Death to Cadbury (A monologue)

Let's talk about Lent/Easter/Easter Candy/The Easter Bunny/My Lack of Self Control

1. I gave up chocolate for Lent.

2. I hung in there for 3 weeks.

3. I am very proud of this stat.

4. I caved yesterday and had a few Cadbury Mini Candy Eggs...and by a few I mean 25.

5. This may seem like a lot, but if you have ever eaten them before you are aware of the fact you can fit almost 7 in your hand at one time; quite comfortably I might add.

6. I was okay with the 25, it is really just 2 servings, nothing too terrible. A lot of points on my WW, but I added them dutifully and went on my merry way.

Enter into this evening...I will set the scene.

I have just failed a midterm that I have studiously slaved over for the past two days.

7. Basic math tells us that if there are 7 servings in a bag and I have already eaten 2, then 5 are left.

8. Rhetorical question: How many servings did Anna eat?

9. Rhetorical Correct Answer: 5

10. How many eggs is that exactly? Around 60.

11. Insert shame, grief, denial and guilt. (SLP ladies...They need an Ice Burg for chocolate addicts)

12. Insert anger towards my teacher for being the trickiest professor known to mankind.

13. Insert more shame for anger towards teacher...I mean, maybe it was my own fault? I should have known what the traditional treatment methods for Aphasia were even if they were a single slide and were never discussed.

Final scene, Anna running

 (albeit walking a few times)

furiously over campus and the square

in an attempt to keep her 60 mini eggs from accumulating in her body.

I want to punch that Cadbury Bunny in the face.

20 Pounds Lost...Or a WHOLE PETE!

I am so excited, pumped, giddy, over-the-moon, and any and/or all other adjectives that imply happiness.

Today marked the loss of pound 2-0!

Or, as I like to think of it, I have lost an entire Pete.

For those of you who don't know who Pete is, he is my  twenty-pound Maine Coon cat

 (really my parent's, but I got him so I like to think he is mine).

Here is the chunky nugget...

He is much bigger in person and even heavier when you try to pick him up.

I call him "dense"...my father calls him obese.

Either way, I have lost an entire one of him. Exciting? Very much so.

Even more riveting news is the fact that I have almost reached my BMI goal!

 I had to lose 25 pounds to put my BMI back to "normal."

 I don't really put a lot of stock in BMI's,

but considering I have gone from a 28.6 (precariously close to "obese"....yikes)

 to a 26.2 (1.2 points away from normal), I feel it is worth celebrating.

So twenty pounds in a year...I suppose it could have been more if

I had a little more self-discipline and a slightly less hectic and demanding schedule,

 but I will take a win when I see one and twenty pounds is most definitely a win to me.

I have to admit, this feels way better than I imagined it would. Motivation to lose the next 15 lbs has been signed, sealed, and delivered to my door step! Let's do this!

Also, I ate a large amount of Cadbury mini candy eggs today...in celebration of course.

A Wee Bit of Snot and My Birthday

Sorry for the title of this one, but Adele saying that last night on the Grammy's was one of the funniest things I have ever seen and since I have been a big ball of tears the past 24 hours, I could emphasize. Plus I needed a funny title.

So another birthday has come and gone and I am reminded once again how wonderful everyone in my life is.

A weekend spent with Jeff, my parents, brothers, cousins and future in-laws was exactly what the doctor prescribed for this worn out graduate student. Sometimes you need a refresher, otherwise I am pretty sure I would continue my day to day living without any inspiration at all.

How dreary, right?

But, luckily, I am surrounded by the most fabulous support system ever known to man.
Boy oh boy, I should never let myself forget that!

As I type this I am cuddled under my warm heated throw (thanks mom and dad!) thinking how I wish the weekend's were longer. That way Jeff would still be here, watching ESPN per usual, and we could be talking of our future house or something silly. Those are some of the best moments, aren't they? A whole day full of nothingness that means the world to me.

I am currently taking a break from my Aphasia studying to type this because my morning started early and went downhill so swfitly I didn't even have time to catch a breath before it went splat on the clinic floor into little sticky pieces.

Combine that with my tear fest from Jeff leaving yesterday and you make for one rough 24 hours.

But I felt like I need to type all the positive things that happened this weekend so I can get today into perspective. One bad morning (or one rude parent) isn't going to make or break me. I need to remember that.

But I will say, I ate 6 hot tamales to make myself feel better. Nothing like a whole lot of wasted calories and a sweet hot fire in your mouth to make your day go a little better.

Totally worth the 2 points!

But in other words, I am writing this as my own sort of therapy. My life is wonderful, it really is. A rough day doesn't diminish that, it really just confirms it and I am working on seeing that whenever the proverbial crap hits the fan.

Thank you to everyone who shared my birthday with me this weekend! Consider it your good deed for the week because those two short days are what makes getting through this week easier.

Love you all and have a Happy Monday!

OH! 6 pounds down...24 to go!!

Sweet Potato Fries and I Shut My Mouth....

A play on words with an Alabama song. Classic.

But seriously, sweet potato fries are devilishly delicious.

Should you be craving some in the Mid-South region, the following locations come highly recommended:

Young Avenue Deli

Kooky Kanucks

Tracks Bar and Grill

(If you know some other places, tell me!

My life goal is to eat them in every place available.

I am ambitious, I know.)

I usually dip them in honey mustard (divine!) but last night the owner of Kooky Kanucks encouraged me to dip them in honey. It was pretty good, but I'll be honest, I ended up dipping them in the honey first and then the honey mustard, thus creating double honey mustard.

Probably strange and very redundant, but I don't care.

If you are inquiring as to how many points sweet potato fries and double honey mustard must have accumulated...

STOP.

I don't want to know.

Saturday was my blow the points out of the water day...

as in the fattest kid at the pool doing a cannonball off the high dive blow out. 

It was awesome. But that is enough about that.

Moving on, my goal for running is to run 6 miles a week. I realize this is not a lot, heck, it is really nothing at all, but the school schedule begs to be in first place in my life at the moment and I am inclined to let it.

(You're welcome school.)

Also, before I say adieu, a significant event is occurring in my life this week....

I am getting a CAT!!!

 (oh, and turning 23 on Friday...womp womp).

I will have to keep you updated on this development, but I am super pumped about it (obviously).

Also exciting news? I see Jeff for the first time in a whole month on Friday.

I swear, it's as if my whole life is just getting happier and happier.

Hooray!

Have a fabulous Super Bowl Sunday!

(Admit it, you totally thought I wouldn't even mention the Super Bowl in this post.)

"The Titan's didn't make it to the Super Bowl?
 I iz so sad."

Jennifer Hudson Made Me Do It.

Weight Watchers. Two words that cost me $56.43.
Worth it? We are waiting to see.

Yes, I finally caved and went for a weight-loss program. While I hate to do it, it was time for me to take some accountability for my eating habits and nothing will motivate me to stick with eating healthy better than me spending money on it! I like to think I am frugal (my mother would disagree with that statement), but I really do hate spending money on something I won't use, so I have been diligently counting up protein, fiber, carbs and fats and entering them as if my life depends on it.

Recent developments? So far, so good. I have lost 5 pounds in three weeks and I am feeling pretty positive about it. It hasn't been overly difficult and I have felt really energetic since I have been eating healthier.

If you people could see the amount of fruit and vegetables I go through a week, you would be amazed. I ate a pound of grapes in three days. But hey, that pound of grapes use to be a bag of chips, so improvements are being made! My new addiction is clementines. They are like big fat Sweet tarts! I could eat 10 in one day if I didn't exert some self-control. Yum. Just talking about it makes me want one. I am pretty sure I have trained my body to crave one between every meal...and before bed....and when I wake up...quite the clementine predicament I have put myself in!

In other news, Jeff and I have set a tentative date, Look out May 24th 2013!
We just decided to throw in the towel and wait until both of us are done with this marathon we like to call an education.
But I cannot wait to be that man's wife and, even more so, get to see his face every day!
4.5 hours apart is just too darn far. I like 4.5 seconds away infinitely better.

And speaking of marathons, The Future Mom-in-Law, Sister-in-Law, and myself will be at the Music City Half Marathon this April (Special thanks to Ms. Julie!), so a little training has been attempted on my part.

My 12-14 hour days aren't quite conducive to regular gym hours and to be perfectly honest, my poor body isn't too capable of going the distance after a day of going full speed. But I do try to get a little 2 miler every now and then. If you see me around town huffing and puffing, ignore me. I like to think I am invisible. Ha.

However, I will say my grad school friends are great motivators! They are all thin little southern things, so seeing them everyday makes me remember why I am trying to be healthier and thinnish. Thanks ladies:)

I am going to attempt to keep up the blog this time! But no promises here, my treatment plans and neurogenic quizzes take precedence! Good night all and have a happy Thursday!

I might just walk myself downstairs and award myself a clementine for typing this today...positive reinforcement, right?

The Tale of My Gluteus Maximus and A Little Doughnut History.

At Blair and Stefanie's recommendation I did TWO ab dvd workouts on Monday. Was it hard? Yes. Did it hurt the next day? A little. Was it anything compared to "Sexy Summer Beach Body" on Comcast OnDemand? No!!

I thought I did pretty well with the abs which must have led to my getting a little overzealous when I got ready to do yesterdays workout. She had me doing so much I don't even know where to begin, but I can tell you how it ended, with my butt muscles hurting so much I can barely sit without cringing. I honestly think these muscles did not exist until yesterday. Throw in my aching thighs and knees and you basically have my whole lower body in critical care. Ouch. I know this is a good thing because I am tapping into muscles that previously must have been the size of a grain of rice but it doesn't make it hurt any less.

Today's mission, focus on the top half and let my lower half rest.

Weak Moment of the Day?
This morning I went to Doughnut Country. I only got me one chocolate iced doughnut and then (thinking I would be oh so nice and get my roommate some too) I order a dozen doughnut holes for Kristen. How nice of me right?

Guess what?
Kristen doesn't like doughnuts.

I know, I know, I think she is a freak of nature as well, especially since she puts ketchup on mac and cheese (ew.), but the point is now I have doughnut holes sitting in my kitchen. Untouched. I won't tell you how many I ate but I will assure you it wasn't all 12. Still, when I did the calorie count is was somewhere in the upper 500's. Yeah. It is painful to type.

Who created doughnuts one might ask themselves?
Who created such a wonderful piece of puffed up dough that melts in your mouth and has a bazillion calories?

Supposively Hanson Greggory did in 1847. His mom baked little cakes and he didn't like the middle of them, so he cut them out thus creating the doughnut. There are other theories, but they all involve Hanson and his mother.

I would consider Hanson and his mother my biggest love/hate relationship in my life to date.



Come on Maria Menounos, we both know you are going to eat half that doughnut than run for your life to the closest gym. If I had any sense I would have too.

Current Stats and Denise Austin

My current weight as of this morning was 165 lbs. For those of you who have been reading from the start, you know this is a 12 pound loss. I am really proud of myself for getting those first few pounds out of the way...but here comes the tricky part. The last 15-20 pounds. Ug.

But to be thinnish is to work hard and that is what my plan is for the summer.

I am off to Stefanie's to do a Denise Austin abs dvd. Six Pack. Check it.

Lack There Of...

I have not written in about a month. The fact is I have had little to write about. I have kind of fallen off the bandwagon and hit rock bottom

 (What is rock bottom you might ask? Easter candy, graduation cake, milk duds, cake in general...

I could go on, but why bother...it is all pretty pathetic.)

But now summer is here and it is time to get serious. The wedding is fast approaching and I am slacking. No good. To make it worse, my ankle has begun to swell up after running due to a sledding injury (ahem, Brittany T. haha.) and now it is almost impossible to run. The pressure hurts too much. and aggravates the tendon. Awesome timing, I know.

Where does this leave me? Strength training. Woo hoo. I would rather run, but it is what it is and I have got to get down to it. Push ups, sit ups, yoga, etc. I will be spending my summer on ondemand exercise tv.

The last fifteen pounds must go!

Complaints.

I was informed that my previous post was not up to par (ahem, MEG)

 so I am writing another one to ease the readers (aka MEG) frustration.

My current weight as of this past 15 minutes was 168.5.

Obviously this is a 3 lb increase from earlier this week.

Bummer, I know.

The good news is it is 9:30 at night and I had a piece and a half of Jet's Pizza, which (as seen in my earlier post) is very very good. So I like to think I might weigh about 166 in the morning, which I believe is an acceptable weight at this time. I am going to go easy on myself for the night because tomorrow begins attempt #2 of the First Lady's diet.

Of course, I am doing my modified one because I am a big weenie who can't do the full blown program. Whatever.

I am okay with this halfway attempt.

Progress is progress no matter how small, right?

Greg has announced he wants to start running with me which is nice

 because having someone accountable is always a good thing....

but if he is slow, tough luck. This girl waits for no one when she is running.

And I would like to say I don't wait because I am so hardcore and blah, blah, blah, but the real reason is once I stop I have a hard time getting back into that rhythm again. haha, so Greg, I am here for you but you are on your own once we get started. I am rooting for you though!

Also, for all you folks who do not keep up with sports, Charles Schwartzel won the Masters today. So when someone mentions it tomorrow you won't have to make a face of confusion because you will already know he was the winner and he is from South Africa.

Isn't my blog so informative? 



Jet's Pizza

Is so so so good.

Here Is the Twist...

Hm, so a day and a half of eating fruits and veggies and I lost three pounds. Interesting.

Weight on Tuesday NIGHT- 165.2

I don't know what to think because I really did eat plenty and I drank so much water I almost want to throw up thinking about it...so maybe it is worth trying again?

This time though, I will make my own modifications, that way I can do it for more than a day and half. Haha.

Modifications:

Only fruits, veggies, and one serving of bread for breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Dinner can be any kind of meat and fruits and veggies and I am even going to say I can have one small sweet thing a day

 (A cupcake is not one small thing....I am going to have to remember that). 

I feel like this is a little easier to maintain...plus, a girl can only eat so many clementines before her fingernail beds begin turning orange. I hope someone else has had that problem or else it is going to seem kind of gross. Oh well. 

Point of the matter...I am down to 165!!!!!!

Weak Sauce

I have no self control. Caved after a day and half.
Here is my letter of regrets to First Lady Obama:

Dear First Lady,
Let me begin this letter with this statement, "You are a better woman than I."

I am forced to give you major props for not lashing out at the world
due to major hunger pains and cravings for bread
throughout your 3-day torture of only eating fruits and vegetables.
You are strong and I am not. I am embarrassed by my lack of discipline and hang my head with shame.
Maybe next time I won't be such a pansy?

Probably not.
Sincerely,
 Anna

Falling Off the Bandwagon

So, I have been slacking...bad. My weight hasn't changed but by no means has it improved. I have been getting discouraged because I haven't lost any weight since early March, despite the fact that I have been working out every single day. It just gets depressing after a while and I am kind of stuck on where to go from here.

I read online that First Lady Obama does a palate cleansing every now and then so I googled it to see what it was all about. Turns out our "cravings" are actually a trained behavior and you can get yourself out of this behavior by doing a cleanse. For three days you eat only fruits, vegetables, one serving of bread and water. This is suppose to get you out of the cravings for crap food. Then from there you introduce your proteins and all that jazz....So beginning tomorrow, fruits and veggies for this girl. Maybe it will jump kick my lagging healthy initiative.

But do me a favor, please don't ask me to go out to eat for the next three days. My self control is weak and I don't need to be tested. But feel free to come over with some orange slices!!

Some People Say My Body Fat is too High for My Body...

...and I say, "compared to what?"

Haha, that is a Marcel the Shell   joke. If you haven't seen it, Youtube it A.S.A.P.

But if you are here to read the skinny on my body fat percentage, I got news for you, it ain't so skinny.

Body Fat Percentage: 28.62%

Now, when he told me this, I kind of had a momentary freak out but then he informed me that women ages 18-30 needed to have at least 13-17% body fat in order for their bodies to function properly so I actually only need to lose about 12% of my body fat to be at my optimum.

This equals about a 20 lb loss. Now, with my current 9-10 lbs lost that will equal 30 lbs total; this is what I was aiming for anyways, so it really just confirmed that I was doing what I needed to do all along. Kind of nice I suppose.

So there it is. I am 28% body fat.
Depressing? Yes.
Motivating? Very much so.

No Loosey Goosey for You!

I got my very first massage today.

Ah, Heaven!

After experiencing the single most wonderful thing next to Cadbury eggs I promptly sent my 168 lb butt running because getting thinnish doesn't have time to feel all nice and loosey goosey. No sir, life is tough and if I hadn't eaten so much my sophomore year I might have been able to appreciate being all groggy and happy. Oh well, this is the life of a chunky girl.

In the midst of all this I forgot to weigh myself this morning, but I have eaten less than 1300 calories (1289, ha) today AND I went running this morning so I am in the clear for Tuesday! Woo hoo! This is the first day I actually stuck to my 1300 calories. I think it might be because of all the water I have been drinking...maybe that has been the trick all along. Either way, it has been a really incredible day.

However, I am beyond excited for Thursday so I can get my body fat calcuated. I am slightly scared it is going to be some massively high number and I will be in a state of depression for the rest of the semester, and maybe my life; but then I get to thinking it can't be too terribly high because I am freakishly healthy in the medical sense (despite my deviated septum). So that is my one sliver lining...I just hope I am not in the double digits. Yikes!

Well stay tuned and I will post it on here...barring it isn't 50% or something of that nature. I might just be too embarassed to put that on the internet.

RWD: Running While Deviated

Accomplishment of the Week:

A 2 consecutive mile run

I know, I know, you are probably thinking,

"Really? 2 miles is an accomplishment? Have you not been running all this time?"

Allow me to explain:

I have been running one mile everytime I have ran since January. I know, logically one would think I would have been up to at least 3 or 4 miles by the third month of running, but I feel I have a pretty good excuse for this act of apparent laziness.

Cue scary music and the "dun, dun, duuun..."

I have a deviated septum.

Seriously folks, when I run it is literally like breathing out of a coffee straw; oxygen just isn't making its way around my body like it should be. Ipso facto, it has taken a lot of time for me to build up the lung capacity to hoof it an extra mile. But, I did it yesterday and it wasn't bad at all! 

What an exciting moment in my path to thinnish. haha. 

My legs were aching this morning, but after todays run, which was just 1 mile (I didn't want to do the celebratory dance too soon and then get hurt or something), they are feeling a little bit better. 

All in all, I am feeling pretty awesome.

My weight has not changed this week, still at a pretty steady 168-170 throughout the day. But I am going to really try and lose that last 8 pounds before May. I want to be 160 when I walk across that platform to get my diploma which, when Megan and I calculated it earlier, will be in less than 5 1/2 weeks! Yay!

Hope everyone has had a great week and enjoys this pretty weather today!

Spring Breaking from Operation Wedding

Not only did I just enjoy a whole week off of school but also a week off of my healthy initiative! Probably a little counterproductive since I was making some real progress, whoops.

But the real question is, "Was it worth it?"
The answer to that is a resounding, "Yes!"
It was worth every single extra calorie I consumed...and that is a lot. ha.

We went skiing so I feel pretty confident that I burned more calories than the average spring breaker and therefore everything I ate may not have been as bad as I am thinking in my head, but even if they were, it wouldn't have really mattered.

Fun Fact: I ate my weight alone in sweet potato fries. Yum.

But the real lesson of this spring break? I love skiing! Other than it kicking my butt (which it did multiple times) and being deathly frightening at moments, it was really really fun. I advise everyone to give it a shot. If it isn't your cup of tea, hanging out at the base drinking isn't too terrible either!

However, the trip is over and I am back to "thin and fit" mode and will be getting serious again. Back to pouring over what I am eating and sweating my face off at a gym wishing I hadn't forgotten my water in the car (I hate when that happens and it happens ALL. THE. TIME.)

                                                       Oh Spring Break I miss you already....

Weight after Spring Break: 168.2 lbs.
Yeah, you read right, after all that I inhaled this past week I still managed to lose a pound!
                                                     

Creative Differences

The blog is currently in repair. Some creative changes were being made and then I got sleepy so I didn't finish them. Ignore the general mess and chaos that is the page today!

Epic Fall from Grace

I failed miserably today. Just an across the board failure. I not only ate 1600 calories without any inclination of working out, but 400 or so of the calories were from a Sonic M & M Blast.

The worst part? It wasn't even that good. Should have splurged on a Blizzard instead. gah.

But maybe tomorrow I can try and turn back time on my poor decision making of today. I will go running and do some weight-lifting tomorrow...that should help.

My current weight is TBA on account of I haven't been able to weigh myself in the morning for the past week. I hover anywhere from 172 to 175 at night though, so I am assuming I am still around 170.

Of course, after today I might be inching my way upwards.

On a brighter and happier note, the people I babysit for told me I looked thinner when I walked in today!! Hooray! Maybe people are noticing...or maybe they are really nice. Ha. Either way, I am taking it as a point in my corner.

Megan has lost like a billion pounds and I am jealous. I can't seem to get in the double digits. They elude me.
But kudos to Megan! If her sister doesn't kick her butt, she will most likely win her competition between her family. Awesome-ness.

I am getting my percentage of body fat calculated sometime in the next two weeks for extra credit in my tennis class. Turns out those exercise study majors need some test subjects and I am more than willing to volunteer. They make you get in this pool and they do pressure tests and such. It seemed really cool to me and I am hoping they tell me I have some ridiculously low percentage and the rest of me is just big-boned. I am crossing my fingers!!

Hope everyone had a great Thursday and enjoys their Spring Breaks!

7 Pound Stretch

Weighed myself this morning...Folks, we are looking at a 7 pound loss!

Big News, Big News! Especially since Monday and Tuesday were such lack luster workout days. And by lack luster I mean I literally did not move unless necessary for every day living.

But eating right really does pay off and I am learning that slowly. It is hard to avoid those Cadbury creme eggs though so I have created a reward system that enables me to still eat them because, let's face it, avoiding chocolate is not my strong point. Jeff even bought me one the other day just to be sweet. Isn't he just the greatest?:)

Shout out to Meg and Megan for dragging me to the gym. My ribs feel like they got repeatedly kicked with karate-like enthusiasm. I am told this is a good thing. Who knew?

Anyways, 7 POUNDS! So pumped. I needed a little boost this week too and that really helped. This puts me at 170 (or 168 depending on the validity of Megan's scale, ha) and I am feeling good about hitting the 160's in the next two weeks. Let's go 1-6-0! Woo Hoo!

Enjoy your weekend and go buy some Cadbury eggs. But just one. They have 150 calories per little devilish egg of goodness!