in case you wanted to know...

what is zumba? what these videos....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5Hxw_Jf2B4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf0q6qtThF4


it's all that and more!

you'll love it.

tired,happy and not hungry.

end of week one. ah the bliss of a saturday night spent at home still high off of the zumba class this afternoon and last night! i know, maybe not the weekend that you are having but nonetheless one that i very much am enjoying.

so here's the diet report. this week wasn't that bad. i wasn't able to follow the diet meal by meal, but i pretty much stuck to the meals and just moved them around on different days if i was short ingredients for one day. i also didn't want to have to spend (and can't actually) too much over the food budget, which was another reason for shuffling meals on certain days. i didn't feel too hungry or deprived of anything. if i skipped snacks or pushed meals too late then i def. felt hungry and cranky. right now i have a bit of a headache from not being fully hydrated and eating a bit later than i should have.

brace yourself. i cheated 3 times! boo ---right? well let me explain. it was some really disciplined cheating lol. i was at my farewell staff meeting and they had a cake for me! not only a cake, but vanilla my all time favorite! i seriously could have eaten three huge peices but-managed to cut myself the smallest peice and enjoyed every last bite. when i say small i mean small... about the size of half a credit card and as thick as a deck of cards maybe less? good right?

second cheat was a ferrero rocher when i needed a chocolate fix. (chocolate is actually allowed in stage 1 of this diet) so it wasn't that bad of a cheat. and the last cheat was the same day as the cake and was a bite (one bite) of a friends pizza. and that was it!

i am looking forward to weighing myself on monday and also taking measurements. i've gotten some great encouragement from all of you,making me think this time may be the time i get to my goal weight.

as far as working out goes it was also a solid week. although "The Instinct Diet" does require exercise i feel it's bonus for the body and brain while dieting. my week included a hardcore strength class and three zumba classes,along with one today that def. made my saturday much better since i usually overeat and SKIP the gym on the weekends.

i'm feeling really good about the diet and getting back on track. it's amazing how one week can make a difference. my emotions were all out of whack and i was feeling really really down. i dealt with some rejection,started a diet,got a library card,was inspired by some good books,applied to some jobs, SCORED an interview and feel really fit and not gross.

that's the way to end your week! if every week has the ability to move me like that well hot damn, sign me up ;) for now though i'm going to gear up for another week of the first phase of the diet and keep kicking my booty at the gym.

oh right and justin... he's sick (faking) (jk ;)) but promises to be back full blast (yes i just said that lol) next week. so much for justin's headstart though- i'm totally gonna smoke him.

tchau.

walking hurts.

despite feeling less pathetic than the past 12,000 weeks of being unemployed, the rain definitely didn't make "rise and shine" really happen. i did physically wake up and turn some lights on at 7:30am but decided that i didn't have to get out of bed until a bit later. i won't say how late for all of my employed friends, probably wishing they could sleep in... but in reality that would mean you would be unemployed like me and that is not even close to fun.


i only left the house yesterday, determined to take a yoga class to help my stop my body from screaming at me in pain. i walked to the metro thinking about all the other shared blogs i could write with people to help keep me moving and active. i could write a 3 mile blog and promise to walk at least 3 miles every day if someone on the other side of my computer screen could join in the efforts. i guess that's what book clubs and running clubs are all about ay? although revolutionary to me, pretty standard and common for the rest of the world.


anyway the walk over was actually really calming and all my body wasn't screaming and the rampant "you're pathetic get out of bed, get a job, actually get a boy to commit to you, save some money" thoughts seem to be distracted by the quiet calm of my neighborhood. probably because it was a little rainy outside.

so i get to target before the gym and pick up another pack of orbit strawberry mint (they only seem to sell it at the 14th street target) since that's helped me not cheat and eat entire bags of chips and i see my zumba instructor.

for any of you who has talked to me for more than five minutes, you know that zumba is one of my favorite work outs. you burn something like 500-900 calories depending on how much you put in. (fair enough right) (although the non smiling, wearing a sweatsuit, barely moving woman next to me, who made me think someone had forced her to come to class and not only attend class but be miserable, probably only burned 150 calories for frowning the whole time). it's salsa, merengue,samba, hip hop all rolled into really active "dances" which require very little coordination. i actually have thought about becoming an instructor.


destiny convinces me to let her sneak me into the already full (you're supposed to sign in ahead of time) class and it's all that and BETTER than a bag of chips :).


and today with a somewhat busy schedule i actually won't be able to work out, and since i can't really walk up and down the stairs properly i think stretching will be a good choice for myself. and tomorrow i'll hopefully have enough serotonin to get me out of bed early enough to be able to hit the gym before becoming busy in the evening.


many of you have sent some really encouraging emails and messages to me and justin since starting this blog and of course this morning one of my quotes on my "igoogle" pages reflects all of your wonderful words ;) (which i do very much appreciate!) (SEE BELOW)


enjoy your day today and burn some extra calories for me!

Never tell anyone that you're writing a book, going on a diet, exercising, taking a course, or quitting smoking. They'll encourage you to death.
- Lynn Johnston