Biking is fun!

I joined a biking meetup group tonight and we rode 11 miles in 1 hour and 45 minutes. Not fast by any means. I was in the slow group. And the short group. But I am so tired. Must go to bed now...

Note to Self

WTF? What was I thinking? Well I know exactly what I was thinking. I was thinking that I would be able to easily walk a 6K without doing any training. I didn't do badly. Mostly my feet. Blisters. Not sure what to do about that in the future. The Green Day Fun Run really wasn't fun either. Who knew Cascade had so many hills?!? If you are in the Grand Rapids area, check out the run on Facebook.

I'm going to nurse my feet for the night.

The End Times Are Here

I browse through a lot of health and fitness related news every day in order to try and find things that can help our readers here improve their lives. In doing so I come across a fair number of unusual topics, but more often than not most of the things I read tend to get repetitive. That’s why, when I opened up my reader this morning, I darn near spewed a mouthful of coffee all over my dual monitor setup after I saw one of the headlines.

McDonalds has partnered up with Weight Watchers .

That’s right, folks. Over in New Zealand McDonald’s is now advertising several of their menu choices with the Weight Watchers logo and the POINTS value prominently displayed. They aren’t offering anything new on their menu as far as I can tell, but what they have done is picked out three meals from their available selections that a Weight Watchers member can choose for a quick and relatively low POINTS meal. The items are :

•A Filet-O-Fish sandwich with a side salad and a diet soda or bottled water.
•Six Chicken McNuggets with sauce, a side salad, and a diet soda or bottled water.
•A Chicken Wrap with a diet soda or bottled water.
All three of these items are advertised as having 6.5 POINTS.

As much as this news made my jaw drop over the sheer level of bizarre WTF-ery involved, I have to admit that I think it’s a wonderful sign. It means that yet another major restaurant chain is bowing to consumer demand for healthy menu options. So much so that the chains see the potential to increase their profits by catering to those needs (and, conversely, the possibility that they will lose business if they do not do so). If this kind of menu labeling is adopted world wide by a major chain like McDonalds it’s only a matter of time before their competitors take notice and respond in kind. If that happens we can look forward to the possibility of having Weight Watchers POINTS values prominently displayed on even more restaurant menus in the future.

As a long time Weight Watchers member all I have to say to that is “I’m lovin’ it.”

Retrieved from ShrinkGeek

All I can say is "What??? When did the fish sandwich become healthy?

How to Reward Good Behavior

This is from the Lifestyles Change Strategies - Strategy #3

How to reward good behavior
Can you imagine working for a boss who:

- Notices every mistake you make
-Reminds you of these mistakes at every opportunity
- Belittles you, points out your faults, and minimizes achievement whenever you start to
feel good about yourself
- Never acknowledges what you do right with so much as a kind word or small reward

Ironically, the job I was let go from did just that. It was a very toxic environment and I am glad to be gone.

Anytime something traumatic happens in your life, you always question if it was you or not. This mental therapy has been going on for over a year. (The job market sucks here in Michigan). So until I get a new job, I will probably still question myself even though I do not truly believe it.

As for the weight loss...it is a slow process. I reward myself too often and it is inhibiting my goals. I have a bunch of new friends to hang out with and all we have done so far is eat and drink! Believe it or not, I am limiting that. But obviously not enough. I will be taking the rest of this week to develop a new strategy of my own.

March 1st, here I come!

Anti V-Day

Do not look to this blog for gushy, heart-felt feelings. I'm a bit of an Anti V-Day snob this year. Well actually the last few years. Why you ask? Because the "love" feeling I once had was ripped from my heart. It was the most painful experience I have ever gone through. And I am still going through it. I question whether I was good enough, or pretty enough, or smart enough. I question why me? What did I do to deserve this? I did not do anything wrong.

The heart is the most resilient muscle. It holds the most emotion and can easily break but bounces back to love again. I'm just waiting for my turn.

Becoming a Skinny Bitch

I recently picked up Skinny Bitch by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. While I have never claimed to be a vegetarian, I can go several days without eating meat. I do not crave meat. After reading this book, it most certainly is going to make me go full vegetarian. I'm not sure about going vegan although the claims regarding dairy products I find quite interesting and I plan on researching it to find out if it is true. Looking back to prehistoric times, there were no processed foods. You killed and gathered what you needed. As a society we have become lazier and like to purchase in bulk. To purchase in bulk and not have it go bad, the foods need to be preserved. Is there really a link to the preservatives and modern diseases? You would hope that the FDA and the USDA would have our best interests in mind. According to the book, all the agencies are in cahoots with the farming and food processors. While I am not sure about the benefits or disadvantages of animal by-products, I do disagree with the treatment of animals prior to be slaughtered. Politics seem to play into everything and it is a little discouraging that these politicians can not seem to focus on important issues. The public health and safety should be first. Not where and when they are going on vacation/holiday (Congress). Seriously... I have ordered my free vegetarian starter kit from www.goveg.com. There is a disturbing video of animal cruelty on the site. I can not bring myself to watch it. Yes, I eat , and but I do not think any living being should be tortured that did nothing wrong. I am one to research everything before delving in. I know that pop, either diet or regular, is bad for you. I have been a diet pop drinker for years. I love me a big fountain pop! However, the book claims that there is a deadly acid in pop. I have to research this more but I am phasing pop out. Start small and work your way on to a Skinny Bitch!

5 Things To Do Instead of Eating

Here is a list of things to do to keep your hands busy so as not to start snacking. Sometimes when I'm bored or just mindlessly watching TV or hanging around the house with nothing to do, I'll snack.

1. Knit! - Or crochet. It is a hot craft and if you have yarn and needles in your hands you can not eat mindlessly. You would have to make a conscious effort to put down your project to pick up food. Honestly, today all I had was coffee until about 2 pm. I know that's not good either BUT I did not snack.
2. Exercise! - Who can exercise and eat at the same time? Don't answer that or try it. I'm sure it is possible but why would you want to?
3. Clean! - Seriously, we have to do it. We may not like it. But it is necessary unless you want Clean House and Niecey Nash coming to visit you.
4. Take a nap! - Yay naps! Love them. Wish I could do it everyday. And those kids who refuse to take a nap now? Tell them you wish you could be as lucky as they are.They still won't appreciate it but it's worth a try.
5. Pamper yourself! - That's right. Try a facial mask. Who is going to eat when you have crap all over your face? Of course, that is assuming the facial mask is not homemade from oatmeal and sugar and taste like a cookie.

Now, get off the couch and stop eating!