I have a little button on my Facebook page that says something along those lines. Every time I tell someone I'm a vegetarian I know I'm either going to hear "How do you get protein?" or get the look. It amazes me that people don't realize that protein comes in many different forms and that it is quite easy to get what you need without meat in your diet. Not to mention that those forms of protein are so much healthier! I expect the question, and I'm fine with it, but sometimes it is a little irksome. Especially so when the person asking you has clearly had more than their fair share of protein over the years!
Now, perhaps if anyone reads this blog they can help me with "the look" that I get. It may have something to do with the area in which I live, but I get this look like people think I'm nuts. Vegetarians and vegans are everywhere, so why do I still get that look? Not everyone loves to eat steak! While I admit to enjoying meat in the past, I never liked steak and I never liked other meats so much that I couldn't live without them. My lifestyle is a choice. It's something I do for a variety of reasons and health is not first on that list. I remember a woman telling me should just couldn't live without eating ribs ever again and just didn't know how I could do it. Well, she doesn't have to live without them if she doesn't want to. I'm not asking her to do that. Do I wish she would choose them from a place that raised and killed the animals? Sure I do, but I know that might not happen. But it just sort of bugged me that she couldn't ever wrap her brain around the idea that I find other things to be more important than eating a big slab of meat!
I think the next time I get that look, I'm going to ask the person if they get enough fiber. Because based on that facial expression I'm thinking things might be a little backed up!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Life Update
Haven't posted in forever, so I thought I should do a quick update.
I'm enjoying being a vegetarian more and more as time goes on. It's a lot easier to find vegetarian options when dining out than I thought and I just feel so much better all over. I did make a rare exception the other day and paid for it. I have a friend whose wife makes the most AMAZING chicken salad that I have ever tasted. It's just beyond words. Well, I had the option to have some the other day and I just could not turn it down despite everything I feel about eating meat. Well, that was a mistake. The sandwich was as great as I thought it would be and I felt terrible for hours afterward. I guess it's like eating fried foods when you haven't done that in a long time either. So, I guess I can honestly say I'm a vegetarian now, because that won't be happening again.
School starts for the kids on the 24th and while I will miss them like crazy, I think it will be good for all of use to get back into that routine. I start again on the 30th and while I'm looking forward to it, I'm also nervous about all the work. I'm also considering taking a course at the community college to become a personal trainer. It's not something I would have ever considered in the past but now that I've lost almost fifty pounds it seems like something I could actually do. Now I just have to find the money for the course.
In even more personal news, I've started seeing someone. I'm not going to give any details at this point, but it's going very very well and I'm very happy.
I'm enjoying being a vegetarian more and more as time goes on. It's a lot easier to find vegetarian options when dining out than I thought and I just feel so much better all over. I did make a rare exception the other day and paid for it. I have a friend whose wife makes the most AMAZING chicken salad that I have ever tasted. It's just beyond words. Well, I had the option to have some the other day and I just could not turn it down despite everything I feel about eating meat. Well, that was a mistake. The sandwich was as great as I thought it would be and I felt terrible for hours afterward. I guess it's like eating fried foods when you haven't done that in a long time either. So, I guess I can honestly say I'm a vegetarian now, because that won't be happening again.
School starts for the kids on the 24th and while I will miss them like crazy, I think it will be good for all of use to get back into that routine. I start again on the 30th and while I'm looking forward to it, I'm also nervous about all the work. I'm also considering taking a course at the community college to become a personal trainer. It's not something I would have ever considered in the past but now that I've lost almost fifty pounds it seems like something I could actually do. Now I just have to find the money for the course.
In even more personal news, I've started seeing someone. I'm not going to give any details at this point, but it's going very very well and I'm very happy.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Women, Food, God and 48 Pounds
How's that for a title? So, I suck at keeping up with this blog, but I'm not sure anyone actually reads it, so that's probably fine. Anywho...
The book Women, Food and God by Geneen Roth is all the rage right now. She's been on Oprah and the book is a bestseller. I had previously read a book by Roth so I decided I'd see what all the fuss was about. I was a little skeptical at first because I don't really do the "God" thing anymore. I mean I suppose I believe that there is a higher power than ourselves, but I'm not religious and I don't want to read about how Jesus will save me from my weight. Thankfully this book was nothing I feared. I finished it quickly as it was a pretty easy read and I have to say that I do think it is something all women should read, even if they don't feel like they have food issues.
After nearly a year on Weight Watchers (which Roth had tried when it was far more restrictive) I feel like I'm starting to come too grips with the reasons I eat the way I do and in addition to that, the reasons I behave the way I do in other areas of my life. She did have a lot of really good things to say and it opened my eyes even further. I suspect it would be even more helpful to someone just starting out on a journey toward a healthier lifestyle.
Even more exciting that that, I have now lost 48 pounds! I weigh in on Thursday and I suspect I may have gained a little bit of that back this week, but that's OK. I still don't know exactly how I managed to lose the 4.2 pounds I lost last week so if a little comes back I'm fine with that. I had also donated blood that morning which may have accounted for some of that loss and in doing that and not eating enough I almost fainted in Subway after the meeting. Lucky for me, I have great friends who got my blood sugar back up quickly and I felt mostly normal for the rest of the day.
This means that I am now only 10 pounds away from my goal at Weight Watchers and 20 pounds away from my personal goal! I still can't believe it!
The book Women, Food and God by Geneen Roth is all the rage right now. She's been on Oprah and the book is a bestseller. I had previously read a book by Roth so I decided I'd see what all the fuss was about. I was a little skeptical at first because I don't really do the "God" thing anymore. I mean I suppose I believe that there is a higher power than ourselves, but I'm not religious and I don't want to read about how Jesus will save me from my weight. Thankfully this book was nothing I feared. I finished it quickly as it was a pretty easy read and I have to say that I do think it is something all women should read, even if they don't feel like they have food issues.
After nearly a year on Weight Watchers (which Roth had tried when it was far more restrictive) I feel like I'm starting to come too grips with the reasons I eat the way I do and in addition to that, the reasons I behave the way I do in other areas of my life. She did have a lot of really good things to say and it opened my eyes even further. I suspect it would be even more helpful to someone just starting out on a journey toward a healthier lifestyle.
Even more exciting that that, I have now lost 48 pounds! I weigh in on Thursday and I suspect I may have gained a little bit of that back this week, but that's OK. I still don't know exactly how I managed to lose the 4.2 pounds I lost last week so if a little comes back I'm fine with that. I had also donated blood that morning which may have accounted for some of that loss and in doing that and not eating enough I almost fainted in Subway after the meeting. Lucky for me, I have great friends who got my blood sugar back up quickly and I felt mostly normal for the rest of the day.
This means that I am now only 10 pounds away from my goal at Weight Watchers and 20 pounds away from my personal goal! I still can't believe it!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Waiting
I am terrible at waiting. Seriously, I'm the most impatient person I've ever met. I cannot stand to wait for anything and I know it's really annoying to anyone who has to deal with me on a regular basis.
Things are uber stressful around here right now. A lot of things are going on, and a lot of things could happen soon. But I have to wait on everything. It sucks! I know it's part of life and rushing thing is never good, especially if it's important, but I'm just not good at this.
The weight loss is still going pretty well, but again with the waiting! I've lost nearly 45 pounds now and that brings me to about 15 pounds shy of the goal I've set with Weight Watchers (25 pounds from my personal goal) and the closer I get, the harder it is to wait to see what I'll look like and how I'll feel. I think there is some fear there too. I'm afraid of getting so close and failing. I'm afraid of getting there and then backsliding.
So, if anyone has any words of wisdom about waiting, I could really use them now!
Things are uber stressful around here right now. A lot of things are going on, and a lot of things could happen soon. But I have to wait on everything. It sucks! I know it's part of life and rushing thing is never good, especially if it's important, but I'm just not good at this.
The weight loss is still going pretty well, but again with the waiting! I've lost nearly 45 pounds now and that brings me to about 15 pounds shy of the goal I've set with Weight Watchers (25 pounds from my personal goal) and the closer I get, the harder it is to wait to see what I'll look like and how I'll feel. I think there is some fear there too. I'm afraid of getting so close and failing. I'm afraid of getting there and then backsliding.
So, if anyone has any words of wisdom about waiting, I could really use them now!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Weight Loss Revelations
I started my journey toward a healthy weight in October. I walked into a Weight Watchers meeting not knowing what to expect. I had already spent tons of money over the years on gym memberships, diet books, other weight loss programs and tons of different foods. So, when I made the decision to go to Weight Watchers I didn't have a whole lot of confidence that it would work. I told myself that I would give it a few weeks and that no matter what I would follow the program. If after that time I didn't see any results, I vowed that I wouldn't waste the money and quit. I fully expected to quit, but since that first day I've lost 41.8 pounds.
The past two weeks have been a struggle though. I've gained a small amount and then had a small loss. It was starting to get frustrating, but I know that's just a part of this process now and that I have to find new ways to motivate myself and keep pursuing my goal. Yesterday I had a pretty awesome realization about my new body that made me want to keep going more than ever. Once a year the boys and I go to a local water park courtesy of our life insurance company. It's a lot of fun, but it also requires a great deal of energy. We went to the park yesterday and did all of the things we normally do there. They have this great lazy river where you get into tubes and float around. Last year when I was doing this I would try to jump up through the center of the tube and pull my legs up to get into the position that I wanted to be in. Every time I tried it it was really difficult and one time I flipped myself completely over in the water during an attempt. But this year I was doing the same thing and had no trouble at all. After the second time I did it, I thought "Did they change these tubes?". Then it dawned on me, I've lost 40 pounds!!! They didn't change, I did! It was awesome feeling! Not long after that the boys wanted to go down the large tube slides. This requires climbing up a steep flight of stairs carrying an awkward two seater tube. Last year when I did this I was so out of breath by the time I was barely able to enjoy going down the slide. This time, I was a little winded (I think you'd have to be an athlete not to be) but it wasn't near as bad and so much more fun!
So, while I may not be at my goal yet, and I still have a setbacks, it's moments like these that make it so worth the effort and make me want to keep going.
The past two weeks have been a struggle though. I've gained a small amount and then had a small loss. It was starting to get frustrating, but I know that's just a part of this process now and that I have to find new ways to motivate myself and keep pursuing my goal. Yesterday I had a pretty awesome realization about my new body that made me want to keep going more than ever. Once a year the boys and I go to a local water park courtesy of our life insurance company. It's a lot of fun, but it also requires a great deal of energy. We went to the park yesterday and did all of the things we normally do there. They have this great lazy river where you get into tubes and float around. Last year when I was doing this I would try to jump up through the center of the tube and pull my legs up to get into the position that I wanted to be in. Every time I tried it it was really difficult and one time I flipped myself completely over in the water during an attempt. But this year I was doing the same thing and had no trouble at all. After the second time I did it, I thought "Did they change these tubes?". Then it dawned on me, I've lost 40 pounds!!! They didn't change, I did! It was awesome feeling! Not long after that the boys wanted to go down the large tube slides. This requires climbing up a steep flight of stairs carrying an awkward two seater tube. Last year when I did this I was so out of breath by the time I was barely able to enjoy going down the slide. This time, I was a little winded (I think you'd have to be an athlete not to be) but it wasn't near as bad and so much more fun!
So, while I may not be at my goal yet, and I still have a setbacks, it's moments like these that make it so worth the effort and make me want to keep going.
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Tuesday Randomness
Lots of stuff has been going on so this is just going to be a lot of rambling.
My oldest is at camp for the whole week :( We dropped him off on Sunday evening and won't be picking him up until Friday evening. We're taking the youngest to a mini camp tomorrow evening and picking him up Friday as well. I miss them like crazy while they're gone so this is a hard week. It's been weird only having one kid at home too. I'm used to them entertaining (or trying to kill each other) and now I'm the one who has to do the entertaining. There's a lot less drama here with only one though that's for sure. It will be nice to have them both back though.
I've gained a pound back over the last two weeks but I'm not stressing about that. Yesterday I had someone tell me that someone who had just met me didn't believe I'd ever been heavy. It was nice to hear. I dug up some pictures of myself at my biggest and it was a real shocker. I was amazed at how large I really was and how I thought I looked. I honestly didn't think I looked as big as I was. I also didn't think I'd changed that much, but clearly I have. So, I'm happy even with the slight gain.
There has been a lot of other stuff going on in my life that I don't feel too comfortable sharing on here at this point. However, I will say that they have been an interesting test of the power of positive thinking (or negative, whichever the case may be). Based on how so many things have played out recently I realize that the only course of action is to maintain a positive attitude and focus on the outcomes I desire. The hows of all of those things will take care of themselves.
My oldest is at camp for the whole week :( We dropped him off on Sunday evening and won't be picking him up until Friday evening. We're taking the youngest to a mini camp tomorrow evening and picking him up Friday as well. I miss them like crazy while they're gone so this is a hard week. It's been weird only having one kid at home too. I'm used to them entertaining (or trying to kill each other) and now I'm the one who has to do the entertaining. There's a lot less drama here with only one though that's for sure. It will be nice to have them both back though.
I've gained a pound back over the last two weeks but I'm not stressing about that. Yesterday I had someone tell me that someone who had just met me didn't believe I'd ever been heavy. It was nice to hear. I dug up some pictures of myself at my biggest and it was a real shocker. I was amazed at how large I really was and how I thought I looked. I honestly didn't think I looked as big as I was. I also didn't think I'd changed that much, but clearly I have. So, I'm happy even with the slight gain.
There has been a lot of other stuff going on in my life that I don't feel too comfortable sharing on here at this point. However, I will say that they have been an interesting test of the power of positive thinking (or negative, whichever the case may be). Based on how so many things have played out recently I realize that the only course of action is to maintain a positive attitude and focus on the outcomes I desire. The hows of all of those things will take care of themselves.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Last Week of School!
So tomorrow is the beginning of the last week of school for the boys and I can't wait! Oh sure, I'm ready for them to go back when the time comes, but I also love it when they are out of school and we can worry less about bedtime and homework and such. It's great to just be able to go out in the evenings and do things we want without having to constantly think about what has to get done.
I'm taking a break for the summer myself. After seriously overdoing my schedule last semester and ending up with my first "F" ever :( I decided I couldn't cram it all in like I was trying and do a good job. So, now I won't graduate until May and I'm fine with that. I'm also fine with the "F". I didn't do the work plain and simple. It would have broken my heart when I was in high school, but now it's just a sign that I need to slow it down.
After my last Weight Watchers meeting (where I gained 2/10 boo) I realized that I'm only 17 pounds from goal!!!! Holy crap! I still want to lose 10 more after goal to be in the middle of the healthy weight range for my height, but once I hit goal I'm going to be so freaking happy!! If you had told me in October that I'd be at this point now I would have told you that you were crazy. Sure, others have lost it faster, but I never thought I'd lose the weight. Now, I have all of these things I want to do and ways I want to test my body and that's something I never thought I'd feel. It's amazing and I owe it all to WW!!
Hope your week is great!
I'm taking a break for the summer myself. After seriously overdoing my schedule last semester and ending up with my first "F" ever :( I decided I couldn't cram it all in like I was trying and do a good job. So, now I won't graduate until May and I'm fine with that. I'm also fine with the "F". I didn't do the work plain and simple. It would have broken my heart when I was in high school, but now it's just a sign that I need to slow it down.
After my last Weight Watchers meeting (where I gained 2/10 boo) I realized that I'm only 17 pounds from goal!!!! Holy crap! I still want to lose 10 more after goal to be in the middle of the healthy weight range for my height, but once I hit goal I'm going to be so freaking happy!! If you had told me in October that I'd be at this point now I would have told you that you were crazy. Sure, others have lost it faster, but I never thought I'd lose the weight. Now, I have all of these things I want to do and ways I want to test my body and that's something I never thought I'd feel. It's amazing and I owe it all to WW!!
Hope your week is great!
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