Day 85 - Running does NOT suck! Wow!

I've never pushed myself to run because I always told myself I just can't do it.  I can walk uphill all day long and push myself through the muscle fatigue, but my heart doesn't race the way it does when I attempt to run.  I start telling myself to stop right away. "This isn't your exercise.  Just stop and speed walk or put an incline on the treadmill.  Running is for athletes."  Until today. :)  It was just a 1st step, but I jogged for 30 minutes!  I alternated minutes -  5mph (jog) and 6 mph (slow run).  When I realized I wasn't dying, I threw in 2 min of 7.5 mph - not back to back though.  And I also threw in 2 min of 3.5 mph, to get my breath and rev myself to burst back into an energetic minute.  Ended with additional 2 min at 3.5mph w/ an incline of 10.

I feel AWESOME!!!  I freakin RAN on the treadmill for 30 minutes (well...28, really)!!!  If I push myself just a little teeny bit more each time, I can be a full fledged runner in a few months....just get on that thing and run 7 - 7.5 mph for 20 min as though it's just a normal part of my day, like brushing my teeth.  I WANT THAT!!!!

Today's report:

Your Daily Summary

-157

CALORIES REMAINING

Goal	Food	Exercise	= Net
1210	1722	- 355	1367

Speaking of wanting, I am craving some bittersweet dark chocolate like crazy!  Maybe it will go away while I'm sleeping and I'll wake up craving blueberries or artichokes like a good little RFSC'er.

Motivation pic time:

Day 83 - baggy pants and puffy ankles

Today's report:

Your Daily Summary

114

CALORIES REMAINING

Goal	Food	Exercise	= Net
1210	1594	498	1096

Exercise:  Tae Bo ripped extreme, and 14 (!) push ups

My pants are all looking a bit too baggy & unflattering.  I'm happy that I've shrunk a bit, but I'm a little bit bummed to lose my favorite pants from the past few summers.  I can't really afford a new wardrobe now either.  Maybe a tailor?  Or maybe I'll just keep enjoying my bread and let the bloating help fill in my pants.  Clever, eh?  (No - I didn't think so either.)

I went to my friend's 85th birthday party today.  Her Italian family had made enormous amounts and varieties of Italian foods - eggplant parmesan, baked ziti, ziti w/ chicken & broccoli, fettuccini alfredo,  chicken piccata, chicken marsala...and then there was the dessert table.  Oy vey.

I went down the buffet line and took tiny servings of my 4 favorites.  My plate was full, but it was only one paper plate, and it included a small salad, and I passed by the yummy looking fresh Italian bread and whole wheat dinner rolls.  (bread with pasta seems a bit much, right?)  

Dessert - a brownie, an Italian jelly cookie w/ chocolate topping, and a plain jelly sandwich cookie.  So yummy.  2 glasses of wine.  I wanted very badly to go take more fettuccini alfredo, even though I wasn't hungry anymore...but thinking of adding it to my list later and seeing the fat cal's climb that high...well, it gave me the will power I needed to resist.  

It's been a good week!  If I don't overdo the starches between now and Tues morning, I totally expect a loss on the scale.  My best indicator of my water retention/bloat factor is the indentation my ankle-socks leave on my ankles when I take them off.  It's so bad sometimes that it takes an hour or so to vanish...if I change into sandals mid-day, it's embarrassing how my ankles show this sock indent.  I'm not a salt-adder.  Could it REALLY just be sugars and/or starches making me puff out?

My visual motivation for the new week: