Sigh.

Well, needless to say I fell off the wagon. Not the exercise wagon - I've kept up with that fairly consistently, and even did a 5k this month. I fell hard off the eating healthy wagon.

My weight has started the creep up again - I had gotten down to 162 pounds, now back up to 167. Still less than earlier this year, but I'm frustrated. My clothes don't fit, don't look good, and I don't feel good when I look in the mirror.

It's been a whirlwind of a spring & summer. Several trips (Florida, Michigan, South Carolina) and the perfect storm of kids' activities. I've never been busier. I can't remember when I've actually gone HOME for the night after work and not have to go to a baseball game, softball game, karate class, dance class, or some other activity.

But I'm not spouting off excuses. I've just been stuck in a rut I can't seem to get out of.

I don't WANT to eat crap and drink soda, but somehow I do anyway. I guess it's just easier.

And I'm eating too much. Sometimes I think I do so because if I'm eating, I get to sit down - which means the longer I eat, the longer I get to sit and relax. That's messed up, isn't it?

Every once in a while I cook or order something healthy. But it's not enough.

Mr. is in the same boat. At least we're stuck in it together.

So what are we going to do about it? Hmmmm.........

After much discussion we have ordered P90X and are anxiously awaiting its' arrival.

P90X is a set of workout dvd's and nutrition guides, for, as they say, extreme home fitness.

Several of our good friends have done it with phenomenal results. We are ready for some phenomenal results, and need a plan to get there.

We hope this plan is it.

Stay tuned . . . I anxiously check the mail every day and hope it comes soon!

I'm Back!

OK, I have been avoiding this blog like the plague. If you are still out there, thanks for checking in. I'm back!

I've been gone because I have been REALLY good at coming up with all kinds of rationalizations about my diet and exercise (or lack thereof) and why I have nothing of interest to blog about.

Well, here's something interesting: My weight has been creeping up again, to around 160 pounds. Completely unacceptable to me. SO depressing and frustrating to me that I've done nothing but GAIN weight since I started this blog.

Yet, I have been exercising regularly (not quite as consistently as I'd like, but at least a couple times a week at minimum). I've been doing Zumba, kickboxing, and step classes, which I really enjoy. I've been jogging every now and then (I've run two 5k's since April) and do workout DVD's (P.M. Yoga, Slim In Six, Zumba, Weight Loss Yoga) at home when I can. And we've been on vacation. Taking 3 kids to the beach every day is like exercising all day long.

Exercise has become essential to me in managing my stress level, and it makes me happier. Plus, it have given me quality time with my daughter - I've run both the 5k's with her, and it was more enjoyable than I'd have ever imagined. She's 9, and as she grows older, I know she'll want to spend less and less time with me - but maybe we can continue to do fun and healthy activities such as this that we both enjoy.

So, you may be thinking, what's the problem? Why is my weight continuing to do the slow creep upwards?

Simple answer: I eat too much and drink too much soda. I have yet to find an eating plan that works and is sustainable for me. I like to eat, I don't like any kind of deprivation, and have a strong addiction to regular soda.

Soon after my last post about Suzanne Somers, which was working for me at the time, I decided to stop it after a follow up visit to the Dr. revealed I had more kidney stones (which we thought was just a pregnancy thing last year). They are just waiting for their time to move. Uh-oh. Dr. C told me to avoid dark sodas, teas, and any high protein-low carb diets. since my stones are calcium oxalate and may be caused by some things in my diet. Bye-bye, Suzanne.

I haven't had any tea since that appointment (I used to drink hot tea in the morning, iced tea at night). But dark soda? Less success here. I definitely haven't been drinking as much of it, but I still gotta have it. And regular soda too, not diet. I hate diet soda's taste, and aspartame gives me blinding headaches.

I know my soda consumption is one of my biggest issues. It seems to be, for me, similar to any other addiction - I give it up, it's all good for a while, and then one day I say, I'll just have one," and so I do. And then I slide back down the slippery slope into drinking them every day. Repeat cycle, over and over again.

I've stopped drinking soda in restaurants. My motivation is two fold - health and money. Seriously, if most of your family orders water with dinner, you'll save almost $10. And feel less full at the end of the meal. Works for me.

I stopped buying soda at the grocery store, so it does not exist in my home. Easy to avoid if it's not there. I drink water or 4C Lemonade with Splenda (delicious).

So what's the problem? Work. They have fountain sodas there. Fountain sodas, to me, taste much better than cans or bottles. I bring in bottles of flavored seltzer to drink instead, but it never lasts. Like some people need their coffee in the a.m., I need my large fountain Coke. I try to only have one a day, but it's a 20 ounce cup, and if I'm careful, I can make that last through lunch.

So what's the solution? I have no idea. Maybe another attack of kidney stones will be the last straw. I hope it doesn't get to that. But I've gotta stop drinking soda, I know. Just that one thing will likely make a huge difference. Does anyone out there have any suggestions?

Back to work here. I'll weigh in on Monday.

Mrs. *

*As for why this doesn't say Mr. as well, he's so far off the wagon, I don't know if he'll be back, but I have hope. He is slowly creeping upward as well, just finished a huge project at work, so maybe he'll come back.

Our Story: No More Excuses!

Hello! We are Mr. and Mrs. Wannabe Skinny, and we really, really, want to be skinny. Our weight has been creeping up on us ever since we got married in 1996. We weigh too much and we know we need to be healthier for our three wonderful kids.

We've tried every diet under the sun: Atkins, South Beach, Weight Watchers, Suzanne Somers, to name a few. All of them work, temporarily. But then the weight comes back as soon as we figure out that we are being deprived of something. We don't like being deprived.

Here are our goals. We will post more individually about how specifically we will meet these goals

• Make healthier choices in cooking and eating out
  
• Minimize indulgences (we know trying to eliminate them altogether doesn't work and causes rebellion!)
  
• Exercise more (at least some activity every day)
  
• Be bathing suit ready by spring!
• Stop avoiding the above by using lame excuses
  

We are full of excuses why we can't eat better and exercise more. Here are some of our favorites:

Excuses to eat too much/eat unhealthy food:

• I'm stressed
  
• I'm too busy to cook healthy
• I'm traveling/working/eating out so I can have whatever I want
  
• Healthy food is too expensive to buy at the store
  
• I'm celebrating (and we can think of pretty much anything to celebrate!)
• I'm on vacation/it's the holidays
  

Excuses to avoid exercise:

• I'm tired
  
• I'm too busy at work
  
• I have too much other stuff to do
  
• No one to watch the kids (even though we have a treadmill, exercise videos, and our gym has a babysitting service)
  
• I need sleep more
  
• I don't have the time (although I sit in front of the TV for hours every night)

So, our first priority is to recognize when we are giving a lame excuse and overcome it. Wish us luck!