5 This means I have gained back 10 pounds in the last month. ARRRRGGGHHHH!!!! But also I weighed myself AFTER being fully dressed so I will weigh again tomorrow while in my "jammies"

Housework--I cleaned the kitten boxes and feed them and played. Put away dishes and loaded some more into the dishwasher. Sweeping floors will be next on list.

Exercise--I walked 20 minutes and lifted my dumbbells a little. I plan on riding the recumbent exercise bike later....hold me to this readers! I see a neighbor go out each morning with her hand weights and pink exercise suit walking. I admit I feel guilty! If she can do so can I! So here are my goals this week:

1. Get up at 5:30 and spend time in Bible study
2. Aerobic exercise of some kind at least 3x this week (Can be a DVD, walking, swimming)
3. Strength training 2x this week
4. Keep up on housework--dishes, floors, cats,
5. Plan and cook healthier meals again.

Also on Weds I have to get blood work done for my Oncologist appointment. I was going to have some from my family doc but have decided to skip that for now. I will wait until next month when my eating is back to what I was doing. Don't think I want a cholesterol check just yet after all the reunions! LOL!

Been listening to Kim Hill's version of "Jesus I am resting, resting". I love this version of the song. It is a calming peaceful song and it calms me down and helps me reflect on the love of Christ. I know He is always with me!
Have a great day! God has given you another one!

VB

Be a WINNER not a WHINER!

This past few years I have had my ups and downs of getting healthy. I try not to whine or give into the "victim" mentality. Unfortunately I see many people who DO give into it. I left the diabetes group I was in on Yahoo because I got tired of reading people's posts about how they "can't" exercise. "I have diabetes" "I have had cancer" "I have Fibromyalgia" "I have arthritis"....well...SO DO I! Excuse me...if you can walk to the kitchen or the couch...you can walk a few minutes every day for exercise! Or maybe you can stretch your arms and move them up and down and find some exercises you can do while sitting, or find a pool to swim in (easier on the body) Money a problem? You don't need a gym to get exercise, heck! you don't even need expensive equipment! If you are reading this, you have internet...so "Google" it! You will find thousands of workout videos online that do not require anything but your body!
"But eating healthy is too expensive!" Balderdash! LOL! For one...if you watch the sales you can find ALOT of healthy foods on sale. Buy produce in season and also buy frozen vegetables, beans (dried is cheapest) Buy chicken, turkey, etc when it is one sale...and whole chicken is cheaper...cut it up and take the skin off yourself! That's what my parents did! You can also find videos to show you how to do this if you don't know how! Make your own pastas or bread products (What a concept!) Shop at bulk food stores for good prices on things like oats, flour (whole wheat!) buckwheat, cornmeal, etc. If time is hard to find, pick a day once a week or once a month and cook up a storm! Then package them so you can take out what you need when you need it. This works really well with chicken. I grill up several servings and then if I am pressed for time all I do is warm it up, throw a potato in the microwave to "bake" it, heat up some frozen green beans or make a salad and I have dinner in 15 minutes! Rachael Ray has nothing on that! LOL! Also...grow your own vegetables! Again--our parents did, look it up and learn how! Live in an apartment? Most have a small patio or terrace/balcony anymore, put a tomato plant in a large pot and see what happens! Keep it watered and fertilized and you will have plenty of fresh tomatoes! There may also be a community garden nearby where you can get a plot and try your hand at it. Again, many things can be frozen so no need to can if you don't want to.
You see...I got tired of my own excuses so when I hear them from others...it makes me crazy! LOL! If I can do it so can you! I recently seen a video of a man with no arms, no legs. He swims, he plays soccer, he does soooooooooo much more then even I do that it made me realise..if he can do it..so can I! Now...get out there and MOVE! Dance, walk, swim whatever, just MOVE!

Testing, one, two, three...

This is a test..is anyone reading this anymore? I have not seen any comments lately LOL! I will post on Sparkpeople instead if not.
Thanks for your attention!
HUGS! Love ya all!

Tuesday 4/6/10

WOW! It is another gorgeous day here! God has really blessed us this month with nice weather! Last night we had some pretty hefty thunderstorms and even some hail but today the sun is shining and the birds are singing! My flowering pear trees in front are almost ready to bloom and I have been picking daffodils and hyacinths and putting them in vases to make the house smell good! Of course with Spring comes the ants LOL! They are driving me nuts! I am going to make up some ant poison later today! If they would just stay outside! LOL!

Yesterday we walked at Batelle Darby after dinner. David and I had a nice walk of about 2 miles. Saw some spring wild flowers again and took pictures which I will post. Today I am going to swim as my exercise.

Food-wise I have still been sticking to mostly fresh things. Got some Morning Star sausage crumbles the other week to throw in my omelets. They really are not bad and if you haven't given them a try I would say get some! Haven't sprung them on David yet though LOL! My nephew said he uses them in tacos (the hamburger kind) ...so that may be something I will do. I also have been eating fresh asparagus and really like it! I cooked some for Easter at Dad's and most people ate it and loved it! My sugar free cheesecake did not go well. But it had to compete with Roger's Cherry Delight (grandma's recipe!) so I was not upset! HA HA! I did not know he was coming or I would have made something different. Think I will stick to fruit salad next time.

This is going to be a short post this morning. I will blog more later. OH! Jillian Michaels is on Dr. Phil the next couple days..at least today! Check your schedules to see when it will be on!

HUGS!

Get Started Walking!

This Weds is National Start Walking Day! Sponsered by the American Heart Association. So get out an WALK! Here is a link to the webpage but I will be re-posting tidbits here and there on the blog. http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3053117


Get Ready!
It’s simple to start a walking program!
All you need are comfortable clothes and supportive shoes.
Layer loose clothing, keeping in mind that brisk exercise elevates the body’s temperature.
Shoes specifically
designed for walking or running are best.
Make sure you have a little wiggle room (½") between your longest
toe and the end of your shoe.
Avoid cotton socks since they retain moisture and can promote blisters.
Technique
• Begin with short distances. Start with a stroll that feels comfortable (perhaps 5–10 minutes) and gradually
increase your time or distance each week by 10–20 percent (add just a few minutes or blocks). If it’s easier on your joints and your schedule to take a couple of shorter walks (10–20 minutes) instead of one long walk (30–40 minutes) each day, do it!
• Focus on posture. Keep your head lifted, tummy pulled in and shoulders relaxed. Swing your arms naturally. Avoid carrying hand weights; they put excessive stress on the elbows and shoulders. Don’t overstride. Select a comfortable, natural step length. If you want to move faster, pull your back leg through more quickly.
• Breathe deeply. If you can’t talk or catch your breath while walking, slow down. Speed isn’t important at first — just establish the walking habit.

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

I commented on Facebook that I should blog about this and so I shall. LOL! I really liked the show, but it is sad. Sad in the fact that it shows how little today's kids know about food and where it comes from, sad that the schools feed such crap--I thought it was bad when I was in school! And sad that parents have no clue what kids are eating. First graders did not know what tomatoes were, or that fries came from potatoes! You can look the show up on YouTube. When I was a kid I had to weed and pick vegetables so I knew what a tomato looked like! And these were NOT city kids! They lived in Huntington WVa! You'd think that parents and grandparents would have gardens there!

As for my personal journey. I have been neglecting my workouts and even good food choices lately. I have been making chocolate bunnies for David to sell and even though I have not eaten much chocolate myself....I have also not been cooking good meals! We also spent every night at the church at the drama they were putting on. It was excellent! And if "Eternity" comes to a place in your town you MUST see it!

Bt today I DID swim for an hour. Wore me out! And tomorrow we are headed to my Dad's for Easter. This will be a challenge too. I am waiting for his remarks on my weight..which is sad. I should not let his perspective of my weight and health rule my emotions. My nephew Brandon and his wife Shannon are moving into their first home too so I can get a workout that way. :-)

Everyone have a Joyous Easter!

More ERRRGGHH! LOL!

Ok, another week and it started off great! I did have problems sleeping last night but finally got rest ..I think. LOL! So did some cleaning and sorting and then went swimming for an hour. It was pretty nice to get in the water and glide my body along and stretch my limbs! Came back home and had a turkey sandwich on whole wheat pita and some lettuce (Spring mix no Iceburg!) Anyways, called about the Flaxseed Oil liquid I bought yesterday from Sundown Naturals. I had opened it and it had a fishy smell...not good! From everything I had read online--Flaxseed Oil+ Fishy smell= rancid flaxseed. So I called the company instead of Meijers where I bought it. The girl insisted I leave the cap off the bottle to 'air it out" and that the fishy smell was quite normal. When I tried to tell her "No, it is not" she kept talking over me, until finally I said 'WILL YOU JUST LET ME FINISH WHAT I AM SAYING????!!" And she said well of course Ma'am. And when I started to say something again--she cut me off so I asked to speak to someone else and she said hold on...I waited and waited and then it cut me off. So now I am really steamed! LOL! I e-mailed corporate to complain. So then I decided I would call Meijers. Quite a different response! In fact the manager I spoke to said she takes Flaxseed Oil and NO--it is not supposed to smell like that! Bring in the bottle and receipt and we will refund your money. Shoulda called them in the first place! :-) A half hour later my doctor's office calls again (see Friday's post!) Same girl..this time she has details. OK--so here are my numbers:
Total cholesterol : 181
LDL:99
HDL: 51
Triglycerides: 153
A1C 6.2
Now the conversation continues: Doc has a note here that she wants to take you off the Pravastatin and put you on Lipitor. Me: That is not acceptable! In fact I insist on not going on Lipitor! I will make an appointment to come in and talk this over with her. So that is what I did. I started to tell the nurse how I have been taking fish oil capsules and that I read recently where it can "appear" to raise your LDL. But decided I would just talk it over with the doc instead. :-) Here is a link on what I found:
http://www.healthcentral.com/cholesterol/c/7986/16181/fish-oil-raise/
I also took Deb's advice and "Asked Dr. Oz" so I hope he answers me! I try so hard to get healthy and it seems I get kicked back down somedays! But if you look...these were my numbers from last August:
Total: 171
LDL 85
HDL: 47
Trig: 194
A1C: 5.8
So, looking at this and comparing last week's...total is up yes, LDL is up, yes, HDL is up YAY! You WANT that! (fish oil does do that) and Triglycerides are DOWN YAYYYY!! again! So she didn't comment on that! what's up with that??? A1C is up too but I have been through the Holidays and Winter too so I kinda expected that to happen. I will discuss all this with her when I see her in April. I gave myself time to research more and print off things for her to read! There is also the weight loss to mention! She is generally good about listening to what I have to say so I am confident it will go well. But any and all prayers will be appreciated!
VB

ERRRRGGGHHH!!!

OK! Most of you know I have had pain in my feet--mostly at the base of the toes, for quite awhile now--years! So finally I had the doc look into it further then just telling me to get different shoes! Had them x-rayed today and the doc assistant called later in the day to say they were "normal". OK--so what IS the pain from then? My guess..and doc did mention it..is some kind of bundled nerves. OK--so now I will probably see a specialist. The ERRRGGHHH is really about this though: She says to me, "Your cholesterol is high" I said, what is it? "Ummm, she didn't say, let me check...oh---it's 181. She wants you below 180" (I actually WAS the last time it was checked!) Me: what was my HDL, LDL and Triglycerides? Nurse: She didn't say, I don't know. Me: Well, I'll call on Monday or stop by and get a print out of all my bloodwork and tests. Nurse: Your glucose is holding ok. Me: what was my A1C?? Nurse: Ummmmm, hang on.......OH! A1C was 6.2. :-/ Got the picture now? LOL! I LIKE to know my numbers thank you! Oh--the kicker: "Dr. Frazer wants to know if you have been taking your Statins every day!" HUH? YES!!!!! OK--My eating has not been the greatest. I have not been eating oatmeal everyday like I did the last time, and I have had eggs..although sticking mostly to whites only. Taking fish oil...and here lays my thought---one other time when I took fish oil my numbers were higher. I stopped taking them for like 3 months cause we ran out and next test was lower. I start taking them again and numbers go up again! Maybe I will do what my MIL does...when she knows she is due for a Lipids test she cuts out the eggs and butters (yeah right LOL, but that's another rant) for 2-3 weeks. To me this is cheating LOL! Well, maybe not. BUT--it is nuts if you ask me! So for the next 4 months before the next bloodwork is due I will have to trim the menu a bit more....and maybe cut out the fish oil capsules! Hope everyone is having a better Friday!

Dr. Oz's Health Pledge

Today I watch the Oz and he had a health pledge you can print off his webpage and sign...I challenge all of you to make this pledge as well! Here is mine:

My Health is important to me and my family. That's why I, Valerie Brenneman, am making a commitment to take control of my health.
Because I'm responsible for my own health, I pledge to:

Make healthy food choices

Walk 10,000 steps every day.

signed: Valerie Brenneman date: March 16, 2010

I have a printed version but this is my online one. :-)
Today I weighed in at 237--yay! This is helping my mood alot. I went to visit a friend today also who is recovering from foot surgery. She is doing better and hopefully soon we can do some walking together. I'm sure it won't be very fast!
A reminder--go to Komen Columbus website and sign up under 'First SW Walkers & Friends" for the May 15th Race for the Cure!

I also heard great news that someone will be starting Praise Moves class at our church! Some of you already know I went to a class at another church for awhile and loved it! Finances made me stop.

Spring Fever

It has been really nice out this week! Warmer weather and sunshine (between raindrops!) Today I finished up the loose ends on getting ready for tomorrow night's dinner. I have my tablecloth, favors, place settings...all ready to go! I'll take pictures so you can all see what it was like! Last night was the Wednesday night meal at church. I helped man the dessert tables! :-) And yes I had a couple cookies but not what you would think. I was surprised that I didn't really feel like having many sweets. They ran out of green beans. mashed potatoes and salad before we could eat though. It wasn't a total loss...still had chicken and rolls and I made my own salad with the grape tomatoes, olives, onions and Italian dressing! I think I liked that better then I would have the other anyways! And I had a small cheesecake in a cupcake paper--you know the ones! The cookies I had was a Snickerdoodle and a white chocolate chip. But I was tired when we got home! We may eat there sometime when we are not serving. LOL! It is only $4 a person to eat and the food is really good! It will depend on what they are serving that week!
That is it for tonight. I hadn't done a workout, just alot of running around!

Looking back

Somedays you just have to look back at where you have been to know how much you have moved forward! This pic was taken ....umm...probably in 2005(?) Have to ask Jess when Aubrey was at Urbana. Anyways--this is one of those "Do I really look that bad???!!!" pics! LOL! A few months from now I will be saying that about how I look today :-) You've come a long way baby!

Here is March 2010 Biggest Loser type pic too! Improved me! I am at 237.5 pounds now so it is still coming off! I need to measure waist again too. Dr. Oz believes that is the better measurement. My new goal however is to be at 200 by Lisa's wedding in October.

Monday and Tuesday

Another whirlwind week ahead people! Monday I walked around the neighborhood for about 45 minutes for about 5869 steps. Then I decided after lunch (meatloaf, baked potato and Brussels Sprouts) that I needed to go look for tea cups for the Amazing Love Dinner this Friday. NOT an easy task! I checked the following places: Garden Ridge, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Michael's (I had to get other things there anyways), Marshall's, then FINALLY The Am Vets Thrift store...which is where I found some decent ones at 30 cents each! YAY! The Amazing Love Dinner is a dinner at church where ladies will sign up to host a table and then decorate that table. You also get people to sign up for the dinner to eat at your table. I had to provide the place settings, tablecloth (which I need yet) favors, and centerpiece. This is the first I have even been to the dinner, let alone be hostess. Anyways--tickets were $8 and the guys act as servers and the meal is catered. Then tomorrow (Weds) it is our class' turn to provide desserts and to serve the Weds night dinner at church. So today I have been baking cookies to take for that. But back to Monday: my total steps for the day was 9559 which is 4.8 miles according to my pedometer. Dr. Oz recommends 10,000 a day! WHEW! I know on Friday it said I had 12245 or 5.6 miles! I have blisters on my feet LOL! But this is something I need to keep up DAILY!
So today I have scheduled strength training and walking. It is to get up to around 58 degrees today and sunny! I am thinking after lunch today is when I will go.
I seen a recipe on Betty Crocker website 9I get a newsletter from them) that I am trying tonight for Beef, Veggie and Brown Rice Skillet Dinner. Here is the link:

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/skillet-beef-veggies-and-brown-rice/62edcbb2-7fe8-453d-b75c-54679ce0f4ed?wt.dcsvid=mje3mjkxnzywoas2&rvrin=7f844943-52e7-4b44-82bc-242e15279eef&wt.mc_id=newsletter_dme_03_07_2010

A little higher on the carbs but will probably cut back on the brown rice and up the veggies. Still, not a bad choice!
I still do not have my beginning of March pic yet. I will work on that later when David gets home. For now--I need to be Domestic Diva! LOL!
HUGS! More to come!

STRESS!!!

The last few months I have felt stressed. Actually this started last year when David's OT was cut and for a few weeks, his regular hours. Then no pay raise. Emotionally I don't feel I can go back to a full-time job anywhere. So that leaves me the wedding business...which I am trying to figure out the best way to go forward with it. I need to change some things to well, make it less stressful! LOL! My heart has been palpitating alot the last few days and it is very annoying..and all the more STRESSFUL! I open bills and...more stress! When does it end? I am sure most of you can relate. National City Bank gets bought out and well, now we are PNC and whole new account numbers, changing the autopays, etc and that makes more....STRESS! Once it gets straightened out we will be fine--I hope! We are still paying on medical tests and doctor's visits etc. Somedays I feel so lost. No one seems to want to work with you. Just pray for us and me---I have prayed about the job thing in the past and really felt God was saying to stick with the wedding business from home. Does anyone have any ideas? Maybe I need to sign up and sell from Etsy.com? Sorry this is not my usual weight loss blog but it is mutterings!

Biggest Loser is Back!!!!

It was a long two weeks for me with no "Loser" fix! I do enjoy taking in some of the Winter Olympics but I missed Bob and Jillian and the gang!
Today I did not drink the green stuff. I had an omelet of one whole egg and a white with peppers, onions and a few bacon bits and cheese. Also a 100% whole wheat toast. After the Oz was on I walked over to the next street to visit my friend Lori who is laid up right now from some major foot surgery. She can't get around much and I went to visit and take her some homemade banana muffins. I keep a few for myself *wink*. I make them with whole wheat flour and oatmeal, canola oil. Didn't use Walnuts today as I couldn't remember if her kids have allergies...found out they don't LOL! I also borrowed her "YOU The Owners Manual" to read. I would like my own copy someday though! OH---and she said I looked like I had lost weight since I seen her 3 weeks ago! I think I had only lost a couple pounds but it was nice that someone noticed, aside from David of course! I walked up to Lori's stayed a couple hours just chatting and doing alot of laughing, then walked back and had lunch. Today I had leftover "Ba-sketti" and a pecan, apple, spinach, mesclun, raisin salad. I could have just eaten the salad to be honest! I was stuffed for hours afterwards! Dinner was Chicken, carrots, Green Beans, Corn and homemade noodles all cooked together. It made a sort of stew! Tomorrow I will have to make sure I get a good workout in! I feel like I slacked off today. My next goal date is Oct 8th when my niece gets married. I want to be in better shape by then! Short term is May 15th for Race for the Cure! If only the snow would melt away I might be able to get outside more for the walking!
Everyone have a great evening! I may go have a little popcorn!

March On!

Happy March 1st! Boy did February fly by fast! Being the shortest month probably has something to do with that! LOL! Even though there is still snow on the ground (dirty and blah looking now!) I feel that Spring is on it's way! I have been making lists of what I want to plant this year. Tomatoes (always!) Squash, Cucumbers (for David) lettuces, and probably some mini pumpkins (for decorations at Lisa's wedding in October) I may pick up some other things as I browse the garden center sections at stores who knows!
I am continuing my quest for more activities. Looking out I se the sidewalks are mostly clear now and I may try out my new shoes. I bought a pair of L.A. Gear Walk-n-Tone shoes. They are supposed to help tone your leg muscles more then regular shoes. Not sure about that part yet but they are more comfortable on my feet then any other shoe I have had the past few years so that in itself is a plus! I'll let you all know how they go!
This morning I tried Dr. Oz's "Green Drink" Well--it IS March! LOL! I didn't have everything in the recipe but most things. Here it is if any of you get brave enough. I thought it was "ok". It is probably an aquired taste LOL! But I will have it again and maybe tweak something here and there.

Make the breakfast drink that Dr. Oz swears by! This "green drink" is high in fiber, low-calorie and rich in vitamins.
Ingredients
2 cups spinach
2 cups cucumber
1 head of celery
1/2 inch or teaspoon ginger root1 bunch parsley
2 apples
Juice of 1 lime
Juice of 1/2 lemon

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a blender. This makes approximately 28-30 ounces, or 3-4 servings.

Well, that is all for a Monday morning! I have to have David take my March picture in the next couple days so I can post it. I am losing about a pound a month I have figured. It is time to step it up again. I need to be walking more to ready for the Komen Race anyways!

HUGS! Have a greta Monday!

Trying New Things

The last couple weeks I tried to make apoint of trying something different. One week I bought Fennel which I have seen used on cooking shows but aside from Anise Seeds I have never eaten the bulb! I liked it! I had it cooked, with stew and also raw sliced thin on salads. I also bout Asparagus. I had it when I was a kid but didn't like it then. I decided to buy some fresh and sauted it with Olive Oil. I liked it too. So on foods, challenge yourself and try something you haven't had before...healthy of course!

Exercise I did the Bootcamp last week as reported in the last posting. I thought about that today when I heard them talking on The Doctors about a woman suing her personal trainer because he had her doing things beyond her limit on the first and second days. She blew out a thigh (I think) muscle. They said this can happen when you have someone who is not trained or certified properly as a trainer. I don't know if there is a bootcamp tomorrow or not--I did not recieve an e-mail this time. They probably took me off the list! ROFL! So this week's "new" thing is a short video on YouTube of Leslie Sansone. It is a quick 14 minutes but in that short time you can walk a mile with her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndVjwkaLGDk

You can also find a part 2 to that which is another 14-15 minutes. Do them together or split it up during the day. Just MOVE! LOL!

Tonight's dinner is fish, David get Flounder and I am having Salmon, multi grain pilaf and peas for David, Brussel Sprouts for me. So I need to go and get it started!

20 Days

Twenty days. That is what it took for someone to point out that I had not been blogging. I purposely did not blog to see if anyone was actually paying attention. One person was. Don't be afraid to call me out on it if I do miss several days. A day here and there is ok. I do get busy with wedding orders or go out of town from time to time.
OK where do I start catching up? LOL! Food journal, I came to realise I had been placing too much emphasis on food. I was obsessing with writing it down and feeling bad if I didn't. I know now that if I just ask God what it is He wants me to eat, that I will be ok. No--He doesn't tell me cupcakes or ice cream LOL! That is ME that says that. And I have given in this month a few times to those items. But over all, I stick to foods He made and not ones that man has altered alot. I think when we went to the store Sunday that the only things we bought that was not as ok, was canned tomatoes (not too bad) Pizza (once in awhile we allow it) and David got some snack mix (which he is ordered to take to work and not leave in the house!) Oh--I forgot, canned soups that David wanted for work lunches. But mainly we had fresh (or frozen)vegetables and fruits.
Exercise....some days I have slacked, but as you know--I have shoveled some snow this month! I have started back on my swimming routine when I can get out of our street! They rarely plowed! So if it snows again, which it will...I may be stuck at home again. I have been disciplining myself on housework again too and tossing out cluuuutter...clutter, clutter clutter clutter.... (sang to the tune of Sanford and son) LOL! Love the Clutter Song by Bone Hampton. Tried finding it on You Tube but no luck! So if anyone is inclined to search, go for it! It is hilarious!
Now, something new I tried on Thursday. The Running with Purpose group at church has "bootcamp" indoors right now and so I decided to go. :-) hee hee! Anyways--It was tough. I think Mandee is tougher then Trainer Paulette was. It was good to be forced out of my usual zone though. BUT I have one big objection. They did NOT warm up correctly before starting sprints and the harder stuff. Warming up is extremely important and stretching only does not constitute warming up. In fact--you need to warm up BEFORE you stretch or you can damage the muscles. SO--if and only IF I go again I will go earlier and walk to warm up first. But I don't see myself going again at the moment. I have other projects in mind so check back to see what they are! *wink wink*!
Ok--I have to go, Dr Oz is on and it is my usual workout time! I like to workout while watching the Oz!
Everyone go take a walk!

February Picture

I knew I was forgetting something! LOL!

Weds Already?

WOW! Week is half gone already! I seen my Oncologist today for follow-up! Great news--blood work was fantastic..EVERYTHING in range including glucose! And now I don;t have to see him for 6 months instead of 3 or 4 like I have been. I did find out something about my MRI last Summer that he didn't tell me--Not only did I have a degenerative disk but I had a less then 2cm fibroid tumor on my uterus. No biggie but I would have liked to have known!
Sorry I have not been adding the food journals lately. I DO write the foods down and am in calorie range most of the time. To be honest--I may be a bit ashamed of what I have been eating lately. It was that darn cake that put me on the wrong track! LOL! But I am getting better at sticking to the "real foods". Tomorrow I am going swimming with one of my BFFs Janet. I haven't seen her in awhile, not since she went swimming with me last time in January. I think she may be getting a swim pass too so maybe we can encourage each other more! Being February now...I finally had David take this month's pic. I have a darker sports bra on, that is the only difference. He HAD to include my sock feet in this one LOL! Looking so lovely! I decided I DO need a haircut or something too! Oh well! It's 9:00 now and David is in bed..an hour ago. Poor Baby has not been feeling well this week with a cold or sinus infection. Pray for him! In the meantime friends...stay warm and keep looking up!

Hot Stuff!

Hello friends and family!
Bet you are wondering what the "Hot Stuff" is! LOL! Well, I bought a piece of Ginger Root on Sunday and have been adding it to my tea sometimes. Also--chewing on a piece on occasion! WOW! It can be HOT but it is sooo good!
So..yesterday's workout was same as last Monday's. Today I walked! A couple times actually. First was when Dr. Oz was on and then after lunch I walked outside for a half hour. So far my pedometer for the day says 3.7 miles. I doubt I will do much more then that tonight! LOL!
Tomorrow I will be seeing my friendly neighborhood Oncologist for a follow-up. I don't know how much longer I have to see him every 3-4 months will be. I don't mind though, they are all so nice there! So far all my reports have been really good and no cancer!
Food wise I am still struggling with the weekend of bad choices. I am feeling better, probably from the ginger. But I am still craving sweets and junk and just would love to devour a bag of chips if it was in the house! A friend text me earlier to see if I would want to go swimming on Thursdays and I said YES! As much as I love to swim I have put off going this Winter..excuse being it was too cold to even drive to the pool! LOL! I love it once I am there!
Well, that is pretty much it for today. I have not had David take the February pic for the blog yet. Tomorrow I should have one up!
HUGS!

50 is Nifty or It's my party I'll eat cake if I wanna!

So, Friday was my 50th birthday! It went pretty well. I spent the day quietly except for some wonderful friends and neighbors who came and sang for me! Also a few family who called and sang. David made dinner, spaghetti and garlic cheesy bread..ohhh fattening! And oh so good! And I had ice cream and cake. Sigh! Needless to say I spent this past weekend recovering from a sugar buzz! But I am on track again today!
Friday I did a "Happy 50 Workout". This was 50 of each of the following:
stair steps
recliner leg pushes
wall push-ups
bicep curls with resistance band
toe touches
ball crunches
It was a lot of work I tell ya! I did break up some of them into sets!
Today I did the workout I did on Monday, January 25th. So I won't write it out again.
I may have missed Jan. 27th exercise on here too...I walked 3 miles during Dr. Oz that day! The 28th I did laundry and a little walking..about 20 minutes.

So turning 50....not bad at all. I feel better now then I did a few years back. In 2006 early in the year I was looking at 293 pounds staring back at me from the scales at work. I vowed I was NOT going to be 300 + and so started walking on my breaks with my friend Marilyn. In April that year I was diagnosed with diabetes. Now some in the diabetes group I am in would say "It isn't your fault, it's all genetic" well let me tell you..that is NOT always the case! I am the ONLY diabetic in my family! One uncle had it but not until he got in his 80's! And no one else to my knowledge has it or ever did. I did this to myself. I will not use genetics as an excuse! I also will not use my medications as a crutch to eat what I want! I know dear in-laws who DO use that excuse! "Oh--I am on meds, I'll eat this cake (ah hem!) ok--bad example LOL! But I ate the cake KNOWING I was only going to have it that one day and not everyday as in the case of my FIL who will drink regular pop on a daily basis! I am convinced if he cut that out he would not need meds! That is my ultimate goal! NO MEDS! Not for diabetes, not for blood pressure and not for cholesterol! Although I have doctors who sometimes will say the statins are inevitable and that they will be taking or DO take them themselves! So back to 2006...I weighed 279 at time of diagnosis. I lost weight to 250-ish and then came the cancer diagnosis, chemo and radiation. The weight got wayyyyy harder to drop since chemopause and that is where I am today. My surgeon's nurse Cheryl said I had lost 10 pounds since seeing him last year. That was with shoes and fully dressed though. In the mornings when I weigh myself au naturale (sp??) I have lost 15 pounds since May 28, 2009. medications have been lowered and I exercise. I have also dropped clothing sizes and waist size...which if you watch Dr. Oz is the most important part anyways! So reflecting back on the last year--I would say I am coming right along! Praise God! He is my help in all this! He gives me the grace I need each day to eat what is best for my body and the power to exercise!
So...50 down, 50 to go! :-)
Love ya!

Tuesday exercise

I forgot to post my workout for the day! This may sound funny to some of you but often I will walk around the room or standing in place the whole time Dr. Oz is on. That is what I did today and I got in 2 miles! Can you believe that? LOL! Also I did 3 sets, 15 reps each of "counter top push ups". I can't do regular push ups so I usually do them by placing my hands on the edge of the kitchen counter, arms length away and doing push ups.Not as hard as the others but still a challenge! Wall push ups are another way to do these as well as using your stairs...be careful! Then I did 3 sets of 15 reps of what I call "recliner leg pushes". Now, now, hear me out! When I sit on our recliner sofa I push the foot rest down with my legs, not letting it latch at the bottom or the top, my own body weight gives resistance or weight and recently I have started doing this using one leg at a time to make it harder! Anyone who says this is not an exercise can come here and try it! LOL! So that was my one hour workout today! walking and a couple strength building exercises!

The last Tuesday of January 2010

Hello again! Can you believe this is the LAST Tuesday of January 2010 already? WOW! And that also means David will have to take another pic of me this weekend for the blog! Today was kinda snowy and cloudy and just blah here. A few flakes are falling now but it is sporadic! It is Biggest Loser night again too! I must talk about why I don't buy some food items anymore--or not often anyways. Sunday I got low fat ice cream (half gallon) and today I looked and it was half gone already! And I confess--it was ALL ME! I was piecing at it little by little until it was half gone! And most of that was gone from TODAY! So to make it harder for me to get at--I put it in the deep freezer we have downstairs. This way at least I have to walk all the way down there and all the way back up to get any. SO far I have not touched it again since noon. As far as ice creams go it wasn't that bad but it is the point that I allowed myself to go overboard with it like I did. Potato chips is another weakness of mine that we do not buy anymore. If I get a huge craving for some I may go out and buy a small snack size bag and eat it. I will eat the whole bag no matter what the size is so a snack bag is all I need! I still struggle with emotional eating some days and I was mad about something. I need to confront that next time instead of eating.
So here is where I stand tonight on food:
1 banana
2 eggs
2 slices low sodium bacon
1 homemade whole wheat Eng. Muffin
1 pear
1 C. homemade onion soup
1 oz. cheese
low fat ice cream, ice cream, ice cream LOL! (1/2 cup is 130 calories)
1.5 cup homemade chicken noodle soup (whole wheat noodles homemade too)
6 soda crackers
Total calories for day approx. 1400-1600 Hard to say since I did not enter the recipe into Spark Recipes calculator yet on my soups. So I am still in range for the day BUT fat content is up

Gloomy Monday

Hello people!
Today was a gloomy and sometimes a little snowy Monday here in Central Ohio. I was getting used to somewhat warmer weather and here the cold and snow is back! I didn't really expect it to last anyways, still being January! We have gotten blizzards in April before! LOL! So why should this year be different? Maybe I need one of those light boxes? But I am actually in a pretty good mood today! Yesterday when I got on the scales I had lost weight! YAY! Maybe the plateau of the last several months is finally at an end! This Friday is my birthday...my 50th birthday! Because of taking care of myself the last year as I have been, I feel better then I have in years. So 50 is going to be a GREAT age to be! I can see the light at the far end of the tunnel the past 4 years have been! God is soooo good! Ok, now for the journals!

Exercise:
10 minute warm-up on bike
3 sets of the following:
15 reps wall squats with ball and a 5 lb weight
20 reps standing rows with resistance band
15 reps ball crunches with 5 lb weight
7 minutes on Gazelle
3 sets of each of the following:
15 reps chest press with 10 lb weights
20 reps of Bridges
15 reps standing bicept curls 8 lb weights
15 minutes on bike and cool down.
Stretches

Food:
cooked multi-grain cereal
walnuts
2 TBS low fat plain yogurt
2 c. red leaf lettuce
1 medium carrot
4 oz chicken breast (no skin)
7 tortilla chips
8 olives
1 TBS Ranch dressing
1/4 C. salsa
1 TBS low fat cheese
1/2 C. low fat chocolate ice cream
3 oz. Haddock
1 TBS seasoned bread crumbs
Medium carrot
Small baked potato
Olivio spray
Total for the day: 1323

FOOD FOOD FOOD! (a rant, sort of)

Grrr! Some of you may know my birthday is coming up soon..we are in Red Robin's birthday club and each year we get a free burger for our birthday by bringing in the printed off e-mail from them. Well, I got mine today and decided to look up just how many calories I am getting! You won't find it on Red Robin's website...at least i didn't find it there. I looked it up on Calorie King.com I decided I ain't eating there! My coupon is printed but holy cow! The calorie content even on their so called trim food is horrendous! My favorite Shroom Burger: 971 calories, The Croissant BLTA: 726, Lighten Up Grilled Turkey (which you would think wouldn't be too bad): 704 calories. I suppose I could eat half which is what I normally do anyways! But then there is the "Bottomless fries" temptation that is hard for me to resist...and being my birthday...they give me a sundae...312 calories. I didn't even list the fat content on these to save you from that horror! Most Ben and Jerry's ice cream has less calories and fat then Red Robin's birthday sundae! So if I ate there--I would have to starve myself the whole day...not good. And I would feel miserable for the next several days..also not good. Now I will have to break the news to David. I think he will get over it when I tell him it is best for both of us. :-) There is also the financial aspect of all this...we end up buying two burgers since there is two of us and spending $10-$20 all for a "free" burger.

Feeling good!

Hello again! I waited until today to post since yesterday I was sooo tired! I worked out and also had a meeting to go to in the evening so I went to bed around 8:30. You would think I would be rested today but no. David snored the first couple hours and finally I went to the other room, but couldn't fall asleep LOL! Figures! I got up and took a PM pill and heard he had stopped snoring so I went back to sleep with him. I woke up late--around 8:00. Grabbed breakfast, watched the news and then went to the pool! So here is how the last two days workouts have gone:
Weds.
7 minutes on bike:warm up
3 sets of each:
15 reps wall squats with ball
15 calf raises (standing on a board)
15 crunches on ball (sorry Paulette I didn't use an extra weight! LOL)
then 5 minutes on the bike again
2 sets of 20 reps, standing rows with resistance band
3 sets each of:
15 chest presses 10 lb dumbbells
15 leg lifts (laying on back and bringing knees up to chest)
15 cobras
10 minutes on bike to cool down and stretches

Thursday-today: swam laps for 15 minutes, then 45 minutes jogging/ leg lifts/squats, treading water. Basically cardio type stuff in pool. Whew--am tired and THIRSTY! Still drinking water after swimming! It's funny how you don't realise how much you did until you get out of the pool!

Biggest Loser Tuesday!

Happy Tuesday readers!
This morning I was supposed to meet with a wedding customer here at the house at 10:00 a.m. Well, 10:00 came and no customer! 11:00 came and no customer. *sigh* I had send out reminders last week too. So I went to JoAnn Fabrics since I had a gift card. I was specifically looking for a cutting pad for my Sizzix but they were out. Oh well, still had fun looking at the crafts and fabrics! I'll check back with them next week. Needless to say I did not get a workout in today! But here is my food list:
Breakfast:
Cooked cereal
1 TBS plain Greek yogurt
1Tbs honey
walnuts
hard boiled egg
Lunch:
Homemade soup (from yesterday)
slice of homemade bread (wheat)
Snack:
Dannon light and fit Key Lime yogurt
Dinner:
3 oz pot roast
carrots
small red potato with broth from roast
Evening snack will be a banana

Biggest Loser comes on at 8:00 tonight! Week 3 and as usual they are saying that "shocking" things will happen! LOL! It would be a much better show if the producers wouldn't screw with everyone's heads so much..including mine! David has e-mailed suggestions about things but so far no response..not that one was expected!
On another note..I have talked to a couple online buds about starting an exercise group at church. They think I could lead one. I am praying about it more and more today when it came to my mind again. I have to look into the "legalise" part...you know, the music, etc. I am sure I could come up with a decent workout for my fellow couch potatoes..not that I am one of those much anymore but you know what i mean! I would want women to feel at ease there and see someone who "looks like them" leading the group, not someone who is already fit and healthy. I wold want us to get there together and support and encourage each other. I also know I would have to get up in front of about 200-300 people on a Sunday morning to talk about the group! YIKES! Need more prayer! Maybe I wouldn't have to--will wait and see. I am working on a playlist and so far I seem to have wayyy more cool down music then I would need LOL! I will let you all know how this works out!
Love ya!

Hello bloggers! Today was a productive day! I did some maopping, and cleaning, laundry, baked bread in the bread machine--then wrestled it OUT of the machine when done! LOL! It should be an Olympic sport I tell ya! Then I got the workout in!
3 sets of each:
15 reps of crunches on stability ball
15 wall squats using stability ball
20 reps of standing rows using resistance band (the black one)
Biked 10 minutes
3 sets of the following:
15 reps chest presses with 8 lb weights
15 reps chest flies with 8 lb weights
15 reps pullovers with 8 lb weight
Then 1 set of bicep curls with 10 lb weights
1 set of 15 "pull-ups"
Stair stepped 5 minutes
For descriptions of these you can go here and look them up!
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/exercise_demos.asp?exercise_type=upper

Food for Monday:
cooked multi-grained cereal (My "bird seed" LOL)
4 oz. Greek yogurt
walnuts
Lunch:
Homemade Sicilian Chicken soup
slice of homemade wheat bread w/ olive oil
Dinner:
Spinach salad with oil and vinegar
croutons
fish
small baked potato (with skin) and plain Greek yogurt
slice of wheat bread

Happy Sunday

Happy Sunday everyone!
Had a good time of worship in church this morning. Then went to Subway for lunch...$5 footlongs....the low fat ones of course! I eat half and save the rest for another meal! Last night was Carrabba's Italian Grill. Now I know it wasn't the best meal. We had a gift card to use and so we tried it. I had the lasagna and a bowl of the mama ???? Spicy Chicken soup. Which I liked. The lasagna I could take or leave. IN fact if we do ever go again I will try something else. Maybe just a bog bowl of the soup! Of course no nutritional info so I probably had over my calorie intake for the day there. Today After Sunway we went grocery shopping. I Bought some Greek yogurt for the first time and tried a little when we got home. I like it! It is different then what I am used to but it was good! And a coupon always helps! LOL!
I will start the food and workout journals again tomorrow so don't give up on me!
Have a great Sunday!

Missing but not idle!

Hi everyone!
I have been missing the past week or so but not slacking off! Sometimes it's hard to get everything crammed into a day that I want to do! At least 3 times a week I worked out for 45 minutes. This was on the bike, or a DVD I have, etc. Today was my last session with Trainer Paulette and it makes me sad. :-( Paulette--you are WONDERFUL and don't forget it! Hopefully I will someday soon be able to join the fitness center and work out with you again! In the meantime....I know I have some friends and family keeping me accountable on here, SO I will do my best (again) to keep up daily. You can't get rid of me that easily! :-)
Food has been somewhat of a challenge. We are out of many of my non processed stuff like frozen veggies. I am ok on the fruit and we are using up meat from the freezer so tonight is more TURKEY! Yay! I am making a baked sweet potato to go with it and probably a salad. BALANCE! Tomorrow I may head up to the store for some chicken or whatever else is on sale. Another thing I need to start doing is make out menus for the week. That helped a lot when it came to the budget.

Many of my family and friends have said they need me to come motivate THEM! Thank you to all of you who said that! But YOU are what motivates ME! If I know you are watching my Facebook page to see me post that I worked out or walked or rode the bike, whatever, it is always in the back of my mind...and Paulette on my shoulder saying I can do it! That is what motivates me!

See you all tomorrow!

Tuesday and Weds.

Hello again blog readers! I will start with Tuesday and go from there! I had my workout with trainer Paulette yesterday. It went great as always! I rode the bike instead of walked for the cardio part of it (Paulette was not able to walk so we decided I would bike and she would watch!) Food was the following
cooked oats
apple sauce
hard boiled egg
cheese
orange
1% milk
salad with oil and vinegar
tuna
1/2 slice of homemade bread
Manwich
Sandwich thins bread (Arnold Bakery brand)
peas
6 Triscuits
Calories for the day was 1545

Weds:
No workout. I woke up with sore knee. Still trying to figure that one out! I did do a few upper body strength training but mostly kept knee elevated and popped Aleeve.
Food was:
Whole grain toast
low fat cream cheese
small apple
Healthy Choice Chicken Marsala Cafe Steamers (Has whole wheat pasta that actually tastes good! LOL)
small baked potato (someone told me I shouldn't eat potatoes but I disagree, see an earlier post)
Triscuits and a few Townhouse crackers (boo hiss, bad yes I know!)
Homemade Chicken soup with homemade whole wheat noodles
Sugar free hot cocoa
I have not entered all this in Sparkpeople yet to know the total count but as far as I can tell I am around 1400-1500 for the day

I also went to the Pound for Pound Challenge and pledged 25 pounds. My other friend pledged 50 but this is until June 30 2010 and that is 25 weeks. I felt for me 25 was a decent pledge! Everyone go and do this! It's for a great cause --feeding people! Eat less and pledge more! :-)

Happy Monday!

It's a lovely cold snowy day out today! LOL! That is why I did not go anywhere!
I did day 2 workout in the boot camp from Sparkpeople today..WHEW! I modified of course, did not want to over-do strength training since I work out tomorrow so only went through it one time. I also did 15 minutes on the Gazelle and 15 on the recumbent bike.

Food for today was:
hard boiled egg
oatmeal
apple sauce
Triscuits (only 6 this time LOL!)
1 oz. cheese
homemade veggie soup
Hard boiled egg white (gave the yolk to the cats)
Navel orange
Baked fish --lightly breaded
small baked potato with spray butter
green beans and carrots
popcorn as a snack

Tomorrow is workout with trainer Paulette. Only two more sessions left :-(

June 2009 pic

Just for the record, here is a pic taken in June 2009.

Day one of a virtual bootcamp!

I completed the first workout video for the Sparkpeople.com "Spark Your Body Bootcamp" It was tougher then I thought and I had to modify it (they tell you that it's ok to do so) Who would have thought jumping or stepping over an imaginary line for 10 minutes was hard??? The whole idea was to get your heartrate up and it did! I also biked 10 minutes and did a few sets of strength training. Tomorrow's video looks good also. Some of the things it showed I am already doing at the fitness center.

Eating-wise I am still stuck in Christmas mode. Junk food around the house from New Years and I am trying to stay away from it as much as I can. I am planning on making some veggie soup tomorrow so that should be good!

I am starting a scrapbook this year for weight loss. I am having David take a pic of me once a month so I can see my progress. I will be posting these pics on here and in another blog on MyTrainerBob.com No laughing when you see these pics! I am wearing my sports bra and capris pants so there will be NO lying to myself or others!

Breakfast today:

Hard boiled egg

1/2 c rolled oats

Lunch

Homemade steak fajita

1 serving corn tortilla chips

salsa--tomato and also some of corn salsa

milk

Then it gets crazy LOL: triscuits, cream cheese, popcorn, toast the rest of the afternoon and evening! See what I mean about the crap in the house yet? Well, that will change again soon!

Have a good one bloggers!

Happy Freaking New Year!

Ok, so that may not be a great title. I really am happy that it is 2010. I was having a good time and fairly nice visit with my sister and brother-in-law. She gave me and early birthday present (29 days early) that i got to open this morning. :-/ Part of the gift was very nice..she got me some embossing folders for my Sizzix. But the other part of the gift was a diet book called "Sugar Busters" --sigh-- I can't win somedays! I glanced through it and said "This is pretty much how I already have been eating the last 9 months" She replied "Yeah, I thought so too" Oh really? Then why the heck buy it for me? Why is it she always wants to give unsolicted advice on eating? This is the same person who keeps food past the expiration date and leftovers for more then 4 days. I would have thought after many conversations with her on things Dad has said and ones in years past when I have more or less told her to mind her own business on such subjects as my weight and diet that she would "get it". I guess that once again I was wrong! I guess some people don't get that if you want a diet book you will 1. Buy it for yourself or 2. Request that specific book. You do not give someone a diet book that they don't ask for.
On a brighter note: I did a workout today (with sis who could not keep up!) and I pre-viewed the Sparkpeople bootcamp that starts Sunday. Would it be cheating to start it a day early? Everyone have a great weekend!