9/30 Check in

A month ago I published a post that was scary for me. On it, I posted my current weight and measurements. Thank you all for your messages and comments! Double thank you to those of you who found me on myfitness pal! For a month I have been working out regularly and tracking my food. I haven't been perfect, but it has kept me accountable. Food has always been my weakness. I am an emotional eater. And I have a sweet tooth. And I like my salty snacks. And things that are deep fried. Tracking my food makes me think twice about having that cookie or bowl of ice cream.

On the other hand, exercise has always been something I have enjoyed. I just needed to make sure it was a priority in my day. I have made a couple of tough choices (no Bunco night, not hanging out with friends etc) in order to keep my schedule. Basically, Monday through Thursday I am going to the 4:30 class at the gym. (Zumba Mondays and Wednesdays, Tuesday is a high intensity aerobics/weights class, and Thursday is muscle pump.) I am also going to the 9:30 muscle pump class on Saturdays. I also am tracking my workouts on my home calendar with stickers.

I really like putting my sticker on the calendar when I get home from the gym :) 

And now... its time to show you all my progress for the month....

I am pretty proud of my progress for the month. I know from all my research watching Biggest Loser, that I won't always see this kind of progress, but I am pretty excited to see how I am doing so far. Craig says that he sees a difference in how I am looking, and I am noticing my pants are not as tight as they were at the beginning of the month.

If you are on my fitness pal, let's be friends! caseyamber

A fresh start

As any teacher knows, the new year starts in September, not January. Like any good new year, I have some goals that I am setting. One of my big goals has nothing to do with my classroom. In fact, I haven't really ever talked about it here in this space. Or really, talked about it at all. I have been pretty unhappy with how I look. I have been unhappy with how I am feeling. I have been unhappy with how my clothes are fitting.

As a health teacher, I feel like I am failing in my healthy modeling. I love working out, but I don't do it consistently. I love healthy food, but I really love deep fried or sweet goodness. The scale is now reaching the numbers that I swore I would never hit. I know things need to change. My family history alone is enough to make anyone cringe.

So, I know something has to happen. One of my goals in my 13 in '13 has been to workout 12 hours a month. It hasn't happened yet. It has to. And I know it has to be a mix of cardio and weight training. I am a huge fan of group exercise classes, and I have been scheduling my weeknights around my gym schedule. I also am committing to tracking my food intake (at least during the work week). I have used MyFitnessPal in the past, and I was pretty successful. And the scariest part of it all... I am going to post my progress here. Right now I am not comfortable with a "before" picture, but I am going to put out my "before" numbers. I know tracking the scale hasn't been successful for me, so I am going with measurements. (I took these myself so I know they are only semi-accurate.)

Please feel free to follow my journey along. I will be posting here monthly-ish? (I'm not promising anything... shoot, its pretty much a miracle that I have been posting anything after my August showing.) But I should be updating MyFitnessPal Please friend me to keep me accountable! My name is caseyamber. 

What tips do you have to stay on track?

Randoms

*Here is a life changer.

Frozen chopped onions. Some people may think it is silly. Others may think it is a waste of money. Yes, buying an onion and chopping it myself would be cheaper, but 91 cents isn't going to bankrupt us. And this way I don't cry. And the house doesn't stink like onions.  And none of it goes to waste. I've never eaten them raw, but if I have used them in taco meat, chili and stuffed peppers and I couldn't tell a difference.

*Meanwhile in the kitchen:

Do you use a potato masher to cook ground meat? I got the idea from Rachael Ray and it works great to break it up into little crumblies.

*I started the Couch to 5K program again after the first of the year with a friend of mine. I did it a few years ago and it was awesome. I even went on to run a marathon and a couple of halves. It's been awhile since I ran, and I am definitely out of running shape. We just finished week 2 and I am feeling pretty good about it. I've also been going to Zumba pretty regularly.

*Running outside in January sucks. Its cold. And sometime it snows and is icy. Yuck.

*This woman in New York posed as one of the Sandy Hook victim's aunt to raise money for the family. It was a scam. When Anderson Cooper asked her about it, she said she was framed by an enemy she has in the crafting community. Enemy in the crafting community. Yup, those people who craft, they are some evil geniuses.

* And you are welcome:

Pictures of people being blown with a leaf blower

What's going on with you lately??

Not to brag, but

4 months from today I will be getting off a plane here:

I will go hiking here:

Eating a frosty from here:

Watching these guys:

I don't mean to brag, but the Mister and I are headed back to Kauai this summer. (OK, I guess I am bragging a little...) I am so excited!

But, leaving for Hawaii in 4 months means it is time for me to put on a pair of these:

Source

Become reacquainted with these long lost friends:

Source

And start paying better attention to this:

Source

But sometimes, you gotta forget it all, and enjoy some Happy Hour with a good friend! And that is exactly what I did tonight after work!