Pics

We got over 200 pics of the beluga experience.  Posted to FB just not sure I have the patience to post here.

Beluga good fun

anxious knees revisited

it seems to be a popular topic...  but something i have noticed since i last posted about wearing through the sheets etc...  i do point and flex my foot/feet on a pretty regular basis... and even more so when I dont feel well.
my stomach has been out of control in pain this whole weekend... while sitting watching the football games yesterday i noticed my one foot was in constant rotation - drawing circles drawing circles drawing circles...  i can remember this too as a kid when i was sick on my stomach and laid up on the couch... foot moving foot moving foot moving - i guess it distracts my brain from the pain at hand?  who knows...
i just find it interesting..
i am hoping the stomach is on the mend... one little bout of cramping about an hour ago but for the most part not too bad today...
let's hope that is the case and i dont have another sleepless night - that would SUCK with this short work week...

of course I also got concerned about this going away before the Keane concert and the Beluga & Friends experience.

looking forward to it... my mom is already packed for the road trip... silly excitable woman!

and here we are

i lost 2 more pounds this week... unfortunately i would say the majority of it is from the nasty stomach ailment i have been fighting...  i thought it was bad food.  maybe it was.  not sure.  last week i thought it was a high test burger that had upset my stomach.  this week there was a roast beef sandwich and that broccoli soup.  i decided it was probably the soup.
i woke up in the middle of the night on wednesday with shooting cramps through my stomach. it felt like i had done over 1000 crunches.  i thought it had passed by yesterday and then last night again - chills and cramps for the majority of the evening.  i dont know what was revolting in my system but there was/is definitely something not going right...
i finally fell asleep around 5am and woke feeling OK
i went to the grocery store with a list of bland foods - yogurt, chicken noodle soup, apple sauce, cream of wheat... you know the drill... i also bought items to make chili con carne and chicken tika masala...  i know not sure what i was thinking with that menu choice... sooth the stomach and then revolt against it..
not quite sure...

i am 3 pounds away from my basic goal weight.  this will have me finally in the right BMI range... not like taking a year to get there... then i want to lose another 5 pounds to give me some buffer... i am excited for this home stretch  - of course that means i will gain a few more pounds before dropping the next 3.

the problem with losing 20 pounds since last year... and it will be between 25 and 30 when i am done...  things don't fit!  all of my jeans are too big...  even the ones that i bought in april are too big already.  and the bras - gosh the bras - the one i decided to wear today in the midst of ailment is just silly big an not supportive - but hey i have spent the day on the couch watching An Idiot Abroad, sitting on a heating pad so... 

i am restless at this time and would just like to feel better...
and here we go with season 3 of An Idiot Abroad...  might need to cozy on up here on the couch

Wait weight

I regrouped on weight loss over the past year. Yes, it is 20 pounds since last year this time. And now I was working for another 10. 10? You say. Yes. This would give me sufficient wiggle room. Unfortunately one of the things I have noticed about my weight loss... It plateaus fairly frequently. So I am in wait mode for some of these next pounds to go away.

goals for the year

yeah, those are still up in the air... i have found that there are a few other things i want to be doing with my days and am not entirely sure that will enable such focus on tri training... and i am beginning to be ok with that... but just beginning...
this month's other focus is that beluga whale experience i mentioned previously... it also entails the Keane concert, CNN tour and seeing some friends and family
February - HOLD ON TO YOUR HATS! - we are going indoor sky-diving...  my friends gave it to us as a group gift.  I think they wanted to do it and found a groupon or vice versa
March - I think we will do that 4 mile St. Patricks Day run again
April - this is a big travel month for work - may do some more sightseeing while out and about
May - there is a triathlon I am considering doing
June/July - there is that Robbie Williams concert :)  still considering... just not sure I want to spend the $$
and then it is up in the air for the rest of the year...

Anxious knees

This is the term my friend uses to describe a variation of restless leg syndrome.  Like anyone really knows what that is.  I know as a child when I would sit on the couch at night with my mom and watch tv she would have some constant leg movement.  I used to make fun of her because it was movement movement movement.  And it would get so distracting at times.  Ironcially I find that I do that at times as well.  Not all the time but noticeable enough.
So the other night my "anxious knees" were doing there work while I was trying to get to sleep.  This is probably where I notice it most.  Anyways, my foot caught on something.  HUH?  What is that?  Now on occassion I use an extra REALLY SOFT throw to sleep when I get a little chilly.  But this was not it.  So I get up pull back the covers to see what is going on. 
Somehow I have worn my sheets thin down there where my feet are.  Just a small spot.  Maybe 6 inches in diameter.  Made me chuckle.  WTH have I done?  Guess I have been doing some moving moving moving when I sleep.  Out of sheer laziness I left the sheets on the bed.  They are the softest sheets I own.  And over the course of the remainder of the week I did find that I was moving moving moving.  I always said a good night's sleep for me did entail a small aerobic workout. 
I went to the mall yesterday and got some new Eqyptian cotton sheets.  They are pretty darned soft so we will see how these go.
The saleswoman claimed that wrinkle resistant sheets are starting to show a shorter bed-life.  These new sheets are not wrinkle resistant.  Oh and I am totally fine with that. 
The funny thing about it.  In the mission or excitement of getting new sheets - I bought the exact same color of the ones I was replacing.  I can be so consistent at times.

Invisalign Week 2

This is the same tray as last week.  That photo ended up on FB.  It was more smile and less teeth.
I have 15 trays that I will switch out every two weeks.  Every third tray I go back to the orthodontist to get them checked etc.
I am very excited.
Yes, I know I have paid to have my teeth straightened before.  And they arent that crooked. But this is something I have wanted to go back and do for a while now.
So I am.

For my anonymous reader

Yes, you know who you are...  So have I shared this with you yet or not?  I think I havent as it has been up in the air for a while now.  I bought a ticket to see Keane in Atlanta later this month.  It has thankfully worked out to be a day of work and a day off type of trip.  It has been a while since I have worked a holiday in on a trip to ATL.  I am very excited for the concert.  Yes, this will be the 3rd time I have seen them in concert.  I think the crazy road trip to Charleston to see them in this little tiny venue was the best show...  Tom and Tim and Richard were all right there.  Anyways I digress.
And will probably find myself listening to Bedshaped for the better part of the day as part of the digression.
ANYWAYS....
We are going to the aquarium.  You know I LOVE the aquarium.  And it has been updated since I was there last.  They have added a dolphin exhibit that should be fun.  And they have added some behind the scenes experiences.  I have been toying with the idea of snorkeling or diving in the big tank.  I had seriously thought about taking a refresher SCUBA course and everything.  And then I found a newer program.  This one is a few hours hanging out with the beluga whales.  I remember the first time I saw the beluga whales...  I was in a funk of a mood and they seemed to make everything right.  I mean you can swim with dolphins any day but who can say they were in the water with beluga whales.... OK - I dont think it will be swimming around with them but at least some hand to fin contact.  And listen to this --- my mom is coming along.  How cool is that!?
I will post how it goes.

Trainer

I am so happy with my bike trainer.  I don't care if it is used or second hand.  I would even be OK if someone were to tell me I paid too much for it.  Well that comment is more a reflection of the seller than anything else at this moment...  I have found myself using it more and more consistently and readily these days.  I jumped on it for 12 minutes this morning.  I rode for 30 minutes the other night.  I listen to books on tape.  I listen to music.  And most unique activity -- I have been watching old Disney Disney movies on VHS.
There however is a downfall to the trainer...  No, not that I am not going to the gym and seeing people.  I am so OK with that.  It would be saddle sores.  No better way to put it.  I have read about them in all my training books, magazines and web-sites.  But I guess when you normally only ride once or twice a week and then ride a stationary bike with wider seat - this hasnt happened before. 
Hmmmm....

Weekend

The weekend didnt do well for my weight goals.  I had a small dinner gathering.  The food was all healthy - low fat, high fiber, good protein...  The Jeff Gordon wine we were trying - the whole purpose of the dinner gathering - was not.  OK - in moderation - but I always feel like it makes me want to snack more.
On Sunday we went to visit friends for a late Christmas get together.  There were martinis there.  Gosh talk about sugar in a glass.  Thankfully those are my only friends fascinated with martinis so they are few and far between.  Of course there was snacking there as well.  There were these jalapeno crescent wraps that were very tasty.  I may have to try a version of those again sometime soon.
Overall with the weekend I went for a walk and a trainer ride but for the most part the headache that started Tuesday lingered all the way until yesterday morning.
So I am back on the focus of better eating for the week. Oh and getting lots of water.  I think these last 6 pounds are going to be a struggle to get off.
Yesterday I got a run in for the morning - although it needs to get longer.  And I did a trainer ride in the evening - that too could be a bit longer.  And as always I am looking for other workouts to help with that confusion thing and well as ramp up the calorie burn.
Open to any suggestions...  OK - I know swimming needs to be added back to the mix.

Blood Donation

It has been a while since i have given blood.  OK maybe just a little over 10 weeks.  I had to cancel one time because I just didnt feel well.  Then another time because I didnt want to donate right before going away.  So I decided - since my headache went away - to do a walk in at the blood bank this evening.  SO GLAD I DID! There was no one in there and since demand is high I felt good for making the effort.  If you can handle the process, your pulse is good, blood pressure good, no temperature and adequate iron... oh and the needles process...  it is one of the easiest ways to give back.  Me, I have suffered from the overall process before -- does anyone recall that time I passed out at a blood drive at the library?  NOT FUN!  It took me a while to get back into the swing of it and now I only go to the blood bank.  And there have been the ordeals where my iron has not been high enough.  I have now started to take a multi-vitamin with iron on a more regular basis.  And that has been a help with my iron levels when donating.

So when was the last time you gave blood?

Four down

Those 4 unruly pounds that I have picked up as a souvenir while in Dublin have found their way back to Dublin.  I figured it would not take much with some cleaner eating.  Now I still have 6 pounds that need to lose to hit my 2012 goal.  Yes, I know I am a little off.  But I am OK with that.  The reason I word it that way is because once I hit this goal I am technically considered a maintenance weight at WW - at least that is my understanding of the program.  But when you look at BMI charts or at my weight from younger years (much younger years - we are talking 20s) I would say there are probably an additional 5 to 10 (although that may be extreme) that could be lost.  I think I would have to really ramp up the workouts... pushing myself harder than I have to date.  And probably a bit obsessive when it comes to eating, especially when I travel for work.  So those other 5 pounds are the 2013 goal.

As for races?  I am still researching them.  Mostly because of $$ concerns.  With an increase in my health insurance costs and that lovely 2% increase in payroll taxes I need to work on the budget first.  And I am considering cancelling my gym membership.  Between the trainer and SCCL fitness center and pool I dont think I need to be parting with the $$ I have been paying for a facility I havent used in MONTHS!

More soup

Dinner is soup

I had forgotten the plethora of veg soups in Ireland and that they puree them all.  So I revisited my cauliflower soup recipe and made a soup with cauliflower and squash for this week.  Next week will be an apple broccoli variety.

Dublin Detox Diet

This week requires getting back to fruit and veg.  So for this weeks breakfast I had baked apples and cranberries with orange juice and cinnamon.