Where in the World is KIMpossible?

I know, I know...I've pulled a disappearing act.  I'm back, though.  So that's what matters, right?

This is gonna be a hodgepodge of stuff.  Bear with me.

I know I owe y'all (and me) a checkpoint, but well...big shocker here...I haven't been quite as dedicated and diligent as I planned.  Back on the wagon, though, so I guess it can be said that at least I don't give up.  =/

My brother and sister-in-law planned a vacation to Jamaica.  A flight from Los Angeles (where they live) means a necessary lay-over.  They were able to manage an overnight one on Friday, 9/30, which allowed for my entire family to celebrate older sister Cathy's birthday.  We went to Perry's Steakhouse and had a most wonderful meal followed by this:

and maybe a little bit of:

Afterwards, Cathy opened up her presents.  My siblings went in on the gift thing with me, so we were able to get her some Brighton jewelry that she wanted and perfume.  Here is my cute packaging:

Oh and in other news, I chopped off all my hair.

I decided this hairstyle looks better straight than curly, so I've been straightening it daily.  There is the fast way - round brush - and then there is the slow way - Chi.  Nine times out of 10, I do it the fast way.

Oh...and I'm embarrassed to say I blew off my first race.  I did not end up doing the Beach Palooza 5K obstacle course on 9/24.  I woke up that morning and was just not feeling it....the drive all the way to Galveston by myself...the fact that the only friend I knew who was racing it had a time slot a couple of hours before mine...and finally that I want to be able to run a 5K outright again before I sign up for another. 

I have my See Jane Run half coming up on Sunday.  My training has, of course, not been as I had hoped for, but I am still excited.  I will be leaving on Friday after work to enjoy a nice leisurely Saturday meeting up with friends from days gone by (college) and perhaps even a blogger meet-up later that day.  My father's birthday is also on Sunday, so I will high tail it home after my race to celebrate with my family.

I had some Chinese food at family lunch and this was my fortune:

Can I substitute "dogs" in place of "children" since I don't have kiddos yet?  No?  That's okay cuz I don't think I would ever call my dogs the most wonderful - haha!  I do love them dearly, though.

This past Saturday, we all ended up hanging out at my parent's house - swimming, eating, and watching the dogs play.  On Sunday, my dogs were both dead to the world.  Besides breakfast at 6am and a prompt return to bed, Penelope didn't join the world of the living until 3:30pm.  Yikes! 

I have a slight obessesion with Tai Pei's wonton soup.  I eat it almost every day for lunch and I buy it in the frozen section at Walmart.  Don't judge me.

Another slight obsession I have is with dystopian and/or post-apocalyptic novels.  I just can't get enough!

We are planning young sister Linda's baby shower.  It's going to be so fun.  My mom has made a motorcycle "diaper cake".  Wait until you see it!  I've been commissioned to make a watermelon carriage like I did for Melissa's baby shower and I'm also making fruit salsa to be eaten with cinnamon & sugar pita chips.  I love party planning/preparation!  So fun!

I've been watching Medium on my Netflix.  Oh my goodness, it's so very good.  I'm half way thru with season 6 (out of 7 seasons).  I've picked out my next show once I finish.  It's gonna be Friday Night Lights cuz my parent's swear by it.  Have you seen it?

Okay, that's all I have for you for now.  I better start catching up on reading all the blogs I've been neglecting!

One Week Check Point

As I stated previously in my Goals - Short Term/Long Term post, I'm going to maintain accountability by posting my goals and then following up on my progress on the ol' blog.

1 week = 8 lbs lost; work-out 6 days a week for a minimum of 30 minutes/day; track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise


Let's evaluate the week, shall we?

Diet
By "diet", I mean counting my calories.  For the most part, I'm still following South Beach principles as far as food choices go, but I'm upping the ante by paying attention to specifically how much I'm putting in my body.  The biggest struggle I encountered was recognizing I needed to establish a "NET" calorie goal because the more I work out, the more I'm going to need to fuel.  I set a 1200 NET calories per day target and with the exception of eating too few calories the first two days, I did well.  I also became VERY lax over the weekend which is something I don't want to make a habit.

Exercise
I set a target of working out 6 days of the week for a minimum of 30 minutes per day.  That didn't quite happen, BUT considering I went from VERY minimal exercise to a 4-day workout, I feel pretty good about the week.  I spent 2 days walking (with incorporating a bit of running at the end of each walk) and I spent 2 days riding my exercise bike.  I managed to burn a total of 1366 calories with an average of over 40 minutes per workout.

Hydration
This is an on-going struggle.  I hit over 100 oz of water each day, BUT my target is 144 oz, so I have a lot to work out in this category.

Sleep
My goal is to hit 7 hours of sleep per night.  Out of 7 days, I hit this goal 5 nights.  Still a work in progress, but I'm getting there.

Weight loss goal = 8 pounds
Actual weight loss = 7 pounds


Thoughts:  I am pleased with the results, but I do see where improvement can be made.  As I mentioned above, I became a bit too lax over the weekend.  Even though I went to restaurants with a plan, it was easy to stick to the ordering plan, but difficult to pass up table freebies - bread, etc.

Next check point (1 month) will be on September 26th!


Off to a great start!

GOALS - SHORT TERM/LONG TERM

A wise person I know suggested that I not overwhelm myself with how "lost" I've become in my weight loss journey.  She thought it best to break my ultimate GOAL into smaller, more attainable check points.

With that in mind, I've come up with my 1 week, 1 month, 3 month, 6 month, 9 month, and 12 month check points.  Seems a lot less daunting that way.

I figured to keep myself accountable, I would go ahead and publish these check points to my blog and then follow up on my progress when appropriate.


1 week = 8 lbs lost; work-out 6 days a week for a minimum of 30 minutes/day; track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise

my fitness pal

1 month = 20 lbs lost, run/walk 4 days/week for a minimum of 45 minute; cross train 2 days/week for a minimum of 45 minutes; be able to run 2 miles non-stop (@ 14 min/mile pace); track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise; reevaluate daily calorie target




Daily Mile



3 months = 40 lbs lost, run/walk 4 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; cross train 2 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; be able to run 6 miles non-stop (@ 13:30 min/mile pace); track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise; reevaluate daily calorie target

sleep bot

6 months = 70 lbs lost; run 4 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes;, cross train 2 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; be able to run 10 miles non-stop (@ 13 min/mile pace); track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise; reevaluate daily calorie target

24 Hour Fitness

9 months = 100 lbs lost (GOAL); run 4 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; cross train 2 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; be able to run a half marathon non-stop (@ 12:30 min/mile pace); track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise; reevaluate daily calorie target

The Woodlands Marathon (half for me)

12 months = maintain weight loss; begin full marathon training; run 4 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; cross train 2 days/week for a minimum of 60 minutes; track all calories, water, sleep, and exercise; reevaluate daily calorie target


Since I offiically got back on my wagon (for real this time) on Monday, 8/29, I will check back in on my first check point on Monday, 9/6.