A Dietary Sin

It was a good weekend, can't believe it is already Tuesday night. So much for keeping on top of things.

My sister was in town for a long weekend and it was great to hang out with her. I started out my weekend with a nice 5 mile run. I hadn't run in a week due to being sick all last week so I was excited to get back into it. (I've still got a cough, I'm hoping to kick this cold soon.) Then I hung out with my sister all afternoon. We went to see "Footloose", it was awesome but I ate a lot of popcorn and that was just the beginning.

I did admit to Lisa that I was planning on eating pizza and drinking wine. She called the pizza a "dietary sin". I totally agree but it has to be my very favorite food. And it was pizza from Steve's Pizza in River Falls!!! If you haven't had that pizza, you are missing out. I did eat the pizza and I ate a lot of it. I drank wine and ate chocolate too. Not good, but I did.

Sometimes I just feel that I need to eat that kind of food from time to time (with lots of time in between) just to remind myself why I eat good foods. I also ate plenty on Sunday too. It makes me happy for Monday morning and I hopped right back on that wagon as soon as my the alarm went off. I didn't run on Monday due to some sick kids, but I did run today and plan on a good workout tomorrow and the rest of week.

I'm in training mode for a 10K on New Year's Day so I don't have to put too many miles on my legs at a time and that's kind of nice. But come 2012, we will be training for a half marathon in March and I plan on running well at the race.

So here's to a good rest of the week and to feeling much better by the end of this week. And of course that Colton's head healing fast!

A Monster Performance!

You gotta love when you spend a week taking care of your sick kids only to find yourself sick. And there is nothing worse than feeling like crap and having one hyper active kid and another one that doesn't want to be anywhere but in your arms. So what do ya do? I guess you just take it as it comes. At least that is what I had to do all day today. I didn't do any work on my computer like I should have, just didn't feel very well all day. Bad headache and tired and all the good stuff that comes with a cold. Now I'm sitting on the couch, watching Sunday Night Football with my heat warmer around my neck and just relaxing under a comfy blanket. My kids are in bed watching movies.

At least this cold didn't come on til today because yesterday was a big day for me. I ran the Monster Dash 10 mile race. I was so excited and very nervous for this game. I went to the race with my pal Tera Busker who ran the 1/2. I wasn't ready for a 1/2 so about a month ago I decided to run the 10 mile race instead. Hole cow! I ran the race in 1 hour, 28 minutes and 7 seconds. That's an average 8:49 miles. That is the fastest I have ever run a race. What an exciting accomplishment. I registered for the Polar Dash on New Years Day. Decided to go with a 10K just in case I'm up late on New Years Eve.

So now we are going into a new week. I had a great week last week and look forward to another good week. I'm hoping that I start seeing results on the scale more. I feel good and tight, but I still have like 17 lbs of extra fat that I don't need on my body. All I can do is keep eating well, working out and doing what I do best! Hopefully I will check back in after I weigh in this week.

Chat with you soon, Have a happy Monday!

Dear Lisa...

(This blog post is a letter to my Nutrition Counselor Lisa Kolashinski)

Dear Lisa,
I just wanted to let you know via blog letter how my weekend went. I was a little bummed after I left your center on Friday. I gained in every category, what a bummer especially since I felt skinner and tighter. So I was determined to get through the weekend and do a good job of it. I ate pan fried sunfish for supper, very yummy, no coating, used olive oil and real butter. Very good. No startchy carbs for me. Saturday started with a nice 6 mile run and I really ate well all day. We had bear roast for dinner with cooked carrots and potatoes. I did eat a potato, but only one small potato. I knew I shouldn't have, but I did. Then on Sunday, I felt good, had my eye on the prize but fumbled a bit at dinner at my dad's house. They had lasagna, a squash casserole, garlic bread and green beans. I chose to eat a small piece of lasagna (share 1/2 with Cash) and a small amount of the squash casserole (yellow squash, hamburger and barley) and then some green beans. After I was done, I sat there and debated whether I should eat more or not. I really wanted more of that casserole and the lasagna was yummy, BUT, I did a good, I didn't eat anymore. (And I was satisfied, more would have made me feel sick) Then for dinner on Sunday night, I ate chicken and green beans. So I really felt good about the weekend. Maybe too much in the carb department, but I could have done worse. Of course if it wasn't for my hubby buying me a bottle of Merlot instead of a fruity sweet bottle of wine, I would have drank wine on Saturday night too. I guess I didn't need the extra calories!

Lisa - I'm in race mode this week. I'm running a 10 mile race on Saturday, the Monster Dash! I'm very excited about the race. My running has been good. I may not be as ready as I want for a 10 mile race, but it will be just fine. I haven't really stopped running at all this summer even though it was a rough summer. I'm getting even more excited for the race season next year. I want to start out the new year with a 10K on New Year's Day...we will see how that goes.

Til next time...........................

Happy Anniversary To Me!

It has been so long, can't believe I've been such a slacker this summer. It has been a hard summer and summer is usually hard for me. I have a hard time staying on top of my diet and sticking to a workout routine because life is just so busy for me during the summer. Not an excuse but it's all I've got. I'm just NOT disciplined in the summer.

So I've been disappointed towards myself all summer long. My weight gain and fat gain shows it. So it's time to get back on track, this time for real.

It has been a year since I started working with Lisa Kolashinski at Physicians Weight Loss in Hudson. We have become great friends and I respect her so much. She is so knowledgeable and there when I need her. I've just got to use her more often. I would recommend her to anyone. And it really is so easy and simple to loose weight and build muscle. So what's the problem -- well, it is all about discipline, at least for me. When I'm eating good and working, I feel great. I feel tight and have lots of energy and just feel like I'm on top of my game. Once again, so what is the problem, then? Life is hard and stressful and full of ups and downs and it has been a hard summer for me. Besides so much going on, work has been slow and when you aren't getting paid, then the stress level goes way up because you don't have the money. That was another one of my problems this summer.

And I'm sick of that now. I need to start controlling my weekends and start getting back on a strict workout schedule. When I'm on that strict workout schedule I can really control everything in my life better. I'm also going to do a super colon cleanse. I'm just feeling like I need to "clean house". Isn't it kind of the fall cleaning time anyway? Well I'm going to start that this week as well.

I'm also working on trying something new with my diet, this is keeping away from all starchy carbs. This is Lisa Kolashinski's new thing and she's got me trying too.

I'll keep you in touch!

The Pain of Beauty

On my last blog, I announced that I was going to get a bikini wax, well I did and it was an experience!

Let me start with my waxer extraordinaire! Lori Crooks of Clearwater Center in River Falls is wonderful. It’s kind of an embarrassing and vulnerable experience and she made me feel very comfortable. There was a lot of laughing and joking and “I can’t believe I’m doing this”. Lori stared with a questionnaire and then explained the process. And it hurt too. I’m not trying to discourage you from trying this out because I will do it again; I’m just being totally honest. It was worse than an eyebrow wax by 10 but not quite as bad as child birth.
Clearwater Center is located right on Main Street in River Falls. Lori does body waxing and electrolysis. I would highly recommend trying something new. Its great not having to shave and I’m excited not worry about shaving all summer long. Find out more about Clearwater Center at www.clearwaterwi.com. You won’t be sorry, Lori is a wonderful person.

Now onto race results; I’ve been running for months training for a ½ marathon and that marathon took place last Sunday. The Eau Claire ½ Marathon is the first marathon I have run in 2 years. I’ve been very excited about this race for over a year now. I’m very proud to report that I ran the race in 2 hours, 2 minutes and 8 seconds. My best race results yet. My goal was 2 hours, but it was cold and windy and it even snowed! I know I could have hit my goal if the weather wasn’t so miserable. I ran well throughout the race, and felt really good; the miles just few by. Now I’m looking forward towards my next ½ marathon. I’m in such good shape, I don’t want to stop.

And finally – my diet! I have been fluctuating within the same 5 lbs for two months now. It’s frustrating but it’s a good weight for me to be fluctuating within. I’m taking this week off of hard core dieting; mostly from writing my entire food intake down. I’m also concentrating on the amount of carbs I’m eating as well. I feel like that is the key to my weight loss.

Til next time…

Women of Inspiration

I have had the privilege of meeting and getting to know many phenomenal men and women on my journey. It blows my mind how lucky I've been to learn from & get to know these people This week I got to meet & hand out with 2 fabulous women. One I just met and the second I've knows for a while.

I met Lori Crooks, owner of Clearwater Center for Electrolysis and Body Waxing in River Falls, for the first time at my radio show a few weeks ago. She is amazing and I'm lucky that our paths have crossed. And the funny thing about it is she knows my mom. Lori & I met for coffee on Monday and had a great chat about many subjects. (Of course in between chasing Cash around) Lori has an inspirational and heart-wrenching story to tell and it is filled with love and faith and that is relate-able. I look forward to getting to know her more.

And did I mention that she does electrolysis and body waxing? When Lori was on the radio with us - she talked about the different services she provides. So now I'm going to get a bikini wax next week. Never thought I'd do something like that. I'll let you know how it goes!

The other fabulous gal that I has the privilege of hanging out with this week is Deb Flettre. I'm not even sure what exactly her title is at Citizens State Bank, but she is up there with the "suits". She is a force amongst all men - at least that is how I see & respect her. We've known each other for a while from our involvement in the Central St. Croix Area Chamber. In fact Deb is one of the founding "mothers" of my chamber where we both currently sit on the board of directors. She was the first president and will be the next president in 2012.

Deb & I are working on a project that we plan to launch in the near future.

Speaking of launching - Shalena Janis and I are launching a new online magazine the first of May called "TheLetterWOnline.com". It's more Shalena's project than mine but I have the privilege of being involved. Shalena has helped me with the Local BIZ for a year now and she is amazing. She writes, sells and designs and she has great ideas and energy. Shalena has been involved win two different women's magazines & it is a passion of hers. I'm honored to be involved in this.

The website will launch the beginning of May & will tell the influential stories of women in the St. Croix County areal. We plan to dig in for those stories & tell them. Please become a fan of our facebook page, search The Letter W Online & watch for all the announcements - its going to be great!

Now for a weight update - after a week of feeling fat and crappy because of my period, I'm feeling good and strong. I've got a week and a half before the big race and I'm so ready. I'm eating well and building muscle and that is enough for me. I just needed to refocus (again) and concentrate on that. It truly is something that I need to work at every day and will for the rest of my life!

Til next time......................

Slow Down (my mom will get a kick out of this)

I’ve been looking for good healthy living and eating tips lately when I have free time (ha ha, that’s funny, free time!) I came across a tip that eating slower will help you fill up and help you eat less. I had to laugh when I read that. I know that is the case, but I’m a fast eater. I always have been. When I was younger, my mother always used to tell me to slow down when we ate. I finally told her, “Mom – there are two places in life that you can make up time, while you are eating and while you are driving!” That will put a smile on her face - And it makes me laugh too. My biggest problem with eating fast is when I’m really hungry, I kind of loose all my control and I just scarf it down as fast as I can to ease my hunger. I don’t do fasting well!

I’ve written and re-written this blog over and over again this past month – what can I say; it was a rough month of March. January and February were usually the months I struggle. Between the winter blues, taxes, other registrations due and the holiday hangover; the first two months are usually months I pray to be over fast! Not this year! I had awesome months!! But let me know you, March in one word – sucked! We all had the winter blues and have been waiting impatiently for spring and for me, I struggled to get back to feeling really good all month long.
It’s kind of depressing to think how far I’ve come and how amazing I’ve felt, knowing that it doesn’t take much to start gaining weight & fat back. It really brings home the idea that this is a lifestyle. I’m sure that is true for everyone, you have to work at it every day and concentrate every day. Exercise and eating right is the key to a happy healthy life.

My current stats are Weight – 157.6 lbs, Fat % - 29.9% & Muscle mass – 110.4 lbs. I’m going for 155lbs by the marathon which by the way is going really well. My training is better than it has ever been. I’m very excited for the race! (The race is on May 1st)

I’ve been busy with the Local BIZ. I wrote a feature story for the BIZ in April about Cara Bella Skin Care Studio. Be sure to pick up a copy when they come out. Carol Evans is the owner and I’ve known her a very long time. She used to take care of my sisters and I when we were little. She might have been our first daycare provider. I also graduated with her daughter as well so we have history. As part of my Local BIZ, I’m starting to experience some of the businesses in the area and writing about it. So I went to Cara Bella and got a European facial from Carol and let me tell you it was heavenly. It has been a while since I’ve gotten a facial. When it was over, my skin was soft, glowing and youthful. What an amazing experience. She certainly got a new client in me.

Shalena and I also announced our latest project – TheLetterWOnline.com. It is a website that we are launching in May all about women, for women and by women so stay tuned on this. It is going to be exciting. Search us on facebook to keep up on the latest!

Another exciting event coming up is the Yellowstone Trail Race. It is coming up on Saturday, June 18th and it is an 8 miles and 5K Walk/Run. If you are looking for a challenge or a fun local race, this is it! Go to www.yellowstonetrailrace.com for more information and to register today! I’ll see you out there.

Hope to chat with you soon!

Portions

I would say that the name of the dieting game is portions. Yes you have to eat right and exercise, but if you exercise like crazy and eat three huge meals a day, you probably aren't going to loose much weight. I've noticed that in the past month or so, I've gotten a little lax on my portion sizes. No wonder I'm not loosing much weight these days. I'm still battling between muscle mass and fat mass. That's OK. I'm also working out a ton right now due to training for my 1/2 marathon (which by the way is 7 weeks away) and that means I have to eat to keep up my muscle mass.

I do pretty good during the day, but supper is when I struggle. I've come to believe that this is my down fall, the thing that will haunt me the rest of my life. I need to watch the amount I eat at night. I have to be very disciplined at it and its hard. Whether I'm 160 lbs or 190 lbs, I have to watch my portion sizes. I also have a sweet tooth and if I'm not disciplined enough to control that, I'll be looking for something sweet to eat. (Like last night) But at the same time, its OK to treat yourself.

Saturday is our long run day. Cheryl warned me Friday night that she wasn't feeling well at all and she might not be able to run on Saturday. I was bumming, but there was still hope for the morning. Well, she still wasn't feeling well Saturday morning. I knew I couldn't wait for Sunday because it wouldn't fit into my day so I was on my own. I knew I had to pull at least 7 miles and would love to run the full 10 that we planned. So I set out by myself. I wasn't really worried about running alone, after all, I had my trusty Ipod, or so I thought. I wasn't even 2 blocks into my long run when my Ipod stopped. So what do I do now? And did I mention the weather pretty much sucked! Cold, windy and icy. Just great - But I was determined to get this run in and that is exactly what I did.

I'm so sick of running on the treadmill and my kids had been making me slightly crazy the end of last week, I knew I needed some time alone to think and run. I got about 6 miles into my run and knew I needed to run a little longer. My legs started tightening up and I really got tired, but I chug on through. This is where they make women out of girls! I was going to earn my food today.

I did make it through and it turned out to be 7.5 miles and I was happy with that. I will get that long run in next Saturday with my BFF Cheryl beside me. I still have huge expectations for this race and I'd like to be at 155 lbs. by the time I get to race day. So I have to watch those portions and that will be my goal for this coming week.

Hope your week is a good one!

Don't give into those darn horomones

I've been writing and re-writing this blog in my head for the past two weeks. I just haven't sat down to write it. It's been a dull past two weeks to say the least and my diet has kinda taken a toll because of it. It all started on the Monday after the Snow BIZaar when I just didn't know what to do with myself. I called it my Snow BIZaar "hang over", kind of like planning a wedding for a year. Having your entire world be about that wedding and then after it is over, what the heck do ya do now? So I was a bit lacking in the ambition department for that week.

Then all of a sudden at the end of that week, all I wanted to do was eat! That tuned into my period which turned into about 4 days of super crabby Lisa. I just hate being crabby especially when I can't control it. The smallest thing was setting me off and I was a bit out of control. My poor family. Then it was all topped off with a trip that I was suppose to go on out to the East Coast to see my sister. I was unable to go for many reasons and I didn't think it would hit me quite as bad as it did. My chiro asked me how I was doing last Friday and it kind of hit me. I was upset because I was suppose to be there and I wasn't. Luckily, my dad took my children on Friday afternoon over night til Saturday afternoon so I got a little bit of a break from my kids and my crazy crabby week of life.

Now I need to get on my soapbox for sec: Sometimes I feel that is sucks to be a woman! The birth control that I'm on doesn't add hormones into my system so since I got over the baby thing - I've been full bore, no alterations, sometimes out of control moody during my time of the month and it sucks! It also sucks having to take care of everyone all the time. I know this sounds bad but I get tired sometimes of taking care of everything and as women, we are just expected to do this all the time. I love my husband and my boys more than anything. I just need to vent. And these darn hormones - like we need help in the stress/mood/crabbiness category.

Now I will step down off my soapbox...glad that's over. Sorry you had to read that. I just needed to vent, like I said. The diet has taken a hit because I'm not as disciplined as I was the first 4 months. I'm now past the 4 months and I guess I need to figure out what that means for me. I'm at 28.7% body fat and my goal is to get down to 25%. That is hard to do when you get down the where I'm at. Its like the 100 pounders on the Biggest Loser that have a hard time loosing weight once they get down below 200 pounds. I need to refocus and start making myself daily and weekly goals so I can stay focused. I'm doing really well with the training and I feel so good about where I am in that training that I'm not worried about that half marathon coming up here the first of May. I need to take what I've been taught and use it everyday. I need to eat good foods everyday. Eat more food on my heavy workout days and on those days that I feel I need to eat those chips, I need to be sure to workout.

Last thing for today - I've learned to eat oatmeal and I really like it! I've always thought it was slimmy and icky. But last week, I decided to try it out from the whole oats. I added milk and then an egg white right before it was done cooking (to add extra protein) and then I added a little bit of real maple syrup and brown sugar. It was so yummy and I've eaten a lot of it since I tried it last week. I guess I challenge you to try some new foods this week too!

Til the next time......................................................

Hearts, chocolate and wine...oh forgot bagels!

All four are hard on a diet - this at - when by hearts I mean the candy kinds.

Over this past weekend, we pulled off the Snow BIZaar. It was a blast. I was able to talk to a lot of different people and even turned a few heads with my new look! We had a make-over fashion show and I was one of the models. I got my hair cut by Tammy from Sol luna Salon, my make-up applied by Brooke Fleetwood and a new outfit from Serendipity in Baldwin. It was so much fun to be able to take part in this experience. I felt like a beauty queen and like I said, turned a few heads! Then I got to strut my "stuff" on the catwalk. Some people didn't even recognize me until they heard me talk. It was an amazing day! But don't worry, for those that may not like my new look, it was only temporary! By 9pm, I was in my comfy clothes and had my hair washed!

These are the feelings that make me want to continue to eat good on a daily basis. Its good to have days off or have a treat from time to time but you have to get back into the swing of things and make this lifestyle forever. It is totally worth it. And when you feel better, you want to exercise. My working out is going really well as well.

Like I mentioned hearts, chocolates and bagels at the beginning of this blog, well there was candy and chocolate and wine over the weekend and on Valentine's Day. And I had a few bagels over the weekend as well, BUT, I'm back on track and feel good again. I've gotta tell you one more thing, bagels, although they may seem like the healthy thing to eat for breakfast, they really aren't. They are worth 4 slices of white bread, yuck! But I treated myself because I've been going to the Hudson Bagel Company for months now for our Snow BIZaar meetings and never once had a bagel. I figured it was time!

Til next time...

Go Pack Go!

When I started to think about my next blog entry, I wasn't sure what to write. I don't want to keep writing the same thing over and over again. Life its been another crazy week. I have really hit the ground running on Jan 1st and I haven't slowed down. I'm also starting to feel the pressure and some anxiety for the Snow BIZaar which is one week away! (I hope you plan to join me that day!) We are having a fashion show that day and I get to be one of the models. I'm very excited to get my make-up and hair done. I also got a great outfit to model off from Serendipity in Baldwin. I think I'll turn some heads that day! I'm very giddy about this, but like I said, starting to get a little anxious and nervous about it.

I also wen into see Lisa at Physicians Weight Loss Center on Friday and my results were awesome again. I'm down to 156. yeah!! I'm also at 30% body fat and that is so impressive. I feel great. Finally starting to feel like I did the first couple of months of my journey, much better like before Christmas.

A couple of weeks ago, my mom said the funniest thing to me about my diet. She asked me if I would ever be able to eat "normal" again. And I"m not trying to pick on my mom at all, but I want you to understand how this "diet" works. I'm eating all real foods. Besides some protein supplements, I'm eating lean meats, veggies of all kinds and fruit. I do eat some carbs but they are limited. And I'm starting to know what I should be eating so I know if I'm eating too many carbs or if I'm not eating enough of the good stuff or even too much.

I'm not starting to train for the Eau Claire 1/2 marathon. Its on May 1st and I'm pumped for it! I want to PR and really finish and end strong. I have plans to do some weight lifting and I think that will make a world of difference as well. This also means that I have to eat more. I need to "feed the machine" as I'm told my Lisa and her hubby Dr. Pat. (He's a chiropractor). I ran 7+ miles this morning, it felt so good and I've eating plenty of good stuff before and now after.

I'll keep you up to date with the running as well as the weigh loss. I guess getting under 30% body fat will be a big deal for me. I will keep you updated on that too! Take care!

I've got numbers!

Hey there! It has been WAY too long. I have had quite a crazy month. I'm excited for February. January had to be one of the busiest Januarys in my life. Usually it drags and drags and you just can't wait for February 1st, that wasn't the case this time. I have been very busy with work, that is awesome, we are busy busy with the final plans for the Snow BIZaar (have you gotten your tickets yet??) and I put out 3 new publications this month. The Local BIZ, a new real estate magazine I helped Edina Realty with and my Hammond and Roberts Community Guide hit mailboxes just last week.

My family also spent a week being sick. Colton was sick, Cash was sick and I was sick last week. I'm still getting over a sinus issue. It was a rough week last week. I didn't need to be behind. The worst part of it is being off my game. Being off my running schedule and being off my diet. It was hard. I really didn't eat bad. The only day way Wednesday when I ate a lot of crackers, but that was about all I ate. It has been months since I've eaten crackers so that was kind of yummy!

So Monday starts a new week and so far so good. Still dealing with this sinus thing, I feel much better this morning, I haven't even blown my nose yet! I ran on Saturday and Monday. I plan to continue that including doing my Tera Busker workout either tomorrow morning or Thursday. And I finally got to go into Physicians Weight Loss Center to see Lisa last Friday. It has been something like 9 days since I was there. Only because of being sick and have sick kids. So I have some numbers!!!!!

As you can see, I did get a new pic taken. I wasn't prepared for a pic otherwise I would have done my hair! I was a little concerned what would happen because I hadn't been working out and hadn't been totally on my diet, but it was a great weight in. My muscle mass was up, I was hydrated plenty, I lost body fat and my weight was down! I was thrilled. So far, I have lost 21.2 lbs of weight and please keep in mind that that is loosing mostly body fat and doing it the right way; and I've lost 18.25 inches all over my body. Yeah!!!!

And I have to tell you about this new product I tried. I met a gal by the name of Lori Humble and she sells a product called It Works. The main product is detox body wraps. These wraps are affordable and they are targeted wraps. Meaning, they are small and you can do them yourself at home. I had Lori come over to my house last Saturday and we did a wrap around my mid-section. She measured me before, wrapped me up around the mid-section, then I "cooked" for 45 minutes. That was it! I sat and talked to her and she is really a great gal. Then after 45, she took the saran wrap off, but not the detox wrap and she measured me again. I lost over 2 inches in just 45 minutes. Then I kept it on for another couple hours. I will be getting more of this product and you can use it all over your body. I'd like to try it on my thighs. If you want to learn more, go to www.itworks.net/umbleandhealthy. Or come to the Snow BIZaar, Lori will be there and you can do a wrap that day for $25!!! That an awesome deal. Get a wrap and a chair massage and listen to some live music while you drink a cup of OrGano Gold Coffee!!! What could get better. Well - how about some gourmet chocolate and wine tasting?????

Have a great day, I will blog more very soon, not more 2 week breaks!

gull bladder cleanse

Sounds pleasant, doesn't it? Well so far so go.

Remember when I told you that I have been having some stomach problems, well I had a couple of bad days again this past week. I think it was Wednesday afternoon, I drank a glass of milk after I worked out and I got a terrible stomach ache. It lasted almost all day until I ate a bowl of chili, go figure? Then on Thursday, I still wasn't feeling very good, I was busy all last week and starting to feel the stress of the week and just didn't have it in me to work out. I called Lisa (from Physicians Weight Loss Center, she is always available to chat if I need her and I really needed her) because I was looking for moral support, someone to tell me it was OK not to workout for a day. Then we started talking about my stomach aches. I really didn't want to go to the doctor, I really didn't understand why these foods that weren't bothering me before were bothering me now, like protein bars and protein powder and milk? Then she asked me where my stomach hurt and I told her at the top right underneath my ribs and that is when she started telling me about my gull bladder.

It makes sense, I was eating so good, then I had a terrible bout of 3 days of eating and drinking really bad (boy do I know how to really do it up) So she gave me a cleanse to do and that it what I'm in the middle of right now at 9:00pm on Sunday night. So far I have fasted since 2pm, not eating or drinking, then at 6pm and 8pm, I drank a 1/4 of a mixture of Epsom salt and water. It was TERRIBLE and I'm lucky that I even got it down. At 10pm, I get to drink a mixture of grapefruit juice and olive oil. That should be interesting. I'll let you know tomorrow how it goes...

On a happier note, I did go in to visit Lisa on Friday and I did awesome. I lost almost 2 lbs and it was all in fat. My muscle mass stayed the same and all I burned from Monday to Friday was fat! Yeah for me.

I'm really hoping this cleanse will get me back to normal and feeling good again instead of how I've been feeling the past few weeks since Christmas.

And on a very personal and exciting note...GO PACKERS!!!

The after effects...
Well I'm now ready to let you know how the cleanse went. I was OK. I "did my business" in the middle of the night after drinking the grapefruit juice and olive oil mixture. That almost made me puke, but I made it through. I was a little weak in the morning and after I got out of bed at around 6pm, I drank the 3 portion of the Epsom salt and water mixture and I gave it ALL UP in the sink. It was disgusting. BUT if it worked, it was worth it. I didn't eat anything for several hours after I gave it up. I just drank sips of water here and there to keep myself hydrated a little. Then I finally drank a glass of apple juice about 10am and that tasted amazing after fasting for so long. Then I ate a banana at 10:30 and had some yogurt at noon. After that I felt OK, my throat was scratchy and I was really tired, but I survived my first (and possibility last) gall bladder cleanse. I ate pretty light the rest of the day Monday and Tuesday. Today (Wednesday) I ate more normal and I even ate a protein bar. That went well too. All in all, if it works, it was worth it. I guess I would have just skipped the morning drink and not even subjected myself to that.

I went in to weigh in today and it was as I thought. I stayed the same in weight but lost muscle mass and that could have very well be because I haven't been drinking enough water. I'll let you know how things go.

Chat with you again soon...

Warm up with the SNOW BIZAAR

It’s amazing how fast the days really fly by – I was really hoping things would slow down for me after the first of the year – well – I guess I’ll keep dreaming. BUT on the other hand, it is good thing to be busy. I believe it was a good friend of mine that said, “you must make hay while the sun shines”. So I will remember that every day that I so busy I can hardly get my exercising in.

I want to start with some shameless promoting – The Local Biz (my monthly publication) is putting on a wonderful event in several weeks called the Snow BIZaar. It is me along with two other gals, who are planning and promoting this awesome event. It will be held on Saturday, February 12th from 11am – 6pm and we have the day all planned out for you. Come and enjoy a day filled with local business vendors, a café experience, live acoustic music, cash bar, light lunch, demos, mini-seminars, pampering, great conversation and a make-over fashion show with 10 ticket winners. Since this is our first year, I’m asking for help from all my friends and family. I’m asking for your support to join me that day at my event. We are selling tickets, $15/ticket and $25 for two tickets. So please consider joining me that day. I do have tickets so please email me and I will reserve you a ticket.

I mentioned a fashion show with 10 ticket winners…well, if you buy your tickets or call me to reserve your tickets by this Saturday, you will be in a drawing to be one of those 10 winners. You will get a make-over which includes getting your hair done, make-up done and you will get a free outfit courtesy of a local consignment shop. I appreciate your support and promise you a fun day!

Now on to my journey; I think I’m out of the holiday hangover woods. It was rough, like I’ve said before, but I think I’m feeling good again. I was also having some problems with my stomach. For a while there, everything I ate made my stomach ache. I have been feeling better since yesterday so hopefully I’m out of the woods with that as well.

That is all old news. The new news is that I've been on a roller coaster. Last week, when I went in to see Lisa at Physicians Weight Loss Center, I was down in weight, but up in fat and down in muscle mass. That didn’t make me very happy, but it was really nice to be below 160. I was into see Lisa on Monday and just the opposite happened. I was up in weight, down in body fat and up in muscle mass. That made me much happier, but I just can’t seem to get out of those darn 160s.

You know – I’ve been doing this for over 90 days now and it is second nature now, but I think that maybe I need to re-evaluate everything a little closer and make sure I’m not adding calories where I shouldn’t. OR – like I was scolded again, I’m not eating enough. Isn’t that the craziest thing. This is something I’ve struggled with as well. The diet I’m on is really for those that aren’t exercising or just walking. I laugh when people say that hate dieting because they are always hungry. Well let me tell you – I’m not hungry very often at all. The diet where I need to eat more, haha - that’s funny. It is all because of my workout schedule.

Now that we are into the New Year, I’m looking to training for the Eau Claire Half Marathon. I’m super excited for this. It will be over 2 years since I’ve ran a ½ marathon. I’m looking to PR and I’m very focused on that.

I go and see Lisa on Friday so I will write more at the end of the week. Don’t forget the Snow BIZaar - Saturday, February, 12 - put it on your calendar!

A time to reflect...

It seems like everyone is reflecting on 2010. I was going to write this blog post yesterday but just didn't. Guess I could have while I spent the last 2 hours of 2010 sitting on the couch waiting for the ball to drop next to my sleeping husband. It was a quiet New Years Eve for us. That was fine me, but it's always nice to celebrate the New Year.

So back to reflecting - 2010 was a good year for me. My kids grew to a healthy age 4 and 1, I started a new publication and made some awesome contacts and friends as it developed, I started a radio show that ended the year as an hour long live show and I started working with Tera Busker of Fitness to Go and Lisa Kolashinski of Physicians Weight Loss Center. I'm sure there's plenty along the way that I've missed.

I do thank God today for my husband, my two healthy kids, a wonderful supportive family and all around great life. I really can't complain and have to pinch myself when it doesn't seem real. Sometimes I don't feel like I deserve it so I keep thanking God every chance I get.

Since my last post, I've done much better. I'm still having some sour stomach issues so I'm thinking I might have some kind of bug that isn't leaving and keeps messing with me. My "aunt" also decided to visit so that doesn't help my over all feeling. And remember how scared I was to go in and see Lisa. Well it turned out that it wasn't so bad. I lost a little bit of fat mass and I gained some muscle which means I did gain some weight, but that is OK. I'm so determined to get down below 160 by the end of this next week!!! I seem to be stuck at around 160-162.

Now let's get to the resolutions - or maybe goals is a better word to use. Seems like resolutions equal failure so we will use goals. I love the word goal!
My children: I really need to pull the bottle away from Cash and get Colton night time potty trained.
My Hubby: I'd like to see us spend more "alone" time together. Kids sometimes throw a wrench into intimacy.
My business: I want to grow ASIL Design and start treating my business like a serious business and not a hobby.
My Weight: I've got just under 2 months left of my weight loss program before I go into maintenance for 6 months. This is with Lisa and PWLC. I'd like to loose another 10 lbs. or so, get down to 25% body fat, up that muscle and maintain it. I really like food so that will be hard & something I need to focus on. I also like the idea of inspiring people to get healthy and would love to find a way to channel that.
My Running: I'm planning on running a 1/2 marathon in early May. I want to PR with my running partner Cheryl and then we will make our next runninggoal after that.

As I go into this next year and into the unknown, I walk into it with a huge smile and a "bring it on" attitude - this will be MY year!

Happy New Year and stay tuned...