Lazy {Snow} Day

Up here in the burbs, we are getting some pretty decent snow today! We have about 4 inches stacked up on the fence and back patio chairs, and the entire yard and streets are covered in perfect white. Seeing as how this happens only about once a year, I've got the blinds on every window pulled up so we can watch it fall. It would be really nice if it all stuck around tonight and froze before the morning so I can get a day off, but I'm not counting on it. It seems as if down closer to Dallas there is virtually nothing on the ground, so my school's probably just fine. Oh well.

So I'm down two pounds this week! I was really excited to see that my week of eating well and working out did in fact make a difference. I am all set to keep with it this week, although I'm afraid I might have regained those two little pounds last night. We went out with some friends and drank wine, ate Italian food, and snacked on M&M's. I [reluctantly] calculated all the points I consumed this morning and will have to be better this week to make up for it. Some trips to the gym are in order!

We took the Christmas decorations down today and everything is boxed up in the attic..... except for the tree itself. It might stand around for another week or so, but at least some good progress was made today. We've got chili in the crock pot and football on TV. A perfect, snowy Sunday.

Clogging up the Treadmills Every January

I went to the gym (wait for it).... 3 days in a row! I would have gone last night to make it 4, but I didn't get home until after 7:00 and was just too tired. So I watched two episodes of I Used to Be Fat instead. That's almost like going to the gym, right?

Back in the day, I was a fairly frequent gym attender. I went to classes several times per week and would get totally annoyed in January when suddenly there were three times as many people in them. And now, I am that annoying person. I am a Gym Resolutioner. On Wednesday I went to the pilates class at my gym. I have never in my life been to a class at this gym, since I've only belonged there since moving after getting married and, let's be honest, I've been like twelve times total since then and have stuck to the machines. So the pilates class starts at 6:30 and the website says to come early, especially if you are new to the class. So I show up at about 6:15 and wander down the hall to the assigned room and sit outside the door. There is one older guy (like in his 50's older) waiting too. 6:27 rolls around and I start to get nervous that I am in the wrong room because Where are all the other Gym Resolutioners?! 6:35ish, the instructor shows up and opens the door. There are a whopping four of us in the class, and I am the lone Resolutioner. As in the only new kid in the class. The other 3 people are all at least 20 years older then me, and obvi come every week because they were all comparing their weeks and asking about one of the lady's son's wedding in Connecticut over the weekend. At this point I totally want to bail but can't because I am the lone New Kid, who is clearly here to kick off her New Year Resolution and I can't just walk about like I got scared or something. So I go though an hour of the slowest pilates class ever. I guess they tone it down for the 50+ crowd around here. But I am a little sore today, so it must have done some good.

Today there was this big huge strawberry cake at work for all the January birthdays. I had a (rather large) piece and I'm not even feeling guilty. It was soooo good. But, I might have to hit up another Senior Pilates class this weekend.

Yesterday after work I did some shopping (hence not making it to the gym) and OMGyouguys. I found some awesome sales. Like at [my number one favorite store ever] Loft, I found this precious black dress for $19.99. But it was 40% off all sale, so it rang up for $11.88. The girl checking me out had to double check the price on another register because she didn't believe it was ringing up correctly. I think it was regularly $98. I tried to find a picture online of the dress, but it must be sold out online. It's a cute little black dress with these poufs on the sleeves, which I realize sounds very 80's but really it is just adorbs. I think it will be making some appearances this summer when I'm sporting a tan and attending fancy parties (that will happen, right?).

I know it's only January 7 and it isn't even that late yet, but we still have ALL the Christmas decorations up (tree included) at our house. I have zero motivation to take it all down. The tree is in the front living room, which we never even go into, so it's not like it's really staring me in the face every day saying "put me back in the attic..." The stockings are even still hanging on the mantle. Bleh. Decorating for the holidays, I'm all about. Putting it all away, not so much. Will someone just come do it for me? I'll pay you in Lean Cuisines and low-cal popcorn. I seem to have a lot of it in the pantry these days.

Happy weekend, my friends. My first weigh-in since starting WW is tomorrow. Let's hope I'm down at least one measly pound!

Bridal Boot Camp - The Results!

Cue the dramatic music.

Last weekend I went to my last class of boot camp for our final workout and.... the results. Yikes.

We started the (freezing) Saturday morning with six laps around the track. In forty-five degree weather. I live in Texas. I am a wimp in the cold. Then we ran suicides down the football field. Did more pushups than I could remember. And several other painful things. But I stuck it out. Finally, the hour ended and we gathered round to get our results.

I was nervous, for sure. I knew I didn't eat well for most of the five weeks, and I was afraid that was going to completely negate all the working out and physical activity I was doing in the class. When my name was called, I went to get my slip of paper with my before and after stats and debated waiting until I was in the car to check them. But everyone else was comparing their results, so I bit the bullet and took a peek.

I lost.... 1.3 pounds!! Woo! I'll take it. Better than nothing. MUCH better than gaining. I also lost a total of 3.5 inches total (from waist and hips) and gained a half inch in my biceps (which I am preeeetty sure is due to the fact that I was wearing a fleece pullover on the day they took the last measurements, but shh, don't tell). I also lost just over .5% body fat, so again, much better than nothing.

I left the class feeling very motivated. Hey, I can do this stuff! And just imagine how much better it could have turned out if I actually hadn't eaten Thanksgiving dinner four times?! So I'm ready to sign up again for the class in January, only this time - with the wedding looming only six months ahead - I am going to stick to it FOR REAL.

You've got my word. Wedding dress, here I come!!

I Survived!

Five weeks ago, I started a boot camp class. One day one, they weighed us, measured us and calculated our body fat percentages and then last night, I went back for our “after” measurements. Our last day of class is Saturday, at which time they will give us our results and someone will be crowned The Biggest Loser.

I started the class out with much excitement and faith in myself to stick it out. I have a wedding dress to get in shape for -- what better motivation could there be?! Our trainer told us on that first day that these workouts were only part of the plan, and that 75% of our results would be based on what we eat for the next month. She encouraged us to eat lots of protein each day, have small meals and snacks every few hours, and drink water, water and more water. I was ready to commit! Bring on the strapless dress and honeymoon swimsuits! I’ll do whatever it takes to kick-start my wedding workout.

For the first week, I was gung ho. No office chocolate bowl for me! Nothing but green beans, grilled chicken and bottled water. Week two, I was still eating my protein and veggies, but the occasional trip out to eat didn’t seem like such a bad idea (but I ordered a salad!). By week three I was back on my daily Diet Dr. Pepper, occasionally sneaking a mini snickers bar and grabbing lunch at Chick-fil-a. Week four rolls around, and oh hello, it’s Thanksgiving! Not only did I miss one of the classes that week (we were out of town - totally legit excuse!), but I also ate turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole and pie not one, not two, not three but FOUR TIMES that week.

When Monday rolled around I knew I had to start over and get geared up for our weigh in on Wednesday. I ate the salad bar at work and skipped out on the ranch dressing. I drank plenty of water and pushed myself extra hard at boot camp class that night. By Tuesday I was still going strong, even going for a quick extra credit run that evening. Yesterday morning I considered going liquids only to help make up for the Thanksgiving Week of Doom, but knew I’d never make it. So I had another salad for lunch. Two hours before our class started, I might have eaten two mini chocolate bars - but would those really make a difference in 120 minutes time!?

So it was with a bit of fear that I stepped on the scale last night. We don't get our official results until our last class on Saturday, and I'm afraid of being a little disappointed. I think I fell off the bandwagon on the eating well side of the deal, but - I will say this. Last night we ran 6 laps around the track, or one and a half miles, without stopping. This was a feat for me - I have been a wimpy jogger for a long time now, never lasting very long consecutively. We also ran suicides across the football field, did lunges to the fifty yard line and back, did push-ups out the wazoo and ran the bleachers for ten minutes straight. I know I've improved my endurance and if I keep it up (which I plan to!), I will be wedding dress ready by this summer!

Boot camp results to come later this week!

Bridal Boot Camp - Ahh!

Today is a big day for two (very different) reasons:

1. Today is my birthday! This year is the third birthday I've spent with Mark and the first one when I didn't wish for a diamond ring when I blew out my candles ;) Instead, I wished to survive these next 8 months and enjoy the wedding planning/engagement process. I already feel like we're taking this time for granted and not having as much fun as we should be. Aren't you supposed to be living on Cloud 9 during your engagement, enjoying all the bride-to-be excitement and attention? Walking around with a sparkle in your eye and a glow on your face? I feel totally normal, so I'm wishing to get back into the Engaged Gal Bliss and not take this time for granted. I know that we're about to get swept up in the holidays, and then before we know it we'll be in January and six months away from the big day!

2. I survived my first day of Bridal Boot Camp! Yesterday was Day One of the five week class. I arrived somewhat terrified, and then one hour later I left knowing this is just what I need to kick my booty back into shape and get me ready for a wedding dress (and a couple bridesmaid dresses in the meantime!). I ran more last night than I have in a reallllly long time. We did sprints across the baseball field and back… like four times. And most of the people in this class are fast. Like really fast. I had to really push myself so that I didn’t end up being the last person to cross back over the line. Plus, we did tons of strength training and arm work. Strapless dresses, here I come!
We are going out to celebrate my big 2-7 tonight, and I get to choose where! I already know where I want to go… pizza at Fireside Pies! But don’t tell my boot camp instructor. We are supposed to turn in food journals every week and I’m pretty sure stuffing your face full of pizza and wine is not on the approved menu. Shh.

October!

I LOVE October and have been anxiously awaiting it's arrival. As I was driving to work this morning it dawned on me that this would probably be my ideal month to get married in, except for the whole getting engaged in May and wanting more than a five month engagement.. well, and the whole college football rules our lives in the fall and between my Texas games, Mark's OSU games and my family's Tech games, we would never find a weekend that would make everyone happy! But I am excited to celebrate our future anniversary this month because it's finally really fall! (We celebrate the 10th of each month as our "future anniversary" because it's super fun and it makes the counting down to the wedding seem to go a little quicker, when every month there's a day to look forward to.) This month we'll be in Austin on the 10th for some UT football and a delayed engagement celebration with Miss Sadie Caplan.

October is also my official start of Operation Get My Bridal Booty Into Shape. My handy dandy wedding checklist recommends starting your workout regime eight months out, but since I am anticipating failing at this for awhile, I am going to go ahead and bump it back to nine months out. I certainly sent September out with a bang: we ate at Texas de Brazil on Tuesday and then had McDonalds TWICE for dinner last night. Seriously, we grabbed a burger around 7:00 and then hit it up again for a full blown meal a couple hours later. I checked the scale this morning and yeah.. it turns out its pretty easy to gain weight in a week. Let's see how tough losing it is!

To prove to you all that I am serious about this whole workout plan, I took the ultimate plunge and enrolled in a Boot Camp class that starts next month. It meets three times a week for six weeks and I am slightly terrified of it. I'm going to spend October getting ready for the pain that I know is coming (is it silly to work out in preparation for a work out?). It will end just in time for Christmas, where I'm sure I will promptly reverse all the good I did, but here's to hoping not!

October is also when wedding planning will finally really get kicked off! Yesterday Mark and I met up with the WP and her fave DJ. We went into it thinking we'd talk to the guy for 30 minutes, then maybe go check him out at a wedding later before deciding if we wanted to hire him. But, we ended up talking to him for an hour and a half and leaving with the feeling that he's our new BFF and asked him to go ahead and send over a contract because we were SOLD. He's just what we're looking for - not cheesy, totally normal, promising to build up the energy throughout the night and swearing he will not play Brick House or We are Family.

The WP gave us a fantastic calendar she made up for us mapping out what we need to be working on month by month. On the agenda for October (among some others): find a DJ (check!), look for a dress (more to come on that soon) and take our engagement pictures (so excited about this one!). Mark loved the calendar/To Do Lists (he loves a good list) and I was glad to call my mom with some specific tasks for us to start working on.

After our time with the DJ last night, we raced up to McKinney to meet with our sponsor couple from St. Gabriel's to start really discussing the results to our compatibility test. We covered the first four areas of the test and we actually scored a 100% on one of them: Friends and Interests. So Mark and I are pretty much in agreement that our friends all rock and we both feel totally good about each other's interests. It was really so interesting to look and see how our answers to certain questions differed and it really got us talking about some aspects of our relationship and communication styles that differ from each other. Nothing was a big surprise and the couple we are meeting with were really great about sharing their own experiences in their 20 year marriage and how they have learned to make their conflicting traits work well. I also had one of those "wow this is really happening" moments when they were reading a passage from the Bible about marriage and I started imagining being in the church on our wedding day, actually getting married.

We've got a lot coming up and I'm thrilled to get it all started!

From Flab to Fab, Update: FAIL

Ok. So maybe this will start up NEXT week. With Mark's brother still in town, this was just not working out this week. I'd much rather tag along to dinners out and spend the evenings watching DVR'ed episodes of Conan with the boys, rather than hit up the gym. Sigh.

From Flab to Fab, Part 1

We had a slight change of plans this past weekend. Much to our dismay, our lake trip was canceled Friday morning due to an emergency in the family who owns the house we were heading to (all is well now). So here we were, me, Mark and his brother (fresh off the plane from across the ocean) with five days and zero plans. Everything turned out great and we had a nice holiday weekend, just not on a boat in the sun like we had originally planned. We saw fireworks twice, grilled out, spent about 12 hours at the pool, ate way too much, had ice cream EVERY day, went to three different malls, watched a lot of TV and overall had a fun and relaxing time together. Tomorrow I am still off work, so I'm meeting up with my sister to wrap up the long weekend in style. We might hit up the bridesmaid dress quest again, if we are so inclined. Or, we might just sit at the pool all day... again :)

Now, on to my newest mission: Flab to Fab. This is a phrase that is all over the wedding blogs, describing brides' quest to lose weight and tone up for their weddings. Because let's be honest, what is better motivation than you in a big white dress and photos that you'll look back on for your entire lifetime to drop a few pounds? I know I've been telling myself for years that the day I got engaged was going to be the day I signed up for a personal trainer and really hit the gym hardcore. Yet, It's been two months since I've got the ring on my finger and I'm still just skating along with my usual half-ass working out and eating terribly. My excuse? The wedding is still so very far away. But honestly, why should I not turn it up now and get myself in gear for a year of celebrating, showers, parties and general engagement bliss? I've got a lot of things between now and the big day that I am going to use for short term goals to work towards, starting with our engagement party on August 15. After that, we've got our engagement photos in October, the holiday (why not be super skinny for the holidays, right?!), I'll be a bridesmaid in February, we've got another wedding in May and then BAM it will be crunch time for my turn in the long dress and veil.

First short term goal - the engagement party in six weeks. I made myself a nice little calendar to check the days off and admire my sure to be success as I do P90X, the 30 Day Shred, run on the treadmill, lift weights in front of the television, walk during my lunch break, ANYTHING. I'll post update here to hold myself accountable. Feel free to pester me and post negative comments when I blog about eating ice cream every day or sitting around watching Say Yes to the Dress reruns for the fifth time, instead of heading to spin class on Thursday evenings.