Jeans (Whole75, Day 10)

Finally.

Tonight I pulled the smaller jeans out (same ones I've been trying on intermittently for months now), put them on, and was able to take all the tags off. They are comfy enough to wear out and walk around. I'm wearing them now, in fact.

It is my hope that soon I'll be in even smaller ones. Hopefully by the end of the year.

Today's a stressful one, I can't lie. But I've been good with food and I haven't broken the step streak yet!

So...every little bit helps.

One Week In (Whole75, Day 7)

Well, I'm a week into the longest Whole-eating campaign I've done, and it's going all right. Work and Evita have me a bit stressed out (the play in particular) but nothing horrifying and I haven't been tempted to eat non-compliant foods. The idea of having a drink or something to wind down is definitely an attractive one, but not an urge so strong I can't resist it or distract myself.

I do need to get to bed earlier, though. I have been staying up later in order to get all my steps in, when I should be doing that either in the morning, or during my lunch break.

Speaking of which...I'm currently at 9 straight days (today will be the 10th) at 10,000 steps or more logged on the FitBit. I don't think I've ever had a clip this long, and keeping the streak alive is a great motivator to keep walking. I know it's not as effective as, say, a big workout with lifting weights or using a rowing machine or a dance class or something, but as simple and stupid as walking/ jogging is, it's MUCH BETTER than the absolute nothing I was doing before.

It's also helping my brain. Last night Panda came to the theatre to meet me and actually got to see the last few minutes of rehearsal, after which he walked with me around the community center (it's a really pretty set of buildings around two big central fountains and duckponds) to get my steps in and listen to me vent about my crazy day.

He's doing a Whole30!!!!!! He started a few days after me so this is his Day 5, but I'm still really impressed that he made the choice to do that. Hopefully in my 15 seconds of free time this weekend I can cook us up a bunch of food for lunches so he doesn't have to worry about going to the grocery store every day...like I've been doing...because despite having bought meat and veggies and all the cooking supplies I need, I still haven't had time or inclination to cook it all up. :-/ Not proud of myself for that.

My skin has been nasty lately. Like, worse than it's been in a long time. I'm going to continue the exercising (sweating oddly seems to help when my face breaks out like El Chapo...heh..."breaks out like el chapo"..hehe) and pumping up the water-drinking in the hopes that it'll clear up a bit more.

Fun weekend of theatre coming up! Tonight I'm seeing Star Spangled Girl with my friend Jen, Saturday I'm seeing an immersive play in history park, then Sunday Jen and Panda and I (along with a few others!) are seeing a friend's production of Broken Glass at Theatre Chevruta at the Jewish Community Center.

Oh and if you're in the area, stop by the studio on Mabury between 11AM and 1PM to audition for the Forbidden Broadway fundraising summer concert...I'll be helping out with that. :-)

Busy busy...

Three By Five (Whole75, Day 3)

I'm on Day 3 of my Whole75 and feeling ok, and I'm proud to say I'm on a 5-day streak hitting at least 10,000 steps on the old pedometer. I know that's not as much as I *should* be doing for maximum weight loss, but it's more than I was doing before.

Having that 2-day head start from walking around in Vegas so much was massively helpful in motivating me to keep on walking, even on nights like last night when all I wanted to do was go to bed and freakin' sleep. (Have I mentioned I love sleep? I. LOVE. SLEEP.)

I've been getting up early this week to work some overtime, not only to catch up on work I didn't complete while I was in Vegas but also to keep up with the crazy amount of work that's happening. It's nice because it makes the days go a little faster, but it's seriously an insane time. Once this week is over I think we'll all be breathing a little easier.

I love my job. I do.

Anyway today I'm wearing clothes featuring about 20 safety pins, not just from the pulled seam on my trouser cuffs that I've been too lazy to fix but also on a big tack in the back so they don't fall down...they're about 4 sizes too big at this point. I've also pinned one side of my (wraparound) shirt to my bra, but the damn thing is still a bit too...erm...revealing now. My boobs and belly and shoulders don't fit as nicely into it as they used to. Even the new bras I got are starting to look a bit wobbly. If they can see me through till Christmas, I'll ask Santa for some new underwear money and hit Nordstrom's again for another fitting.

And this time I'll remember to wear pants.

I have some Vegas photos (including some comparison shots from my last trip several years ago)...I'll try to remember to post them tonight after my walk.

No issues getting buckled into the Big Apple Coaster in Las Vegas...oh man I seriously love that roller coaster. Panda and I had a great time riding it. We didn't visit the coasters on top of the stratosphere (he's not fond of heights so I'll wait till I have friends with me who want to partake), but someday I'll revisit those and get buckled in there, too.

Not much else to report, except Oh! I tried sardines yesterday. I actually liked them. They were the super tame kind (skinless and boneless in olive oil), but I'm going to work my way up to the more calcium-rich crunchy kind. Baby steps.

"The game is won by nickels and dimes." - Khoa, from my old Dungeons and Dragons group

And We're Back! (Whole75, Day 1)

Back from Portland, back from Las Vegas, and back on the Whole eating plan for 75 days! This will be the longest period of time I've stuck to it, so I'm excited and nervous.

Being on vacation and eating whatever I wanted was pretty awesome, although I tended to overdo it at the buffets in Vegas (...that's kind of the point of buffets, I find, and while the food was amazing I was SO OVERSTUFFED that I now know not to do that). Drinking some booze was also nice, especially when Panda and I sat down by the pool all day Wednesday, reading and drinking Vinno de Mocca from a plastic lemonade pitcher. But I find I'm ok giving up alcohol for two and a half months, if it means I'm inching closer to my goal weight and getting healthier for it.

I'm a little bummed that we (I) didn't finish the liquor-infused chocolate truffles we have in the fridge, but hopefully they'll hold up for another couple of months and I can eat them on Christmas Eve.

Thanksgiving on a Whole30 is going to be a challenge. Panda was actually kind of miffed when I told him I was doing that. He makes really awesome pumpkin pies, and he made a comment like "so basically the only thing I'd be contributing, you can't eat." I felt bad about that, but decided to go through with it anyway.

Food's a weird political thing.

Anyway I'm really proud of him for sticking to the plan for 20 days (the last 20 of my 40). He lost 11 pounds and said he was feeling a lot better. He may be doing a Whole30 soon; we'll see.

I walked the ArtsWalk5K today! It was good to catch up with my fellow Shakespeare people and raise a little money for their group. And I'm now 3 straight days hitting my 10K steps on the old FitBit.

This week at work is going to be nuts. And I'm still helping with rehearsals for Evita, but it opens in a few weeks so that's not too intimidating.

Anyway! Back in the saddle with healthy eating and exercise. Goal for Whole75 is to hit 170 lbs by Christmas, which is a pretty steep order, but I'm motivated and eager and let's do this thing.

Wonderland.

I'd missed this place.

Whole40 was a success.

I hit my goal, just barely. Lost a couple of inches off of my hips and thighs, and a quarter-inch off my neck (although I could be measuring wrong.)

195.

It's been almost ten years since I've seen this side of 200. And I'm not interested in going back. Let's keep this progress going!

A few days of treats and celebration, then healthy eating (with dairy and some legumes; basic low carb) after that.

Whole75 begins on October 10th (same day as the ArtsWalk.) And I'm actually...kind of looking forward to it.

I thought I'd cry when this happened. Maybe I still will.

Maybe I am.

You're supposed to spell it "Onederland." I don't, for this reason.

Got it. Looks like "The Oh-nee-ders."

Time to celebrate! Portland and Vegas, here I come!!

The Good Thing About Work Being Crazy... (Whole40, Day 40)

...is that being crazy busy at work makes the day go quicker, and I don't think about pumpkin spice lattes and red wine and cherry cheesecake all day.

The bad thing about work being crazy is that work is crazy. Not a lot of time or energy for blogging, I'm sorry.

Yesterday the product team took a few of us from marketing to lunch at this awesome Thai restaurant. Thai is almost impossible to navigate on the Whole30, so I checked their menu online beforehand and figured I'd get a house salad with no dressing, and then eat from my snack drawer when I returned to my desk. But when we got there, they'd already ordered...family style...some of the most delicious and non-compliant foods that I really, REALLY wanted.

Thom ka (best soup EVER) is amazing. No idea if I spelled it right. But I have no idea if there are sugars or soy in it. Everything else is practically crusted with delicious peanuts. And of course there's soy sauce added to most of the liquids.

Pad Thai? Forget about it - I could eat it till doomsday. Peanut central.

And THAI ICED TEA. I'd forgotten how much I love Thai tea. I had plain iced tea which I like just fine, but that outstanding combination of sweetened condensed milk, coconut, and caffeine is just...well, it's just heaven.

I ate some onions and peppers and a few slivers of beef that I'd scraped the sauce from. It was kind of embarrassing, but whatever. I had food at my desk when I got back.

Goal for tomorrow is a landmark one. I'm hoping against hope.

And then Saturday morning I head out for Portland, and then Vegas.

Please, please, let me celebrate a victory on this trip...please...

Sigh. Ok. Back to crazy work.

Shot Glass Onions (Whole40, Day 35)

I read someplace that you can grow green onions (read: scallions) indefinitely by sticking the root ends into water and putting them someplace sunny.

Since I use them periodically and am sad I don't have the space to grow a little kitchen garden, I thought I'd give it a try.

Lo and behold, Dana's Hydroponic Shot Glass Onions:

Someday I'll take a photography class. And clean my kitchen window.

I just change the water every day or so, and they seriously grow that long in less than a week. I've cut them for recipes a few times (all the way down to the bulb!), and they keep growing back. This is pretty cool! Now if only I had a way to keep an avocado tree...that would save me boatloads of money...