I have been doing pretty good with eating and working out since Tuesday. I am really working hard on portion control and trying to eat more fruits and veggies. I have had Lean Cuisines for lunch the past couple of days. Last night for supper I made myself a Tuna Burger. It was really good, I will definitely have it again. Of course I had to downsize the recipe a little but it worked just fine. I used a 2.6 pkg of plain tuna, I crushed 2 pieces of low fat bread, I put in a few sprinkles of shredded cheese and about a teaspoon of lite 3 cheese ranch dressing. Now the egg that was hard I put it in a bowl and spooned in just a little. I knew I needed it to make it stick together. I did not put onion or olives in. I did cook it in olive oil but next time I think I will just spray the pan with Pam. I did not use all the bread crumbs I made. Mine made 2 small burgers which I ate with no bun, tomato slices, and red and yellow pepper strips. I also finished some green beans that I had at lunch. I added a half a wedge of laughing cow cheese. That stuff does not melt!!!!

Bolder Burgers
Ingredients:2 (4.5 oz.) pouches StarKist Tuna Creations®, Herb & Garlic
1 cup bread crumbs, divided
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup non-fat ranch salad dressing
1/4 cup sliced green onion
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp. olive oil Directions:
Combine Tuna Creations®, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, cheese, salad dressing, green onion and egg in medium bowl; mix well. Form into four patties; coat each side with remaining 1/2 cup bread crumbs. Heat oil in non-stick skillet over medium heat. Cook patties 3 to 5 minutes on each side until golden brown.

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 4

I did go to the DQ last night and to my surprise they now have a mini blizzard. I am guessing it is about 8oz, it comes in a small cup that looks similar to a Styrofoam coffee cup. It was the perfect size. I don't know the calories, I am sure it is still high but at least you have a smaller option now. I figured it was ok to have that since I had had a yogurt for breakfast 110 cal, a LC for lunch 290 cal, half a can of green beans 30 cal a cup of grapes, whatever they are and then the tuna burger for supper, which I know that the pack of tuna was 80 cals. Not sure about the bread and dressing but all in all I didn't have that many calories for the day. I did 40 min on the elliptical and did a half hour of boxing when I got home.

I will do well as long as I can not eat everything in site when I get home from work!!! That is my downfall!! I had a goal of 10lbs before Shantel's wedding, at this point that would be 5lbs a week. For me I an not sure that is doable but I will stick with what I am doing and be happy for whatever the scale says unless it goes up!! haha

Round 3

This is the 3rd week of the boxing class and I must say it is quite the workout!! At the same time it is frustrating. The flyer said the class was geared to everyone. I would beg to differ on that one. The instructor goes so fast it is hard to get the form and moves down. Oh well I guess as long as you keep moving!! One more week. I did learn that jumping rope is one of the best resistant workouts out there, or so she says, try doing it for 3 minutes straight and you must just agree!!!

As far as my eating for the last two weeks, I will have to say it was crappy. The more I try to do good sometimes the more I fail. I really need to increase my water intake. I found this water recipe and made it. It is refreshing over ice.

1/2 cucumber
1 knuckle ginger(I used powered stuff, I just dumped it in I would guess a teaspoon at least)
1/2 cup mint leaves or 2 mint tea bags steeped
1 lemon juiced
1 gallon water.
Peel ginger and cucumber, puree all ingredients together in food processor mix with water let it sit overnight in frig, strain into another container or water bottles. Refridge unused portions up to two days.
I used a handful of fresh mint and 2 mint green tea tea bags. I had to strain mine through a dish towel to get the floaties out of it. Worked like a charm!!!!

I will try to do better this coming week. I still have a goal to lose 10lbs before Shantel's wedding on the 21st of Aug. It is attainable if I try hard enough. I found this quote and I really like it. " Are you fit company for the person you want to become"

Boxing

Tonight I will take my 1st boxing class at the gym. It is a 4 week class for 45 minutes!! It is taught by one of the group fitness instructors who also happens to be a armature golden glove!! The class is limited to 12 so I am sure it will be a "workout". I have always had an interest in kickboxing/boxing but I have no coordination and can not for the life of me do a boxer shuffle. This could be interesting!! I am hoping to burn some calories and have a little fun. I am at at a standstill with weight loss, however I must say I did not gain over the 4th which was very impressive since I drank a "few" beers!! I just don't know what to do. Ok actually I do it is called more weights. I really want to start going to Body Pump at least 2 times a week but it seems I have a messed up work schedule for the rest of the summer. By that I mean doing double shifts and having time off. The time off part is good but not from an exercise point of few. When I am off, we usually have company or are going somewhere so no time to workout!!! Starting on Monday the 12th I really want to focus on having a good week of eating and working out.

What does that mean. PLAN!!! Plan what you are going to eat. I stayed away from the Smart Ones and Lean Cuisines for awhile but I am going to go back to eating them. They might have alot of sodium but they are portion, calorie and fat controlled. At this point that is what I need. Have a little sodium in a prepacked meal or grab the chips when I come home. What is the difference? The prepacked meal is PORTIONED!!!! Actually we don't buy chips anymore unless we are going on a trip or have people coming over!

I will post about the boxing class later tonight if I don't die, or Saturday since I just happen to be working 16 hours again tomorrow.

Next Thursday I am having a Eco Cardio stress test done. I have been experiencing some dizziness when working out, mostly on the treadmill, it feels like I have a buzz on when I am running. Ha ha I know what you are thinking!! I do not drink before working out. Today the Dr checked my blood pressure 5 different times and did a hearing test, both appear to be normal, so this was the next step. She did tell me that I can continue to workout as long as I do it at the gym or with someone so that was good news. Don't want to be side lined there!!!

It will be ok!

I gained weight when we were back in ND, I went to the gym and worked it off and then some!! Wow I was impressed. Then came company!! I did manage to hit the gym 2times last week, which for me was horrible but at least it was something. I didn't really eat bad, we just snacked alot. Ok maybe some consider snack eating bad, I really don't however I know that I ate more in a day of snacking than I would have if I would have just had meals. So the pounds that I gained in ND came off plus one more, but the snacking from this "vacation" brought it all right back on. Honestly I didn't even drink that much beer, only a couple on Friday and Saturday. I did go to the gym tonight and did 30 minutes on the elliptical and then did Body Pump!! I am sure I will be sore tomorrow. It will be well worth it when the scale goes down again. I really need to start drinking water. I bet I had 2 glasses of water all weekend. That is bad!!! I know with the 4th coming that weight loss might not be within my reach for the week, but I am ok with that. We only have a 4th of July once a year!!!

Thirsty Thursday!!

I went to the gym tonight and did 50 minutes on the treadmill then did 50 minutes on the elliptical. The kicker is that I don't drink any water when I workout, only when I am done. By the end of the elliptical I was dying for a drink. I have tried drinking during my workouts but I always get a side-ache or a stomach-ache. I get them even if I take small sips. So on the way home I drank a bottle of water, and I am now having a protein shake made with water, sort of tastes like watered down chocolate milk. I would love to find a protein drink that didn't have a weird after taste!!! I did gain 1.5lbs when I was on vacation but I am hopeful that with my good workout tonight and the little bit of food I ate today that I can get it to come off. I did have some chex mix today after work but all I had before that was half a yogurt and half a protein bar for breakfast, a peanut butter and banana sandwich for lunch and some fruit. A banana for a snack and a lite ham sand on a lite bun with a wedge of laughing cow cheese, before I headed to the gym. I have only had about 3 drinks of a Dt Dew as well. My goal was to drink 32oz of water today at work, well my water bottle was still half full when I dumped it out before I left. Sometimes I love water and other times I hate it!! You can bet tonight I will drink a ton of it and be up all night going to the bathroom, that is the way it always works!!!

Vacation

We are leaving on Friday for vacation, yes, I call a trip back home vacation. I know that I won't get any workouts in, so my hope is that the scale just stays the same. I have been having really good hour long workouts since the beginning of the month. One day I will run/walk the next day I will elliptical. I have been changing the resistance and incline every minute on the elliptical when I get bored. It seems to keep me on track, but it is hard. Have you ever tried doing a minute on a 15 incline and 15 resistance? Hard, but hard work pays off. I have also been trying to do weights each night when I go. I may only do 3 sets on 3 machines but that is a start!! I just want the pounds to continue to come off. I am no where near the rate of those on the Biggest Loser but slow and steady will keep it off longer, if not forever.

Still on track!!

This week I am still on track to attain the goal of going to the gym 5 times and eating good. On Monday after I posted the neighbor did show up and we went for a 4 mile walk. Prior to her coming I had been boxing, I did that for about 45 minutes!! That was a "workout" day I will say!! Tuesday I did not go to the gym I worked until 8pm. Wednesday I went and I did 65 minutes on the elliptical. I started at incline 10 and resistance 5 and worked my way up to resistance 15!!! That was a very hard workout!! Lots of calories burned there. I did a little bit of strength training as well. Tonight I did 5.5 miles on the treadmill in 60 minutes!! Not bad for not doing that many miles in a long time. I ran the 1st two non-stop then I would alternate between running and walking at an incline. My heart rate stayed between 160-180. I got home and felt like I was going to throw up. I think that happens because I can't drink water when I workout so when I am done I tend to drink it way to fast!! I will have to work on that!!