Here is a good, quick read to help decide between seemingly similar foods.

Food Fight!

In a battle of nutritional superstars, which options offer a healthier edge?


Thanks, Runner's World.

It's nice to know I'm making a lot of the right choices.

Blueberries are served at least once a week with breakfast (though my frozen stash is already running low). I've never tried them in burgers, however.

Quinoa is a new love in our meals - you can make a bunch at a time and it lasts for days!

And red peppers are a clear fave over green peppers. I bought ten a week ago, intending to freeze them, but ended up eating them all!

The new me

This past weekend I realized one of my life's dreams. I ran my first 5k Saturday - I ran that baby from start to finish.

I really don't know how to explain the total and complete joy I felt when I crossed that finish line. It was like I was running from who I used to be and I met the new me for the first time.

The new me is fit, healthy and in shape. The new me can't stop grinning and cheering. The new me wakes up every day ready for an adventure, excited to see what the day will bring. The new me is happy.

After I finished the 5k, Kevin came over to me and said "Now, you're a runner." I almost started crying. Me? The little girl with the crooked knee caps who was diagnosed with arthritis in 5 joints before she was 18 is a runner now?

But I guess it's true. I'm already looking to the next run, a 10k at the end of October. This afternoon I'm heading out on my first training run with the Bridge to 10k training regimen. It's a continuation of the Couch to 5k plan that gave me such success. I'm pushing the time frame a bit - not quite giving myself the full 6 weeks, but that's just because of when the 10k is scheduled.

Most of the work I'm training my body to do isn't physical. After walking 60 miles in three days I know I have the physical strength to run just as far. Instead, I am training my mind to accept the fact that there are no barriers to running anymore.

There has always been a reason why I couldn't run: my knees, my asthma, my weight. But not anymore. Sure, my knees are still better weather predictors than the National Weather Service, but you get used to that. My asthma hasn't been an issue since I quit smoking (go figure), so my weight was the last thing keeping me back. Now, there are simply no reasons why I can't be who I want to be.

As I ready myself for the next run, I'd like to take a moment to introduce myself. My name is Natalie and I'm a runner.

My TV Reality

I always prided myself on the fact that I spend very little time watching tv. Sure, I like movies (former film student after all), but I rarely sit down just to watch tv. I don't even have cable, just a set of rabbit ears. When I do want to watch a particular show, I mainly use Hulu.com in order to keep up with the few I like.

What frustrates me is when I forget about a show and end up missing episodes and getting so behind that I can't follow the current storyline. So, in an effort to combat this, I created a Hulu Queue and subscribed to my favorite shows. Hulu sends me an email whenever a new episode is available to watch and I can choose to watch them on my own terms, without bowing to the programming schedule.

But, this morning I received a Major Reality Check.

Hulu sent me an email saying there were new entries in my queue - NINE new entries! When I added it up, using Hulu time (22 mins for some shows, 43 mins for others), my subscribed tv time equals 7 hours a week! And that's before football is added.

WHOA.

This is unacceptable so I am taking this time to analyze my boob tube choices.

The shows I watch include:
- The Big Bang Theory (Very intelligent show!) 22 mins.
- Parenthood (Drama for drama's sake) 43 mins.
- Make it or Break It (Silly show full of teen angst that airs in the summer) 43 mins.
- Castle (Intellectually stimulating murder mystery) 43 mins.
- Melissa and Joey (Five episodes in and it's just adorable! I want to support it and see it succeed.) 22 mins.
- Glee (I really only watch it for pop culture references and musical numbers) 43 mins.
- The Biggest Loser (Weight-loss motivation anyone???) 85 mins.
- Dancing with the Stars (The cast intrigues me this season, but I rarely stick with this one past the first few episodes) 43 mins, two nights a week

New shows that interest me this year:
- Mike & Molly (a couple who meet at Overeaters Anonymous and I love Melissa McCarthy!!!) 22 mins.
- $#*! My Dad Says 22 mins.
- Running Wilde (love Keri Russell!) 22 mins.

I'm not completely anti-tv. There are many benefits to watching tv. Sometimes, the escape itself is worth the time when it comes to staying sane and feeling connected to others in this universe. But I'm a busy girl and the amount of tv-time in my life looks a bit ridiculous (I haven't actually spent this amount of time watching tv - these all premiered this week!). Sure, since I use the computer I'm able to make dinner and clean while watching these shows, but I want to limit myself to no more than 5 hours of tv time (that's one hour a weekday - and still a lot!).

This week will be a big week for my programs: Who is going to make the cut???

Bad Natalie!

I ate meat last night.

Even though it was Meatless Monday and I was doing really well for breakfast and lunch, I ate meat for dinner. I feel bad, but in my defense there was nothing meatless on the menu!

But it gets worse ...

I ate fried meat last night.

And it was goooood.

Now, in my defense, Your Honors, I was having a VERY RARE dinner with my brother. He picked the place because he is visiting my area for work and was short on time. Sure, there are wonderful food options in Kansas City (right, Renee??), but since he's staying out in the boonies, we were very limited in our options.

I didn't want to make a big deal out of what I "could" eat, so I just picked what I wanted to eat - within reason. Apparently, that was the Fried Pork Tenderloin Sandwich (not the exact picture above, but close; chosen because I couldn't handle chicken after this past weekend and pork tenderloin is pretty tame in the calorie department). I ordered steamed veggies instead of fries, but I also drank beer and we shared dessert. Overall, the meal (and I only ate half of the sandwich and a third of the meat!) was about 900 calories. YIKES.

That follows a weekend of lots of eatin' while Renee was in town - including a night of barbecue chicken from FOUR different bbq places in Kansas City and about 7 beers Saturday night. Not to mention the Bloody Mary buffet Sunday. At least we walked about 10 miles throughout the weekend.

So, you can imagine my concerns going into Weight Day tomorrow. I mean, I decided to shake up my calorie plan a bit, but not that much!!!

But still, it was all very, very tasty and included a lot of choices that mitigated the damages in a way I probably wouldn't have done a year ago. Just sayin'.

New measurements (and Weigh Day)

Shhhh .... we don't want to scare it away!

Today I am thrilled to look at my measurements! The past month has been pretty good to my goal of getting smaller. Yay!!!

Clearly my muscle-building exercising are fighting my weight-loss techniques. But that's ok, we'll see how it looks next week before I draw any permanent conclusions.

My Measurements:
Waist: 28 ... overall decrease of 12 inches, 1 inch down from last month :-D
Hips: 38 ... overall decrease of 8.25, 1 inch down from last month!
Thigh: 19.75 ... overall decrease of 8.75 - 1.25 down from last month!
Calves: 15 ... overall decrease of 2.25 inches, for 2 months
Upper Arm: 11.5 ... overall decrease of 4 inches

Last Month's Measurements:
Waist: 29
Hips: 39
Thigh: 21
Calves: 15
Upper Arm: 12

Starting Points:
Weight: 195 lbs
Waist: 40 inches
Hips: 47.25 inches
Thigh: 28.5 inches
Upper Arm: 15.5 inches
Calf: 17.25 inches
Push ups: 4
Crunches: 15

Meatless Monday victory!

I planned it out this time and am proud to announce a successful Meatless Monday.

Seriously, we are talking 99.99% perfect food day. I hit my target for calories, carbs, and PROTEIN - I only missed my target fat range by one gram. Yay!

I'm particularly proud of hitting the protein range. Back when I was a vegetarian I doubt I got anywhere near the recommended 60- 120 grams. But not today.

For lunch I enjoyed a yummy egg salad sandwich (borderline vegetarian, but they are from cage-free organic-fed, local chickens!) and string cheese (Sargento has a 50 calorie string cheese, just so you know) and dinner featured hummus soup and grilled eggplant (my tomato topping featured Balsamic vinegar, however). Did I mention the hummus soup is a recipe I made up? Well you'll hear more about that later this week.

And yes, the eggplant was as good as it looks.

I'm already looking into recipes for next week. Don't these Cajun Chili Cups look wonderful? Since it's New Orlean vs. SF for Monday Night Football they really make a nice theme food. Add a little San Francisco treat and you've almost got dinner party food!

A little rant

Yesterday we went to a friend's housewarming party. The event was byo meat and I convinced Kevin to take wings because they are super low-calorie and filling (grilled, not fried!). Also, as a preemptive strike, I cut up veggies to take to distract me from the other goodies that usually make an appearance at potluck events. I even packed a little 100-calorie sweet thing to satisfy me if there were cookies.

But when we got there, there were no snacks anywhere and my veggie tray was annihilated. Then, two hours later someone shows up with the Usual Suspects in snacks. My plate gone and my boredom setting in, I was doomed. I also found myself addicted to the pita chips they had in a bowl next to a bag of tortilla chips.

It seemed like I was making the right choice, right? Baked pita chips instead of tortilla chip, right? WRONG.

Just before leaving the party last night I found the bag of pita chips and took a moment to read the label. One ounce was 130 calories. An ounce of tortilla chips is 140. I know it still seems to be the better choice, but when I looked at the fiber I knew I'd been duped. Tortilla chips have two grams of fiber, compared to the one gram in the pita chips!

I am so angry at the people who tout items like pita chips as the healthy option and charge so much for them! They make their money on people's ignorance. While I didn't buy the pita chips, I did buy into their image. And I should have known better.

I know that a six-inch pita is about 200 calories, while a 6-inch flour tortilla is about 110 calories. I jsut figured the baked vs. fried made the difference. I feel duped and almost angry enough to write a nasty letter.

This illustrates the importance of reading the label.

I first learned this lesson when I was planning Thanksgiving last year. I stared at the Splenda brown sugar and it's exorbitant cost. When I compared it to regular brown sugar and saw little to no difference, I bought the regular for a buck and felt very proud. They can't fool me! Clearly, they can, but it's only because I let my guard down. Anytime I see a law fat option for something I compare the calories to the original version. Fat doesn't make you gain weight - sure, it's not good for you, but it's not the culprit we think it is. You gain weight by consuming more calories than you burn.

Sure, it's easy to instinctively buy the low-fat version of something, but don't do it without comparing to the original You may just be paying extra for extra calories!

While I'm rantinge, I'd like to add a gripe about 100 calorie packs. Sure, they are good for portion control, but they have officially gotten out of hand.

I saw an ad in one of my magazines for 100 calorie cheese blocks. It seems like a great way to give yourself cheese for a snack and watch your portion, right? WRONG! Did you know that the old stand-by of string cheese is only 80 calories??? So, essentially, for those who don't read labels they are buying into the idea of lower calorie cheese portions when they are actually getting more calories!

The mother of all plateaus?

When I stepped on the scale this morning the elusive 149 showed up again.

Of course, my heart skipped a beat. But I don't really have my hopes up. This is the third time I've entered the 140s only to have the number cruelly yanked from my grasp.

I am so very close to my goal that it's frustrating to have hit this silly 150 plateau (a true plateau like no other I hit before). Sure, I've read that the last 5-10 pounds are the hardest to lose, but how does my body know this is the last? I'm not even certain it is the last. I often find myself dreaming of weighing 135 for the first time since elementary school. But I digress ...

I eat about 1200 calories a day, give or take. And I go on runs 3 days a week. This has been my routine for the past four weeks and each time I step on the scale, I weight 150. Is this what it will take to maintain 150? Will I only be allowed 1200 calories a day for the rest of my life if I want to stay at 150 and don't want to spend 15 hours a week working out?

From what I've read and conversations I've had with others who are similarly obsessed with fascinated by nutrition, I think the solution is to chill out for a little while. The past 51 weeks have been pretty major to my body. Sure, I've lost the weight in a slow and healthy manner, but that doesn't mean my body isn't completely freaked out. Hell, when I pass a mirror I often find myself a bit freaked to see my new reflection.

The idea is to work on maintenance, keep myself from gaining, but let my body catch up.

My metabolism is significantly different these days and so is my lifestyle. Obviously, I am going to keep weighing myself because that is how I track things, but I am going to stop freaking out if I don't lose a pound each week. My deadline has passed and I didn't make it, but I can still reach my weight loss goal.

I have a few ideas and experiments to conduct.

1) Should I go back to 1300 calories a day? Maybe my body is mad and doing that "you're starving me, I need more fuel" thing. Does 100 calories really make that much of a difference? I know I blogged a couple of weeks ago that I was going back to 1300 calories a day, but I think the hunger I felt that week was PMS-related. Since then, things have been fine and once dinner is done my calorie count is at 1190 or so and I feel full. So, I skip the 100 calorie sweet thing that provides no nutritional anything other than potential plaque for my teeth.

2) Keep limiting foods to 1200. Perhaps this is just my body's way of catching up to everything that's happening and I shouldn't make any changes just yet.

3) According to my mom, Weight Watchers tells its members to spend a week eating more calories than normal as a way to shake up a plateau. Should I let myself eat 1500 calories a few days one week and see what happens? (Can you imagine the possibilities? And if I choose this, it should totally be the weekend Renee is here so we can REALLY enjoy Kansas City barbecue!) I consumed more than 2000 calories the day of Kevin's reunion, by the way. That could also be to blame for no weight loss last week (ha! But the pumpkin were freaking amazing! And maybe there was a little alcohol consumed ... just a bit).

Anyway, the point is I'm not going to freak out and get frustrated. I am going to relax, get used to my new body and see what happens. These last 5 pounds (and maybe more!) will be history, I have no doubt about that. One way or another ...

Tuesdays with Kevin (not Morrie)

When I was training for the 3-Day, Tuesdays involved a 4-5 mile training walk. It just so happened that there was a route to a gorgeous park just 1.5 miles away and walking around the park was another 1.5 miles. Add in the walk home and I was getting my 4.5 miles (I would usually take a long route home to finish the 5 miles).

Kevin began walking with me on Tuesdays. He brought Chester and when we got to the park, they would go running one direction while I walked the other. We would meet back up and walk home. I loved walking with him and that time together was a great way to talk about things without the usual distractions.

Since the 3-Day, the walking has stopped. I am on a new training regimen that is short and the intervals make it hard for Kevin to join. He's come with me a couple of times, but it just didn't work. In fact, last Tuesday he went to the gym instead of holding off on his workout so we could go together. I was pretty upset, to say the least, because I really did look forward to Tuesdays with Kevin.

This Tuesday, lesson learned on his part, he didn't go to the gym after work so he could run with me. When he got to my house we decided to walk to a closer park. The training regimen didn't involve any intervals, just straight running (20 minutes this time - working up to running 30 minutes non-stop) so Kevin ran with me for a bit. We got to walk and talk on the way to and from the park, but it was when we started running together that I got a glimpse of my dream and I loved it!

I wish I could have taken a picture of our shadows, side-by-side, as we ran together. I don't know if it's silly, but ever since I started dating Kevin I wanted to be able to run with him. I want to be that couple who goes to the park, taking turns pushing their kids in a three-wheeled stroller, as they run together.

I think this dream started 20 years ago when my cousin Amber was born and her mom would take her out in a running stroller to jog around their neighborhood. I was 6, but instinctively seemed to know I was not a runner and I yearned to be one. Of course, I never told anyone about this so no one thought to teach me to run.

Fast forward into my teen years and you see me watching couples jogging together at the park. I was jealous. I was fat, awkward and out of shape. I had crooked knee caps and was told running just wouldn't be a good idea for me. (Stupid doctor!)

Then, lets fast forward about ten more years and we meet Kevin. A runner. No, no, a marathoner. He woke up early every morning just to run. I was secretly in awe. When he was in college, Kevin was part of a running group and a film student made a short documentary about them. Showing me this video, Kevin also jokingly commented on the girl he was running beside and said that he'd  had a big crush on her, but that she wasn't interested. I watched the two of them running side-by-side and I knew what I wanted.

So, two years ago I tried to learn to be a runner, but it was awful. It was painful and hurt and I hated every minute of it. Clearly, I just wasn't ready. I wouldn't let Kevin see me take a single step and even went so far as to hide from him once when he was heading my direction. But, after running all of that 20 minutes Tuesday - much of it with Kevin (who was painfully, lovingly trying to keep pace with me, no matter how slow I was going!!!), I feel completely different.

I feel healthy and happy and I feel like I really and truly can become a runner. I feel like I'm closer to my dream than ever!

P.S. I know I should be blogging about weighing in at 150 pounds for the fourth week in a row, but I wanted to blog about something happy instead.

Breakfast ideas ...

Ok, I am officially sick of oatmeal.

Well not really, but I eat it every day.

Check out my baked oatmeal recipe. I loved it so much, I took pictures and uploaded them to SparkPeople.com.  As good as it was (Each time you bit into a blueberry it melted in your mouth. It was DIVINE!!!), it's easier to make on the weekends since it bakes for 40 minutes.

While I put different fruits in it each morning ... and even cook it different ways sometimes, a little variety would be nice (though I'm excited to try my next new recipe: Crockpot Oatmeal.

So, I am looking for new breakfast ideas that will 1) satisfy my sweet tooth early in the morning 2) give me at least 5 grams of fiber and 3) give me protein. Sometimes I make turkey bacon, ham or an egg to satisfy my protein cravings, but I have really gotten sick of eggs lately and the bacon and ham are kinda messy.

This morning I made Cracked Wheat - a hot cereal with 7 g of fiber and 5 grams of protein in each serving. I added strawberries and cream (non-fat, non dairy, sugar-free vanilla creamer). Basically, it was like eating a crunchy oatmeal without the comforting taste of oats. But it has more fiber than oatmeal and I think I can figure out things to add to make it tastier.

They say variety adds spice to life. So tomorrow, I'm going to add Pumpkin Pie Spice to my variety. But I'm totally open to any ideas for different breakfast foods.

50 WEEKS!!!

Left: August 2009; Right August 2010

Fifty weeks ago, I made a decision. A big one.
I decided to get healthy.


The goal was to lose 50 pounds in 50 weeks and while I didn't quite reach it, I'm proud to say that in the past 50 weeks I've lost 45 pounds.

I've gone from a size 16 to an 8. I've lost more than ten inches in my waist, three cups sizes in my bra and a huge monkey from my back.

I learned the importance of feeding my body regularly (remember, I lost the first 15 pounds by eating breakfast everyday!) and I learned how to include exercise in my life.

I've learned how to deal with the munchies (pre-emptive strike with lots of fresh foods in the house!), how not to eat my stress (blog it or walk it!) and how to order healthy food at restaurants. I even learned it's okay to have "bad" food every now and then, as long as it's balanced with a lot of the good stuff.

I wake up full of energy (and by 7 am everyday!) ready to enjoy my day to its fullest and I smile more than I have in years. Besides all of that, people smile at me more now and the boys seem to dig me more too (not needed, but nice).

But most importantly, I have learned to love myself, be proud of myself, and take care of myself.

Thank you to everyone who has encouraged me throughout this journey. You have kept me motivated and dedicated and given me accountability when I needed it. You Ladies (and Gentleman) have been my rock and I can never thank you enough. But I can keep writing posts, continue in my workout endeavors and cheering you on as you each achieve your goals. I know you can do and I will be with you as long as you'll have me!

March 2010 - after losing 25 pounds

September 2010 - after losing 45 pounds