Weekly Weigh-In #285 (179.5)

Oy, even closer to that dreaded 180 mark. I just haven't been able to get back into my exercise routine, and eating has been awful. Not sure why I'm so hungry, and only craving crappy stuff all the time. And giving in and indulging. At least I did make over 100k for the week.

NUMBERS: Official weight up again. 1.1 to 179.5. Average weight up also (1.05 to 178.49). That lines up with the numbers, with an overage for the week of 4124, with average intake 2607, and average burn 2381. Only one day with 3000+ burn. No 30k days, no eating under 2000 (well, I kept it right there one day). Step average 14962 with 31.57 logged miles. Cardio minutes 498/462/539/748.   Total steps 104736 from the One. 103083 from the Charge2(clipped), 96355 from the Versa. As the One came in with higher steps than the "hipclip" ... I feel I should point out that I swapped spots this past week, wearing the one on the hip, and the Charge2 as my torso tracker. This again indicates to me that "where you wear it" plays a part in tracking!

#2 had a good week and beat me soundly ... as my brother pointed out again ;)

FAMILY FITBITS: Not sure where the other three boys ended up for weekly numbers, if they've been syncing or even wearing theirs. Both littles had gym last semester, but don't this semester. #5 doesn't wear his during his basketball games (can't wear anything on the wrist, and he doesn't want to clip it or strap to his ankle, as #2 does for his games) and forgot it for a couple practices and in fact, we can't even find it now. Lost. #3 forgot his a time or two (he came in at 65,145) and #4 ... he hasn't synced for weeks!

EXERCISE: I only achieved my hour of elliptical ONE day this past week. Three days I got a half our in. My schedule (and motivation) has been off, and if I don't get my elliptical in early, I don't get it in. Only two times on the treadmill ... one day was double duty. Four Zumba classes.   OTHER ACTIVITIES: There were six basketball games this week, I only made it to five (but the time before/after adds up to the extra hour on the graph). #5 had five games, and #3 had one. Two went into OT. Driving and grocery shopping as per usual, also a little other shopping. 

Here's the Day by Day ...

• Monday (0114) The end of the quarter was Friday, so the kids were out of school today as the teachers finalized grades. So, I slept in. Needed the alarm to wake about 8:45! A little too late for Kirsten's 9:00 class, and it had been a while since I'd hit Southziders so I headed out there. Unfortunately, I didn't check email, saying class was canceled. I noticed about halfway there while stopped at a light. Turned around, stopped at Smiths on the way home, as we needed groceries. Ended up going over to the church with the littles, they played basketball while I went over some routines. So still got some Zumba in. One time on the treadmill. No practice for #5 tonight, and I should have gone to watch #2 play but the call of the shower and jammies was too coaxing. 15780 steps. 2248 burn. 2400 intake.
• Tuesday (0115) Got in my full hour of exercise (each) on elliptical, Zumba and treadmill, but still a little shy of 30k for the day. Should have done weights. Laundry, some computer work. Restocked Little Ceasars (the kids like having some on hand for leftovers) and made stroganoff for dinner. Kept calories in check at least. 27350 steps. 3047 burn. 2000 intake.  
• Wednesday (0116) Just half hour of elliptical in early ... and all day. Zumba w/MZL. Stopped to grab groceries after class. Double duty pickups after school. #5 had a double header in the evening with his Jags. Two tough teams, we lost both but #5 handled it fine. I was awake until midnight, takes some time to wind down after being out late.  Lots of treats, uber over on eating. 17402 steps. 2602 burn. 3200 intake. 
• Thursday (0117) Half hour of elliptical. Zumba w/MZL. Store stops on the way home. Cleaning day/Garbage day. Totally dreary, dark day. Rained all day. Brisket and some fresh rolls for dinner. Snickerdoodles for dessert. Hubs had a derby that he went to straight from work. 21117 steps. 2825 burn. 2300 intake. 
• Friday (0118) Just a half hour of elliptical today. Late start at the middle school, so I slept in. Ran a couple errands on the way home while I was out. Nicer day, still no sunshine, but the rain stopped and it wasn't freezing. I did some work out in the duck pen, let them wander the full yard for the afternoon. Found some worms for them. Single pickup after school. #5 had practice. Half hour of elliptical for exercise. 10904 steps. 2275 burn. 2900 intake.
• Saturday (0119) Good morning. Haircuts for the three littles. Basketball game for #3 into OT. A double header for #5 ...a win, then double OT ... then a 10:00 game in Lehi. National popcorn day. 6456 steps. 2139 burn. 2500 intake.
• Sunday (0120) Had to defrost the little fridge, luckily the weather was cooperative. French toast, hashbrowns and smoked bacon for breakfast. Hubs sous vide steak for dinner. Some games with the family. Blog update and other computer work. 5727 steps. 2058 burn. 3100 intake. 

*** What I'm Watching: I have NOT been watching movies ... I wonder if that has impacted my motivation some? I feel a bit of an obligation to finish a movie by the end of the day (although I have carried them over a time or two before), so I generally commit to two-hours of gym time. I've been enjoying "Power" on Starz, it's been keeping my interest. Upstairs with Hubs, we got a couple episodes of "Mad Men" in.

*** Five Featured Photos ***

 #2 sporting his Fitbit on his ankle  (for basketball games)

 #3 had a couple friends over for lunch. He made waffles. 

 Saturday (Jan19) is National Popcorn Day. 

We celebrated!

Cute brothers in matching Nike sweatshirts ... and much needed haircuts!

It can get a little cold down in my gym!

TV Tuesday - Six Series

It's been a while since I've done a TV Tuesday post. While my move to movies has cut back on the series I've seen, I still got through a few. Most of these were last summer/fall. I enjoyed them all.  The first three all had a paranormal theme, while the other three were all legal/detective type dramas. All on Netflix, except for The Good Fight, which I watched on a trial of CBS's streaming service (I canceled before I had to pay, as this was really the only series I had been interested in).

• The Innocents: I really hadn't heard any buzz about this one, but decided to give it a try and it hooked me. It was odd ... I have the captions on all the time anyway, but here there were subtitles for spoken Scandinavian, which happened more than you would have thought going into it. Other than Guy Pierce, I really hadn't seen the other actors in anything else. I often enjoy having fresh faces, no preconceived parts to compare against. The supernatural storyline has to do with a few people who can "shift" ... not into werewolves or other animals, but into the person they have touched. Unique and interesting. I liked it a lot and would watch a sequel, although I'm not sure if one is in the works. There was a cliffhanger ending.
• Sense8: I'd watched the first season and really liked it. When the second season first came out, and everyone else discovered the series, there was the huge controversy over its cancellation. Again, a cliffhanger ending leaving frustrated fans. I had just not gotten back into it, knowing I wouldn't get a resolution. When Netflix finally came out with an additional "ending" finale, I finally got around to watching it. Very explicit sexually, but I loved the idea of the connection between the characters.
• The Haunting Of Hill House: I'm not a "horror" fan, but this wasn't horror. It was a supernatural suspense series, and I was hooked. The constant jumping between timelines was a little confusing, and then there were the different perspectives. At times you'd see the same scene from different sets of eyes. I don't think I'd seen Henry Thomas in anything since ET when he was a child, and I laughed out loud when in one of the "past" scenes, the children (Thomas's character's kids) had an ET lunchbox with Elliot on it.  I must admit, I watched several episodes upstairs during a week when I wasn't feeling well and not up to exercising. 
• The Sinner: Hmmm, I wasn't sure what to think here. It sure started off suddenly, absolutely unexpected. It was a little frustrating trying to piece together the past when she would change her story over and over. With flashbacks, we'd see pieces of the past coming together to explain the actions that seemed unexplainable. Still some odd and explicit stuff. 
• Seven Seconds: Another dark drama centered around a death, with detectives attempting to uncover what happened. This time, we watching know right off who is to blame and basically what happened and get a peek as other try to cover it up. Not a lot of likeable characters, everyone is flawed, but that's reality. It really kept my interest and was hard hitting emotionally.
• The Good Fight: I'd loved "The Good Wife" over the years and had been interested in this spin-off, just not interested enough to pay extra for CBS All Access. When a free trial was offered, I decided to give it a try. Diane and Luca from the original series will still the power players, with the gal from "Game of Thrones" stepping in as well. I enjoyed the storylines ... there was even one where Fitbit feedback was evidence in a case (but I'm not sure how true to fact that was, from personal experience only the individual has access to heart rate data. Here they were pointing out that there likely would have been increased HR during a sexual interaction, so since the HR stayed low, nothing happened).  Some reviewers were unhappy with the political leanings. I just watched the first season so far ... maybe I'll try a trial again to watch more.

I like shows that catch my interest, and make me WANT to get back to the gym, just to see what happens next. Storylines that involve me, to much that I forget I'm working out. Ones that get the adrenaline pumped, making exercise easier. All of these fit the bill for me.

Weekly Weigh-In #284 (178.4)

This past week should have been a good week. Everything on schedule (unlike the holiday weeks, and upcoming weeks). But alas. Eating has been out of control. I don't feel like it is during the day, it's just when I look at the numbers that it's obvious I'm uber over. Activity was down ... dragging some. Sleep has been a struggle. Just makes the motivation shrink and the mind muddled.  Missed some medication, not sure if that contributed too.

 ... still broke 100k for weekly steps.

 

NUMBERS: Weight is up. 2.2 pounds to 178.4. Average up as well, (2.44 to 177.44).  Average intake was 2857, average burn 2381, adding up to an overage (6805) for the week. Step average 14650 with 35.61 logged miles. Cardio minutes 525/523/593/547.  Replaced my Zip "HipClip" with my old Charge2 in a clip, experimenting a bit with it. One steps 102548. Versa 100038, Hip 104165 and Garmin 98218 for total weekly step add ups.

#2 beat me in steps this week though... 

my brother was quick to point that out as it's unusual!

EXERCISE: I only got my hour of elliptical in two days this week. I got a half hour elliptical in two additional days.  Still, three days with NO elliptical at all is unusual for me. Treadmill time three days, two miles each time. Four Zumba classes. There was an instructor meeting after class on Thursday, which added to my hour in the graph, even though we were sitting, not dancing.  OTHER ACTIVITIES: Driving duty was about the same as usual. I didn't get out for groceries as much as I usually do (Hubs and #1 both hit the store as they were prepping and I had them pick up a few things). Three basketball games, one mid-week and two on Saturday, all for #5.

Here's the Day by Day ...

• Monday (0107) Back to the routine. Up early, but only two elliptical sessions in early. After getting the boys to school, I was off to Zumba w/Kirsten. Car wash on the way home. Distracted morning waiting for an email regarding school permits ... #4 got in! Yea! Back to some Zumba practice, one treadmill time, and my final elliptical session. #5 had basketball practice in the evening. Uber over on eating ... too many treats. Hubs was home lateD. 27963 steps. 2986 burn. 3100 intake. 
• Tuesday (0108) Off a little today. Not a motivated morning, reset the alarm for later. Just one 10min elliptical session in early. Zumba over at the church. Double duty school pickups. #5 had practice again. Hubs had a derby, he went straight from work. I finally went back down to the gym for 20min elliptical to end the day. 15877 steps. 2547 burn. 2700 intake. 
• Wednesday (0109) I was able to get in my hour of elliptical early, before Zumba. Back at home after class, I got in two miles on the treadmill. Also got in a needed nap, as #5 had a 9:00 game in the evening I was attempting staying awake for. They got the win. 23266 steps. 2848 burn. 2700 intake. 
• Thursday (0110) Between some snoring, and just being awake after the game last night, I didn't fall asleep until after midnight. That is LATE for me. Needed the alarm to wake up. Beat Hubs out of bed. My morning was off, only 10min elliptical early. Boys to school, house prep, then off to Zumba w/MZL. Instructor meeting after class, then a shopping stop for groceries. Double pickup after school, then #5 went for more basketball at the rec center. I got in two more 10min elliptical sessions, just a half hour total for the day though. Uber over on intake. 16343 steps. 2492 burn. 3500 intake.  
• Friday (0111) Feeling a bit off, bad sleep night. No exercise early... or at all. Late start at the middle school, and I stopped to get gas, but didn't even attempt partial Zumba.  I eventually did some laundry, dishes, made chicken noodle soup and got a basketball video done. #5 had practice in the evening. 5119 steps. 1937 burn. 2600 intake. 
• Saturday (0112) Another bad night for sleep, but got to sleep in anyway. #5 had two basketball games, 3:00 and 9:00. I got in a treadmill walk. 10071 steps. 2102 burn. 2200 intake. 
• Sunday (0113) Slept in again, trying to catch up. Family breakfast, and family dinner. #1 made cheesecake in mini mason jars Sous Vide style. 3909 steps. 1905 burn. 3200 intake. 

 *** Five Featured Photos ***  

 I've been awaiting this email forever ... whew!

Fat finger ... #5 jammed it at Monday practice. Still managed to practice and play this week, although he wore a finger splint most of the time. Didn't seem to impact his game negatively.

 #3 cheering on the team in triple overtime for the win.

I always ask for pictures w/friends, but very seldom get them.

Someone (that would be #2) has a pants problem. 

Lots of squatting at work.

Added an earbud to my audiobook addiction
(now I can listen even more!)

Weekly Weigh-In #283 (176.2)

High weight week ... just a couple weeks ago I dropped (just barely, but still) out of the 170s. Now, solidly back in them again. Definitely off schedule. Some super stressors going on. Sleep has not been good. I excused the eating on New Year's day, with the annual pastry wreath tradition starting off the year, but then had no excuses for the overeating the next day. I just eat. A lot. Quantity and quality (lack thereof). It's the eating, although exercise wasn't much most days either.

NUMBERS: Weight up .9 for the official weigh-in, average was up more (2.7 to 175). Not undeserved or unexplained. Overage for the week (3945) with average intake 2657, average burn 2506. Step average 17553 with 43.59 logged miles. Steps across the devices were quite a bit closer this week. One 122870. Versa 118016. HipClip 122370. LifeCycle 11870. Cardio minutes came in at 610/633/710/728  (my calculations and the three Fitbits). 

EXERCISE was down this week. With New Years Eve and New Years Day on Monday and Tuesday, the schedule was off. Then the return to the routine. I got my hour of elliptical in three days this week, with a half workout a fourth day. Five days with treadmill time, three days with double duty. Three Zumba classes. 

OTHER ACTIVITIES: Some driving around, grocery shopping, for usual weekly sections. Two basketball games. Family time for the holiday gathering. A couple pizza stops (often more just to have leftovers on hand than anything else) and starting the year with a visit to the doctor. Not for me (although that needs to happen) but for #4. Likely not his last, as we are still really struggling with anxiety and depression with him :(

Here's the Day by Day ...

• Monday (1231) New Year's Eve. Not a good night last night. I didn't have the energy for Zumba, but Kirsten texted she was sick and it was canceled anyway. I did finally go do a treadmill walk, just 3miles instead of the usual 3.5 for the hour. No New Year's celebration this year. Just to bed ... 11560 steps. 2075 burn. 2100 intake. 
• Tuesday (0101) New year ... 2019. Headed over to Uncle Clay's for the traditional Pastry Wreath. He's taken over making it from Maga (she was off to see the Seattle Blackhams). Lots of other food too. We had the whole family, #1 and wife, #2 and GF, #3 didn't have work until later.  Back at home, I got in a couple 15min sessions on the elliptical. Then ... geography assignment work with #4. Arrrrggghhh! 8836 steps. 2095 burn. 2700 intake. 
• Wednesday (0102) And the holiday break is over. Back to the schedule. I was afraid it would be hard to wake, myself and the boys, but the morning went fine. I got my hour of elliptical early, Zumba w/MZL. A store stop, groceries at Walmart, then an hour treadmill time. Double pickup, as #5 stayed after for intramurals. #4 took a nap, and finally finished his geography assignment, pushing it until the very last minute. Haystacks for dinner. 31903 steps. 3251 burn. 3200 intake... so much for better eating this new year! 
• Thursday (0103) Didn't quite get my full hour of elliptical in early, had to finish the final 10min at the end of the day. Zumba w/MZL. I'd been thinking we might get more people out with New Year's resolutions and all that, but classes have stayed small. No store stop today, straight home. Got an hour treadmill time. Grabbed #4 after school and went for a follow-up with the pediatrician, but I think we'll need to try a new doctor, more focused on just the mental. I'd arranged for #3 to pick up #5 after intramurals. Made macaroni rosa for dinner. #1 and wife stopped by for some. Bad news about his job supposed to start Monday, it fell through. 27505 steps. 3064 burn. 3100 intake. 
• Friday (0104) I often sleep in on "late start" Fridays, but not this morning. Awake at 2:00, went ahead and got up at 4:00. Stressing about stuff. I did get in my elliptical early anyway. I went straight to Zumba w/MZL after dropping the boys off, and got half of the class. Didn't wear my cap today ... who dat? Stopped at Maceys and DT on the way home. Cleaners came, and yea, the garbage trucks (a day behind because of the holiday). Back to basketball  practices in the evening for #5. 21134 steps. 2767 burn. 2400 intake. 
• Weekend Walking ... Saturday (0105) We did a family breakfast with smoked bacon, hashbrowns and french toast. Hubs ran some errands and had #2 install some lights. I hit Smiths for some groceries. Had to cut my treadmill time a bit short (1.5miles) as it was time for the first of #5's two basketball games. His Jags team lost, but his Wolves got the win against a team they'd lost to a few times before. Unfortunately it was a 9:00 game, I was SO tired. 12170 steps. 2228 burn. 2400 intake. 
• Sunday (0106) Didn't get to sleep until after midnight (SO late for me) and woke around 6:00 ... but then fell back to sleep, until 9:00. Felt good. Hubs made breakfast sandwiches for the boys, I made hashbrowns, and french toast for #2 and I. Hubs had some Sous Vide stuff for supper. He disappeared ... asleep at 7:00. I wasn't quite ready for bed. I hadn't planned on exercising, but, I went ahead and did  a little treadmill time. Back to the routine tomorrow. 9762 steps. 2065 burn. 2700 intake. 

***What I'm Watching ... no movies this week. I've stuck with a series, "Power" on Starz. Wrapped up season one this week and I think I'll continue on.

*** Five Featured Photos ...

 Christmas is over, but I felt a little like Rudolph with a red zit on my nose.

See the layers, the butter ...

 ... the finished pastry wreath. Yum!

Jackbox games with the cousins

 Daddy's homemade mcMuffins ...

JenBsBooks in 2018

With the new year, I see some resolutions regarding reading. Set a goal ... how many books do you want to read this year? Me? I don't set a goal, I don't have a number in mind. I just read because I love it. I almost feel guilty, that perhaps I should set a goal to keep my reading in check ...

The number of books I read in 2018 was down slightly from the last couple years (130, compared to 138/137). The number of audio books went up a little. 69 of those 130 were audio, just over half. I have a feeling both numbers (total books/audio books) will go up this coming year (as I added earbuds to my audiobook arsenal and have been listening whenever I can, and it adds up!)

I read several 5 star books this year. LOVE a good read. No 1 star books, quite a few 2 star, but the majority fall into the 3/4 star range.  I didn't blog about books as much as I would have liked. I have posts in my head, to talk about a series, or a group of books with a similar theme or something, but then just didn't get around to sitting down at the computer and making it happen. Hopefully there will be some. Even if it's not something a lot of people see, I like to do it for me. It helps me remember my reads ... which can be challenging with the number of books I consume.

Here's a visual stroll down 2018s books ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Movies ~ Watched While Working Out

Movies ... my two older boys jumped on the "MoviePass" deals, going to the theaters to watch several shows a month. I remember many years ago, Hubs and I were going almost weekly. But then, I moved out of the movie routine. I'm a homebody, I admit it. Even with the reserved seating and nice recliners, it just wasn't worth it to face the crowds and the rising costs. Hubs makes the best popcorn here at home, my bed is so much more comfortable, and I can pause if a potty break is needed. It only requires patience, and I was more than willing to wait until movies hit DVD or streaming services. 

I saw "Star War: The Force Awakens" in theaters Dec2015 when it first came out. I'm not really a big Star Wars fan, but it was a family night out. I didn't see a movie in theaters in 2016 or 2017. I saw two this last year in 2018... "The Greatest Showman" and "Incredibles2"

Other than some shows watched with Hubby before bed, I really only watch TV/Movies while I'm working out. I don't know I use it as an incentive for me to be able to watch what I want, or if I'm just filling the workout time attempting to keep myself entertained while exercising.  I've stuck to series for the most part. I like the continuing storylines, hopefully catching my attention and encouraging me to exercise again, to find out what happens next. In the Fall of 2017, I decided to make the move to movies. I had a HUGE backlog to choose from!

One of the first movies I watched was "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" which I really enjoyed. I am a P&P fan. I watched a few more of the "girly" shows (Beauty and Cinderalla remakes, Disney's Moana) caught the next Star Wars, watched big screen versions of several books I've read. Some good. Some NOT. Then I scanned the streaming services we had (with a switch to DirectTV, we had a three month trial of Showtime, Starz and Cinimax. We also had HBO, AmazonPrime and Netflix) to see what movies were there. Sometimes I'd let the "expiration" dates inspire me what to watch, or recommendations from friends family, or just what peaked my interest at the moment.

Generally action/adventure movies were better suited to watching while working out. Ones that could get the adrenaline pumping, make me feel like MY jog or elliptical wasn't nearly as hard as whoever was on screen running or fighting. I did watch some comedy and slower dramas too though. I really enjoyed some shows, and was rolling my eyes at others, just pushing to finish.

2017 films featured above ... 2018 films featured below.

I only made my move to movies in the final third of the year in 2017. I stuck with movies for most of 2018. I wasn't sure if I'd switch back to series for the summer. My gym time tends to decrease during the summer months, off the school schedule. I prefer to start/finish a movie in a single day, and some summer days didn't include 90-120+ minutes in the gym. Looking back, May was with high with 20 movies that month. September slipped to just six, the low for one month during the year.

Some of the movies I watched were quite current, hitting HBO or one of the other streaming services fairly quickly after leaving theaters. Other movies were old ... ones I'd just never gotten around to seeing. Some I'd heard of, seen previews and reviews ... others were ones I wondered if they had even been in theaters. I'd never heard of them. Most were mainstream studio shows, but the last couple years have seen an increase in "originals" from Netflix and Amazon.  Some weeks I'd stick with a theme, watching similar shows, or movies with the same actor in them ... other weeks I'd purposely pick movies across a wide variety of topics and genres.

I'd really meant to do monthly movie blog posts ... spotlighting several shows that had a similar theme or something else tying them together (books to movies, addressing aging, sports shows, superhero shows, based on true stories) but I only got a couple of posts completed. Who knows, maybe I'll still get around to such spotlights. And of course during this time, I have still been watching some TV series (as my movies wouldn't wrap up perfectly with my workouts, so sometimes I'd still need some extra TV time to finish up, or on days I knew I didn't have a full "movie" workout in me, like on weekends). But that too is another post.

Which of these movies did you watch and enjoy?

2018 ... the Year in Review

 A collage caught on camera of all the events of 2018 ... I still Zumba-ed throughout the year. Hubs had his derby daze. There were the ducks, and the kitties. Basketball was mainly #5, two teams and a couple of championships. Lots of trips to the lake. A family 5k. A wedding. Family games. A new Fitbit. A garden, lots of baking, and Gray goes gourmet.

My second year with LifeCycle ... GPS tracking my little life. Interesting to compare it with last year. Much the same. Driving, Zumba and elliptical top my activities. A little more treadmill this year, a little less basketball.  I'm sure there was a ton more time devoted to duckies and gardening, but I was logging that manually and only did so on days where I went above and beyond my normal daily duties. Some sunshine at the beach ... haircuts, dentists, school stuff. I liked last year's chart more ... without the "more" section, for those activities that just didn't have a lot of time to them (it's so small ... four hours with doctors, three hours grabbing food, generally pizza or donuts. A couple hours of walking and the 5k shows there as my only non-treadmill run of the year. I'd meant to break up my weight workouts into  a regular sessions, and smaller Abs ... but then there was only an hour w/abs. Some automotive ... getting a tire patched, gas runs, car washes. An hour at the bank, loan stuff. 

Here's a look at the month to month stats ...

 ... and scale stuff ...

I think it looks a little more extreme than it is.

Low 167.3, High 180.4 ... so it stuck within 13 pounds.