After the holidays and working out after dark

The holidays were kind of brutal for trying to lose weight. However, I am still determined to get back into running which is a good sign. I have yet to run since Thursday (which was D4 wk2), so I had every intention of running after my rotation today but it was 5 minutes from getting dark once I got home not to mention the mounds of homework I needed to get done. Unfortunately I can't go for a run in the morning before I leave because it is dark then too. So if I cannot run before and after my rotations during the week, I need a plan of action. For tonight, I will find a workout routine that I can do in my apartment that does not include any jumping around (such as squats and sit-ups) and watch the season 13 premiere of The Biggest Loser for motivation. The episode is an hour long so my goal is to keep moving the entire time. Also another good motivation TV series is the Say Yes to the Dress: Big Bliss. I do not want to look like that when I try on dresses. My boyfriend helped motivate me some more over the weekend by reminding me what I told him. "I do not want to be engaged when I'm heavy."

So I just wanted to check in with you all and let you know how I was doing on my journey. Before the holidays I had lost 3 lbs. but I am almost positive I gained it back at New Years. It is only a minor set-back and the main thing is that I still have my motivation to workout.

C25K

I have done this running plan before and only got to week 2. This time I am going to do it all the way! This is my third day in week 1 (WK1D3 in C25K lingo). If you want to start running it is a GREAT tool to use. What is the C25K running plan? You start off on wk 1 running for 60 seconds at your own pace and then walking briskly for 90 seconds. You alternate this until you have reached about 25 minutes. Each week increases your running slowly and you do each set three times before moving on to the next week. For me, since I am doing this to lose weight and don't want to burn myself out too quickly, I will be completing each week twice before moving to the next one, except for week one. If you have an Ipod that you can run with, they also have podcasts you can download from the website for free. As you are running/walking it tells you when to run and when to walk. Which is great because the last thing I want to focus on is the time when I am exhausted from running more than I'm used to. This is a great tool for me since I do not have a gym anymore (they closed down). Another one of my bucket list goals, besides losing weight, is to completely run a 5k. I have competed in several 5k races but I can never run the entire thing. Eventually I will work my way up to a 10k and so on. Running a marathon scares me right now but maybe I could look forward to a half marathon. I have posted a link for the running program on the left for those who are interested. Good luck!

Just got done running WK1D3 of the C25K running plan and was thinking about some more tips for running:

• When running with little earphones that like to fall out, use a headband that covers your ears (like the ones you wear outside in the winter). I am not sure about what to do during the summer, but that will be something to experiment!
• I can tell a difference when I'm really dehydrated vs hydrated while running. I feel much better if I take a swig of water right before running. Something I need to work on is getting 8 glasses of water/day.
• If you don't want to leave your door unlocked while you are out running, especially if no one else is home, lace your key in your shoelaces and make sure it is double-knotted! There are also a lot of running gear that have zipper pockets or little pockets inside the clothing to put your key.

Happy running!

Food diary

In order for the weight loss to go smoothly, I need to start watching what I eat. A great website that I found is called my fitness pal. I will provide a link on the left side of the blog. I like this site compared to the numerous ones I have tried in the past (fitday, mypyramidtracker, sparkpeople, etc.) because when you search for a product, they list various brands and restaurants that I haven't seen on those other websites such as great value (walmart) and aldi. It is very user friendly and after you complete your entry, it tells you "If you eat like this every day...you will weigh ___ lbs. in ___ weeks. Now that doesn't mean it's accurate but it still puts things into perspective. I am still exploring the site a bit but that is all I have seen that won me over. Oh and it's free.

Other random notes to mention:
Laura M - mentioned pilates is a great workout as opposed to cardio for those who live on the second floor of an apartment so as not to disturb the downstairs neighbor.

Preparing for winter jogging and bad weather exercising

As I mentioned yesterday it was really cold while jogging outside. Same as today. With the sun shining it's not so bad unless it's in the evening. That being said I thought I would help prepare those who are beginning runners out there.

First off, the acceptable running gear for winter:

• Capris (knee length or lower) or Pants
• Under armor - helps keep your body temp up without too much clothing, but still wear a t-shirt, long-sleeve or sweatshirt over it.
• High impact sports bra - I like Danskin from Walmart (I am a size C-D depending on bras in case that helps put things into perspective)
• Gloves -  the cheap cloth kind will do
• Cloth elastic headband - keep those ears warm so you don't get an ear infection
• Some hair-restraint of course (ie. ponytail, clip)
• Invest in running shoes - not walking shoes or the cheap kind

I used to have a gym, but they recently closed and told me I could visit their other building 45 minutes north. (yea right..) so I am pretty much stuck with either running around my apartment complex or watching exercise videos on the TV. (Luckily I have OnDemand exercise videos. Netflix is another good option). So in case the weather looks bad or if it's dark outside (please don't go running by yourself at night), you can also do exercise videos. My favorite ones so far are Jillian Michael's DVDs. She will kick your ass! The only downside is if you are in an upstairs apartment, it's hard to do a lot of cardio without pissing off the downstairs neighbor. I will be looking for any videos that do not have a lot of jumping for those who are in the same boat as me. For now, yoga is a good option.

Once you are done with your workout, a great website that has helped motivate me in the past is Fitocracy.com. It is geared towards gamers and making fitness a contest. When you log a workout, it gives you points for difficulty, distance, weight or whatever depending on the exercise. Once the points accumulate, you level up. You can also interact with other members and give each other "props" or "likes" in facebook lingo. Give it a shot if it sounds like fun to you! You can also earn acheivments or complete quests by doing specific exercises or routines. I will try to put up a link to fitocracy once I figure out how to put links on here...

First jog of the journey

I am very proud of myself. I went for a jog/walk this morning around my apartment complex. I didn't have my ipod with my like usual and I believe it helped me focus. The music can be a distraction more than helpful sometimes. I estimated 1.2 miles of walking and jogging. I tried not to push myself too hard because I had done that in the past. Running is supposed to be fun, so go at your own pace.

Also, did I mention it is absolutely FREEZING outside? I am glad I brought my gloves but I definitely need a headband (or whatever you call those things that cover your ears) the next time I go out.

So now that I had my exercise in today, I will have to work on my eating habits. The problem is that we have some amazing donuts from Long's Bakery yesterday...and some of my favorite...the icing cream filled w/ chocolate frosting on top. My plan is to split one in half...and the other half will go to my boyfriend. That will be my treat for the day.

I have put up a recipe button that does not work yet but I will be working on it soon to get some yummy but healthy recipes on here for everyone following my blog.

The beginning of a long journey...

I have decided to start this blog because I am tired of being 50 pounds overweight. I am in my dietetic internship and should be eating well right? well wrong. I moved to Indy for this internship so I am eating worse than I ever have. Between the stress of the internship and all of the great, new eating places around, I am slowly creeping up to 180lbs. My goal weight is 135 lbs. Not am I only wanting to feel better about myself, but I want to wear cute clothes rather than finding clothes that will attempt to hide my fat.

I told my boyfriend that I did not want to be engaged until I have lost weight. Because who wants to be heavy on their wedding day?! So what is my plan? I am not quite sure yet but it will involve a lot of exercise and eating home-cooked meals/more fruits and vegetables. As I go through this weight loss journey, I will slowly figure out what works best for me and my schedule. What inspired me to start this blog (besides motivation to lose weight) was another weight loss blog I had looked at. I really hope this will help me, because no one wants to listen to a heavy dietitian.

Some of my goals include:
Start running more (3x a week)
Eat more fruits and vegetables (5 a day goal)
Limit my eating out at restaurants to once a week (for now)

So just a little bit of background about me. I am 23 years old living in Indianapolis with my boyfriend of 6 years. As I mentioned above, I am in my dietetic internship at IUPUI. I am not sure what area of dietetics I want to work in yet but that's what the internship is for. There are a lot of food temptations here in Indianapolis compared to my hometown in Illinois hence why I have gained so much weight. I started the internship weighing 170 lbs. I graduated high school (5 years ago) at 155 lbs. I also have a history of heart disease on my mom's side of the family so this is something I need to work on now before I'm 40 years old. After I am married, I plan to have 3 or 4 kids so again another reason to lose weight early on in my life.

Any support throughout my weight loss journey would be very helpful. Thanks for reading!