Long Time No Blog

It's been FOREVER!  A lot has happened since May so I'll update in list format:

*     My weight has stayed stable.  I've given up my powerlifting aspirations for now due to laziness and injury...mostly injury.  I recently dislocated/jolted my left shoulder/arm so that has to heal before I even think about whether or not I'll pursue powerlifting seriously again.

*     I am going to be in the Rosewood Arts Festival (yay!).  I'm still prepping my work.  Stay tuned for updates.

*     Dark Soul's Flight finally got framed!  I'm entering it into the SC State Fair this year (professional division).  She's beautiful too :-).

*     I am now teaching acrylic painting classes locally.  Here are pictures from my very first class:

 The demo (left) and my piece (right).  I deviated a little bit because if you're going to do color...do color!  Also clouds are loads of fun.  Seriously.  They really are.

 One of the attendees...she surprised herself!

The class portrait.  Just half as some had left already and some weren't confident in their piece (although everyone's ended up looking great!)

I call this a very successful first class!

*     I picked up a part time job as an education coordinator at a local arts and crafts store.  My job is to hire/train instructors primarily but also includes other store f unctions such as cashiering, stocking, and creating displays.  PLUS I get a great employee discount.  Dream. Part-Time. Job.

This is about the gist of it.  I'm busy prepping for the arts festival...10 MORE DAYS! Yikes!

I'll try to update more often.  Lots of stuff happen in absentia, no?

My Various Interests Converge...

Okay, so my ultimate goal is to compete in a powerlifting meet in the 148 pound weight class.  I am much closer to meeting that goal than I anticipated.

Wednesday, April 30th lifts in SQUATS:

1 set of 12 @ 45
1 set of 10 @ 45
1 set of 10 @ 55
2 sets of 10 @ 75
1 set of 4 @ 95

Today was an off day for benching.  My shoulder was just too gimpy.  I couldn't even do a simple lat press.

Oh, well.

Progress!  Oh, yes, how far I've come from when I first started working out in October until now.  SIX WHOLE MONTHS.  My girls are freaking out saying that I'm trying to be a "fashionista."  No...can't blame me for wanting to look nice sometimes.  Usually I prefer sneakers and sweats, even now as I'd rather be comfortable than turn heads but I change it up every so often.  Those squats are doing a body right though!  Give or take five pounds, I am at a satisfactory weight.

I did eat strawberry ice cream and marble coconut cake this entire weekend though for my baby's birthday but an off day or two shouldn't hurt considering.  It really wasn't all that great...I kept waiting for the sugar high that never came and left me feeling jilted and wishing I hadn't indulged in the first place.

Study for Symphony 5"x5"

So May 1st was the Opening of a local art exhibition called "Smaller Beckons" at Tapp's Arts Center in Columbia, SC.  All pieces of work in this exhibit have to be 12" x 12" or smaller.  I had 3 pieces chosen for inclusion (yay!), my more recent black and white oil painting studies, and a piece completed last year that was included in a similar show at the Columbia Museum of Art (ONEx100).  It was a great opening night.  I'm glad I took my pictures early because it was standing room only just an hour or so in. 

Saturday, May 3rd, was National Free Comic Book Day!  Yay!  Yes, I love comics btw.  That's how I first learned how to draw people from the book, How To Draw Comics the Marvel Way.  One of my favorite artists these days is Siya Oum.  I give her support for being a female comic book artist in a male dominated field and for being such a great inspiration to my daughter.  My daughter loves to draw and any female artistic inspiration I can give her (other than myself), I welcome wholeheartedly.  Here she is waiting for her sketch from the artists who were at the comic book store.  The kids were surprised when I told them of my love for comics.  Sure they've seen me read them but they had no idea I grew up drawing my favorite Marvel heroes (very well too).  I'm more geared towards fine art but I still dabble in comics here and there.

It was a busy past couple of days but well worth it all!

Another Art Study

Before I go crazy in kitty land I decided to do one more oil study for a larger piece I am considering in charcoal.  The name of this piece is Symphony.  I have a coming of age story in mind revolving around a young character named Symphony as well so the two would be in tandem.

I chose a slightly different approach with this piece.  I am using water mixable oils, mostly for convenience purposes as I don't have the facilities for the chemicals/smells involved with traditional oils.  These still are technically oil colors they just have an additional option.  The previous study was done with just water.  The paint was hard for me to manipulate and control.

Then I remembered that I have oil painting mediums that can make my life much easier.  I dug them out a played a little bit. and the results were dramatically different.  I also changed my approach.  I did an acrylic underpainting in umber which still shows through in some places.  This is fine...it's only a study.

I tried to take progress pictures of each step.  First there's the drawing.  Some argue that pencil should not be used, perhaps charcoal or even paint but not pencil.  I don't know their rationale for that and when I studied with a portrait painter in my youth I did everything in charcoal but these are tiny.  I'll worry about archival issues when they arise.

The second step was the acrylic underpainting to help me establish the lights and darks.  The third step is when white is added to the piece.  I was taught to fill in the the piece with the middle tone and background first but this was tiny so I figured altering my usual approach couldn't hurt.

The fourth piece shows the final results.  It's much smoother and more refined than the other piece as the oil painting medium gave me more control.  Obviously I deviated a bit from the sketch but I have to do what "moves" me.  It's only a study, after all so might as well play!

Switching Gears...

This is an oil painting study I worked on last night.  It is on canvas and is ACEO size (2.5" x 3.5").  Pretty darn small.  I can't seem to get as much detail with oils as I can with watercolor  and ink but I'm happy with the results .  I made some changes when I got home from work that I am happier with.

It is only a study and not a finished piece after all. I am NOT an oil painter.  I prefer mixed media working primarily with charcoal, watercolor and gouache so this is a serious deviation for me.  I really just felt like messing with the oils last night though.  I personally do not want a refined look to my art any more these days.  I think I did so much of that anal retentive nitpicking in my younger years, I just want to be free and just draw these days.

I have an idea for another painting...I'm going to do several thumbnails today and see what I can get done tonight.  A show is coming up locally in which all of the pieces have to be 12 inches or smaller.  I participated in a similar show last year at the Columbia Museum of Art that opened on my birthday (woohoo!).  This one opens on May 1st and I have to have my pieces sent for approval by April 26th.  I'm cutting it thin but I only have one piece that is ready to hang.  The rest are unframed/matted and I won't be able to get that done before May 1st.  Before leaving home this morning I gessoed a 5" x 5" wood panel so I can be ready to go when I get home.

Fitness wise?  I'm hurting but in a good way.  Apparently I can do my chin-ups with more ease and less rest in between.  2 sets of 5 chin-ups every workout day (including leg day).  By the time I get to the 5th I'm a little beat but hey, progress.  I thought I had accomplished something until my husband kindly reminded me that I wasn't actually doing pull-ups but chin-ups.  Pull-ups, the real ones are a completely different animal.  The difference is in the hand position.  Chin-ups are underhand which uses more biceps and arms while the pull-ups are overhand which puts your back to work a little more.  I managed to hold myself for 5 seconds before I just couldn't any more.  A far cry from the 70 second hold that marine women have to do.  So my new goal is to do real pull-ups and not pull-up lookalikes now.  My next goal for chin-ups is to do them without touching the floor.  Baby steps of course.

New Stats

I achieved a goal I wasn't actively going for.  On the captain's chair, I can now do the leg raises with straight legs instead of bent knees.  My abs have gotten stronger!  They hurt right now as I've been working my abs extra hard yesterday and today but obviously it's been working out.  I did ten of those before fatigue set in.  I'm so happy!  I remember when I could barely hold myself on that thing.  Progress!


Duck walks are the business.  A painful one but no joke.  I've been slacking off on my 125 bodyweight squats a day so I'll get back to it tonight.



*********


Stat time!


Here are my stats from February 21, 2014:


Height: 5'3
Weight: Fluctuates between 154 and 156...I'll claim 154.
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 27.3
Waist (at belly button): 30.5 in (down from 31 in.
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 33.5 inches (down from 34)
Hips: 41 in. (down from 42)
Chest: 35 in.
Thighs: 24.5
Arms: 11.5


It's been almost 2 months exactly.  Here's where I am now:


Height: 5'3
Weight: 148-150
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 26.2
Waist (at belly button): 30 in (down from 30.5 in.)
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 33.5 inches (no change)
Hips: 41 in. (no change)
Chest: 35 in. (no change)
Thighs: 24.5 (no change)
Arms: 12 (up from 11.5)


Not too much change other than my weight and another half inch off my waist.  Didn't lose a thing off my pooch although it is 32.5 inches when I first wake up in the morning (weird).  I'm working on controlling my water retention.  Amazingly enough taking grains out of my diet (a two week experiment) has seemed to help that.  I've also started drinking two cups of cold water first thing in the morning as well.  It's helped me feel better during my workouts.  I'll have to update how all of this makes me feel overall especially at the end of my two week experiment.  Today makes 1 week no grains. 

A Picture Is Worth....

Ok, so I'm in the room cleaning up and I find a pair of pants that I haven't been able to wear since 2012.  So I decide to try them on and guess what?  They fit!  Perfectly.  Hey, don't just take my word for it:

As a bonus, here is a progress picture from January 2014 at 159 pounds wearing size 12 pants:

Down a total of 17 pounds from my heaviest at 167 pounds!  These pants are a size 10!  Five more pounds and I'll be completely happy.  Those arms are looking good too.  I could afford to lose a little bit of for the abs as well but overall I'm happy for now.

Remember the Give It 100?  Ok it's been roughly 60 some odd days and I can do 25 pushups and 3 pull ups!  Total of 30 before I'm through and 5 pull ups before my arms say no more. The real ones too.  Progress!

I finally made it to a Zumba class last Thursday.  It was a lot of fun and requires a lot of endurance and very little inhibitions for dancing in public. I have both. I just neglected to bring a towel and water which had me drinking over a gallon for the rest of the night and first thing in the morning. Lesson learned.  I've never sweated that much. I'll probably do it once monthly so it doesn't take away from my weight training.

Feeling Good, Getting Strong

Somehow my crafting blog became my fitness blog.  Go figure.  I am still crocheting and knitting but have yet to actually master the art of completing.  Projects have either been left undone or frogged.  I did put together two 1000 piece puzzles and pinned a bunch of stuff on Pinterest so I was a bit creative...somewhat.  So, yeah.

I got an upper respiratory infection from my youngest around the 26th of February.  Misery.  The kids all caught it and recovered after a day.  I caught it and was sick for a week, even missed a few days of work.  Hubby caught it and it knocked him down too.

THEN because life wasn't eventful enough, the alternator in the car died and left me stranded on the one day the temperature dropped from 60 to 30 in a 15 minute span and left me waiting an hour for a tow truck.  Why do alternators give NO WARNINGS whatsoever?  Things just stop working.  I'm driving along.  It's pouring rain and the windshield wipers stop working.  I try calling my husband to fuss him out but he doesn't answer.  Then I noticed the lights on the dash were dim and after a quick test of the interior lights, I knew the battery was dying.  I quickly turned into a Dollar General parking lot and cut the engine which was apparently a smart move, not letting the battery completely die.  I've had a dying alternator before so I knew the signs.  It was rainy and cold but the tow truck driver was nice and pretty darn cool.

The rain finally cleared up over the weekend...heavenly seventy degree weather!  Could it be that spring is finally here?  I certainly hope so because my muscles aren't feeling the temperature rollercoaster South Carolina's been on the past couple of weeks.  Speaking of muscles...

I've decided to put my powerlifting aspirations on hold temporarily.  Why?  I would rather have muscle definition.  I'm strong but nothing about my physique screams it.  I want defined arms and legs, especially arms.  They are slender now but where is my Michelle Obama muscle definition?  Nonexistent.  So my husband is changing up my routine to that of a body builder although I am still doing some of the powerlifting development routines. 

So I got back on the bench today.  I can bench press the bar ten times with perfect form.  It isn't wobbly or falling to the side.  Not the 45 pound bar.  The 50 pound bar.  I don't know what happened but somehow I got stronger.  While enthused, I wish it would bring muscle definition.  I upped my cardio and will go to a Zumba class on Thursday.  I'm writing it here to make sure it gets done.  So far I haven't been able to do them for the following reasons:  snow, illness and injury.  Yep, I aggravated a groin muscle (irritating) last week, I was sick the week before that, and it snowed and shut down South Carolina the week before that.  If something happens this week, I'll take that as a sign to leave Zumba alone. 

That is all...well not quite.  I did try an Arabic Bellydance Fat Burn Cardio workout yesterday (all four parts on YouTube).  I haven't tried those since I first started working out in October/November.  They were torturous then.  I have a bit more endurance but they are still hard to do.  Worked up a crazy sweat.  Got up this morning and was a bit confused as to why my calves were so darn sore.  Then I remembered.  That workout is no joke so I may do that twice weekly as my cardio in case Zumba doesn't work out.

Hula Hooping Works!

Obviously the title gave it away.  I've just spent exactly one month hula hooping at least 15-30 minutes a day.  I just couldn't wait to take my measurements today. And guess what? There is a noticeable difference!

Here are my stats from January 20th:

Height: 5'3
Weight: 154.0 lbs
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 27.3
Waist (at belly button): 31 in. (down from 32)
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 34 inches (down from 35.7)
Hips: 42 in (down from 42.5)
Chest: 35 in.
Thighs: no idea (will post later)
Arms: no idea (will post later)

Here are my stats now:

Height: 5'3
Weight: Fluctuates between 154 and 156...I'll claim 154.
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 27.3
Waist (at belly button): 30.5 in (down from 31 in.
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 33.5 inches (down from 34)
Hips: 41 in. (down from 42)
Chest: 35 in.
Thighs: 24.5
Arms: 11.5

So the results are a half inch loss off my waist and pooch.  This has given me a noticeable and definitive hourglass looking figure that I'm feeling right now.  Since I decided to start powerlifting, I have been advised by my husband to wear compression shirts.  These are tight, form-fitting shirts that do just as their name implies.  He advises buying a size smaller than you can wear.  So I bought a cute pink one from TJMaxx and wore it on Monday to the gym.  I have a great silhouette now (thanks hula hooping!) that was kind of hard for me to appreciate with the life being squeezed out of me.

Well I did notice the stares.  Maybe I had been getting them before and just hadn't noticed but folks just weren't hiding it this go around.  They usually stare at my husband and hey, I don't blame them there, the man looks like he was chiseled from stone.  But me?  It was mostly the women which made me even more uncomfortable.  Anyway I was getting my tricep kickback on at the gym, minding my own business, when a trainer I had seen off and on from time to time approached me. She flexed and said, "Wow you look great and toned. I can tell you lost over the months. Keep it up!" She proceeded to tell me it falls off the top before you see it on the legs and hips.  She high fived my husband who couldn't resist adding, "She can't help but to get straight working out with me." They laugh and she went on her way.  I hadn't even realized folks were paying attention.

I won't lie.  I was feeling:

  

A lot of the looks/stares just made me feel very uncomfortable.  I'm going to wear the compression shirts with a looser shirt over them to ward off the lookie loos.  It is most distracting. 

I have taken continual pictures throughout especially of my ab area to mark my progress.  I now have a new phone.  Guess where all those old pictures are?  So progress pictures will have to wait until I stop being lazy and save the images off the old phone.   My new phone is one I love dearly already.  A Moto X!  I got to customize it so it is raspberry (pretty much pink) with a black face and silver highlights with my name written on the back.  It greets me in Swahili when I turn it on and my wonderful husband bought me a clear cover to showcase it.  Well the cover isn't 100% clear, more like a clear frost but it gets the job done without covering up my customizations.  With a flick of the wrist I can activate the camera, it has a super fast processor and 16 gigs of space (with an additional 50 gigs in the google cloud).  I'm officially in love and highly recommend this phone.  My husband got the Samsung 4 which does have a much prettier and clearer display and better camera (13 gigs to my 10 gigs) but I still prefer mine.  Many, many more pictures to come.

It's Worth It

No truer words have ever been written.  Sometimes you just have to remind yourself.

Day 25 of the pull up/push up challenge.  I'm doing 15 pushups, this time with the proper form.  Proper form sucks.  I've had to break them back down again.  I do 5, rest 20 seconds, do 5, etc.  What my hubby does that drives me nuts is he waits until I have done my full arm routine with bicep curls, hammer curls, tricep kickbacks, etc., then he tells me to bust out some pushups and pullups.  My form may be perfect now but my arms are screaming.  Pullups...I can do 2 full ones still but they are not easy.  I'm still working on pullups his way.  I can hold myself up 8 seconds and slowly lower myself...he makes me do them overhand instead of underhand which is HARD.

Everything he makes me do is hard.  But ultimately it is worth it.  I want to be stronger and to preserve myself for the future.  For this I have to stay with it and do it right.  I want to buy weightlifting gloves but he says no.  My wrist keep moving out of the right position on the benchpress...he says he would rather I get accustomed to doing them right without assistance because ultimately the glove isn't going to help in consistently doing it right without it.  Now he thinks I'm going to do the benchpress competitively but he has another thought coming.  Squats are my bag. 

I went shopping for some gear this weekend...Kmart had this crazy sale on workout shirts.  I picked up a medium but the hubs stopped me.  "Get a small," he says.  I look at him like he is nuts because I haven't been a small in eons.  I got it anyway because hey, I can always return it, right?  It fit perfectly.  I love my silhouette now.  When I started out I was so lumpy and misshapen it was disheartening to look in the mirror, let alone wear clothing that fit close.  This was a serious confidence booster for me. 

I saw a young lady I hadn't seen in awhile (since December) at the local natural food store.  I had told her about my fitness aspirations at that time (with only 6 pounds lost).  She was stunned when she saw me (13 pounds down).  I showed her my comparison picture from August until mid January and she pointed out something I hadn't noticed:  I was even thinner than the picture I took mid-January!  When I went home I immediately took some pictures to compare and yes, indeed, I look smaller now even though the scale hasn't moved for the past week or so.  I will have to give it to hula hooping.  There is an evident visual difference in my upper and lower abs between January 20th and February 8th. Also something else I noticed is that my upper arms are much tighter.  I guess that came from holding my arms up while hula-hooping.  I can't wait to take my measurements on the 21st.  Even if there isn't a change, visually things just seem much tighter.

My husband did measure my calves for comparison with his.  It's a shame...our calves are the SAME SIZE!  15 inches.  I'm 5'3" with 15 inch calf muscles.  I've always had big legs (my husband calls them cheerleader legs) but for crying out loud.  I measured them around the beginning of the year and they were 14.5".  They grew a half an inch in a month!  Darn squats and calf raises.  In my quest for muscle, I am well in the running for She-Hulk legs.  I knew that was going to be a consequence of focusing on squatting...my legs have always been more muscular and larger in proportion to my body.  So much so that a classmate back in high school swore up and down that despite my petite figure then I was going to be overweight when I was older because my legs were so big.  What a mean thing to say to someone (now that I think about it).  Anyway I am going to keep an eye on that.

On the bright side, I no longer have cankles so I guess you have to take the good with the good (but huge).

Decisions, Decisions...

I had a rather difficult decision to make.  One of my resolutions was to run a 5k.  I am also interested in powerlifting (squats).  I didn't mention that before?  Well, I am.  Although my dearest powerlifting hubby can do both distance and powerlifting he advises sprinting to compliment powerlifting.  I decided to go with powerlifting and forgo my 5k aspirations.  I did download C25k on my kindle and got through day one (2 miles woohoo, happy dance!).  I still wasn't tired (but I was done).  It will have to wait.  He wants me to train a good six months minimum before even thinking about a competition.

I want to set a record in South Carolina...none exist in squats in any weight class.  My weight class would be the 148 lb division same as my husband's.  He holds SC records (bench press), American records and world powerlifting records.  He is really strong.  Personally I'm on the fence about deadlifts and the benchpress is out.  Back in 2011, I could benchpress 65 and I was pretty darn proud of that.  I don't really have an interest in benchpressing though.  I guess I will have to try a deadlift to ultimately make a decision about it.

The most I had gotten to when I had decided to start squatting back in 2011 was 105 pounds.  My biggest challenge wasn't squatting...it was balancing the weight on my shoulders so that would more than likely be the case now.  Right now I do weighted squats 3 sets of 15 with a 30 pound barbell and lunges (I don't count I go partial length of the weight-room--about 20 feet) for 4 passes) with 20 pounds.  To be honest this is easy but I just haven't told the hubs that yet...he already said everything I do from now on regarding powerlifting solely (squats, deadlift, bench) will have to be with the 45 pound bar and up.

I can't wait for the day I bust through the testosterone ceiling of the weight room and make the big muscled men cry.

Okay it is 8 days later (Day 19) and I'm not really challenging myself to do more than 10 push ups.  The hubs wants me to work on adding more.  I'll start that tomorrow.

Another reason I slowed down is that I got this bad cramp in my right shoulder...apparently I was doing my pushups with incorrect form.  It was a slight movement off but enough to aggravate my shoulder.  I was advised to rest it and haven't done pushups since Saturday but I think it is fine now.  Back on the horn tomorrow.  In another week I hope to be up to 15 pushups.

On January 29th it snowed here in South Carolina.  Yeah...2 whole inches of misery from the sky.  Not a snow fan here.  That's why I live in the South.  So whenever there is a chance of snow here EVERYTHING shuts down.  There was a lot of preparation here so by the time the snow came everyone was safe and sound.  We averted the craziness that was Atlanta, thanks to their politician's poor planning and preparation (but that's a whole other blog post).  Anywho, what can you do when school is out, you're trapped inside due to iced over roads (the entire Midlands has only 9 snow plows that were focused more on the interstates) with hyper kids?  You hula hoop of course!  I finally learned how to hula hoop and have done it every day since!

I have a 2 pound hoop I bought from Kohl's.  After the first day, my obliques and abs hurt something fierce.  They were red and throbbing.  Now I don't feel the pain at all.  I can hoop in both directions but I'm not good enough to keep it up with the kiddos yet.  Either way I hope I see results off my middle because of it.  My next hoop up is going to be the 3 pounder. 

Push-Ups

This is Day 11 of the pull-ups/push-ups challenge.  So, I can do 10 pushups in a row baby!  Can't tell me nothing.

I'm on my way to 25 in a row push-ups!  By summer I will have arms and shoulders like one of my favorite fitness inspirations:

Photo by Reuters/Landov

That's the plan at least.  My shoulders are soft and round now and nowhere near the shapeliness they had when I was in my early 20s.  I could do up to 30 back then (in sets of 10) and I could do pull-ups.  I am getting better and better with the pull-ups.  My husband has put the bar up higher and I can actually hold myself within an inch of the bar for six seconds now.  I do 3 reps of those.

My middle is whittling away.  I won't do any more measurements until February 24, 2014.  Hopefully I will see some inch difference.  I feel the difference already.  The weather has been cold but I cannot let that deter me from my fitness goals.

The hubs has a pretty good collection of resistance bands that I want to use eventually.  I am overall happy with my progress...the thing is my waist is pretty much where I want it to be (give or take an inch or so) while everything else (muffintop) isn't moving as fast.  I think the Russian Twists would help especially using the resistance bands.


*********************************

So digging back through my archives I came across this little ditty from 2010.

  Yes, this is me.  I weighed about 135 pounds, which in my opinion is way too small for me.  Look at my clavicle sticking out! I don't want to be this small again.  Anyway, that isn't why I posted this.  See the top I'm wearing?  That is the Blissful top from The Happy Hooker (2006).  I made some changes to the pattern...I connected the back so this is a full shirt.  I made it from Bernat Satin Sport yarn and was really really proud of myself.  I couldn't fit into that thing for anything these days but that is besides the point.  I am making it again!  This time I decided to use Pink Bamboo thread yarn (size 10) which makes for a lot of modifications.  It's just really beautiful and something I want to aim to wear come summer when I hit the beach.

Graze Box Review

Maybe you've seen the Facebook ad for them, popping up in your feed incessantly because one of your friends liked the page.  Maybe you looked at the NatureBox and the all-seeing Google and Facebook collaborated and popped like searches in your feed.  Maybe you've never heard of Graze at all.  Well, now you're in luck.  I have heard of Graze and have received my (free!) box in the mail yesterday.

 Here is the Graze box.  It fits in the mail box...fairly smallish.  I placed the CD there for a comparison.  Well I received an interesting assortment. I will review them all individually.

Dark Rocky Road
Ingredients: 

pecan

dark chocolate buttons (cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, natural vanilla) 50% Cacao

cranberries (cranberries, sugar, sunflower oil)

My Thoughts:  I'm not a dark chocolate fan so that aside, these were really good.  I'd recommend them, even if I only ate the cranberry and pecans.  The inner packaging says they have a best by date of April 1, 2014.  It isn't more or less good than the nut mixes I buy locally especially since I take care to avoid dark chocolate.  Like I said I would recommend them but for my money I would have to take a pass.

Chili and Lime Pistachios
Ingredients:
pistachios, salt, natural chili and lime flavors

My Thoughts:  LOVE THEM!  These are absolutely delicious!  The chili and lime compliment the flavor of the pistachios perfectly.  I would have been happy with an entire box filled with them.  It is going to be hard to go back to Wonderful's plain salted pistachios (I can't find the cracked pepper ones anymore).  I HIGHLY recommend these.

Bonnie Wee Oatbakes
Ingredients:

cheese and chive oatbakes (55%) (oatmeal (64%) , cheese powder (8%) (suitable for vegetarians), olive oil, salt, chives (contains gluten)

red onion marmalade (45%):  (red onions (52%), white wine vinegar, muscovado sugar, sugar, balsamic vinegar, black pepper)

My Thoughts: Disgusting!  Okay, that's being a bit overly critical.  They weren't that bad.  I did somewhat like the red onion marmalade.  I absolutely abhorred the cheese and chive oatbakes.  They were bland with little flavor.  The best part about eating them was the red onion marmalade.  After one, I was satisfied not to try any more.  I don't think I would recommend this.  One of my coworker's loved it while everyone else agreed with me, so I would have to say it is an acquired taste.  

Summer Berry Flapjack

Ingredients:

rolled oats (41%)

margarine (vegetable oils, water, salt)

demerera sugar

golden syrup

infused cranberries (11%) (sugar, cranberries, natural strawberry flavor, natural raspberry flavor, citric acid, sunflower oil, elderberry juice concentrate)

cranberries (sugar, cranberries, sunflower oil) (contains gluten)  

My Thoughts:  Delicious!  Unfortunately they had a no-no ingredient of mine that I didn't realize until after I partook in one of them:  margarine.  I avoid vegetable oil mixtures like the plague and was disappointed that they couldn't find another type of oil (olive, coconut, sunflower, etc) to cook with.  After reading that ingredient I couldn't bring myself to eat more.  If you aren't particular about eating margarine, then I would highly recommend them because they are absolutely divine!

Now here is the big question.  Would I order these again?  Since we are able to go on the site and pick and choose what we like or don't like and trash the things we never want to receive again, I would say yes, I would order again with a box tailored to my own preferences.  The only thing I absolutely didn't like was the oatbakes.  Everything else was pretty damn good. 

Beware!  SHAMELESS PLUG 

If you would like to try a Graze box for FREE....By all means go HERE and enter friendcode:  VD7QTMDCP.

It's free so you have nothing to lose!  My advice is to go through, look at the ingredients and pick and choose what you wouldn't mind receiving prior to having the box shipped.  You can't decide exactly what you want in it but you can come very close to getting what you want.

Fitness Progress (Woo-Hoo!)

My last update regarding my weight was January 6th.  These were my stats:

Height: 5'3
Weight: 159.9 lbs
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 28.3
Waist (at belly button): 32 in. (down from 34.5)
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 34 inches (down from 35.7)
Hips: 42.5 in.
Chest: 35 in.
Thighs: 24 in.
Arms: 11.5 in.

Now it's January 20th.  It's been about 3 weeks or so since I've been on the intermittent fasting "diet."  I hesitate to call it a diet...it has become something I would like to be a lifestyle change for me.  I eat within an 8 hour period during the day and fast for 16 hours.  It's been called many names but I settled on intermittent fasting.

I've lost 6 pounds since starting.  I've also become a pescetarian so I do not know the effect that change had but I still eat quite a bit of calories...I don't believe I'm operating at a deficit.  Anywho, here are my stats now:


Height: 5'3
Weight: 154.0 lbs
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 27.3
Waist (at belly button): 31 in. (down from 32)
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 34 inches (down from 35.7)
Hips: 42 in (down from 42.5)
Chest: 35 in.
Thighs: no idea (will post later)
Arms: no idea (will post later)

I can see a difference in myself.  I feel lighter.  I lost two pounds in just the past week.  I don't want to lose too much.  In my younger years gaining weight was extremely difficult for me.  I don't want to be too skinny and I would like my weight loss to stop preferably around 150.  I'll take 145 but only if I am very toned.  My love handles are shrinking!  I can actually see the difference and feel it.  My size twelve pants are loose but aren't falling off of me (yet).  I'd be satisfied in a size 10...8 is pushing it and heaven help me if I get any smaller than that.  One should have meat on his/her bones.  My pooch won't budge...It looks toner due to the shrinking obliques though.  I shall see how this develops.

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I need to get disciplined enough to do 100 squats a day for 30 days.  I want to tighten up the glutes...they also work the abs as well.  Well a quick google search bought up this 30 Day Squat Challenge.  Tomorrow is day 1 for me.  Wish me luck!

http://www.thehealthycollective.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/30-day-squat-challenge.jpg

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On the Give It 100 challenge...This is day 4 and I can do 3 man push-ups.  I haven't been able to practice the pull-up as I've gone twice without the hubby to the gym.  I can't move that big bar on the squat machine, and I don't really want to ask any of the guys in there.  Don't want them getting any ideas.  I want phenomenal shoulders so I have to get those push-ups in gear.  My goal is at least 10 by the end of the month.  If I can do more, that's great!  baby steps.  I am going to practice every day until 3 becomes easier.  Then I'll had more.  Three is killing me right now (lol).  

 Hubby has these Perfect Push-Up exercise aids laying around.  He had me try them...THESE ARE TOUGH!  

Here is what I've discovered.  After attempting to do two on these, doing them on the floor is much easier.   

I'll probably use these to help with my planks though...baby steps.

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 This is a craft blog and I haven't written anything about crafting lately, have I?  Well I've still been at it, mostly drawing, but I'm getting some crochet work done.  I finished a pink baby blanket.  I am working on a white shrug for the summer out of crochet thread that is taking awhile only because I work on it every now and then.  It is in modules so I am connecting them as I go along.  I honestly can't wait for it to be done and hopefully my arms will be just right for it.  Pictures are forthcoming (I promise!).  


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Best quote I've heard all week:  Treat your body like a temple, not a trash can.  Amen to that! 

Super Easy Kale Chips Recipe

Look at me, a regular blogger these days!  Well that's only because I have a lot to say and time to say it, which was sorely lacking last year.

First things first.  Last night I decided to try my hand at kale chips and a smoked salmon quiche. I pretty much did the same thing I did with the last quiche only with better evaporated milk (Carnation, not store brand).  I bought a smoked salmon fillet that was ready to eat...it tastes delicious either way and I was really proud/happy with the results.  The kale chips came out fantastically.  Here's all I used:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wash the kale and dry thoroughly with paper towels.  Separate the leaves from the thick stem...trash the stem.  Place leaves in a big bowl (not pictured) and spray them liberally with the Pam Olive Oil cooking spray.  Massage them to make sure that the oil gets over every leaf.

Then shake as much of the seasonings on it that you can stand.  Beware, that creole seasoning has a real kick to it.  If you are watching your sodium intake, take it easy. 

Spread the kale out on your baking pan (I used a 16" round pizza pan, not pictured), making sure none of the leaves touch.  Bake for 10 minutes. 

Now here is what I learned from this experience.
1.   Kale chips are good.
2.   Kids love them.
3.   The raw kale tastes great with this olive oil/seasoning combination too.
4.   They do burn easy.  They are supposed to retain their green appearance.  I went overboard a few times
      and turned my dark green kale to olive green (which is burnt) but they still taste darn good. 
5.   They are very fragile.
6.    Did I mention kids love them?  Finally had to put my foot down on the fifth batch which I intended to
       take to work.

In a nutshell, Kale chips are really yummy.  I admit I was dubious when I saw them in the local natural food market last year.  I couldn't imagine them being tasty.  Now that I have tried them I can honestly say I am hooked. and I am too pleased I didn't have to shell out $7.99 - $9.99 a bag.  Kale costs $1.19 a bunch in these parts.  I also have a kale plant (and several broccoli plants) growing on my deck. 

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I discovered a website called www.giveit100.com.  Apparently, you make 10 second video clips of you practicing something every day for 100 days.  I chose to do this with my newest aspiration:  learning how to do a pull-up.  Laugh if you must, but I don't feel in the least bit bad I can't do one.  Apparently I am in good company, as 55% of the women in the Marines can't do the required three.  So my goal is to be able to do at least three (preferably more) within 100 days.  I added push-ups for good measure.  First Lady Michelle Obama can really go at those.  Maybe, just maybe, I'll have arms as enviable as hers if I master those too.  I know she can do at least 25...she challenged Jimmy Fallon and Ellen.  Well they challenged her and they both lost miserably.  I will update with my progress daily.  It will be every other day...I did pull-ups today so push-ups tomorrow.

My hubby has me doing them differently to start.  I lay down on the floor at the bar assist machine (that's not the name of it "officially" but it is the machine that helps you do your squat that you can adjust.  I lay down on the floor and attempt to pull myself up.  I do the motion twice and hold for three seconds on the last before slowly lowering myself to the floor.  I did eight reps today.  Those are TOUGH.  I know in another 99 days I'll be laughing at my weakness but for right now I am hurting.

Pescetarian for the New Year!

I decided to go pescetarian for the new year.  What's a pescetarian?  A vegetarian that also eats fish.  It's not too complicated.  I still eat eggs even though I don't eat chicken and I absolutely love cheese and still add milk/cream to my recipes...becoming vegan will be difficult so I'm taking baby steps.  I went vegan all at once back in 2012 and got sick, sick, SICK.  Seriously, I ended up with bronchitis which even with medicine, hardly cleared up until I started eating meat again.  I tried again...got bronchitis again.  Apparently my body was detoxing in overdrive because of my sudden switch so I'm going easy on myself this go around.

I discovered black bean burgers at Buffalo Wild Wings and they became an instant favorite.  Then disaster hit!  I ended up getting food poisoning at a local grocery store's deli (national chain that shall remain nameless).  I should have known better but I've had their tuna subs before.  This go around was probably as typical as you're going to get I suppose.  After almost 24 hours of waves of nausea not to mention the whole, "I can't keep water down" shtick, I went to the doctor who confirmed that I had gastroenteritis most likely caused by food poisoning and gave me some anti-nausea medicine, the kind that dissolve on your tongue as I couldn't drink water.  It worked.  I was finally able to eat, albeit it was cream of shrimp soup followed by two oranges.  I felt like I could fly over the moon after the oranges which let me know my blood sugar was especially low.  Today is the first day I could see my veins since last Thursday so I am confident I am sufficiently hydrated.

The good news is I lost some weight!  Prior to this I was trying out the whole eating within an 8 hour period, fasting 16 hours thing...almost two weeks and I lost 2 pounds.  Then the food poisoning.  I lost an additional two pounds.  I'm sitting at 156 even now.  I figure I will probably gain the last two pounds back but so far despite being back on my eating schedule, I seem to be holding steady.  My waist at the belly button went down 1 whole inch (31 now, woohoo!).  Yes I am celebrating a bit.  I am back to where I was (weight-wise) in May 2013.  My doctor was impressed with my weight loss from December 18th (when I went for the chest wall inflammation).  I lost six pounds according to her scale.

Well, what have I been doing lately?  I got back to the gym for the first time today!  I've been doing small workouts at home but it felt good to work up a sweat at the gym.  My husband wouldn't let me dive right in so we did some modified strength training to accommodate my inflammation issues and worked on stretching more.  He's also showing me the proper way to run by showing my the technique and form.  Apparently I'm a natural.

I've also been cooking.  Now generally I don't like to cook.  I do like to eat and I love good and beautiful food.  I'm also an artist so I should be able to do a little something but I like to keep things simple.  Steam, foil bake, boil...anything that doesn't fit within those confines remains uncooked.  Well becoming a pescetarian challenged my limited abilities.  First off, developing a love affair with black bean burgers meant shelling out $7.99 + tax to Buffalo Wild Wings ($3.73 with the $5 off survey coupon).  That just seems so fiscally irresponsible I just had to find a recipe.

The Homemade Black Bean Veggie Burger from Allrecipes.com is great easy and tastes DIVINE!  In my opinion when it is done fresh...not when it is reheated in a microwave as I am forced to do at work. 

So I am good for the week on that.  The recipe made five huge patties.  I bought some chipotle cheddar cheese (yes I know, terrible but I don't care...) to eat with them.

My Quiche...isn't it lovely?

Then I decided to make a quiche.  I LOVE QUICHE.  Emphasis on L-O-V-E.  The thing is I had never made it before.  This go around it was About.com to the rescue.  I was struggling with the whole "crust" thing when I noticed the low-carb option in google for a Crustless Quiche.  I bought some evaporated milk and a deep dish 9" pie pan along with some other niceties that I won't have to buy again for awhile and made a broccoli, spinach and cheese quiche.  I threw some diced onions and green peppers and blue cheese in for good measure.  I followed the recipe to the letter.  The results were simply divine.  The kids weren't thrilled and hubby didn't try it but who cares?  More for me.  Since quiche tastes good cold as well I don't have to do the whole "microwaving" thing.  I absolutely abhor microwaves but that's a post for another day.

What's my next recipe?  I'm thinking Kale chips :-). Or Zesty Kale Chips...  Oh and a Crustless Smoked Salmon Quiche...

Last thing...I can see my results!

August versus January

 The left picture was August 24, 2013.  The right picture was January 13, 2014.  I started working out in October.  That's roughly four months, 9 pounds and several inches.  Can you see the difference?  Even my face lost weight.  There's the case of the disappearing boobage but I guess that can't be helped as long as it is taking belly fat with it.  Now I need to work on muscle definition.

Remember back in October when I said I needed help giving up Zaxby's?  I haven't had Zaxby's in months!

New Year, Time to Rev it Up!

So, for January 2014, here are my stats:

Height: 5'3
Weight: 159.9 lbs
Body Fat Percentage: no idea
Muscle Percentage: no idea
BMI: 28.3
Waist (at belly button): 32 in. (down from 34.5)
Waist (bellow belly button, aka, my pooch): 34 inches (down from 35.7)
Hips: 42.5 in.
Chest: 35 in.
Thighs: 24 in.
Arms: 11.5 in.

Obviously this is not my ideal but it is better than weighing 167 pounds at my heaviest.  I have to step it up.  I suffered from some chest wall inflammation just a few weeks ago and have recently finished my course of anti-inflammatory meds and will be going back to the doctor soon.  In the meantime I have been ordered to take it easy with the weight training and cardio.  I feel so much better now but will obey until I get the official okay.

My goal weight I have readjusted once again for 150 lbs...I'd take 152 or 153 though.  My goal waist would be what it was prior to having children 28 inches but I know that isn't realistic.  I'd take 30 at the waist and 32 at the pooch.  Hips can stay where they are.  I like hips.  Chest can stay where it is although I know it will shrink (sigh). 

Since my exercise has been restricted I have done other things in the meantime. My goal was to have my legs back.  I kind of let myself go in that I gained weight, developed cankles, and was unhappy with my tree trunk legs in sandals.  To add to the misery I developed Baker's cysts on the back of both of my knees.  I missed my svelt and lithe dancer legs of my youth.  Well now I have them back!  Well almost.  I still have the Baker's cysts which kind of spoil my overall look but from what I have read since mine aren't painful (any more) they would probably just go away on their own over time.


Well, how did I do it?  I used the Awesome Legs Workout on the T-Tapp website!  1 week, every day.  It works!  I didn't even notice until I looked last night.  I had ankles! And that beautiful line up my calf.  I tried on some heels and swooned.  Just gorgeous.  Now how vain am I?  I love beautiful legs, what can I say.  I don't know if I lost any inches but let's just say my thighs don't converse any more.  I lost my favorite pair of jeans to their heated conversations.


That is all for now.  I guess in all the hoopla of fitness and contemplating, my crafting has been abandoned somewhat.  Well not to worry, I am still very much crafting.  I am currently working on a motif bolero and some ACEO cats.  I draw a bit too.  I have gallery work and my more commercial work (to fund my gallery work.  Here are some of my kitties I sell on Ebay from time to time.

Emma

Fox

In Her Sights

Lost In Thought

Sweet Girl

Wide Eyed Wonder

Lounging Around