The weekend of massive cheating.

I didn't write a post yesterday mainly because we had visitors so I'm going to split this up by day. I actually decided to wait until after my run to write this that way I can do as much updating as possible.

Warmup Walk!

Saturday
Everyone in the house was up early because construction work started on the house next door at 7:30AM (so freakin' irritating). Not to mention my parents had to deal with the early morning sunshine pouring into our front bedroom. I had my cottage cheese breakfast and some green tea, good conversations with my Mom, and cuddle time with Hank. Hank was being extra cuddly this weekend because he had SO many guests to visit with, so he graced me with his presence once or twice.

I took Hank and my parents on a walk to the dog park. No one else was there so we had a good time watching Hank chase the tennis ball. Chuckit! ball launchers are amazing dog toys and such a great invention! Chompion toys are pretty cool also, he likes how they bounce and I think he really likes the texture. He had a lot of fun but if you knew Hank personally, you would know how much he craves human attention. He gets bored easily if you aren't running with him to get the tennis ball. Thanks Hank for trying to keep us all active!

My parents and I took a trip down to Visalia and ended up going to the outlet mall and having lunch. We ate at the Bravo Farms Shop which was amazing. It was really my first meal of indulgence since I started this challenge. I had a BBQ Salmon (baked and the BBQ'ed naked) Sandwich on Wheat Bread. I did indulge and have Gouda cheese and it was so worth it! Bravo Farms is a local cheese factory, so their cheeses are fresh and really "mmmm - tastic". This place has awesome sandwich spreads, they are mayo based dressings that are just to die for.  BUT... I skipped my regular Sun Dried Tomato Aioli and the salmon was so moist that the sandwich didn't suffer. I surprised myself though because I stopped eating at one point and realized that I was full on the bread so I put half my bread aside and finished the veggies and salmon and I left bread on the plate. *insert self pat on the back and a superwoman pose here*

Since we were at the Outlet, we had to go shopping. Our last stop was Dress Barn and I told my mom that I still hadn't used my Christmas gift card to Kohl's to buy jeans. I really wanted to wait until this challenge was over but she offered to buy me jeans in exchange for the Kohl's card. I was honestly really scared to try on the jeans that I found and liked. I've had these problems lately where I grab my size from the rack and have issues putting them on in the dressing room. I've walked out of stores so many times without a purchase because I've felt so gross and disappointed. I know that is my size because the jeans I wear everyday are that size, but for some reason the jeans in the store mock me and laugh as I put them on the "go-back" rack. "Muahahahahaha... we've bested you again! Come back so we can do it again sometime!"

Anyway, I grabbed my size and walked into the dressing room. I held them up and kinda thought, shit. I'm not sure I can do this. But guess what, I put them on and they fit with room to spare. Oh my gosh, I've not been so happy with a pair of jeans in my life. The fact that those jeans fit me without any struggle is a testament to the fact that this program is working for me. It just felt so good. Not to mention they look really cute on me and are more flattering than any jeans I currently have in my closet. It gave me a boost of confidence that I needed. Basically, it gave me the confidence to move some stuff around in my closet and wear something I haven't worn in a long time. I was originally going to wear my standard jeans and boots to the dinner we were going to but pulled out a skirt and heels instead.

And speaking of the dinner, I ate salad and tri tip. I didn't eat any rice pilaf or dessert. Yes! I survived! We won some good prizes to boot and my in-laws won some cash (they are on a crazy lucky winning streak right now, don't feel too jealous). Heard some really funny comments about my husband that are still making me laugh and totally shocked the hell out of the kid who door bell ditched us last week when I called him out to his face.

Sunday...er...today...
Again, we woke up early because of the construction next door. 7:45AM on a Sunday, give me a break! But it ended up working out because we went out to breakfast before the husband needed to be at work and before the Sunday after church crowds filled all the restaurants downtown. But again, I indulged a little bit and I got two Swedish Pancakes (thin like crepes) with powdered sugar, butter, and lingonberry sauce. It was gooooooood. I just don't really want to see the scale in the morning. I might not even stand on the scale until Thursday.

I'm really bummed that our parents didn't get to hang out for longer but it's nice to have Hank back to normal. He's relaxing and I'm kind of glad to be back on my diet (whoa, can you believe that?) without needed to worry about anyone else's eating needs. Well, other than my husband but he's survived so far. One thing you need to know about dieting is that when you deviate, it has strange consequences. I haven't gotten sick but I've been visiting the restroom a little bit more and it hasn't been fun.

I did get a run in today which I accomplished having only Swedish pancakes. I have to say my body is constantly amazing me lately. My cardio abilities and stamina have increased by leaps and bounds and it really shows. We did 3 miles in 40 minutes today with the addition of run/walk intervals, that's slightly over a 13 minute mile. I get this strange cramp in my shoulder when I run, mostly because my shoulders are so tense and I work so hard to control my upper body. So I've done some reading and discovered that unclenching my fists and not being afraid to run with loose arms should really help me in the long run (pun intended.. not really I was just going for the cliche). So I tried it the method and it worked well, my shoulder didn't cramp until we were 30 minutes into our run and almost home, but that's mainly because I was getting tired. I did feel silly with my wrists hanging loose but I actually had better leash control and wasn't in Hank's way as much. Another thing I can do now (thanks to the core circuit) is really stand tall and open my chest more while I run, it helps me breathe. The walking intervals have been shorter but I find that my recovery time is way less than it has been. I'm catching my breath faster and I'm able to start running sooner. It's a good feeling.

Watching the Superbowl now and I'm about to make homemade chili-lime tortilla chips. 

And I leave you with this.

Update: Actually, I leave you with this! 24 homemade, baked tortilla chips that are the same amount of calories as 7 Tostitos Chips. Plus some avocado, cilantro, carrot, and salsa dip. Yum...my.

Just bask in the awesomeness... it's ok, no one will judge you here.