Raining again

This is day four of the rain. My allergies are acting up and the backyard is way too slick to hike around in. No puttering for me. You may already know that I am a stay at home wife and artist/crafter/jewelry maker. This puts me at a work table for long periods of time. I have a tread mill that I seldom use and I just don't get enough exercise. I am 56 years old and have never been athletic. All of this combined, is not that conducive to staying fit, let alone losing weight.

There is a new family center being built about one mile from my house and my original plan was to lose weight in the year that it is being built, so I would more able to exercise and such when it is completed. I have lost about 10 pounds since November and plan to lose more before the grand opening in December. I am really looking forward to this family center. It will have indoor and outdoor pools, weight rooms, indoor track and lots of activities for all ages. I am looking forward to water aerobics, walking the track and who knows, I might even apply for a spot to teach jewelry making, or something of that nature.

In the meantime I have several habits that I need to break, that I know are adding to my body's resistance to losing weight. The following is a list of what I usually eat during a day, see if you can spot the booby traps.

Breakfast:

2 slices of Ezekiel Raisin Toast 160 calories
2 tablespoons cream cheese 70 calories
Coffee with milk & sweetener 60 calories
1 orange 65 calories

355 calories total

Not bad, though I would probably do better with oatmeal and fruit, because the raisin toast with cream cheese is....wait for it....comfort food. Yep, and I usually read while I'm eating (also not so good) so I go and make two more slices and more cream cheese, then I have to have more coffee with fructose sweetener to keep my food to drink ratio correct...(seeing the pattern here?)

If I am working at my table in my work area, I get busy and forget to eat lunch. This means I have forgotten to feed my work from home hubby, also, so for an early dinner we usually have

Late Lunch/Early Dinner

Large tossed salad with fruit and chicken in it
ranch dressing (left over idea from Atkins, and I use way too much)
additional fruit, because my hubby eats slowly and I don't want to be finished before him
Water

Snacks (while watching TV)

numerous handfuls of dry roasted peanuts, another comfort food
(I justify this as needing the extra fiber, while I'm probably craving salt because I'm dehydrated from not drinking enough water)

Sometimes another complete meal is consumed, due to the late lunch/early dinner...

You notice how quickly I stopped counting calories? It's easy to do, isn't it?

The whole point I'm making is I know that I'm eating too much and not exercising and have developed some bad habits. My cholesterol levels are fabulous and I have great blood pressure, heart rate, etc. I'm pretty darn healthy, I'm just a creature of habit, as we all are. I know the proper measures to take and I plan on taking them.

I don't use artificial sweeteners, I don't eat any refined flours or sugars, I monitor trans fats. I eat healthy. I feel extremely good. I wear a size 16 jeans and have for about 5 years. I have a healthy body image, I just want to make sure I'm healthy in my golden years. So to bring this rambling post to a positive close, I want to say this...we know how to do it, so

LET'S LOSE WEIGHT THIS YEAR!!!

I'm cheering us on, I know we can do it. Hang in there diet buddies, it will be worth it! Let's do something healthy each day. I'm going to start by measuring my food again, as portion control is my downfall. I'm a member of SparkPeople and I am also going to utilize those tools more. What will you do? Make sure it's healthy and for the right reasons.

That's all for now, take care of yourself...no seriously, I mean take care of yourself. OK?