Eat (at home).

My friend Bill wrote to me a few weeks back and asked how I was doing on my own quest to lose 10 pounds. Back in October, the numbers on the scale had crept up a bit too much and I began writing about my own experience to lose 10 pounds. After a month or so, my 10pound updates were consumed by other blog writing and, quite honestly, I didn't know if anyone was reading or if my observations were actually serving anyone else. I don't blog for me and in the absence of feedback or support to continue telling my story, I stopped. Thank you, Bill, for letting me know you did read and for taking the time to send me a note to check in on my progress!

Since my last update (11/15 at 127 pounds), we've had the holiday season and traveling and 2011 started off with more travel and many more meetings. Last week for example, nearly every meal was at a restaurant for lunch and dinner meetings on top of which I had a nasty cough so didn't do any cardio work for fear I'd cough up a lung. The scale on Sunday morning was 133. I grumbled about the house for a little while. It is so frustrating to make progress and then go in the opposite direction. Grrrrrr.

Since Sunday evening, I've prepared every meal for myself. The scale this morning? 130. I've lost 1 pound a day for three days in a row. I'm eating whatever I want, including having wine with dinner. Granted, when I made my Move.Eat.Be. plan for the week, the foods I chose were healthy. I concocted kale and white bean casseroles in my new little Le Creuset pots (I love them!) with a side salad and bread (yes, I'm eating bread!). Last night was poached salmon with tomato and green onion sauce (cooked in 2 TBS of butter), side salad, a left-over mini casserole and more bread. Tonight is roast chicken with root vegetables. Lunches are leftovers or salad greens with hummus, mushrooms and avocado. Breakfast is (usually always) banana, blueberries (frozen, wild, organic), other fresh fruit as available, topped with ground flaxseed and accompanied by almonds. I had a cookie last night. And, I've done a workout each morning and am following along to most of our 10-to Workday Workout program.

The moral of this story? Eat at home! It is much less expensive. It is much better for you. And, honest, it does not take that much time to cook dinner. Please don't be freaked out by the cooking shows and the celebrity chefs who use 10 pans, 20 bowls and claim you can cook like them in 30 minutes (sure you can, if there is a crew prepping for you and cleaning up after you).

Take the poached salmon. It literally took me 20 minutes from start to table like so:

1. Turn oven to 350⁰
2. Put water on to boil
3. Slice green onions and salmon filet into 1" wide serving pieces (sprinkle with salt and pepper)
4. Put mini-casseroles in oven to reheat
5. Make a salad dressing (olive oil, balsamic, dijon mustard, pepper, salt, thyme)
6. Stage sauce ingredients (grape tomatos, 2 TBS butter, sliced green onions, salt, pepper) near stovetop
7. Put salmon into boiling water (cooks in 10 minutes for 1" inch think slices)
8. Slice bread and pour some olive oil into a dish with freshly ground pepper
9. Put plates on counter. Set the table. Pour wine.
10. Heat butter in skillet
11. Poor a wee bit of salad dressing into bag of salad greens. Shake.
12. Put tomatoes in skillet with butter, cook for 2 minutes, add green onions. Cook for 2 more minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
13. Take salmon out of water
14. Plate (salmon with sauce on top next to salad). Slices of lemon. 
15. Retrieve casseroles from oven
16. Carry to table
17. Sit. Eat. Enjoy.
18. Cleanup took less than 10 minutes, including hand-washing the cookware.

Going out to eat is one of my very favorite things to do. But, until we can implement The Real Food Label in our restaurants, it is very difficult to understand what is really in the food we eat when we're out. And, I fear the additives and quality of the food when eating out (there are very few organic restaurants) has a negative impact on my ability to avoid weight gain. I'm amazed by how three days of eating at home has made such a big difference. Do yourself, and your scale, a favor.... create a Move.Eat.Be. plan each week and explore the rewards from your own cooking. 

I'm here! I'm here!

My last update was the letter to our members about the system failure last week. Gratefully, we were able to recover the data and got things back to normal after a few days. Needless to say, updating the blog with the 10 pound quest fell to the bottom of the list during that time. A few observations from the last week or so and then on to my Move.Eat.Be. plan for this week:

Observations:

• I've never been a person who turns to food as a way to deal with stress (thankfully). My body responds by not wanting food. My stress is always centered in my stomach which zaps my appetite. 
• I also don't sleep much in times of turmoil. My mind works overtime and if, I wake up, I'm up. I had several very early mornings last week which provided me some benefit of sticking with my exercise routine. I will say waking up between 4:30 and 5:30 AM for a week isn't really fun. I love sleep and I really, really miss it when I don't get enough. 
• By Friday the scale was 127 pounds and I was exhausted. Cybercise sponsored a great event on Friday, HealthCampDC 2010, so I was distracted from my exhaustion by spending the day with smart, innovative and creative people (more on HealthCamp later!). 
• The weekend was recovery time. I managed to get more sleep, get myself re-organized and catch up on some of the work that was put aside last week. Plus, I kept an eye on our AnyLuckyDay contest on Saturday and had great fun reading all of the comments about us. I also ran 2 miles on Saturday and took my dog for a nice long walk on Sunday. It was a welcome break to be outside and away from computer screens for a few hours each day. 
• And, the scale this morning? 130. Ugh. Just in case the Universe gets any ideas, I'll deal with the extra three pounds in a healthful way... I do not desire any more catastrophes this week to help with the weight loss. 
• What have I learned? 
• Be more vigilant about how our website is managed so as to avoid major issues.
• Keep exercising, no matter how bad things get. It was truly the only thing that kept me sane.
• Water not coffee.  
• Spend more time with smart, innovative and creative people. It was so energizing!
• Use time in nature to balance too much time with electronics.

Today's Thoughts:

• Most of the many things on my list last week got delayed. I now have four days before departure for my trip and 10 days worth of work to do. Plus, an all-day meeting on Wednesday (an hour away and which starts with breakfast at 6:30 AM -- who does that??) and the pesky details like packing. Efficiency is king this week and I'm facing the very real reality that this holiday will include significant work. 
• My right hip and lower back is a bit achy this morning. I skipped the run this morning and did some extra stretching and core work. I also did upper body strength work and will do more stretching this evening.
• My right arm and elbow is also very painful today. I have "mouse elbow" which is tennis elbow from mousing/keyboarding. I have been through our medical system and there is no "cure." I know what works... staying off of the computer. Since I have much work to do, I've set a reminder on my Cybercise calendar for an upper body stretch every two hours today. Wrist and forearm stretches help a great deal so I'll go that route today. 
• Last night, I tossed together a very quick and easy Chana Masala. It was a great light and warming dinner for a Sunday evening. Will enjoy what is left for lunch today. The rest of the Eat. plan this week is mostly fruits and vegetables with a few hard boiled eggs for protein. Arugula, sauteed kale and organic, frozen blueberries are my best food friends. 

And, now back to work. I'm so excited to write to the winners of our AnyLuckyDay contest! A great website and if you're not familiar, find them on the web, Twitter and Facebook. Enjoy!

Tuesday Gratefulness

An early morning and a great workout already accomplished! I must admit I didn't want to hop on the treadmill this morning and the first few paces were sluggish, at best. I wanted to stop. As I lumbered along I kept thinking about all of the people who want to stop. I thought about those who do stop. I thought about those who continue. I thought of a friend from high school who ran the Marine Corp marathon recently. I thought of some of the Wounded Warriors I've had the honor to work with, those who don't stop even when they come home missing a limb.

We all have those moments when we want to stop. If you find yourself facing one of those moments, think of all the other people who didn't stop. Be inspired by them and then keep going so you can inspire someone else down the line. We all have something to be grateful for each day. Today, I'm grateful for the inspiration and encouragement I receive from others. If you need a dose of encouragement, write to me. I'll cheer for you.

PS - Down a pound this morning.

Monday Move.Eat.Be. plan

Happy Monday! Gratefully it is not quite so dark in the morning and I really don't like when it gets dark at 5:30 in the afternoon. I'd encourage you to explore how you can have completely opposite feelings about the same thing. Both and.

Last week was full of a great deal of activity including several meetings and conferences. Simply put, it is more difficult to be healthy when the schedule is full. And, I suffered from the same thing I encourage people to avoid. I put my own health last, at least once, last week. Sometimes it will happen and we can't beat ourselves up when it does. We have to guard against letting it happen over and over.

And now for the big push. In 10 days, I leave for a trip for the Thanksgiving holiday. I want to crush at least a few of the final 5 pounds in the next 10 days (scale was 129.8 this morning). So, to start the week, here is my Move.Eat.Be. plan.

I've already done the most of my workout for the day and am glad I can sink my teeth into work and not worry about getting caught up and not getting that done today. I also have a great deal of work I would like to get finished before the trip so most of my meals this week are things that don't require a great deal of time or attention. Lots of arugula... have I mentioned I love arugula??? 

Feel free to use this format and create your own Move.Eat.Be. plan for this week. I promise, it will make all the difference in the world. Happy week! 

TGI Thursday!

Sometimes being positive can make you feel positive. Thank Goodness it's Thursday! Good enough for now...

Yesterday's Observations:

• The scheduled workouts didn't happen yesterday. Some significant software issues consumed the better part of my day and with a dinner meeting last night, I missed my exercise. Grrrrr.
• Eating out healthfully requires extra effort though is possible. Breakfast was sliced melons and whole wheat toast (with too much coffee). Dinner was a salad (dressing on the side which I didn't use) and grilled salmon with jasmine rice. Both were tasty and I didn't even want the cream soaked dish my dining companions were having. 
• I opted to walk to and from the dinner meeting about 1 mile each day. It was my last chance to get some exercise and it felt very good to be out in the fresh air. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Tired today in spite of a good night of sleep. A combination of rain and no exercise yesterday, perhaps.
• Lunch time exercise on tap for today as well. Yoga was completed this morning and then started working and, voila, here it is after 11 AM. 
• Dinner this evening is spaghetti squash pasta with marinara sauce. If you haven't made spaghetti squash "pasta" it is an easy and healthy substitute for wheat pasta. You cut the squash in half (carefully, tough skin) and clean out the seeds, put it in the oven at 350° for 1 hour, let it cool and scape out the flesh with a fork. The flesh comes out spaghetti like and you simply spoon your sauce over the top. Easy, lots of vitamins and tasty! 

I'm working on a blog about food labels and I've discovered some very frightening stuff. Stay tuned!

Does Anybody Know What Day It Is?

Happy Wednesday. I had to look at the calendar. Long week already!

Yesterday's Observations:

• White turkey chili was even more tasty re-heated as dinner last night. I think it helps to take the extra time and use the stove vs. the microwave. Plus, who needs all those extra microwaves in their food?
• I did not do any yoga or stretching last night. I am not as disciplined about my evening routine. The question is should I try harder or accept my habits and create a different schedule? 
• The chair is key. If you spend most of your time sitting make sure you have a good chair. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale was ugly this morning: 130.2. I didn't sleep enough last night and drank a bunch of water when I woke up and before I got on the scale. I can blame those two things and it was still unpleasant.
• Breakfast meetings which start at 7:30 AM should be outlawed. 
• I managed the morning yoga but not the rest of the morning exercise regime. It is after 10 AM, I'm tired and feeling a bit like I've already not accomplished enough (lack of exercise or too much coffee???) for the day. 
• I think a lunchtime exercise session is in order. Dinner meeting scheduled for this evening so working out after work is not an option. 
• There are some days when listening to your own advice is a challenge. 

Time to get back to work! Until tomorrow...

Election Day Update

The web is a very powerful force during election time. All about the web today are notes and reminders to vote and people are proudly displaying their "I Voted" badge on Facebook. Maybe we need to implement a "I Worked Out" badge for our members to display when they finished their favorite workout? Interesting idea... so let's get to the update before I distract myself with more new great ideas!

Yesterday's Observation:

• Too busy of a day so I didn't eat lunch until 2:30 PM. This actually worked out fine because I didn't get to dinner until after 8 PM. In the interest of taking better care of one's self letting work consume your life so that you don't eat regularly is not the best plan. 
• I was very happy I got my workouts done in the morning. Otherwise, I don't think they would have happened yesterday. 
• When I did get to lunch, I re-heated the soup from Friday night. It was much, much better the second time around. 

Today's Thoughts:

• It should not be dark when we wake up. It should be light. I don't like the time change because it is dark at 4 PM, but this getting up in the night is for the birds. I think I need to move somewhere closer to the equator. Ideas?
• I managed a reasonable workout this morning with only a few Cyberbands. I really can workout anywhere!
• The experience of sharing my quest to lose 10 pounds is giving me great ideas for improvements for Cybercise which is, in turn, creating more work. I am beginning to believe this little project of mine will always be creating new ideas. I'd love to hear yours otherwise I only have myself to listen to. What can I do to make us better? 

Have a great Tuesday. And, vote!

Monday Mania

Happy Monday and Happy November! How do you choose between the list of things to do and your own health? Carefully and with an eye to the future. Sometimes this means saying no more often and learning to do so takes some practice. It helps if you're really clear about what is important in your life. Stay tuned for more ideas to "Get Clear." For now, onto the update:

Yesterday's Observations (and Saturday too):

• I didn't feel like blogging yesterday. I'm sorry if my lack of an update disappointed you. I chose me and didn't sit down at my computer until 8:30 last night. Of course, I was working the Twitter scene on my mobile device most of the morning. It was some progress... baby steps!
• The investment in an Eat. plan a trip to the grocery store on Friday made for a lovely weekend of healthful, home cooking: soup on Friday night, roasted chicken with vegetables on Saturday night and white turkey chili on Sunday night. Plenty of leftovers for healthful lunches this week and it was nice to be in a house full of cooking aromas. 
• Sunday included a 2 mile walk/jog followed by a 90 minutes hiking near the reservoir rounded out a nice day of Move.

 Today's Thoughts:

• Glutes and hammies are very aware of all the hiking yesterday. As is my right thigh from which I extracted a tick this morning. Ouch. And, my dog is still lazing clearly sore from all of his leaping into the water to chase sticks. 
• Back to the workout before work this morning! Yoga, strength and cardio all done for the day. It is a great feeling to have me be the first thing I take care of each day. 
• Lunch will be some leftovers from this weekend with some arugula! 
• Busy, busy week with many meetings. It is so helpful to have my Move.Eat.Be. plan done before the week starts. 

Enjoy your Monday and help someone else enjoy theirs, too. 

Saturday Update

Good morning.... eek! Good afternoon! Let the update commence:

Yesterday's Observations:

• Dinner entree was a tad bland. Great salad of arugula, apple and walnut as a starter. So easy to make healthful salad dressing (olive oil, balsamic, dijon, salt, pepper)!
• Will make bread today! Didn't get the stuff in the machine in time yesterday. 
• Trip to grocery store to buy organic ingredients for 2 breakfasts, 1 lunch and 3 dinners? $106.47 will feed 3 people with leftovers. Not bad...

Today's Thoughts:

• Lazy morning. We need those every now and again!
• Yoga complete and off to do some abs and upper body work before heading out for lunch. 
• Simple dinner tonight: Whole chicken (stuffed with rosemary and lemon) surrounded by beets, potatoes, carrots and onions. One pot into the oven. Easy! I can't wait for the aroma to fill the kitchen.  

Enjoy your Saturday. Follow my lead and do something fun today!

Tweety, too!

Happy Friday afternoon. So much for my morning update. I'm late! Lots of action at TEDMED. If you're interested, search for #tedmed on Twitter.

Yesterday's Observations:

• Dinner was great and a welcome change from being out so often this week. All recipes from WholeFoods which is a great source of tasty meals. 
• Decided to take another long stroll with my dog after work last night. The Autumn weather was pretending it was summer so we went out to enjoy the warmth. 
• More green tea and less coffee yesterday. I slept more soundly. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning? 129.2 Gained 4 ounces since yesterday. Is it bad to get on the scale each morning? Most "experts" would say yes. And, it works for me. I get on the scale most mornings because I am collecting data on myself and being aware of the impact of my choices. I would much rather know about 4 ounces or 1 pound than be shocked by the 10 pounds like 2 weeks ago. I don't torture myself over 4 ounces, I simply consider listening to my body.  
• Haven't worked out yet today and am planning on doing so after work this evening. The day doesn't feel quite "in gear" without my morning exercise. Interesting....
• Am looking forward to Hearty Greens Soup with Bowtie Pasta and Tomatoes for dinner with some home-made bread. Do you have a bread maker gathering dust in a closet somewhere? Go find it! It is great during the cooler weather and the resulting bread is much better for you. 
• Am gathering data on eating organic. I know people say it is too expensive. And, yes it is more costly though I have a theory if we plan our meals well and reduce eating out, choosing organic is actually affordable. Stay tuned...

Have a lovely Friday afternoon and be sure to schedule some time for your health this weekend! 

My lead? Yes. My plan? No!

Update for this Thursday and 11 days into the "down with the pounds" project. To the update and then an explanation.

Yesterday's Observations:

• Had a great dinner meeting and meal. Raw oysters as a starter and a salad as my main. I was full and satisfied. Nobody else had a salad for dinner. Alas, sometimes you lead alone. 
• My other food for yesterday consisted of: banana, 1/2 blueberries, 4 strawberries, 1 ounce of almonds, 2 cups of arugula, 5 mushrooms. Not a great deal of food. It works for me and it may not work for you (see explanation below).
• I'm doing some core work every day and have noticed fewer back twinges. I think, perhaps, core work is the unappreciated exercise. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning: 128.6 pounds. 
• Busy day already. Breakfast meeting complete and off to lunch meeting soon. Breakfast? A cup of fresh fruit, whole wheat bread and tomato juice. Not as healthful as my home-prepared breakfast, mind you, and still pretty reasonable. 
• Did yoga, abs and lower body workout early this morning (still dark out, ugh). Had planned on 5 miles on the stationary bike and decided to take it slow, instead. My dog and I walked for nearly 2 miles. Yes, running and biking is a faster way to burn calories. And, sometimes our bodies need to slow down and enjoy the process of exercise. We walked briskly and enjoyed a very lovely autumn morning. 
• Am planning some additional exercise this evening after work and then a lovely home-cooked meal. Marinated and grilled portobello mushroom with avocado, black bean and mango on arugula (I love arugula, in case you haven't noticed). Can't wait!

Explanation:

I've been talking about leading by example and I encourage you to do so, too. You're more than welcome to follow my lead and eat at home more often, make better food choices when eating out and do some exercise (and even some core exercise) every day. If you take better care of yourself, the people around you will take better care of themselves. Do I have proof? Lots of anecdotal evidence and no double-blind clinical studies. Don't believe me? Try it! 

And there is a catch... you can follow my lead but you can't follow my plan. My plan is my plan and you can't have it. Why am I being so stingy all of the sudden? Because I care about you. The reason my plan works is because I invest the time and effort in learning what works for me. What works for me will, most likely, not work for you. Life-long, sustainable and easy health and wellness requires that each one of us find our own recipe for success. The latest diet fad is a waste of time and the newest fitness gadget is a waste of money. Are they mindless to follow? Perhaps. Will they last? Not likely. 

I want you to invest in you. I want you to learn how to take care of your own health, to find the kind of exercise you enjoy (and can sustain), to make better food choices (and get away from the trap of processed foods). I want you to create your own life well lived. Follow my lead!

Where is Wednesday Going?

Starting your morning with software updates is certainly an adventurous way to begin the day. Whew! Things appear to be functioning at the moment... fingers crossed! On to the update...

Yesterday's Observations:

• I am saving a great deal of time and money by planning and preparing my own meals. Meal time is now a welcome break from work because I don't have to forage for something to make. Try it!!
• After extra lower body and back stretching my knee felt better and I had my time on the treadmill. 
• Dinner meeting was tapas and I ordered the starters for our group of eight: tuna tartare, ceviche, edamame, olives and bruschetta. I thought my choices were relatively healthy. Someone else ordered fried calamari. The calamari? Gone. My choices? Some left on every plate. I had a salad as my main. Yes, people look at you funny when you order a starter salad as a entree. Yes, I ordered first. Yes, I am leading by example. Best of all, I didn't leave dinner sluggish and weighed down by a heavy entree. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Traded coffee for green tea today. 
• Have another dinner meeting this evening. Will also experiment with leading my example. Stay tuned...
• I did my strength training work before my run this morning. Was an interesting way to change things up and I had more energy for Lower Body II (15 M). 
• I want the weekend. 
• I'm going to do Total Body Stretch (10 M) before lunch to counteract spending too much time hunched over my computer. 

Until tomorrow!

Tuesday Tips

Really quick update.... off to a meeting!

Yesterday's Observations:

• I'm glad I took it easy exercise-wise yesterday. I enjoyed the walk with my dog and the bedtime yoga and stretching.
• I really enjoy the first cup of coffee. The second one, I really want to enjoy but it is just not that good. One cup of coffee going forward

Today's Thoughts:

• Lighter breakfast and lunch meals today. I have a dinner meeting tonight.
• I felt a twinge in my right knee during yoga this morning. Hopped on the treadmill for a quick run and decided to stop for now and will give it another go this afternoon. Don't want to push it and cause a real injury.

All for now. Happy Tuesday and remember to do two things for your health today!

Monday Morning Update

Week 2 has begun with a long list of things to do. Let's get on with it:

Yesterday's Observations:

• No cake. One M&M and, I have to say, it wasn't that good. Plus, one mini-scoop of homemade coconut, chocolate, minty ice cream. Very tasty and five bites was a perfect amount. 
• Drank too much tea at the birthday party... had a restless night of sleep.
• Creating my Move.Eat.Be. plan for this week took much less time than last week. It was very helpful to plan around three restaurant meals I have this week for business meetings. To see those commitments on a schedule and to understand I may eat less healthfully for those meals allowed me to plan extra-healthy for my other meals. 

Today's Thoughts:

• I didn't feel well when the alarm rang at 6 AM this morning perhaps from a bad night of sleep. I opted to stay in bed for another hour and delay my workout until later today. 
• When I did get out of bed, still not feeling great, my conscious (who has apparently taken up residence inside my partner) suggested I should listen to my body and take it easy today. I grumbled. I have work to do, workouts to do and much to accomplish. He again reminded me to follow my own advice. I commented how it is sometimes annoying to hear your own good advice repeated to you. And, I thanked him. 
• I'm going to skip the intense cardio today and opt for taking my dog for a walk this afternoon. I'll combine that with some yoga and stretching and make this a generally easy workout day. 
• I'll limit myself to two cups of coffee today and plan to get to bed early for a good night of sleep. 

I hope you spent some time working on your Move.Eat.Be. plan for your own week. It is really helpful! Have a terrific Monday!

Sunday Funday!

Quicker update:

Yesterday's Observations:

• 2 mile run outside in the beautiful fall weather was lovely. Must further train my dog to not stop and mark every other bush, tree, leaf, weed...
• Didn't do any strength training yesterday. Must do so on weekends, even if only a small amount.
• Made a terrific butternut squash, kale and white bean stew for dinner. Very tasty, very easy and great for fall. 

Today's Thoughts:

• Scale this morning. 131. Seems the positive trend was short lived. Ugh. 
• Did yoga, 6 miles on the stationary bike, a few ab exercises and Arms I (10 M). 
• Birthday party today. To cake or not to cake...?
• Will devote 30 minutes this evening to create Move.Eat.Be. plan for next week.

Enjoy your Sunday! 

Day 5 and Friday!

Sitting down to write this blog every morning helps me stay focused and determined. Plus I feel like I'm accountable to all of you for sticking with my plan to lose 10 pounds. A big thanks to those who have written and commented! Your support is so helpful. And, if you are on your own weight loss program, I'd encourage you to share your progress each day as well. You can even use my daily report format...

Yesterday's Observations:

• I want to know how much I currently weigh and I don't have a scale at the moment (long story). I think seeing the number a bit lower would be encouraging. Alas, must wait another day. 
• While working late last night, my computer blipped and I lost about an hour's worth of work (something I was determined to finish). My reaction: Shock -> Anger -> Frantic Attempts at Recovery -> Resignation -> Head on Desk -> Felt So Tired -> Wanted Cookies! 
• I didn't have cookies; drank a bunch of water instead. Wasn't very satisfying. Went to bed.
• Great lesson in how frustration can cause me to turn to sweet treats for comfort.
• Lots of water at 10 PM causes 3 AM "bio-break"
• Enjoyed a healthful, home-made lunch of a chickpea salad and greens with a dear friend (who also happens to be my cousin). It was nice to enjoy a good meal with her!

Today's Thoughts:

• Friday. Wine in my near future. Am determined to finish the work I lost yesterday, accomplish much more to stay busy, and make the evening come more quickly. 
• I'm curious about how my exercise will be impacted by the different schedule the weekend will bring. Harder? Easier? Plus a birthday party on Sunday for my 1 year old nephew. Cake and ice cream? Stay tuned...
• I woke up early and did all of my workouts this morning (except for Bedtime Yoga). It is nice to have them done and I think I'll miss the short workout breaks I've been taking during the day this week. I can always add some, of course. 

Back to work! I'm creating some terrific new content for the website and I have a few phone calls with  cool people who are also doing some really cool things in the wellness arena. Fabulous Friday!

Day 4: YO. TT.

Down with the pounds continues!

Yesterday's Observations:

• I had a pretty serious bread craving around 7 PM. Bread is not evil (provided it does not contain food-like substances) and can be part of a healthy diet. At the moment, bread is something I don't have in my Eat. plan this week. Why? It makes me want more bread and I know I'm better off with none versus a little.
• The Roasted Eggplant with Pomegranate Vinaigrette (courtesy of the WSJ this weekend) was very tasty. I didn't use the chorizo and substituted red onion for the shallot. 
• I'm getting bored (already) with treadmill running in the mornings. Get outside or seek other options!

Today's Thoughts:

• I am not a "vegetarian" though I don't normally consume a great deal of animal protein. A few servings a week, on average. This week, I'm concentrating on whole vegetables, fruits and beans. These foods are "easier" on my body (please recognize what is good for me might not be good for you).
• Is it Friday yet? I plan on enjoying a bit of red wine this weekend. Does red wine fit into a healthy Eat. plan? Yes, if you're aware of the calories and impact on your overall diet. 
• Must remember to take regular stretch breaks... hips and legs are getting stiff from sitting at the desk too long. 

Now I must get back to work. Have a terrific day! 

Day 3: YO. TT.

My quest to lose 10 pounds continues (backstory); today is Day 3. So many things I can share already and several ideas to make Cybercise even better. Very exciting! For consistency, I'll report on Yesterday's Observations (YO) and Today's Thoughts (TT) as I did yesterday. 

YO:

Yesterday's Food Log

• I drank more water; less coffee. Slept better last night.
• You look silly when jogging in place and doing so for 5 minutes feels like a very long time. 
• I took photos of my food yesterday and posted them to Twitter. It was fun!
• I also entered my food into the free service made available by FitDay (we've considered adding a similar feature to Cybercise, and may in the future, but FitDay does a great job and we have many other priorities!). 
• Granted 1,399 calories may not seem like a great deal but look at the quantities. I truly wan't hungry, though wanted something "crunchy" before bed so opted for a small handful of walnuts. 
• You may take a look at this log and be concerned about my carb intake at 154.6 grams, but recognize they were all plant-based. I won't bore you with the detailed nutritional analysis. The most important thing??? I felt good all day, had plenty of energy and wasn't hungry.

TT:

• My core/abs are a bit sore this morning. Glorious! 
• Knowing you are going to report in is very motivating. I didn't really feel like a run this morning and I did it because I didn't want to have to admit not doing so. And, I'm glad I did it along with yoga, abs and an upper body program.
• I want to make adding video programs on your Cybercise calendar easier. It works, but could be better. 
• I'm looking forward to dinner of Roasted Eggplant with Pomegranate Vinaigrette (courtesy of the WSJ this weekend). 

I'd love to hear from you. Have any feedback, thoughts, ideas? You can comment here or see our Cybercise Facebook page and comment on the link to this blog. 

Yesterday's Observations. Today's Thoughts.

Yesterday's Observations (YO):

• I didn't eat enough yesterday and didn't eat dinner until 8:30 PM (replaced the sautéed kale with baby spinach raw). My only protein was 1/2 of black beans.
• I need to drink more water. I had a bit too much coffee and not enough water. Woke up this morning thirsty... steps away from a headache from dehydration.
• Worked too late and skipped bedtime yoga. :(
• The Warm Up (10 M) program really gets your heart pumping!
• Running 2 miles was much easier 10 pounds ago

Today's Thoughts (TT):

• Did Morning Yoga (10 M), 2 miles on treadmill and Abs I (15 M) before I checked email!
• Took a photo of my breakfast, see our Twitter feed.
• Had 2 nalgene's of water before coffee.
• Will take a break from work to make dinner at a reasonable hour. 

If you have no idea what this means, I'll explain. Have a great day!

Day 1: My Move.Eat.Be. Plan

If you missed my earlier post, you can read for my weight confession and how irony hit home this morning courtesy of my scale. As promised, I devoted some time this afternoon to planning my exercise, eating and "Be." for the week. I used our Move.Eat.Be. journal which is available to Cybercise members during the 24 weeks of our program. It occurred to me this document may be useful to some of you, even if you haven't yet joined Cybercise. So, here is a little gift for you. 

What I have learned today? My first lesson was it does take some time to plan wellness into your week. I spent about 20 minutes planning my exercise and food for the week. Then I spent more time checking recipes and making a grocery list. Then I went to the grocery store. Let's just call this an hour of my day. I'm hopeful it will take less time as the weeks progress. 

The most powerful lesson today was creating my Move.Eat.Be. calendar in relation to my work and social plans for the week. For example, I'm attending a birthday party for my nephew this weekend so I know dinner on Sunday will be a surprise. As I look at the meals for the rest of the weekend, I can plan to eat a bit more carefully on Saturday and earlier Sunday so a surprise dinner won't wreck my overall food consumption for the week. I was also able to count up the servings of fruits and veggies I plan to have and make some adjustments before I went out for groceries. 

I also decided the best approach for Move. this week was to schedule several short workout sessions throughout each day. I know I feel my best if I do yoga each morning, followed by jogging a couple of miles (I like to call this "running" but I think at my pace, jogging is more appropriate). While I've maintained this daily ritual for much of the last several weeks, clearly something is missing. I think it is important to add some other cardio, stretching and strength training to slay the 10 pounds. 

My Move. calendar includes over 500 minutes of exercise this week. When I added it all up, it sounded impossible. But, when I look at each day and how the schedule is divided into many short sessions, it seems doable. Here is a look, if you're interested (not the best quality graphic - I'll work on that going forward).I decided to stick with this plan and see how I progress throughout the week. 

Generally, I am pleased with the time I took today to put together my plan. Hopefully, it will save some time later in the week typically used up by deciding what to eat each day. 

For now, since I've spent this day working, planning and writing, I have some exercise to do and dinner to prepare. There is sautéed kale in my future. Yummy!