Battle on the Midway

A couple weeks ago I scored tickets to the Battle on the Midway from my work. If you don't know, this is a pretty pricey event and takes place on the historic Midway Battleship. There are very few things I have a passion for (does that sound bad?) and one of those things is college basketball. Not just "any" college basketball but Aztec college ball. I was never an Aztec but I did grow up going to football and basketball games so it only makes sense. 

Feeling so lucky right about now!

The Midway on any other day is just an awesome museum on the water. 

A view of the Coronado Bridge from our seats

A great day for Aztec ball even though they lost. It was still so much fun and I'm glad I had a chance to experience a game on the Midway.

Anyone else a sports fan? 

Love, 

The Beginning of My Journey: Part One

I think it's important for me to write about my journey to finally deciding to take my health seriously and creating this blog. Please bear with me as I want to include as much information as possible. I want to this be a therapeutic post - write out all my demons in a sense. 

I grew up in a military family. We didn't travel very much but I was never in one place for more than three years. The majority of my childhood was spent in Guam. This is me as a toddler. Aside from looking very cute, I was pretty petite. I was active and I was always playing outside with my friends. I would bike to my friend's house... and also bike to parts of the military housing that I wasn't allowed to be. I always made it home for curfew (street lights came on). On the outside everything was perfect - but my family wasn't. My parents argued all the time and I felt really sad all the time. I would hear them argue at night and I would imagine the worse. 

When I was in kindergarden/first grade, I started to put on weight. I remember being on the swings with my friend and one of the boys in my class was pushing us and he mentioned that I was "heavy." That was the first time I became aware of my weight. When I moved back to San Diego, my family mentioned my weight as well. My uncle mentioned, sort of in passing, "Wow, you got big!" I was young, I was growing... right? Well, the weight issue started to set in when my dad started talking about my weight. He said I was fat and that I didn't do anything. He put me in basketball and I never moved as fast as the other kids. I had a complex about the way my body looked when it was in motion - no thanks to my dad's coworker who saw me running down the hall at his office and said there was an earthquake! I was young so it took awhile to hit me as, "he just made fun of me." 

My friends were always smaller than me. I always felt like the odd person out even though my friends were always really great to me. I didn't really understand why my body looked the way it did. I felt out of place and uncomfortable being myself. I kind of turned into a bully and I would be mean to anyone who I feared was going to be mean to me. I was also dealing with the turmoil of a family that seemed to be falling apart at the seams. My parents fought all the time, I was constantly scared and wished I had a different life. I guess I thought everything would be better if my parents got along, if there wasn't the stress of being a military family, and if my parents weren't always busy working. I remember spending one summer (maybe 4th or 5th grade) in the house. My mom would leave a to-do list and my sister and I would make ourselves lunch (usually a microwaveable pizza or... two). I feel like I never left the house - and looking back on it, I probably didn't.

My insecurity began when I was really young. It feels strange to know that I grew up always analyzing myself. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed my childhood. I had great friends and my parents were always very loving to me. They did whatever they could do to make sure I was comfortable. From a young age, I didn't have a good grasp on "healthy" food. As I grew... it didn't get better. I'll leave that for another post though. 

When did you begin to notice your weight? Did it ever stop you from being your true self? 

Until next time, keep smiling. 

Monday Weigh-In 004

Well, I gained a pound. I'm not shocked or upset because for every action there is a reaction. Actually, in this case, it's more of a for every "non-action" there is a "non-reaction". I didn't really work out last week (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday were workout days) and unfortunately, my body needs to be in constant motion or it tends to retain everything I eat and drink. 

Here's where I get a bit optimistic. It's not 220. I would like to say now that I am making a promise to myself to stay out of the 220's. When I weighed 220, I wasn't happy. My body felt heavy and sluggish. I'm not saying that negative two pounds is making all the difference but in my defense, I feel two pounds lighter. Plus, the other day at my personal training I did mountain climbers for a whole minute! Yeah, I couldn't do that two pounds ago... so there's that! 

This weekend was a fun-packed weekend. Constant movement and constant... hmm... food intake! My dad, sister and her boyfriend, went to Small Bar in University Heights for breakfast. It's not your typical brunch spot but I wanted a mimosa darn it! 

Great beer on tap! Plus, on a Friday or Saturday night it's a great atmosphere. However, it lives up to it's name. 

Beer list and bar.

For this brunch, you get a drink with your meal (there are a couple choices but the ones I can remember off-hand are mimosas, beer, or Bloody Mary). I went with the "Life on Mars" for my brunch. Soyrizo isn't the "healthiest" of items but it sure is yummy! 

My mimosa and my dad's beer (Sculpin, yum!)

It was hot in this corner... but even more so with that mimosa (I don't drink very often these days). 

  Karina ordered the French Toast. 

 My delicious omelette...

Destroyed!

I was really full after brunch so when I got home, I just rested while I waited for Jessica to get ready for the San Diego County Fair. The fair was awesome and it was such a fun day. Lots of walking, talking, eating, and shopping was had. Now, I'm not saying I gained a pound in a day but look at this... 

I was bad... Don't tell my trainer!

Oh well - on Sunday, food won. But what a great victory it was! Anyway, I'm going to save the San Diego County Fair for another post.

Until then, keep smiling! And don't be hard on yourself. Some Sundays you're going to look like me up there with a plate of cheese fries... and that's okay! Forgive yourself and move on. I know I have! 

Monday Weigh-In 003

It's time for my Monday weigh-in. I'm a little nervous due to the weekend that I had. My sister had her graduation BBQ on Friday, I spent time with my friend, Alex, on Saturday, and then Father's Day was on Sunday. I really dread weekends because I'm unable to follow my routine. During the week it's easy because I'm at work but once the weekend rolls around I sleep later and I eat at odd hours. It's something I really want to work on and with that said, it's something I will definitely make a better effort of doing. 

Me, my sister, Karina, and my friend, Alex at Slaters 50/50 located at Liberty Station, San Diego for Father's Day

Top: Forever 21+, 1X

Skirt: Target, XL

Belt: H&M, L

Sandals: Target, 9

Lately, I've been really tired. I did manage to work out on Saturday. I joined my coworker at her friend, Kelly's, workout class, Leash Your Fitness. It was a great way to work out with my dog, Junior! He was such a great sport and allowed all the other dogs to treat him like the "new" guy. I enjoyed the workout because it involved a bit of running (something I'm terrible at) and I burned over 500 calories! Not bad for an hour. 

Back to what I was saying - I've been tired lately and I don't know why. Today I was suppose to go to the gym but I ended up going home. I tried working out in the pool but that got boring and I decided to sit in the hot tub. I'm hoping to get more sleep tonight so that I'll feel refreshed tomorrow. Any tips of gaining more energy? My diet hasn't changed... I'm not sure what's going on. 

Well, to end the post here's my weigh-in. It's a pound less and I can be happy about that, especially after a weekend of disastrous eating. 

And there you have it. I hope YOU had a wonderful weekend. 

Until next time, keep smiling! 

Kristen 

Monday Weigh-In 002

Let's start with my Monday weigh-in. It's not a big change but it's a change. I told my sister today that I am out of the 220's and that I was never going back. It's so encouraging to know that my hard work is paying off. It's not easy - in fact, this weekend was really difficult. I was off work on Friday and Monday due to my sister's graduation from Cal Poly Pomona. When I'm not at work I tend to fall out of my routine and I don't eat when I should and if I am eating, it's not always "on plan". I feel that I had a great weekend due in part to a wonderful hike I had on Saturday (post to come). I, for the most part, logged all my food. I've stopped making myself feel bad for eating the "wrong" thing because let's face it, we all have bad days - or moments. It's okay. Food happens. 


I'm really happy that restaurants are starting to provide nutrition information. It's really helpful for me to get an idea of how many calories I am consuming. Applebee's, IHOP, and Mimi's Cafe does a great job of providing "Light and Fit" menu items. Although, I take the calorie value as a rough "guessimate," it helps me figure out how many calories I will be able to have throughout the rest of my day. Sometimes I get stressed out when I go out to eat with my friends and family. For example, tonight my parents wanted to go to a neighborhood Mexican restaurant and I stared at the menu unsure of what to order. I settled with a shrimp salad with Caesar dressing on the side. I also ordered a bean tostada - although it wasn't the healthiest option, I knew I had the extra calories to consume. However, I've noticed that heavy food like the bean tostada tend to hurt my stomach now. Is it a sign? I'll go with "yes!"

Friday

Shirt: Target, L

Skirt: Forever 21+, 1X

Sandals: Target, 9

Accessories: Earrings, Clarie's; Bracelet: H&M; Glass Ring, Hawaiian Market Vendor

Friday Night

My little sister graduates! Congratulations Karina!

Jacket: Target, XL

Dress: Target, XXL

Belt: H&M, L

Monday

Shirt: Forever 21+, 1X

Belt: H&M, L

Jeans: Old Navy, 18

Sandals: Target, 9

What a busy weekend! I wish I found more time to work out (Sunday/Monday) but driving from San Diego to Pomona and back to San Diego takes a lot out of you. I just wanted to relax before going back to work tomorrow. 


Although it was a busy weekend, I had fun with my friends and family. I am so proud of my sister for graduating from college! Now she'll be home and we can find ways to help motivate one another. One thing she already helped me with is cleaning out my closet. It's also a few pounds lighter! Awesome! 


Until then, keep smiling! 


Kristen