An Update ...

Just a quick update and why I haven't been blogging lately. As you know I've been trying to lose weight and not being very successful at it at the moment. Anyway, I figured since I was having a hard time pushing myself to exercise and the fact that I love dogs, I decided to start volunteering at an animal shelter a few days a week. It keeps my mind off the food, so it helps me, and it helps the dogs by walking them and spending time with them.

I knew I'd enjoy working with the dogs because it doesn't matter what breed they are, I just love them. I was really worried I would have a hard time leaving them once there, and even though that part is hard, it's wonderful knowing that you are making their lives a little bit better in a way. I wasn't prepared for how much I would enjoy it. I absolutely love working with them. They are so sweet and you get to hear their stories. Makes you want to take them all home.

So, anyway, that's what I've been up to. I have lost a pound and a half. Not much but I'm working on it everyday. Well, not really, I'm working on it when I visit the dogs. But, that being said, it is getting me motivated to start to do more things and that's gotta be a good thing. Right? The more I get moving the more I want to move and hopefully it will get me kick started to get into some kind of exercise routine.

Heck! I don't even mind getting soaking wet like I did the other day to spend time with the dogs at the shelter. It's worth it. So, If you have some extra time to spare, maybe you can volunteer at your local animal shelter. I know some of you say well I can't do it because I won't want to leave them there. To that I say, just remember your doing it for them. It's better to spend time with them for a little while than none at all. And, who knows those of you who are trying to lose weight and get fit and healthy may just find yourself losing a little bit of weight in the bargain.

Here's just a couple sweet dogs at the shelter...
Daisy...

And, Woody...
but there are so many more. To see more at this shelter go here: Paws (photos taken by Paws)

Or visit your local shelter in your own area. All these animals are just waiting for loving homes.

Portobella Mushrooms and Exercise

Food: I just tried eating a hamburger on two large portabella mushrooms used as the bun, and I must say it was delicious. (I got this photo and some of the nutrition facts from this site.. What's Cooking America

These large mushrooms are excellent as the bun because they have 0% fat and only about 26 calories. A large mushroom from what I read on the Internet but can vary from site to site, has about 2 to 3 grams of fiber and about only 3 grams of carbohydrates. They are high in protein. So if you are watching carbs or calories they are wonderful. They are also great for people with diabetes who need to watch carbs.

The way I cooked mine up was to clean out the gills on the inside, then I put some butter in a skillet, browned them on both sides, and then added some apple cider vinegar to carmilize them a bit. It tasted great. You can also cook them by baking or grilling them too. Of course the butter I used will add some fat but it's better than eating a high carb roll. Next time I may try grilling or some other way of cooking them.

Exercise: I haven't been blogging much in the last week or so but hope to get back to it again like I was doing. As far as exercise I've been averaging about 2 to 3 days a week in the past several weeks. I'm feeling much better after my gall bladder surgery and I'm also hoping next week to exercise with some of my exercise tapes along with more walking. Next week is also the week I'll be going to take the training for volunteer at a animal shelter. I'm hoping by walking and spending time with the dogs it will help me lose some of this weight and get my mind off of food.

Recap: Also, I guess I missed week 16 of my postings all together and it's now week 17 on my journey to weight loss and getting healthy. As you can see not much has really changed much in my weight or exercise habits, but I keep moving along and I keep trying to change it. I can't believe that almost 4 months has gone by already since I said I was commiting to a year to change my eating and exercise habits and I'm basically still at the same weight I was when I started. This is a wake up call to get it together for me. What I've been doing so far isn't working right, so I need to change it. I will get back to you on that one.

Snacks That Take Longer to Eat / Exercise

I bought some cherries the other day at the grocery store and they were the best one's I've had in awhile. I like the darker cherries. Sit down and have a bowl of cherries for a great snack. You can eat these slowly because you have to worry about the pit. This will keep you away from other snacking and they have more nutrition value than junk food. Cherries have vitamins A, vitamins C and potassium. Some sites say that the darker the cherry the richer it is in antioxidants.

I found this nutrition label on cherries on the Internet...(I believe this is for sweet cherries).

A few tips on how to pick cherries at the grocery store...
1. Pick cherries with the stem still on them and they should be able to store in your fridge for up to 10 days.
2. Also avoid cherries with dark colored stems.
3. Cherries should be firm to the touch but not hard.

This snack not as nutritious as cherries but will last alot longer is the good ole Tootsie Roll Pop. If you're on Weight Watchers, they are only 1 pt. and they take along time to eat.


It's nice to have these on hand in the evening when you want something but aren't hungry or just don't want to blow your whole day when you did so well keeping on track. Add a cup of tea with either the cherries or the tootsie pop and it could last you enough to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Exercise: Just a quick note on my exercise. I did walk yesterday but only a quarter of a mile, .4 to be exact. I didn't walk longer because it started raining pretty good here. It's been just a little over 2 weeks now since I've had my surgery and now I want to start walking more. I'm gonna try to get back into a routine.

Farmers Market = Fresh!

I went to the Farmers Market this morning in Bellefonte.

I love the new location. It's by the Gamble Mill and the parking is free. Most parking meters are set up to no longer take dimes and now are only taking quarters. Sometimes I don't have a quarter and need to worry about not having change with me to feed the meter. So, I just don't go in town to do things much. I feel they lose business by doing this. Maybe if parking was free all around people would go shopping. Who wants to come out to find a ticket on the windshield? I know I don't. Okay, Now that my rant is over back to the Farmer's Market.

While there I bought a zuchinni for .75 cents and four cucumbers for $1.00. How many grocery stores can you walk out of and pay only $1.75 for these? None that I know of.



And, You know what the best part is? They're fresh! You know it came out of someone's garden and you don't have to worry about how long it's been stored in someone's truck getting old or collecting germs from other products when there has been other foods in there.

Fresh! Fresh! Fresh! Love the local farmers selling their stuff. I can't wait for the watermelons to come.

I thought I'd also tell you it wasn't only about fruits and vegetables. I also picked up a few free recipes, they were selling a canning book, and you could even have a taste of some of the products. Just like going to Sam's club and getting a sample before you buy. Someone else was selling homemade soap, and you could even buy a T-shirt. And, it doesn't even stop there. I talked to one lady selling homemade pastas like ravoli and someone selling meats. I didn't order any yet, but I will I'm sure. I gotta tell my son about the bison meat, he loves it.

For you local's out there. It's set up on Saturday mornings from 10 am to 12 noon. Check it out. And, if you're not local, I'm sure you can find a Farmer's Market near you. It's fresher and cheaper.

Exercise and Food

Still in the no exercise zone due to feet problems. But on the bright side, my tomato and cucumber plants are almost ready in the garden. I love tomato sandwiches with mayo and pepper. And, cucumbers are a great snack. Since we're talking about tomatoes and cucumbers here's a few nutition facts I got from the Internet.

Cucumbers - Are made up of mostly water, a little over 90% according to one site. If you look at other site it varies. They all agree that's it's over 50% water though. It's a good source of vitamin C with a few other nutrients thrown in. Cucumbers are good for the digestive system and have a cleansing affect on the bowel.

And, the added benefit very low on calories. One cup is = to only 16 calories. Cucumbers are great on sandwiches or just slice them up and add some dill, a good snack.
Here's a recipe for a quick cucumber salad.

CUCUMBER ONION SALAD

1 large cucumber
1 medium onion
1 large tomato
zesty Italian dressing
wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Cut up cucumbers, onion, and tomato in small cubes. Salt and pepper as desired. Add 1 tbsp wine vinegar.
Add enough Italian dressing to cover (more or less to desired taste).
Great as a side dish for many meals.
Submitted by: Dee Chilton

Cucumber snack I got from this website: Cooks.com



Tomatoes - Tomatoes are a good source of vitamin A and vitamin C. Also known to lower your chances of cancer.

Tomatoes come in at less than 30 calories per cup.

Here's a tomato recipe snack. I haven't tried it yet but it looks good.

Stuffed Tomato Snacks
Cherry tomatoes
(larger ones are easier to stuff)
Low-fat cottage cheese
Sunflower seeds
Wash the tomatoes and slice off
the tops. Scoop out the seeds and
pulp. Fill each tomato with cottage
cheese. Sprinkle sunflower
seeds on top.

(Sorry I forgot which site I found this on.)

And, if you want to combine the two...Use this recipe also from Cooks.com

EASY TOMATO/CUCUMBER SALAD

1 tomato
1/2 cucumber, peeled
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
dill to taste

Dice tomato and cucumber into small cubes of desired size.
Combine all ingredients in a salad bowl.

Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes, then serve.
Submitted by: Theresa S

New Week it's Sunday...Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July everyone! I know you'll be having your BBQ's today. Keep it safe and don't eat too much side salads like macaroni or potato.

I thought I'd talk a little bit about watermelon today. I eat alot of watermelon in the summer and when you think picnics you probably have a tendency to think about watermelon.

I got a email this morning from South Beach Diet tips and it had in there that on the South Beach Diet you aren't to eat watermelon till phase 3. I always thought watermelon was the least calorie and thought of it as a good diet food. The reason they tell you not to eat much of it is because it can make your blood sugar levels rise faster especially if your diabetic and can cause cravings. A serving size is equal to one cup of watermelon chunks or one small wedge.

That being said it is still a good source of vitamin C. From the website Wikipedia"Watermelon contains about 6% sugar and 92% water by weight."

I also got this information from the Wikipedia site that I didn't know. "Notable is the inner rind of the watermelon, which is usually a light green or white color. This area is edible and contains many hidden nutrients that most people avoid eating due to its unique flavor."

And...

"Watermelon rinds are also edible, and sometimes used as a vegetable. In China, they are stir-fried, stewed or more often pickled. When stir-fried, the de-skinned and de-fruited rind is cooked with olive oil, garlic, chili peppers, scallions, sugar and rum. Pickled watermelon rind is also commonly consumed in the Southern US. Watermelon juice can also be made into wine."

I guess I need to eat a little less of this fruit since it raises blood sugar levels. I was diagnosed with diabetes last year and have to control my blood sugar levels. I always looked at the watermelon as a safe fruit but I will need to look at other fruits a little bit more carefully too. Which goes to show you I guess we all need to do our research while trying to lose weight.

Exercise: On a side note I didn't do any exercise this week. When we went away last week to visit family for three days it totally threw me off my schedule. I guess you could say I making up excuses but it's the only one I have. When I go away I don't tend to exercise and when I came back I felt sluggish again. So this week it's back to my workouts!

Frustrated/Annoyed/Gum -What do they have to do with food?

What does these two words have in common? ...Frustrated and Annoyed

From the Merriam dictionary/thesaurus webster site:

Frustrated

Main Entry: 1frus·trate
Pronunciation: \ˈfrəs-ˌtrāt\
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): frus·trat·ed; frus·trat·ing
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin frustratus, past participle of frustrare to deceive, frustrate, from frustra in error, in vain
Date: 15th century
1 a : to balk or defeat in an endeavor b : to induce feelings of discouragement in
2 a (1) : to make ineffectual : bring to nothing (2) : impede, obstruct b : to make invalid or of no effect

synonyms frustrate, thwart, foil, baffle, balk mean to check or defeat another's plan or block achievement of a goal. Foil implies checking or defeating so as to discourage further effort . baffle implies frustration by confusing or puzzling . balk suggests the interposing of obstacles or hindrances

Annoyed

Main Entry: an·noy
Pronunciation: \ə-ˈnȯi\
Function: verb
Etymology: Middle English anoien, from Anglo-French anuier, ennoier, from Late Latin inodiare to make loathsome, from Latin in + odium hatred — more at odium
Date: 13th century
transitive verb
1 : to disturb or irritate especially by repeated acts
2 : to harass especially by quick brief attacks
intransitive verb
: to cause annoyance

— an·noy·er noun

synonyms annoy, vex, irk, bother mean to upset a person's composure. annoy implies a wearing on the nerves by persistent petty unpleasantness . vex implies greater provocation and stronger disturbance and usually connotes anger but sometimes perplexity or anxiety . irk stresses difficulty in enduring and the resulting weariness or impatience of spirit . bother suggests interference with comfort or peace of mind .
synonyms see in addition worry

Well, What does these two words have to do with Everyday Life's Issues? Let me explain. We tried to see Toy Story this weekend. We paid to get in, bought our popcorn and drinks, and went in the movies. Then we set out to get our seats and low and behold it was packed. Well, okay, no problem. But, and there's a big BUT! Sitting only two seats down from us was a family who arrived and they had to put the light up shoes on a 2 yr old to watch a movie. These light up shoes were like no other. Never see them light up like this in my life. They lighted the whole row. Time to kick and kick to keep the lights going. But, was that the end of the frustration and annoyance? Heck NO! Then the previews were going to start, well at least we thought. Between the previews, commericals and some little cartoon segment that had nothing in the world to do with the movie, it took 30 min.'s to start the movie. I am not kidding. I timed it.

Then we had Ms Yacker and Mrs Yacker next to us. Finally!!! they shut up. Does it end there? Heck NO! About 1/4 of the way into the movie, the screen shuts off and the theater lights come on. What the heck? We are all wondering do we have to sit through another 30 min.'s of suffering through the garbage at the beginning? No, we got lucky. After about 10 min.'s they got the movie running again where it left off. A break! Well, not exactly. Our grandson starting crying he had a belly ache and wanted to leave. So goodbye Woody for now till we can see you again. We may have gotten through almost half the movie. (Well, almost.) I guess it was not meant to be.

So, did you go see Toy Story yet? Did you get to see the whole thing? Was it good? I think we left where Woody lost his hat? What's a cowboy without his hat? Well, I don't know. Do you? I didn't get to see the ending yet.



So, this is what these two words have in common. Now you know. Decluttering also means decluttering the mind. This is why I write this here. Now it's off my chest and I had my say or complaint as it were.

And, I tell you I wanted to eat after all this annoyance. But I didn't! That's the best part. I knew this kind of frustration and annoyance anyother time would have me heading for the junk food. I decided to eat a piece of gum instead. And, it worked. I got chewing on that instead of chips or eating a tub of ice-cream.

Exercise and Food

Exercise: I exercised on the treadmill today and did 2 miles. Along with that did a few upper body weight exercises.

Food:
Breakfast: yogurt and coffee
Lunch: 1/2 of banana, peanut butter, watermelon, ice-cream fat free, Diet Pepsi. I know not much of a lunch but it wasn't too bad nutrition wise.
Dinner: Stomboli with ham, pineapple, and onions with sauce, D. Pepsi.
Snack: cheese filled pretzels and cocoa.

My husband wanted to get desert at the restaurant where we got the stromboli but I told him I didn't want any. And, if he got anything, I'd take a bit and that's it. But, since I didn't get anything, neither did he.

What's your sweet tooth downfall?

I absolutely love 5th Ave candy bars...

and Peppermint Patties...


When I want something a little bit more crunchy I go with the 5th Ave. If I want something creamy the York Peppermint Patti is the way to go.

The big difference between the two is the calories. I can go with the Peppermint Patti for about half the calories as the 5th Ave bar. As far as carbs neither one is good for me because they both have a fair amount of carbs in them. Although I could cut them in half for half the carbs and save the other half for later. But, how many of us can do that? Can you save the other half for another day?

I can't! Once it's in my hands, I tend to eat the whole thing till it's gone. So, I've allowed myself one day a week to indulge in my favorite candy bars. Some weeks I may choose the Peppermint Patti or the other week I may plead the 5th. I figure since I like to get weighed in on Wednesday's at Weight Watchers, Thursday will be my indulgence day.

How about you? Do you allow yourself one day a week to indulge in your naughty sweet tooth pleasure? Or, Are you swearing off sweets all together till you reach you goal weight?

It's Tuesday...

Food:
Breakfast: Yogurt, flax grain (to help lower my triglycerides), blackberries, coffee
Lunch: Hamburger (no roll), re-fried beans, salad, lemonade
Dinner: Grilled chicken, green bean casserole, Diet Pepsi
Snack: Hard pretzels and cocoa.

Exercise: Walked 2 miles on the treadmill.

My feet are still hurting so I am getting them checked out tomorrow to see what's going on. It's hard to exercise with the bottoms of your feet hurting.

Walked on Treadmill

Exercise: I got up this morning and did another 2 miles on the treadmill. My feet still hurt but I need to keep up with my exercising. I also did a few upper body weight lifting exercises.

I've been trying to stay away from junk food, and thought I'd allow myself one day a week to indulge in something sweet like a candy bar or piece of pie or whatever. Usually I weigh in on Wednesday, once a month, so I usually allowed myself a snack on Thursday. I did this many moons ago or at least it feels like it. So, I figured I'd try this method again.

Today I ate:
Breakfast: yogurt, coffee
Lunch: Ceasar salad, pasta penne with chicken made by Applebees.
Dinner: Perogies, fruit, diet Snapple.
Snack: Fruit, granola bar, diet Pepsi.

What's your exercise routine?

What's your favorite exercise equipment? (This could also be exercise tapes if that's what you use.)

And....Can anyone help me out? To get on the blog directory at plus size bloggers blog, I need my badge button to be 125 x 125 in size. Anyone know how to do this? Can you explain it to me? Please! I have picture it program and have tried to resize in photobucket but can't seem to get it right. If you can help me out with this, I will gladly add your blog badge to my sidebar.

Exercise and Food

Update for Sunday.

Exercise: I finally got out and walked a mile this evening. It was hard for me because the bottom of the ball of the foot has been in pain. Here's a photo from the Internet I found that shows the spot of the burning pain when I walk.



I'm not sure what it's coming from, whether it's health related or the shoes I'm wearing. A few weeks ago I bought new pair of expensive sandals (I won't name names) which I love but wondering if they could be the cause of the pain. Although, I had been wearing them about everyday since I got them.

The humidity has been high and I have been getting swollen ankles also. It hurts more when I'm barefoot than with shoes on, but right now they hurt either way. So, depending on how I feel tomorrow, I may have to set up an appointment with the foot doctor.

I decided tonight though that I am tired of making excuses for myself why I'm not going to exercise. This isn't an excuse per say, since I am having alot of foot pain. Then I started thinking about the saying, "Use it, or lose it", and got up to go exercise. Meaning walk or lose the ability to walk. I figured I better keep my feet moving.

My dog, Tucker, got in the act and he did a half of a mile. That's about all he'll do without deciding he isn't going to do anymore. He's the dog you see on my badge on the top of my blog here.

Anyway, I'm hoping to get 5 days of exercise in this week, pending my foot problem though.

Food: I also wanted to mention that today I did pretty well when it came to my eating habits. We made hamburgers on the grill, baked beans and corn on the cob. I went with the 100% whole wheat rolls, and passed up the candy and snack foods in the store. I had to talk myself out of it a few times before finally checking out. I stuck with the fruits for my snacks this evening.

Cleaning

Today I've been cleaning all day. Vacuumed and scrubbed the floors, cleaned out all the junk in the refrigerator, and did some laundry. I was going to declutter some of the junk around the house but ended up doing some of this stuff instead.

I also ended up making enough food for two meals, today we're having roast beef, mashed potatoes, and peas. Tomorrow we're having left over mashed potatoes, pork and sauerkraut. I am so happy knowing that tomorrow I won't have to cook. Hopefully, I can concentrate on exercising a little bit more. It's been terribly hot here and the humidity is so high you sweat just bending over to pick something up. I had the oven on about all day so now it's time to sit and relax.

I'm going to read a little bit and then hopefully take a walk with the dog.

A Walk Today

I got up this morning and took a walk with my dog. We only did a quarter of a mile, which is .4 one lap around my development. I'm hoping to do more later on this evening. It's really hot right now outside, so I am trying to wait till it cools down a bit.

So far today, I've only eaten a yogurt and coffee for breakfast. I'm now hungry so will have to find something to eat. I think I may have a salad and try to keep this day on track.

For dinner I am planning on a pork chop, a baked potato on the grill with a side of green beans. It's too hot to cook inside so I'm hoping the grill will do the trick.

I also have been trying to cut back on soda and drink more Crystal Light. It has only 5 calories and is decaf. I've been buying the lemonade and mixing it up and adding fresh fruit. I added strawberries to the regular Crystal Light lemonade. And, I also bought rasberry lemonade and added fresh rasberries. So, not only is it a good drink, you get to eat a few pieces of fruit as well.

About Diet and Exercise - Things Learned

I went to my diabetes group yesterday where they were talking about the A1C. I don't think I learned anything that I didn't already know. Basically, most doctors want your A1C to be below 6.0. The problem is I also have high triglycerides and high cholesterol that I have to control. Both are concern for heart attack and stroke. The diabetes on top of that just compounds the problem.

What have I learned over the past several years of diet and exercise? There is no quick cure. You just have to put in the hard work to do it. You can come up with all kinds of excuses, but in the end it's only up to you. You have to exercise almost everyday, and eat healthy foods, like vegetables, fruits, and stuff with fiber in it. Limit the portion sizes, and limit or eliminate all white flours, junk food, bread, anything that is processed. Pretty much that's the bottom line. Just Do It!

I've also know that the mind plays an important role. You need the mind set in order to keep the motivation up. So, I need to get my mind set that the exercise and the eating healthy is something I MUST do in order to lose the weight and get my numbers down to where they should be. I'm not only talking about my A1C numbers for diabetes but also my blood test numbers with my triglycerides and cholesterol.I want to be around for along time.

We also know the other reasons why we want to lose weight, not just for health reasons.

..To be here on this earth for our family.
..To look good. Let's face it, we all want to look good, right?
..To fit in that little black dress, or those nice jeans we have in our closet.
..To feel great in the swimsuit we hate to put on.
..To be able to travel.
..To get around on our own so we don't have to depend on other people. Because, you know that diabetes can rob you of alot of things, including your eye sight and ability to walk around because it effects your feet. Not to mention how many organs diabetes effects.

What's your reason for wanting to lose weight? Can you think of other reasons why we want or need to lose and keep the weight off?

Feeling Sick

Okay today I need to do some type of exercise because I was feeling sick last night. I've been eating too many junk foods and not enough healthy foods. I need to cut back on my carb eating and start counting carbs.

If anyone knows of any good recipes or snack foods with low carbs, please let me know. Thanks in advance.