Hey there, everyone. I’d
like to apologize again for my lack in posting last week. I’m sure the tens of fans I have out there
were devastated. I’m back today, though and I’d like to start by giving a giant
ROLL TIDE!!!!! If you had told me at
this time last week that Alabama would be at number 2 and poised to be in the
national championship game, I would say that you were living in a fantasy
world. Obviously, Bama has to beat Auburn and then Georgia (which will be a much
more difficult challenge) in the SEC championship game to get there but the
point is…we are back in! Jordan and I
went to the beach this past weekend and I weighed before I left. I was about the same, maybe up a few
ounces. I am exercising vigorously and
dieting most of the time but between football season and now the holidays, it
is becoming more and more difficult not to gain. I have moments of discouragement but I am still
committed. I hope to maintain until the
end of the year and then do a major re-charge when 2013 begins. I like my new food pyramid based diet but at
some point, I need to work on finding more diverse recipes to keep the variety
going.
Like I said above, I have been a good girl and eating my
vegetables but I haven’t really made an effort to branch out in the WAY I eat
my veggies. I also eat the same ones
over and over. I have probably eaten my
weight in green beans over the past few weeks.
While I love green beans, there are only so many ways you can have them. The next few weeks of recipes will be examples
of ways I’ve tried to spice up the standard ingredients I’m supposed to
have. I have noticed that I add most
concoctions I make to potatoes. The
first picture is a combo of sautéed green beans with onions, spices, W sauce
and topped with almonds. That seems to
be the most typical way I’ve been having my green veggies. The next two pictures are parts of another
green bean dish I made. This time I used
minute rice. Typically, I find minute
rice pretty gross. However, when you mix
it into a stir fry type dish, it’s not so bad.
I bought the multi-grain kind which included quinoa. I had never tried it before but it pretty
much just tastes like rice. The best
part about this diet is that you do get a ton of food. Veggies are not just good for you, they
digest better. They treat your stomach
with much more respect than processed foods do.
However, my mission is to now challenge myself to change it up some so I
don’t get bored. Boredom in the food you
eat is one of the most dangerous things that can happen to a diet. Like I said, I’ll give this diet a fair shot
and if it doesn’t work, I’m going back to Weight Watchers but it hasn’t had
time to get a fair shot yet because of all the bumps…we will see what happens.
Jordan and I enjoyed a long weekend at the beach. Thanks to my friend Nish for allowing us to
stay at her beautiful home in Gulf Shores.
We did a whole lot of eating and relaxing. I think my butt is permanently molded to the
couch. I watched football all day Saturday. It was nice to have some down time. We also went to Old Time Pottery on the way
out. I guess the last time I went there,
I was a small child and I didn’t have appreciation for its wonder. I was overwhelmed with the craft stuff, the
kitchen gadgets and the holiday decorations.
I truly think I could’ve spent hours in that place. I had to get out. The picture of me with the giant martini
glass is in there. I was happy to see
there’s one a bit closer to me near Birmingham so I’ll definitely have to make
more visits.
It is so important to change up your diet and workout
routines to keep your body active and prepared to lose weight. If all it took to lose weight was dedication
to exercise, I’d be skinny as a rail but unfortunately, you have to have a
combination of good diet and exercise. In
the spirit of muscle confusion, I have been trying to change things up
again. I seem to find the exercises that
mix up cardio and muscle work the most effective. I have tried a circuit that includes quick
movements like jumping jacks and squat jumps but also has toning actions like
pushups and crunches. You do a series of
exercises and once you complete the circuit, you do it twice more. The best part about this is you can do it all
from home. I have also been doing the
same workout that Jessica Simpson supposedly did when she was preparing to play
the role of Daisy Duke in the Dukes of Hazard.
This workout also consists of short sessions of different cardio and
toning exercises. This one is a bit
intense so I’ve only been doing it once a week and less crazy workouts on the
other days. It takes me about an hour
and a half to complete but it’s pure and cleansing. I feel great when I’m done. I hate the process of exercise. I hate getting up in the morning, I hate the
motions as I’m doing them but I work out every day and so every day that goes
by, I know I accomplished something that contributes to my well-being and that
is a nice feeling.
That’s all I had for this week. I hope you all have an amazing
Thanksgiving. I am so blessed and I am
truly thankful. I am most thankful for
my friends and family. There are so many
people less fortunate than I am and I tend to take that for granted. Enjoy the people you love the most in
life! We only get one shot at this! Talk
to you next week and ROLL TIDE!
"We can load what we own in the back of a U-haul
van.
Couple modern day Moses', searchin for the
promised land.
We can go four hundred miles before we stop for
gas.
We can drive for a day, and then we'll take a look
at the map.
Heads, Carolina Tails, California.
Somewhere greener, somewhere warmer.
Up in the mountains, down by the ocean.
Where? It don't matter, as long as we're goin'
Somewhere together. I've got a quarter.
Heads, Carolina Tails, California.” Heads
Carolina, Tails California – Jo Dee Messina
