21 in 21

March 18 to May 20

Last Tuesday I realized there were only 21 days left in my diet bet and it was time to get things moving. Literally.

For the next 21 days I have to do cardio. Every. Single. Day. I can either walk 2 miles, do 30 minutes of cardio in addition to a weight or another type of workout, or do an hour of cardio.

So far it’s been good. I’ve only taken one day off last Friday and that was just because I was being lazy. Other than that one day off the past week has been great. I weighed in at 259.2 this morning! I don’t even have a whole pound to lose and 12 days to do it! I’m feeling good.

I started last Tuesday by walking 2.5 miles at my neighborhood park then Wednesday I completed 60 minutes of cardio on the treadmill, elliptical, cross trainer and rowing machine. Thursday I spent an hour and a half of yard work. That’s pretty much my rotation, some days in the gym and some days walking.

This Saturday is my kayaking trip, FINALLY! I hope this trip won’t end like my last blind kayaking adventure! It’s a good time, great people, and an awesome workout. It’s great to have an active lifestyle again. But can I say how excited I am to be back in the 250s? After getting all the way up to 278 it’s great to break the 260s!

It looks like I’m going to win my bet! I just have to keep doing exactly what I’ve been doing. I haven’t just been upping my cardio, but I’m also eating much better… Post to follow!

Operation 21 workouts in 21 days in full effect! Care to join?

Redemption

This is Cupid’s Garden in Arlington, Virginia. I was lucky enough to take a trip up to the northeast (DC, Philly, Delaware, Jersey and NY) last week. I’m sure I’ll let you know about my revelations in traveling and my new found love of big cities. I ran into this sweet spot in the suburbs of DC while taking a stroll for lunch.

This made me happy and sad all at once. The garden was amid a busy intersection and I loved the contrast of the silver sculpture surround by the different types of low lying greenery, strong and feminine tulips, and the low flirty flowers that I want to say are pansies.

I found that a white tulip is used to symbolize worthiness. And this one obviously isn’t worthy. I feel this is quite symbolic. Surrounded by beauty and everything it needs to thrive, this lone white tulip is failing in the one thing it is alive to do… be beautiful.

Last month I wrote all about my Diet Bet, which I ended up losing. Well, it’s redemption time! I signed up for a new Diet Bet that began last Monday. I said I will not lose twice! I feel like I cheated a bit, but I decided to make sure to give myself an advantage this time. I weighed in right before I went to sleep at 269.4. The following morning the scale said 265. I knew that I would weigh heavier at night with a stomach full of food than I did the next morning, so that’s why I decided to submit my weigh in at night.

With a weigh in of 269.4, I need to weigh in at 258.6 on June 2 to win my bet. So that means I only have 6-7 pounds to drop thanks to my strategic weighing in. I feel a wee bit guilty about my sneaky tactics, so I’d like to try to get to 255 by my deadline. It’s been quite a while since I’ve been in the 250s and I have to say I’m quite excited about this very real possibility.

The lone white tulip only needs some time and attention, and that’s exactly what I need as well. A little hard work and careful planning will get me back on track, and hopefully with a little more cash in my pockets! Take the time out this week to stop and smell the flowers! It’s spring time and in south Louisiana the weather is gorgeous, so have a nice week and talk to you soon!

A little good news, a little bad news

Hey guys, I just wanted to check in and give a quick update… I did not win my Diet Bet. I’m really sad about it, but it is what it is. Your actions have consequences, and clearly my weekend in Omaha was too much damage for me to overcome in one week. My friend won her bet and pocketed $40! That’s awesome!

I’m disappointed, but happy to be still losing weight. I have lots to share, but you’ll have to wait 2-3 weeks. I have a test today that I’m studying for as well as a book I need to read and write a report on by Thursday night. And I have to get ready for my next trip. This Friday I’ll be headed to Beijing and then Shanghai, China! I’m so excited and still have lots to do, so please excuse my short post.

My goal while in China is not to gain even one ounce! I gained 2-3 pounds in Omaha and I am focused on not doing the same this time around! I’ll weigh myself Thursday and keep it ready for comparison when I come back. And I also plan to do another Diet Bet some time after I get back from my trip, hopefully with better results this time!

Also I have to share all the healthy foods I have been cooking this past week as well as pictures from my hiking trip this past Saturday! I love incorporating exercise into hanging out with my friends!

Last tidbit before I go and tackle my to do list… I accomplished my goal of averaging 1.6 hours of exercise a day! And now

Back to school work. Talk to you soon! Have a great Easter, but don’t eat too much candy!

Dietbet

About a month ago, I got an email from a friend that asked if I was interested in participating in a dit bet. I looked it up and thought this really seemed right up my alley.

I love the tagline on the Dietbet app… “Lose weight with your friends while taking their money.”

The premise of this website is to encourage people to lose weight through betting their own money on their success. My particular game lasts for one month and you are required to lose 4%  of your body weight for a $25 bet. Y’all know I’m unemployed now so I NEED to win my money back!

I’m doing a “Kickstarter” which is 4% in 4 weeks. The other type of bet is the “Transformer” which is 10% in 6 months. If you enter and don’t meet your goal, you lose your money. But if you meet your goal, you win the pot minus the fee Dietbet charges. The fee that Dietbet charges for my particular game is about 10% percent of the total pot, but they guarantee you will at least get the amount you put in for a bet back. (They will adjust their fees so you won’t lose money if the payout ends up being less than what was paid to get in the game.)

People can create their own games or join one of the many open games that are started by Jillian Michaels, Chris Powell, bloggers and regular people. I thought it seemed pretty legit and was anxious to try and win some money.

My game has 707 players and a pot of $17,700, and the Dietbet fee is 1770, so that leaves a pot of $15930 to be divided amongst the winners. If 75% of people (531 people) then my take would be $30. Nothing to get excited about, but that’ll be $5 profit, which is about 20% return on my investment, not to mention the benefit of improved health that comes with dropping almost 11 pounds. So if only half of the people registered meet their goals then my share would be $50! Doubling my investment is definitely something to get excited about. So I’m going to have to hope that at least half of the people don’t meet their goal… I know that’s horrible of me isn’t it?

On March 5^th I weighed in at 271.2 and in order to win the bet, had to weigh 260.2 by this Sunday. This morning I weighed in at 262.4, I think that’s a little too close for comfort. But I really let my weekend really derailed me and left me farther from my goal than I’d like. my trainer seems to believe that it’s possible, and I know my weight fluctuates almost daily so I just have to hope that when I weigh in the scale is being kind! 2.2 pounds in two days may sound far fetched, but I weighed 265.4 yesterday morning.

Are you nervous for me? I am. I thought oh I can lose 10.8 pounds in a month, no problem. But the problem comes with all of the fluctuations. FRUSTRATING! So hopefully on April 4^th I’ll be having a “light day” or I lose so much weight that my little 1-3 pound fluctuations won’t even negatively affect my goal.

I’ll definitely let you know the results either way, I’m hoping for the best!

Traveling and weight loss

This past week I was traveling and didn’t exactly get 8 workouts I was aiming for, so I decided to go back to the drawing board. Instead of requiring a certain amount of workouts per week, I will set a goal of how many hours I’d like to exercise per week. This week I am trying to meet a weight goal that I set so I want to exercise at least 10% of my waking hours. So I calculated I need to exercise 11.2 hours this week (assuming 8 hours of sleep per day). To keep it simple I’ll aim for 11.5 hours this week.

While traveling, I found the most important thing was preparation. My flight departed at 10 am and wouldn’t arrive in Nebraska until 4pm. I could either trust myself to eat well in the airport or I can pack a lunch. And guess what I did? I packed fruit, wraps and 100 calorie pack snacks so that I could avoid temptation. And thankfully it worked.   But the problem was I did not come up with a plan for the rest of the week. So my day of preparation was no match from my weekend of careless eating and heavy drinking.

180 calories fruit and cheese pack

Walmart’s turkey pinwheels. 440 calories

So I weighed in at 263.4 on March 30^th, but weighed in at a whopping 267 pounds on March 30^th (after my trip). I’m not blaming the total 3.4 pounds on margaritas and red wine, but it surely didn’t help. I’m glad to report I weighed in at 263.6 this morning. For my next trip, I have to plan MUCH better. Not only for the airport, but for my whole stay. When I come up with my brilliant plan, I’ll make sure to let you in on my secret. I do not trust myself to make good decisions when temptation is in my face.

That’s the goal and I’m slowly working on it, but honestly, I’m not there yet so preparation is my weapon. Here’s some pictures from the most amazing trip I ever had. Not only did I get to meet Warren Buffet, tour three of his companies, have lunch and chat with him, BUT I got to meet Tom Arnold as well. It’s refreshing to be surrounded by so many professionals with different backgrounds and experiences to share. I am definitely getting a lot of this program.

Here’s some pictures from the most amazing trip I’ve ever had (even if it lead to weight gain)

Got the ordering down Thursday night at the French Bistro, this was GOOD! Skate with Capers and roasted potatoes

Who ordered this??? TEMPTATION

Me and the back of Warren Buffett’s head

Oh here’s his face

Group photo with Warren Buffett

A table full of bad decisions

Looks yummy, but is it worth it?

This is what I ordered as well, a trio of enchiladas

I should have kept my hands off, but I didn’t

Meeting Tom Arnold Friday night

Bad brunch decisions

What’s brunch without mimosas?