Slenderella Jenn

Short Recap and My Goals for the Next Half of February

2012-02-19T20:32:00.004+08:00

Days 138 - 141
16 - 19 February 2012

Last week was a bit of a drag... I was a little under the weather; I was both dizzy and sleepy all the time, and the rainy weather didn't help a bit to motivate me. If there was something that made me happy (aside from everyday talks with my super duper awesome boyfriend Mr. Pipoy), it would be my cats. Well, if you remember, Mommy Teddy - the cat with three colors - gave birth to one cute white / orange cat Mr. Pipoy named Cream-O (or Moe Moe for short). The kitten is now one hyper kitty, who would often chase us and play with us. A few weeks after Moe Moe was born, Mommy Ponks (short for Ponkan) gave birth to a kitty (still has no name), and even if the kitten still doesn't have teeth, his eyes are now open and is sometimes wandering around the house.

One time, Mommy Teddy was incognito. Moe Moe hasn't had his milk for nearly 24 hours, so the only way I thought was to let him suck milk from Mommy Ponks. The other mother cat didn't mind it; she actually treated Moe Moe as his own. Just a few days ago, Mommy Ponks already let her own kitty out, and there would times that Mommy Teddy would feed both kittens, and there would be times that the kitties would suck milk from Mommy Ponks. Well of course, the kittens know their own mothers, so most times they would just go to their own mommies. I just find it so cute to see them like that, but because Moe Moe is bigger and is already eating solid food, there were moments he would bully the little one. Moe Moe's one hyper kitty (the other one's too quiet), I just hope he'd mellow a bit when he grows a little older.

Yesterday, Brother and I went to Makati City for an exclusive food tasting event by Nuffnang Philippines. It's for the "Best Food Forward" event happening next month at the NBC Tent, and us selected Nuffies were treated to taste food offered by 10 concessionaires. This was my "Round 1" food (I didn't eat the Crunchy Belly, though, I just photographed it and gave it to my brother)... My "Round 2" food consisted of desserts: a little cup of ice cream, a shot glass of butter beer, half a slice of chocolate mousse cake, a pinch of chocolate cupcake, and three bite size crackers with fruit jams. All the food I tasted were oh-so-good... but my favorites would be the spinach quiche and the full moon pizza (it was vegetarian-friendly by the way).

- * - * - * -

Obviously, most (if not all) my goals weren't met, and my weight hasn't changed since I last weighed. That was a bit bittersweet because I did give some efforts to walk and exercise, but I guess too much pastries and events to attend contributed to the no change of weight. I don't blame the events I attended and the gifts I received; I blame myself for allowing me to eat a little bit too much of my allowed quantity to eat. I am actually thankful that me weight is still the same - meaning, I still have the entire 11 days left to push myself to lose even just 1 or 2lbs by the first day of March.

With that... my goals:

FITNESS / EXERCISE

Strictly follow the exercise schedule.
Walk everyday to 1 - 2 hours. >>> If it's raining, use the Elliptical Machine for 30 minutes (accumulated throughout the day, 5 minutes nonstop at a time) + 1000 jumps on the jump rope (accumulated throughout the day; 100 each set) + Walk to the market every afternoon - regardless if it's raining or not.
Check out nearby gyms and get their terms, so I can make a decision by the end of the month and start going to the gym by March if ever.

FOOD / DIET

Eat at least 2 kinds of vegetables everyday.
12 cups of water everyday.
Finish the Belle Today Challenge this week: No junk food of any kind, including candies and chocolates.
Take necessary supplements - Caltrate, Grape Seed Oil (just use the 30 softgels given to me), Yakult and 2 slices of Papaya everyday.

OTHERS

Lights off at 10:30pm; lights on at 5:30am.
Do laundry, clean the house and room, defrost refrigerator.
Choose the events to attend to, and don't sacrifice the workout schedule on event days (meaning, if I needed to attend an event tonight, will try to do all the scheduled workouts before leaving the house).
Mani - Pedi.
Make a lightbox (Help me, Mr. Pipoy!)
Buy my Hanson concert ticket.

A lot of things to do... but with the right focus, I can do all of these!

Why I Sometimes Hate Where I Live

2012-02-18T08:47:00.004+08:00

When Belle Today posted their 7x7 Challenge (at least 7000 steps everyday for 7 days), I posted my very little concern about where to buy a pedometer. One of the members (Gisa) sent me a link to a pedometer on sale c/o Groupon - one of the many sites offering discounted prices for services and goods - and signed up for it.

Yesterday, I received an e-mail from Groupon (the site normally sends e-mails whenever they have a new set of deals) and this really caught my attention:

p90 for one week of Zumba Classes. Sure is something I'd grab right there and then - this can be a good chance for me to know more people in the same journey as I am...but the one thing that prevented me was its location. It's not really that far from where I live, but... going there everyday, I'd pay a lot for bus / jeepney fares.

If you live near New Manila (E. Rod Sr. Avenue), and want to grab this deal, you can see the full details HERE.

Scrolling more of Groupon's deals... I saw this:

80% savings is really big... and we all know Gold's Gym is one of the well known gyms around. p1485 for one month sure is very affordable, but again, I can't grab this one because the nearest Gold's Gym was quite far from where I live.

Want this? View the full details HERE.

All I can do is sigh about it. I love where I live - our neighbors are just awesome, it's near a mall, church, hospital, and marketplace... but it was just so far! As a food blogger, I have received e-mails from small companies hoping I could try their products, but because of my location, they have cancelled sending the goods because their courier can't deliver it to my house. Whenever I have to attend an event, I have to leave the house at least two to three hours before the start of the event just so I won't be late. Sometimes I wonder if my parents thought about how far our place is when they bought the house, but of course, I have been living here since 1985, and nothing bad happened to us - so I am truly grateful to be living here, it's just that... part of me hopes we are near the heart of the Metro, too.

Speaking of gyms... Ria told me of a gym somewhere in Lagro (Quezon City). I still haven't checked the place out, but she told me she is planning to sign up for membership because it has complete facilities. My sister spoke about it, too, and since membership fee is p1500 per month and that I pay only p22 for the jeepney fare, I am thinking of considering this... but like what Mr. Pipoy suggested - I have to check it out first before I make any decisions.

Hopefully by March, I can find a nearby gym.

A Rose and Lotsa Pastries

2012-02-16T14:27:00.003+08:00

Days 136 - 137
14 - 15 February 2012

This year for Valentine's Day, I didn't go out on a date with Mr. Pipoy because of his work schedule. I didn't mind it at all - he and I share the love everyday anyway... so everyday is Valentine's Day for us.

I started the day photographing the cakes given by Bizu Patisserie. I wasn't able to do it last night because it took sister and I more than two hours to travel from the patisserie to our house, so both cakes were a little soft when we got home.

In the afternoon, I went to the nearest mall to pick up the my cake of choice at the Max's Restaurant. About a week ago, sister and I attended an event for Max's Corner Bakery, and we were given a GC each for a cake of our choice. This was the last day of redeeming the cake, so I made sure I drop by today. We've had way too much chocolate cakes and pastries at home, so I decided to go for the cake that's not chocolate. Sister was pleased.

After dinner, neighbor and friend Ria ring us and asked if it's already time for the pastry party. She knew about the cakes we have here, and since she loves desserts and pastries, she really wanted to take pictures of the food spread and taste it as well.

That night we had four different cakes, two types of brownies, and some French macarons. Ria shared the Goldilock's chocolate cake she received from her students, and not included in the picture were: Black Forest Cake, Assorted pastries and breads from Max's Corner Bakery. It was a fun, fun pastry party - something we had here at home for the first time.

We didn't buy any of the pastries here (including the ones not part of the party table). Believe it or not... all of these were given for free. I am a very blessed food blogger, and because these were given to me, I also shared it to some people - I cut a slice each from the cakes and gave it to our next door neighbor and I packed another pastry sampler for my mom to take at work so she could share it to her colleagues. As much as I loved receiving the gifts, it was rewarding to share it to other people, too.

I was 28 when I first received flowers. Three years after, I received another flower - this time from my brother. Whoa! That is something very surprising because brother wasn't the mushy type of a guy. When he got home after a bank errand, he gave sister and I a rose each... and gave mom a rose, too, when she got home. Thanks, brother! I'd save a petal from the rose you gave me.

- * - * - * -

One thing I am most thankful for this day (15 February 2012). I was in the shower when my I heard my sister's phone rang, and after a few minutes I heard some voices talking - mom and sister's. It gave me a not-so-good feeling... like something major just happened, so when I stepped out of the shower, I found out what the commotion was about.

The passenger jeepney mom was on had a minor accident. As shared by mom, the jeepney's brake wasn't working, so people inside the jeep went frantic and panicky. The jeepney continued traveling, and the driver decided to hit the tail of a bus, just so the jeepney would stop. It was quite a horrifying story, but I for one was so thankful that the accident didn't cause major damages. It was a blessing that traffic was light so the driver had the ample time to think what to do. Not only that, none of the passengers suffered big injuries - though mom's forehead bumped the hand rail. We asked her if she was okay and she said she was just fine, though her forehead's aching a bit. She told us she never felt afraid about the situation, but when the jeepney hit the bus, all she could do was to say her gratitude that everything turned okay - no dislocated body parts, no scratches, no blood... just a bump on the forehead. We put some ice on it, and whenever mom's hurt or sick, she would act like a baby... but since she was so chatty and hyper, we knew she's indeed just fine.

For everything, I thank the Lord and give praises for the blessings showered on us.

A Rewarding Day

2012-02-15T23:40:00.002+08:00

Day 135
13 February 2012

I still wasn't able to walk this morning because of the rain. However, sister and I still went to Makati City to take care of things - mainly shoe shopping and picking up some things at a pastry shop.

Like what I shared a few days ago, I saw a Fila sale at a store in Glorietta Mall, and since the brand is having a sale all over until 14 February, I decided to go and buy a pair of running shoes for myself. I am such a thrifty person, but since Fila's stripping 50% off their shoes, I just couldn't find the reason why I should put it off. Since this is the second to the last day of the sale, the biggest size they had was Size 8, but thankful that the very nice salesman got to find me a pair that just fit perfectly. I love my new pair of shoes, which I will share next time - I have yet to take a picture of it.

I was happy about this shopping because I finally got to use the p1000 worth of Sodexho GCs I received when I attended a press con (it was part of the tokens they sent to the members of the media covering the event). The shoes were at p1500... the p500 I took from my "Credit Account." It's just so sweet that I was able to use the money I saved from doing positive things for myself.

My sister and I were about to go to Greenbelt, and passing by Glorietta, we spotted the Brazilian Madness Sale, which had some footwear on 60% off (click the link to check the pairs we got to buy). Since I used my GCs to buy my running shoes, I have extra p1000 cash, and I was able to buy three pairs of footwear from the sale.

I love being a woman! :)

It was raining still, but we were able to drop by Bizu Patisserie to get their gift. Last week, I received an e-mail from Bizu Patisserie's PR/Marketing team asking for my home address as they have something to send me. Since I live way too far from any of their branches, they just asked me if I can just drop by and collect the gift. I didn't know what the gift was, but when I talked the store manager and told him about the e-mail I received, they checked the boxes for my name and they gave me two boxes of cakes and one pack of French Macarons. It was a gift I never really expected, but so thankful for - each cake was priced p1000+, and I felt really special receiving it.

I wasn't able to eat lunch today because I had a deadline to beat, so around 7pm, I was already hungry - considering my sister and I have been walking since we reached Makati City. We sort of used most of our money from the shoe sale, so for dinner, we used the Pizza Hut GC. I had a piece of p500 Pizza Hut GC, and while making our choices, sister said she was way too hungry, and took out another GC from her wallet - making our budget at p1000. We had a plate each of pasta (I had the shrimp pasta, she went for the penne) and shared the Garlic-Parmesan Baked Wings as well as the Regular Supreme pan pizza. I only had one slice of pizza because the pasta was already making me full... and I took a sip off my sister's Caribbean Smoothie (it had kiwi, bananas, and strawberries). Total bill was p976, but since we used the GCs, we couldn't get any change. Hahaha.

It was a blessing that it wasn't raining anymore when we left Pizza Hut. We still had to walk a lot going to the north bound side of EDSA, but it was a great timing that when we reached the bus stop, there was an empty bus waiting for us to take. We got home two hours later. It was a great day... and each things I did reminded me of just how fun and fulfilling blogging is. I thank the Lord for all the blessings for today, especially for coming home safe.

I might not be able to exercise today, but I was glad I walked a lot.

Days 132 to 134

2012-02-15T13:28:00.003+08:00

I haven't updated this blog for five days due to many reasons. I haven't exercised much during those days, including today 15 February - because I am currently under the weather, but because I have so much assignments to do, I have to be up and finish as much as I could. I am home anyway, so if ever I feel bad or something, I can simply stop whatever it is I am doing and take the much needed rest.

I didn't want to put up a very long update, so here's a three day recap. :)

Day 132
10 February 2012

I wasn't able to go out and walk this morning because it rained. The chilly weather plus light colds made me lazy the entire day, and because my brother used the DVD Player and watched some movies inside his room, I wasn't able to do any of my video workouts, too. :(

I pretty much look like my kitties - bummed all day. Hahahaha.

I didn't have that much appetite, but for lunch I cooked Salmon Paksiw. It was so delicious... and the addition of dried oregano made it more delish!

Day 133
11 February 2012

Another rainy morning... but I made up for it by walking around SM Mall of Asia with friend Ria before meeting up with fellow bloggers for the Week 1 of the 3rd Philippine International Pyromusical Competition between South Korea and Malta. I studied Broadcast Communication, worked at a TV Network before, and attended several press conferences as part of my blogging life, but this was the very first time I received a "Media" pass and was treated with so much dignity! It was a special day so I really kept my pass and might use it as a scrapbook layout ephemera in the future.

Three sets of pyromusical presentations - two of which lasted 20 minutes each (the other one's intermission), and it allowed me to learn a lot when it comes to taking pictures of fireworks. I sure had a difficult time setting my camera, but I was able to capture at least 6 images worthy of posting, so I was a happy shutterbug. The festival will run for six Saturdays, and I sure hope to receive another invitation to cover the festivity so I can learn more about photographing fireworks.

I was at the media section for the event, while my friend Ria was at the Silver section. We just met after the event, so we can travel back home together.

Part of being invited to the event was the buffet dinner for the members of the media. I forgot to take a picture of each of the dishes, but here's my plate of food. I ate all of these except for the soup (I only had two slurps) and Iced Tea, which I didn't sip at all.

Day 134
12 February 2012

Ria and I got home 11:30pm the night before; I still finished some tasks, so it was already near 9am when I woke up today. Mom wanted the family to go out and enjoy a family pre-Valentine's Day date, but Ria was here that morning, so I just asked them to go ahead and leave me at home.

They got home around 3pm, and sister took home a Black Forest Cake from Max's Restaurant. Both of us had a GC for one heart shaped cake of our choice, so in order not to drown ourselves with lots of cakes to eat, we decided she'd claim her cake first, then I'd claim my cake on Valentine's Day - the last day of redeeming the cakes.

- * - * - * -

Needless to say, I wasn't able to do my goals for the week, and I failed the 7x7 Challenge at Belle Today. I will go back on track tomorrow and just start again with the challenges and goals.

Missed Opportunities?

2012-02-10T22:27:00.005+08:00

"How others see you is not important;
How you see yourself means everything."

Day 131
09 February 2012

I was a bit late this morning, but I still went out to walk. Today, I took my camera, and was happy to see great images to take pictures of. I was listening to RX93.1 first part of my walk, but they weren't really talking much, so I switched stations. Listening to Magic89.9, the DJ posed a question for listeners to answer, "What was your missed opportunity?" The opportunity he was talking about was something like - you are a good guitarist and you were asked to play for a band, but you felt the band will not make it big, so you declined it and went on to work for a company as a clerk... and the next thing you know the band you declined became a big-shot rock group.

Listeners phoned in their answers... and right at that moment, I realized I just had my own missed opportunity, but it wasn't because of my bad choice, it all came by chance. You see, yesterday morning, my cousin Marjorie sent me a text message asking if I could fill her slot for a food tasting event because she and her boyfriend will travel to Clark, Pampanga for the 17th Hot Air Balloon Festival. I took her slot, and a few hours after, bloggy friend Azrael was asking people who would like to take his wife's slot for the Hot Air Balloon Festival. Many bloggers / photographers responded to it, but for the sake of fun, I answered with, "Me, me, me!" Next thing I know, Azrael had a personal message for me asking if I could come so that we could stalk Marjorie and Jonel. The Hot Air Balloon Festival is one of the Philippine festivals I always wanted to take part of... had I known I had the opportunity to realize that dream this year, I would have declined the food tasting event. Oh well, maybe next year.

Because I had my camera today, I walked much, much longer (in terms of time), because I stopped every now and then to take pictures. Near the end of my route, I saw this bird and was pleased to take this shot. Overall, the pictures I took today were all amazing (at least to me). I wasn't taking pictures of hot air balloons, but God still rewarded me with subjects to satisfy the shutter-happy me.

Before I went home, Mr. Pipoy called. He told me a not-so-good news, but even so, he still asked me about the Hanson concert happening next month. He told me even then that he will buy me my ticket, but because of the not-so-good news, I felt a little shy to let him buy me the ticket. The ticket he planned to buy me wasn't the most expensive ticket, but still, it was expensive. He worked hard for it. I knew there are so many things where he can use the money, but still he insisted on it because he gave his word and he will honor that.

For a while I contemplated about it. When he gave me the final question, "Do you want it or not?" I was reminded of the "Missed Opportunity" topic on the radio talk show, and Hanson's concert was an opportunity I don't want to miss. I have been a big fan of them since 1997, and sure, I have watched their concert here in the Philippines last 2004, but I never had a picture from that concert because cell phone cameras and digital cameras were still alien to me. It took them 7 years to do another concert here... I truly don't want to miss it!

Today, I saw the video that reminded me of the many reasons why I am a Hanson fan. Seeing the video clips - especially that part where they were talking on the phone (it was taken during their dark moment - when the label seemed to reject every song they wrote) and the transition of them becoming "independent" just because they want to play music even if there will be no big label backing them up were reasons enough for me to answer Mr. Pipoy's question.

"Do you want it or not?"
YES, I want it!

See you in March, Hanson!
Thanks so much, my love... for this wonderful gift.

Updating the 7x7 Challenge: today I recorded 12760 steps on my pedometer, not counting the steps I made around the house. I was able to do my Hip Hop Abs (Cardio), but the rest of my scheduled workouts I wasn't able to do because I had to beat a deadline before sister and I left in the afternoon.

At the start of this post, I mentioned about taking cousin Marjorie's slot at the food tasting event. It took place at Figaro (Tomas Morato), and I was so thankful they allowed me to tag my sister along - provided she have to blog about it, using brother's blog. I saw familiar faces at the event, and meeting the PR Manager of Figaro, I became thankful this opportunity came to me. The Hot Air Balloon Festival will happen every year - meaning I will always have the chance to take part in it, but the future opportunities because of this food tasting event will not happen everyday.

At the event, we were served:

Margherita Pizza - It was a personal sized pizza cut into 8, I ate two slices.
Chicken Rice Bake - Ate half of what's on the plate.
Lemonade - Regular sized glass, drank all of it. I love lemonade!
Tofu Steak Rice - Ate two cubes of tofu... no rice, as I was eating my Chicken Rice, too!
Aglio Olio Pasta - Swirled my fork three times, ate what was on my fork.
Spagnolo Pizza - Ate one slice
Cioccolato Morsi - Didn't eat this, I took home my share. *winks*

Not all the bloggers at the event were friends of mine, but we all got to share lots of stories, it was already near 10pm when we called it a night. I was happy that my sister was with me - I am truly like "Dora the Explorer," I love to roam around and travel... but I admit I will be lost if I don't have my map with me. She helped me locate Figaro's branch. Big thanks, sis!

A Little Something Called "Confidence"

2012-02-09T15:20:00.005+08:00

"Be... Make... Start."
~ something I read on someone's shirt

Day 130
08 February

With the pedometer working perfectly, I am set to another walk trip this morning. I finally was able to find Monster Radio RX93.1 station, and today being their "Top Ten" day, I surely had a lot of laughs while walking.

I got to walk a lot yesterday, so part of me a bit tired. However, I really want to push myself to get past this challenge, so I really have to work hard for it. One point while walking, I saw this rather steep path. I am thinking of challenging myself to jog up at least ten times as part of my morning fitness routine. Do you think I can handle it? I hope so.

Middle part of my walk, Mr. Pipoy called. As always, I let go of the rants running through my head, and he only had one thing to say: this is a sweet reward. True, I had to endure, but the journey itself is already a reward.

Day 3 of the 7x7 Challenge... today I had a total of 12,852 steps - excluding the steps I made around the house. Breaking it down: 2268 from home to Colinas Verdes + 5955 around Colinas Verdes + 1517 from Ascoville to home + 3112 made from my afternoon walk. I went with brother to the market that afternoon, and instead of waiting for him to finish eating Fishballs, I decided to walk back and forth. Well, I can't eat street food this week, so I just used the time to add more steps.

Today, I had the first taste of Jillian Michaels' "30 Day Shred." I still can't carry myself, so I just did the easy way of doing the push ups, but even with that easy way, I still had a very difficult time doing it. It was such a pain to endure, I am suddenly at a loss of words how to describe it.

Embracing the camera... I finally got to wear the halter dress I bought years back; this was supposed to be my Christmas Day outfit the year I bought it, but I looked terrible wearing it, so I let my sister wear it instead. Sure, it's something I can wear outside the house, but I am getting a little uneasy about my big, flabby arms. It's like my body frame is getting smaller, yet my arms remained the same. While on Twitter, I got to see the page of Joy Siy - one of the contestants of The Biggest Loser (Philippines), and oh boy does she look so good now! She used to be 300+lbs., and she's just so slender, she was able to wear a swimsuit! No signs of flabby arms on her, and part of me is a little jealous.

Sure, we all have different genetic makeups. As jealous as I seem be, I know I will just have to work harder to get the body that I want. I just can't help but be a little uneasy, jealous, and a little insecure... I guess all of us are prone to have these feelings every once in a while.

I am just so tired.

My food for today:

9:05 am - 4 pieces Pan de Sal + thin spread of mayonnaise + Sweet Ham; 1 cup Nescafe Brown and Creamy coffee
12:57 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Paksiw na Ulo ng Salmon (80g salmon head cooked in vinegar, salt, pepper, onion, garlic, and ginger)
6:49 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 60g breaded Cream Dory Fish; 1/3 cup Stir Fried Veggies (carrots, green beans, cabbages, sayote)

Total Cups of Water: 14

It's great to eat processed meat today... but I was glad I was able to restrain myself from eating two slices. When I cooked our (sister and I) breakfast, I saw the container having 4 ham slices. If I were the same person back then, I'd fry all the slices, two for each of us, but seeing how small the bread we had, I decided to just fry 2 slices - one for me, one for sis. The four little sandwiches was enough to satisfy a good breakfast.

Thank You for the Gifts!

2012-02-09T09:54:00.006+08:00

Day 129
07 February 2012

While washing the dishes the night before, a thought came to mind about how to resolve the pedometer issue, and thankfully, the idea turned out be a great solution. Well, I have the privilege to have it replaced within 7 days of purchase, but I think I won't go through that anymore - after all, the pedometer's working. The solution? Secure the battery flap with masking tape. :)

I am completely over the heartache of not traveling later this month. Of course the disappointment will always be in my heart (this will be the second time that I won't be able to light a candle on dad's grave since he died), but taking to heart what Mr. Pipoy said - I shouldn't compromise the things that bring me happiness just because something made me sad.

The biggest reason why I love my cheap-o pedometer was that it had an FM Radio function. It sure was a bit difficult to check which station I am on, but I enjoyed listening to morning radio shows - which was a habit of mine while in college. It felt great to listen to the DJ's commentaries and of course the songs!

Even with high spirits (sort of), it was a difficult walk. Cloudless sky with very cold, dense air blowing. My nostrils were hurting as I breathe in, and at times I felt the cold air in my chest that would made my heart giddy. Still, I pushed through with my walk - two hours total this morning.

Later in the afternoon, my sister and I went to Makati City. We had to attend a Food Event, but since we live way too far from our place, we decided to leave house early - giving me (and her, too) a chance to add more steps into my Walking Graph. From the Ayala MRT Station, we first went to Forever 21 store in SM Makati - sister loves this store (even if she won't buy anything), but I guess I am not really the fashionista type because I couldn't seem to relate. From there we went to Glorietta Mall because sister told me she saw some Fila Shoes on sale. I have been complaining about my current running shoes' state... and I really feel the need to have it replaced.

None of the 999 shoes caught my interest, but sister and I liked the black one on the upper leftmost part of the image. Priced at 1499, I think this one's priced reasonably... after all it was on a sale! The Fila shoe sale will be until 14 February, hoping by then I can get my new pair of shoes. After this, we walked to Landmark Mall to check more shoes... then strolled around Greenbelt Park before going to the event.

Jonel, Marjorie, *me*, my sister Jesz
Photo Credit - Azrael Coladilla
The event is by Max's Restaurant. Since the very first time I attended a Max's Restaurant event in February last year, I have always been invited by them whenever they have some promotions. Over the course of the year, I have developed friendships (though not that deep) with the restaurant's PR people and Marketing Staff, and since we got there early, we were able to share stories. Big topic of the day was bloggy friend's Jonel's relationship with Marjorie, who is actually my second degree cousin (my dad was her mom's cousin). The Filipino blogging circle now has a loveteam. Jonel was one of the very first bloggers I met (2008, Italianni's Blog Event), and I am one of the people happy that they found love.

Anyway, the event is about Max's Restaurant promo in time for Valentine's Day, and the whole event was like a big gathering of friends - it was laugh trip all the way, thanks to the games they prepared.

For dinner, they served a lot of dishes, but of course, I didn't overeat... just enough to be satisfied.

Daing na Bangus - I cut about a matchbox size meat near the belly.
Lechon Kawali - Didn't eat this... I am not allowed to eat pork anymore.
Sinigang na Hipon - One shrimp, one slice of radish, a few Kangkong leaves.
Fried Chicken - One drumstick part; 2 pieces of the Kamote Fries.
Beef Kare-Kare - One tablespoon beef, three eggplant slices, about 2-3 pieces of yard long beans, three Bok Choy leaves, one slice of banana heart.
Buco Pandan - 1 teaspoon.

Aside from that, I also tasted three cupcake flavors and their chocolate moist cake.
Oh by saying "tasted," I meant sinking my fork into the cakes and ate whatever amount of cake was on my fork. No second servings, there were 10 of us who shared the cakes anyway.

Aside from the gift of walking and the gift of sharing a hearty dinner with bloggy friends (plus the gifts given by Max's Restaurant), my cousin Marjorie also gave me gifts - a bag and some dietary supplements. The bag was a sweet surprise - I was actually checking the shops to find a new bag, and now I don't have to! :)

As for the supplements - C-Lium is something I won't use because it would make constipated, but the Grapeseed Oil softgels I will use. I consulted Mr. Pipoy about this, and he recognized my achievements of losing weight just by cutting back on food and exercising... and he felt I won't need any weight-loss "boosters" anymore. He suggested I give the box of RedoXfat to my sister, and I think I will do just that.

Today is Day 2 of Belle Today's 7x7 Challenge; walking from our house to and around Colinas Verdes for about two hours gave me 8520 on the pedometer... I didn't walk the additional 1/4 of the way like I did yesterday, so I am sure that I was able to hit my target of 7000 steps yesterday (considering I walked longer yesterday). Since I take the jeep from Colinas to near the market place, I had to reset the pedometer as the vehicle shake will surely add more digits to the pedometer. As soon as I got down of the jeep, I switched the pedometer again and walking back home, I was able to get 1362 more steps, giving a total of 9882 steps that morning. I wasn't able to use the pedometer later in the afternoon because I needed to charge the battery (it uses AAA battery), but considering sister and I walked about one hour and a half before going to the event, and that we walked from Greenbelt 1 to north bound side of EDSA Ayala before going home, I am pretty sure I walked more than 20 thousand steps today.

Thank you, Lord for the gift of strength!

Oh... I was also able to do Hip Hop Abs (Cardio) and the 8 Minute Arms... but since I had to attend to some chores and assignments, I didn't do the Hip Hop Abs (Hips, Buns, Thighs) anymore.

A Sad Yet Happy Day

2012-02-07T11:58:00.009+08:00

"The only competition is with yourself.
Everything else is motivation."
~ A friend's Facebook status

Day 128
06 February 2012

I welcomed the day with a heavy heart. Before I went to bed last night, my mom dropped the bomb: I won't be traveling later this month. For the past three years, it has been an annual tradition for me to travel to Baguio City every last Friday of February to take part of the Panagbenga Festival grand street parade happening every last Saturday morning of February. After a whole day of staying in the said city, I'd travel for two to three hours to La Union to stay at our house there in time for dad's death anniversary on March 05. However, none of that will happen this year, because my brother is scheduled to fly to Cagayan de Oro on 29 February to be with his girlfriend and will stay there for one full week. Since we don't have any household help and my sister is scheduled to go back to work anytime this week, nobody will be left at home to watch over the house and the cats. I made an appeal - that if I don't go, nobody in our family will light a candle on dad's grave and mom's response made me sadder: that we should only light a candle on his grave every All Saints/Souls Day. Personally, I always believe it's much better to visit a dead loved one during the death anniversary because it's like their "birthday," but mom already made a decision and I have to respect that. I will just send my aunt (dad's younger sister) to light a candle for us. I just hope the relatives will not think that he have already forgotten dad in the short span of 5 years.

Even with a heavy heart, I set out to do my morning walk. Today's the Day 1 of Belle Today's 7x7 Challenge and I am quite excited to see if I can actually do this challenge. In case you didn't read my previous post, the challenge is to do at least 7000 steps everyday for 7 days. This is a much tougher challenge compared to the "No Sweets Challenge" because unlike the other challenge, there is a physical effort to pass this new challenge.

First order of business: get a pedometer.

My sister came home early today (5-ish in the morning) and placed the pedometer I asked her to buy on my desk. When I was about to go out, I tried to get it to work, but sadly, the plastic flap that covers the battery couldn't be closed. I was already wasting precious time, so even without the pedometer, I went out to walk, just to make the day count.

It would be crazy to count my steps by mind, so I just did what I always do - brisk walk at a steady pace and longer strides. It was a chilly day - there would be "smoke" whenever I breathe using my mouth, but thanks to the jacket I was wearing, I was still perspiring.

I walked much longer today - I walked past the clubhouse and when I reached the gate (signaling the end of my route), I decided to make a U-Turn and walk for another 1/4 of the way before going back to the gate and take the jeepney ride home. I was happy to see a Fire Tree Flower somewhere - now I know why the trees turn fiery red: the flowers are huge!

Anyway, walking for a little more than 2 hours, plus the many steps I made around the house as I did my chores and exercises... I sure hope I was able to achieve the 7000+ steps I needed, but if not, I guess I will just add one day to my challenge.

My exercise log:

6:20 to 8:35 am - Walk to and around Colinas Verdes; walk from market to home.
11:05 am - Hip Hop Abs (Cardio)
1:47 pm - 8 Minute Arms (using a pair 4lb dumbbells)
4:33 pm - Hip Hop Abs (Ab Sculpt - using a pair 4lb dumbbells)

The dumbbells were so heavy, but it sure felt great to able to carry the dumbbells and finish the workouts.

Recalling an incident last Friday... I was jogging lightly that morning, and a group of men were walking behind me. One of them is a pastor, and since they talk loudly, I could hear their conversations. Some topics were about church, but one topic that stuck in my mind was the pastor's comment about walking / exercising at Colinas Verdes, either alone or with friends. He said - all of us have personal struggles everyday, may it be personal, with family, relationships or work... or a combination or some or all. Sometimes, people resort to the usual remedies - sex, drugs, alcohol - which makes us forget the problem, but we all know problems will always be there, unless we solve them. Instead of going to the usual remedies, why not walk or jog? Walking along the usually vacant roads of Colinas Verdes will not only make you forget your problems, clear your head for a while... it will also make you better. Of course, the problem is still there, but at least you didn't ruin yourself by adding more problems.

Walking alone today made me contemplate about that... and I am thankful that despite a blow that made me sad, I didn't just stay in bed and wallow about it.

I don't know if you notice it... but I changed my blog's header today. Valentine's Day is coming and the picture I used for the first header was taken from way, way back, so I think it's time to change it. I love scrapbooking, but I am not blessed with enough creativity (especially in doing digital scrapbooking), so I used a ready made template. I used the February Desktop template by Trixie Scraps for the header, and if you want to download the template, just click on the image above. It will redirect you to Trixie Scraps blog.

There are three picture slots for the template, and I sure want to use present day pictures, so I set the camera for a quick photo shoot. The blouse I was wearing was something I owned from way back, and I only got to use it once in 2007 - when the family went to the Salcedo Village Weekend Market (click the link to view the album), and when I started gaining weight, I placed it in my "to dispose" bag, but now that I lost weight, I took it out and wore it again. Tummy bulges still show, but I think I can certainly wear this again.

I love setting my camera's timer to take about 7 images after about three seconds by the time it takes the first shot...it felt like posing for the photo booth!

My food intake today:

8:49 am - 1 corn on a cob
12:04 pm - 1/2 cup rice; leftover Salmon Sinigang (salmon head cooked in sour broth with yard long beans and sweet potato tops)
6:40 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Fried Chicken (60g chicken thigh seasoned with salt and pepper); a few boiled eggplants and yard long beans seasoned with fermented shrimp paste; 1 slice ripe papaya

Total Cups of Water: 13

Brother cooked a pork dish for tonight's dinner, and since I can't eat pork anymore, I just went to fry the chicken. :)

Other things that made me happy today:

Seeing this Zumba invitation through my online friend's Facebook wall. Mingky is one of my food blog's follower who became a friend on Facebook - she's a college student of San Sebastian College, and she shared this upcoming event... which I really want to take part of. If any of you want to go to San Sebastian College on 17 February, please do tell me, so I can come as well.
An e-mail from Thei. I just received an e-mail from Thei of Nuffnang Philippines about the Best Food Forward 2 event, and when I sent my RSVP (I always attend Nuffnang events), she sent another e-mail asking if I want to tag my brother along (I have attended 2 Nuffnang events with my brother). When I said yes, she just told me she just entered brother's name to the attendees. Thanks so much Thei!
Another food event invitation. This time for Seattle's Best Coffee.

From sad to happy... it sure was a good turnaround, but I will close this post on a sad note. Around noon time, parts of the Visayas region (middle part of the country) was hit with a magnitude 6.9 earthquake and there has been lots of aftershocks following the big shake... people died, structures damaged, a lot of people affected. I am asking you to please say a prayer for the people affected by the quake. Thanks.

An Update and Some Realizations

2012-02-06T16:17:00.009+08:00

I was supposed to make an update yesterday, but my sister borrowed my camera, so I wasn't able to get images from my camera's memory card. Lemme now recap my Saturday and Sunday.

Day 126
04 February 2012

Friday made my legs very, very tired, so I decided to stay in bed longer. Mr. Pipoy understood my reasons, and I was really thankful.

After eating lunch, sister and I went to the salon for the much needed haircut. My hair is very limp and so thin, so having it so long made it look thinner. I am actually having hair fall problems - it was okay then, but lately hair falling seemed to increase in number. I am getting alarmed, so I decided to have a haircut so it would be easier to comb.

I liked the outcome of the haircut... the hairdresser used the hair iron instead of hair blower and I liked how straight my hair was; sister was suggesting I should buy a hair iron, but I didn't want to as it might damage my hair more.

We went to a nearby boutique to check clothes and I was able to buy a pair of cargo pants and a blouse (it was on a sale, that's why I bought the items). After that, we went to Tri-Mo Shawarma Co to have some snacks, which became my early dinner. I wasn't able to jot down the other food I ate today... my bad.

Day 127
05 February 2012

I went to walk and jog this morning, but because I was wearing my leggings, I decided to just take my water bottle and leave my camera and/or cell phone at home. When I got home after a good two hours walk and jog, I had my breakfast and walked back to the market, because mom needed to prepare something for their prayer meeting. It was a good 45 minutes walk (I still went to this "special" bake shop that sells yummy pan de sal), half of the way I was carrying about 4 kilos of goods. Good thing I brought my eco bag with me!

I helped mom cook and I just stayed in her room while they were having the prayer meeting. I wasn't able to do my video workout, but I guess it was just fine - it's Sunday anyway.

My food for today -

8:30 am - 1 cup Nescafe Brown and Creamy 3-in-1 coffee; 1 piece sliced White bread + thin spread of Chiz Whiz
12:11 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Salmon Head Sinigang (60g salmon head meat cooked in Sour broth with yard long beans and sweet potato tops)
6:40 pm- 1 cup Pansit Bihon (cornstarch noodle sticks with chicken, cabbages, carrots, green beans, seasoned with soy sauce, salt and pepper)

Total Cups of Water: 14

First time to drink coffee after a week... my tummy surely had a difficult time adjusting to it. I told Mr. Pipoy this might be a good avenue to lessen coffee intake...maybe I might just have 3 cups this week.

- * - * - * -

When I started my journey, I just wanted to lose weight and hope to wear a two-piece swimsuit in public. It might be a shallow reason, but it was reason enough for me to strive and lose weight. When I am finally seeing the scales going down, I sort of hoped people will notice it-of course, losing weight is an achievement and part of me wanted to really shout it out to the world.

29lbs gone... and people have started noticing the weight loss.

Last Friday, while walking back home, one neighbor (who I am not so close with - I just know she lives near our house) saw me and made a comment that there sure are improvements. She asked if I am taking diet pills / supplements to boost the weight loss, and I told her I wasn't... I lost the weight by exercising and diet.

Saturday after lunch, my friend and neighbor Charmy went to our house to use our phone and after her call, she went to interview me. The very first attempt for me to lose weight, she was the very first person I consulted about... and she was just happy that after all the years, I am finally shedding the excess weight. We went to talk about concerns and fears and future plans...

...and I realized there is more to weight loss than losing the weight. It comes with a big responsibility - that more than ever... I should strive harder to lose more weight and / or maintain my weight. Now that most of my family members and friends - and possibly the part of the blogosphere know about my journey and its results, it is my responsibility to become a role model - that a big girl can definitely lose weight just by lessening the food intake and exercising.

I still have 47lbs to lose... thanks to this responsibility, I am definitely going to work hard to reach my goals as fast as I can -by doing it right.

05 - 11 February Goals and Challenges

2012-02-05T13:39:00.006+08:00

Before I share my goals and challenges this week, here's a look back on my goals last week:

Pass the "No Sweets Challenge" posted at Belle Today with flying colors. Not only was I able to resist the temptations of eating sweets / sweetened food, I also was able to go the full week without drinking coffee.
Morning walks for more than 1-2 hours. Taking aside that day when it rained, I still wasn't able to complete the full week because yesterday (Saturday) I was so tired from too much walking last Friday that I couldn't get myself out of bed to walk.
Complete the exercises set for this week. Friday I went out with family, Saturday was such a lazy day, add to that my afternoon bonding moment with sister.
Eat at least 2 kinds of vegetables every day. Friday, I wasn't able to eat veggies - except for the itty bitty kutchay (chives) in the dumplings I had for dinner that night.
No fried food of any kind. - Hep hep, hooray!
No processed meat (including dried fish) and canned food, but canned fish is allowed. - Was able to resist not eating the hotdogs on my spaghetti last Monday!
Buy myself a pair of 3lb. dumbbells. Well, I didn't buy the 3lb dumbbells, I bought the 4lb ones.
Get a haircut. Will share the picture maybe tonight or tomorrow.

Five out of eight... not bad; but because of that, the three goals I didn't meet will be part of this week's goals (to help discipline myself). With that, here are my goals this coming week (05-11 February 2012):

Finish the 7x7 Challenge on Belle Today (details below).
Complete the new set of exercises - no exception (except getting sick).
Eat at least 2 kinds of vegetables per day.
12 cups of water or 3 liters of water everyday.
Cook at least 2 recipes from the Jan/Feb issue of Yummy Magazine.
Eat Fitnesse cereals for breakfast (Monday - Friday only; milk might upset my tummy).
No junk food of any kind - including street foods.

The "No Sweets Challenge" just ended, so yes, I am now allowing myself to eat sweetened foods... but portions will be watched, of course. I am just happy because this week (won't say when), I will be attending a sweet event at Max's Restaurant... and my GC for their Max's Corner Bakery will expire this week, too, so I am definitely going to eat something sweet. I love being invited to Max's Restaurant events, thankful that the "No Sweets Challenge" came last week. Hahaha.

Talking about the newest challenge at Belle Today - the 7x7 Challenge... it's simply doing at least 7000 steps everyday for 7 days. For this, it would be really helpful to have a pedometer as it would be crazy if one would count the steps manually, which was why I felt sad at first because my pedometer died a few years ago... and the one Doc sent to me last year arrived here broken. I really wanted to join the challenge, but counting the steps would be the biggest challenge. Last Friday, was able to see two pedometers at the Sports Shop, but the cheaper one was 700 pesos, the expensive one was 2000 pesos. Way too pricey for a pedometer, so yesterday, I felt like throwing in the towel (partially).

This morning, I remembered the Nike Sports Kit I have in my closet. It came with the iPod Nano I won from Coke Zero Resolutions Contest (2010), but I still haven't really used it yet. A gleam of light came in, but when I checked the manual, it wouldn't count the steps, but the distance made. Still, I might use this tomorrow to measure the distance from our house to Colinas Verdes. :)

This morning, I busied myself finding a pedometer. Since I am at home, I just checked online shops, but the one at Groupon is not available, the ones at Multiply were quite expensive, and the one I saw at TipidPC will require bank deposit. Since the 7x7 Challenge will officially start tomorrow, I needed the pedometer as soon as possible.

I checked CD-R King's website and hallelujah, they have pedometers! They have two kinds - two models at just 50 pesos each, and one model at 120 pesos. I tried calling the SM Fairview branch, but they weren't answering, and since my sister is currently in Makati City at this moment, I called the branch nearest to where she is at and told me they only have this model:

Well, it was a bit pricey, considering the other two models were only at 50 pesos, but this I think I will like - as it uses AAA Battery and it has an FM Radio (with earphones included). This would be a good walking companion - I can listen to Chico and Delamar's "Morning Rush" while walking. Tee hee! I am expecting my pedometer tonight when sister gets home... I told her I'd pay her 150 if she comes home with a pedometer tonight (talk about being persistent).

Last week, I mentioned about having a new video workout schedule this week. I still don't want to give up Hip Hop Abs (I just sooo love it), so here's my new schedule, which I will follow 'til I reach 170lbs.

Mondays and Thursdays - Hip Hop Abs (Cardio), Hip Hop Abs (Ab Sculpt), 8 Minute Arms
Tuesdays and Fridays - Hip Hop Abs (Cardio), Hip Hop Abs (Hips, Buns, Thighs), 8 Minute Legs
Wednesdays and Saturdays - 30 Day Shred, 8 Minute Buns, 8 Minute Abs
Sundays - Les Mills House, Les Mills Latin

30 Day Shred didn't have that much partners... basically because when I read forums about it, many people complained of body aches and feeling sore after doing it. I still don't know how will I do this, but for the sake of not burning myself, I will just do two sets of the 8 Minute workouts before doing 30 Day Shred in the afternoon.

This week will be a test of endurance. But.. like what I shared the other day, I must suffer the pains of discipline than suffer the pain of regret. I actually need to do good this month because I might be traveling last weekend of the month and will be away for two weeks max... so I need to bank on fitness now, just in case I can't workout while I am away.

Good luck to me. :)

My Thursday and Friday

2012-02-04T10:48:00.006+08:00

Day 124
02 February 2012

I wasn't able to go out and walk this morning because it rained. Lately, weather has been unpredictable, but because the rain was a bit heavy, I just stayed at home and used the Elliptical Machine instead.

My workout report today:

10:46 am - Hip Hop Abs (Cardio)
1:33 pm - 8 Minute Arms
4:03 pm - Hip Hop Abs (Ab Sculpt)

Being lazy last month, this week has been quite a shock for me. I do know I have to focus more now, so I am really enduring this week because the next week will be more challenging for me.

While on Facebook this morning, I saw this little update that made me a little annoyed:

Taking a look at the pictures, it sure is quite evident that America did lose weight... but the first comment irked me a bit. Nothing and nobody is claiming that she is sexy and all that; the one posted this just wanted to somehow provide inspiration that someone actually lost weight - I think that was the main purpose of it all - showing a before and after picture. I know all of us have the right to speak our mind as this is a democratic world - but was it nice to comment like that? At least the woman is doing something to improve herself, right?

Anyway, here were the food I ate today:

8:15 am - 30g Fitnesse Whole Wheat Cereal + 125ml Meadow Fresh milk (but I didn't slurp the milk - I just ate the cereal after soaking it in milk for a few minutes)
12:45 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 1/3 cup Ginataang Sitaw at Kalabasa (Squash and Yard Long Beans cooked in Coconut Milk, seasoned with salt and pepper)
6:40 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 80g steamed Tilapia seasoned with salt and pepper (I ate the fish in the middle of the plate); 3 tablespoons leftover Ginataang Sitaw at Kalabasa

Total Cups of Water: 12

It's nice to go back to eating Fitnesse Cereal again. Next week, I might go one full week eating that for breakfast, but am not sure yet.

Day 125
03 February 2012

It was a bit cloudy, but it wasn't raining, so I don't have any reason not to walk today. I brisked walk from our house to Colinas Verdes (I don't know the distance, but it usually takes me 20-30 minutes to get there). Upon entering the gates, I stopped to stretch for a few minutes (like I always do) then I set myself to brisk walk again. I did bring my water bottle today, so I jogged.

My inspiration today was this jogger - who jogged without any foot wear. This will draw mixed comments, but the way I see it... he didn't have any protection for his feet yet he was jogging! I wanted to keep up with his pace, but he was just too darn strong... I had to stop after about 10 minutes. Hahahaha.

I stayed in Colinas Verdes for 2 hours, and I alternated jogging and walking. I think I did good today, but the cold wind was a bit too tough for my lungs to carry.

Rewards for today's jogging and walking were these images. The bug I saw while talking a few moments to rest before going home. I was just standing there - taking a few deep breaths and when I looked down, I saw the critter! Oh so cute!

I wasn't able to do any of my scheduled workouts today because sibs and I went out, but I made up for day by walking more. Us sibs went to Ever Commonwealth to eat lunch at Tribu Express (using the GCs brother received). Going out of the house, we walked... and we walked around the mall for about 30 minutes. After lunch, we walked around again for 30 minutes then we went to SM Fairview.

Today was our family's monthly grocery day, but we went to the supermarket early so we can be at our pace and not feel pressured to finish because mom is quite the impatient kind. We use her Senior Citizen card to get discount (65 pesos is still discount), but because we arrived at the mall at 2-ish in the afternoon, we roamed around the mall for a while then went to the supermarket to do grocery shopping. I can't believe I walked for more than 3 hours this afternoon - last 15 minutes of it, I was carrying 8 lbs dumbbells!

Oh yes... I bought a new pair of dumbbells today. I guess it's time for me to graduate from 2lbs and use something heavier. The thought entered my mind when my friend Madz said that she's using 3lbs and she was just starting her journey. I know I have my own journey and that I don't have to copy what others are doing - but I am traveling this road for four months already, I think it's time to up the ante. I thought of buying a pair of 3lb dumbbells, but my sister and Mr. Pipoy suggested I go for 4lbs instead, so okay. :)

While at the sports shop, I saw the same Elliptical Machine we have at home, and trying it out, I realized the one we have at home sure was dysfunctional or something. Ours was so heavy, I think it was set the highest resistance. I told the store manager about the situation and knowing we bought our machine at the same shop and it's just five months old, he gave me the number of their service center so I can have it checked. Hopefully it will get fixed soon.

My food today:

8:25 am - 1 cup Pansit Palabok (store bought)
12:44 pm - Chicken Inasal meal (Tribu Express - Ever Gotesco Commonwealth)
6:05 pm - Chicken Heaven meal (Chicken BBQ + Hainan Rice), 1 small bowl soup stock - (Hainanese Delights, SM City Fairview)

Total Cups of Water: 1 Water Bottle + 5 cups at home + 2 glasses at Tribu Express + 1 500ml bottle at SM + 3 glasses of water at Hainanese Delights

Two food trips for the day... but I didn't overeat, so I think it was still good.

I am slowly crossing out my goals I set for myself this week. I am liking this new found spark, I think I will do great this month.

Images to Motivate

2012-02-02T22:01:00.004+08:00

Day 123
01 February 2012

I went to Colinas Verdes today, but I didn't bring either my cell phone or my camera because I wanted to jog more, and because my pants didn't have any pockets, I decided to just bring my water bottle because jogging makes me feel tired quickly and I needed to replenish all the water I sweat out.

My schedule:

6:33 am - Walk / jog to and around Colinas Verdes; walk from market to home (1 hour 45 minutes)
11:17 am - Les Mills House DVD Workout (20 minutes)
2:04 pm - Bump and Burn - Beginner

Wednesdays and Saturdays are my "Rest Days," to help my body recover from using the dumbbells and raising my legs (the legs exercises are the toughest for me), but I still want to make the day count, hence the less-strenuous workouts.

Food? I ate:

9:14 am - 1 cup boiled macaroni with spaghetti sauce and cheddar cheese
12:43 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Beef Bistek with Green Beans (40g beef, 70g green beans - cooked in soy sauce, kalamansi juice, and lots of minced garlic); 1 slice ripe papaya
7:16 pm - 1/2 cup rice; leftover Beef Bistek with Green Beans; 2/3 cup Tinola Soup (water boiled with chicken bouillon cubes, ginger, onion, lemongrass bulbs, chili leaves); 1 slice papaya

Total Cups of Water: 12

The past few days, I have been seeing images here and there that drives the motivation hiding inside of me. February is my "new year," so lemme share just a few of the many images that boosted my morale to push forward.

I saw this at Gisa's post on Belle Today... oh yes, everyday is a new day to start anew!

This is becoming viral on Facebook - it reminded me of the documentary about Manny Pacquiao on BIO Channel I watched while traveling (hehe, I can only watch Cable TV if I am at a hotel), and I am now a fan of him. I admire his drive to strive harder and look at him now - his accomplishments just speak for itself.

This I saw on Madz's Facebook wall. She recently just took on the road to weight loss, and one of her friends posted this on her wall. This one got me a little emotional, and I think I will have this printed and post it near my ARCs - here at my study table and on my mirror. Entering the fifth month of my journey, I know losing weight will be tougher and tougher, so this I need to remember always - pain caused by the workouts and saying no to certain food will be so worth it the time I reach my "finish line."

This was something shared to me by my bloggy friend Ms. Jinkee. She commented on my February selfie I posted on Facebook and following her congratulatory message, she shared this line. I admit, confidence is something I have yet to fully achieve. I admire people - especially the chubby ones - who are really confident in "flaunting" themselves, so I guess more than transforming myself physically, I also have to work on my confidence.

Do you have any piece of motivation to share? Please do!

February Weigh-In

2012-02-01T21:32:00.008+08:00

Early December 2010, I was able to see a stall at Sidcor Weekend Market selling dresses at low prices. The store owner told me they sew the dresses themselves, but each dresses only come with two sizes - the smaller and the bigger one. My first visit, I bought one for my sister, and the next visit to the market, I went with my mom and bought a dress for herself at the same store. The dresses they wore on Christmas Day that year (picture above), while I have to buy a different dress at a different store, because I surely couldn't fit into the same looking dresses as my favorite girls wore.

Fast forward to February 2012.

The same dress my mom wore for Christmas 2010 - the I one I couldn't fit into - is something I can most certainly wear now. This wasn't my plan of outfit to wear for this month's selfie shoot, but while checking mom and sister's closet for an outfit I could borrow, I saw mom's dress and just tried it on. I wasn't able to see my sister's dress, but when I see it, I'd try it on and share to you the image. :)

From last month's weight of 202lbs., my new weight is now:

It's quite difficult to use this kind of weighing scale because one can't read the result accurately, but if you look closely, there's this tiny black part on the right side of the red marker (198 mark). I asked Mr. Pipoy how to read this and he just told me to read it as 197 lbs. Reading the KG mark, it reads 89.5 kg, and converting it to lbs the result will be 197.31lbs. Rounding it off, I guess it will be fair to read it as 197lbs.

A loss of 5lbs. this month. Holy gracious, that is amazing!

I was lazy this month, but I think I never really neglected my responsibilities. I wasn't able to follow all my fitness schedules, but I still moved around. While on a trip to Pangasinan, I tried to walk around, climb islands... and on most days, I walked 30 minutes at least going to the market and back home. If I am at the mall, not only did I walk back and forth, I also didn't let the escalator carry me - I'd still climb the escalator up and down, just so I could move.

Diet had a little gray sky when I faced a problem with purging after eating dinner three days during the first week of the month, but I was quickly able to cure and recover from it. I sure went to a lot of food trips this month, but I tried my best to eat as little as I could. Still no softdrinks for me - but I had a few glasses of juice within the month (possibly 3 or 4 glasses).

Overall, things were rocky, but somehow I still managed to recover from my mistakes. The last week of January was a strong week, and I am most happy to still be walking this road.

Another selfie picture for this month's weigh in - I don't look good, but I am proud of the clothes I was wearing - the pair of shorts were my mom's, the top is my sister's. The denim shorts were size 14... mom gave it to me last weekend thinking I could fit in it. It fits just perfectly - it wasn't loose, but not tight either, though because my tummy is big, closing the button would push my tummy area. The top is size large. Like the shorts, it wasn't too loose and not tight, but because this is one of my sister's new tops, I still can't really borrow it (actually, she still hasn't worn this). Hehehe.

In the four months of my journey I have lost 29lbs. It was amazing to lose such amount of weight just being at home, but I surely need to address something - loose skin. My arms, tummy, and legs just look quite awful now, and I think I need to check a gym for machines I can use to address this issue. Other goals I have this month:

Find a gym. I don't care anymore if the one closest to our place is attended by mostly men... if their fee fits my budget, I'd enroll myself and will just ask them when the gym is usually empty, so I won't have to deal with too much testosterone in the gym. Also, if I find a lady gym member, I might just be buddies with her so we can do the workouts together.
Modify the schedule. I will start doing the Jillian Michaels' "30 Day Shred" workout this month - not everyday, though, as I still want to continue with Hip Hop Abs. Will just modify the workout schedule to fit both of these workouts.
Go for 3lbs. Dumbbells, that is. I think I now need to put aside my 2lb dumbbells and go for something heavier.
Aim for 5lbs. Any weight loss for the month is something I will accept whole heartedly, but I sure hope I lose another 5lbs or hopefully bigger by the start of March.
Give myself a big weekly challenge. This week it's "No Sweets" week... next week I might give myself an exercise challenge. If you have a challenge in mind, please don't hesitate to tell me.

I am so ready to welcome the new month! Bring on the challenges... I will do my very best to overcome all.

I just said goodbye to 200 zone. I got a new address...
Onederland!

A Strong Finish for the Month

2012-02-01T14:23:00.003+08:00

Day 122
31 January 2012

Last day of the month. With the thoughts of weigh in on my mind, I got up to walk even if I only had 4 hours of sleep. Happy that my sister went with me - but I did want to finish strong, so I told her we'd walk way past the Clubhouse. She was game for it.

Colinas Verdes is on fire today - thanks to the pretty Fire Trees! At first I thought they were leaves turning red, but when I found a slightly closer tree, I zoomed in on the branches and realized...

... that those weren't leaves, but flowers! Trees with nothing but flowers - how cool can that be?

Anyway, my sister wasn't able to keep up with me. The time we reached the Clubhouse, she just took a seat. I thought she just wanted to have a little rest (we've been walking for an hour non-stop), but I didn't want to take a rest, so when I asked her for us to walk more, she told me she will just wait for me there. I still have the drive... so I walked more and met her 20 minutes after.

Walking back to the gate, I spotted some butterflies - but most were too small to take pictures of. I was lucky with this one, but this wasn't a macro shot; I zoomed in on this critter to magnify it, then applied the VanGogh(LIC) action on GIMP.

We walked for 2 hours today. My legs were tired (because I still was a bit tired from my workout last night), but I was satisfied with what I did today.

9:58 am - Hip Hop Abs (Cardio)
1:15 pm - 8 Minute Legs
3:48 pm - Hip Hop Abs (Hips, Buns, and Thighs)
5:04 pm - Walk to the market and back home (30 minutes)

I wasn't able to take pictures of any of the food I ate today, but I had -

8:49 am - 1/2 cup rice; canned sardines in tomato sauce (I ate two of the four fish cuts inside the can)
11:52 am - 1/2 cup rice; leftover Beef with Cauliflower; 1 slice ripe Papaya
7:09 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Fish Sinigang (80g Talakitok, cooked in sour broth with Sweet Potato Tops); 1 slice ripe Papaya

January was bad yet good. I just hope the next weigh in will be favorable.

Sweet, Sweeter, Sweetest

2012-01-31T20:17:00.005+08:00

Write in your heart that
everyday is the best day of the year.
- Emerson

Day 121
30 January 2012

Monday is usually the most hated day of the week, but I sure never had the Monday Blues! :)

I woke up early today - 5:30am, but after my morning ritual (prayer, bathroom, 2 glasses of water), I found myself back in my bed. I was just supposed to lie and wait for the sky to light up a bit, but I was surprised that when I opened my eyes it was already 6:30am! I didn't want to waste this day, so I quickly got up and prepared myself for my morning walk. I woke up sis, but she wasn't in the mood to go out, so for today I was alone, but not really - as I was talking to Mr. Pipoy while I walk.

It was a sweet start of the day - despite being late, I still was able to walk for about 1 hour and 45 minutes.

After eating breakfast, it was time for me to check the Internet and when I checked for blog comments, this one surprised me. Of all the friends I have / had, Roselle is the one I miss the most - she is my closest high school friend and we parted ways on a sour note. Last time we spoke was late 1996, and thankful to a very old blog post I wrote on my Multiply site, Roselle's sister-in-law got to read it and (maybe) told her about it (the SIL commented on my site many months back). She didn't leave her contact number, but she did include her e-mail address on her comment, so somehow the bridge just got reconnected. I sure hope she and I can meet soon; I surely miss her a lot!

Now, that's sweeter!

Sweetest part of the day?

About noon time, I received an Ali Edwards newsletter (she's one of my favorite people - I love how she inspires people to become life artists). I forgot to take a screen cap of it and I forgot which folder I placed the newsletter (I usually clean my inbox right after sorting mails out), but while the whole newsletter deserved a post on its own, it was the parting words that got me really interested:

"You know, sometimes all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage.
Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery.
And I promise you, something great will come of it."

Mr. Pipoy and I didn't plan to meet today. Based on our phone conversations, we sort of plan to meet later in the week, so when it was time for him to sleep (around noon time, to prepare him for work later in the evening), I just set up to do what I was supposed to do - work and workout. About 4:30pm, my phone rang and I was surprised to see that he was the one calling. Answering it, he asked me if I could meet him around 6pm at our "home away from home." It took me a while to answer, but of course my answer was "yes." It was, I'd like to say, my "Twenty seconds of insane courage," and true enough, something great came out of it.

I just can't explain how wonderful it felt seeing him again, hug him, kiss him. We talk everyday, but nothing can be sweeter than seeing each other in person - sharing the love for each other. It felt great sharing dinner with him - though his fries got me salivating (too bad I told myself I won't eat fried food this week), and it felt great sharing stories.

Before eating dinner though, we did one round of his Insanity workout. I still have Bloody Mary with me, but what the heck... let this workout be my "embarrassing bravery." It was tough - doing my video workout on and off, and now I had to do an insane workout. It made my legs wobble (if I reach 170lbs. I'd video it so you'd see how insane Mr. Pipoy's workout is), but it made me appreciate his efforts to shower me with love. You know, workouts can be tough, but knowing he's taking the time to help me be fit, I am happy enough. We did three rounds of the workout, and it made me catch my breath - but never did I give up. I was elated, I was on top of the world, I was in heaven. The first time we found our "home away from home," he told me, "I will make you happy," and today - our third month into the relationship, he still makes me happy.

Sadly, I wasn't able to take any picture today - I was in a hurry I forgot to bring my camera and my cellphone didn't have enough battery juice.

Happy third month, love!
I love you so much!

Fitness talk:

6:45 am - walk to and around Colinas Verdes (1 hour 45 minutes)
10:02 am - Hip Hop Abs (Cardio)
1:15 pm - 8 Minute Arms
3:07 pm - Hip Hop Abs (Ab Sculpt)

Was able to do my schedule today, yey!

Food I ate today:

9:01 am - 1 piece sliced White bread + 1 tablespoon mashed hard boiled egg
11:10 am - 1/2 cup rice; Fish Paksiw (80g fish cooked in vinegar, chili fingers, ginger, onion, garlic - seasoned with salt and pepper)
8-ish in the evening - 1 serving Spaghetti (KFC - cold cuts taken aside)

Total Cups of Water: 10 at home + the water I drank while with Mr. Pipoy

I sure had a wonderful start of the week. Everything just fell into its place, I love this day!

The Beck Diet Solution: Day 8

2012-01-30T15:08:00.005+08:00

It was a month ago when I last updated "The Beck Diet Solution." Not that I got tired reading my ARCs and not that I got tired following what Dr. Beck shared; I simply just got lost in my way, but I didn't forget any of the lessons I have learned. Come to think of it, I recently just made a new set of ARCs, because I want it to be as much personal as possible. Last week, I focused on just following the first 7 lessons, so this week it's time to move forward.

When I lost the first 10lbs., nobody seemed to notice I lost weight, but when I finally lost 20lbs., people around me started noticing it. One time, when I updated a Facebook profile picture, our next door neighbor called on me and asked me a few questions. First question was, "How did you do it?" When I answered, "I walked every morning for more than an hour, did two Hip Hop Abs routines during weekdays, portioned my food intake." As soon as I was done answering her first question, she quickly made a follow up question, "Everyday?" Then her face turned sour. She said, "I guess I'd just have be overweight my whole life, I can't do what you're doing everyday."

This is the sad truth: many people want to lose weight, but don't want to devote time to it.

I was once like that, I admit. The thought of going through a video workout for 30 minutes felt I have been robbed of precious time I could use for other things, which turned out to be senseless (like playing a Facebook game or watching a YouTube video or "gossiping" through my Facebook Wall). When I finally got serious to lose the excess weight, I knew I will be sacrificing a lot, but it was a challenge I embraced. At first it was tough - breaking my usual cycle just to do my Hip Hop Abs routines, but I still did it... first 10 minutes sure were agonizing - I felt lazy, I wanted to turn the DVD off and just watch TV, but as I continue doing it time just went by so quick I was just surprised to see I was already done. After doing the routine, I always thank myself for not giving up and for making the day count. Now, I am applying the same principle. Think about it - we always put off for tomorrow when we can most certainly do it now. 30 minutes is just half an hour. You might miss your favorite TV show, you might not be able to harvest your crops on Farmville (if you still play it), but you will survive. And someday, you will just see the results.

Me? It took three months. 24lbs... and the rewards started pouring in.

Believe me, the day I fit into one of my sister's blouses, it felt like heaven. When I folded the clothes I needed to let go, I came into a realization - that it only took me 24lbs to start reaping the rewards... why didn't I do it then? True, three months may seem too long for most of us. All of us sure want to lose as much weight as fast as possible, and looking back, I realized three months went by so quickly!

Today Dr. Beck teaches us to create time and energy.

Like every goal we set ourselves to do, we have to put our time, effort, and energy for us to reach it. It is also true that all of us live a very busy life. I guess in a way I am lucky that I work at home and that I am still single (meaning: not yet married), but there are days I feel my day's work and house chores are eating my entire day. All of us have reasons to not fulfill our tasks for the day, but Dr. Beck says we just have to compromise:

Set your priorities.
Plan your meals ahead - maybe before you sleep, plan what food to cook for the next day, so you will not waste time walking around the market thinking what to buy.
If you got kids who are old enough to help, you can ask them to do some chores so you will have extra time doing something for your fitness.
Lessen TV / Internet time; lessen the time spent on other activities that are not that important.
Multi task - if you're doing the laundry, you can insert some fitness activity while the machine washes / spin dry your clothes.
Make fitness time one of your essential activities for the day.

Some of us don't like to plan. True, life is about being spontaneous, but then again if we must lose weight, we have to give up a little spontaneity, until we have developed a routine.

For this lesson, my biggest inspiration is my friend Rhona. She's not fat, but she looked a little chubby for her height. Now... she's a high school teacher and has to travel two hours just to get to the school from her place and another two hours (possibly more when the traffic is bad) to get home. She's at school the entire day, and coming home she needs to write on her Lesson Plan book, as well as check papers, which includes reading a lot of essays. On top of that, she is a daughter and a fiancee. She certainly has a lot of things going on that eats up her entire day, yet the day she got engaged, she enrolled herself in a gym and was able to devote a piece of her time everyday to do some workouts. I don't know how long she spends at the gym, but regardless of what and how she did it, the results speak for itself: she certainly looked stunning during her wedding day.

If she can do it, we all can do it.

I guess it's just a matter of commitment.

Easier said than done, but let's just do it anyway.

After all, it is for our own good. All to gain, nothing to lose.

...but excess pounds.

A Very Short Recap... and New Set of Goals

2012-01-29T10:13:00.004+08:00

Days 117 - 120
26 - 29 January 2012

The past four days - including today were quiet. I wasn't able to exercise that much because of the dizziness my monthly period gave me. The only exercise I was able to do was go 15 minutes on an Elliptical Machine, which was quite tough for me. I don't know how other machines are like, but our Elliptical Machine is quite heavy! I had a hard time using it continuously for 3 minutes even if it's on zero resistance. I think I should visit the store where we bought it and check how the same machine is like.

Anyway, yesterday I went to clean my closet, and I was surprised to see how much clothes I had to let go. It was bittersweet - some of the clothes were favorites, but now I just have to let it go because I realized, holding on to these would mean not embracing the new me. I wanted to lose weight. I wanted to become healthy and fit. Whatever memories these clothes brought me, I kept it all in my heart and I am going to use it to motivate me become the better version of me.

So okay... today is the 29th of January, day 120 into this journey.

I admit, I was way too lazy this January, but I didn't totally neglected my responsibilities. Despite the three day battle with Mia, I think I was able to surpass a budding problem, thanks to my everdearest Mr. Pipoy, who gave me everything I needed - a little scolding with lots of love in between. I am now ready check into the Pit Stop and move forward to the next chapter of this journey - February.

This coming week - 29 January to 04 February, my goals are:

Pass the "No Sweets Challenge" posted at Belle Today with flying colors (I surely want to be the last Belle standing).
Morning walks for more than 1-2 hours.
Complete the exercises set for this week - to prepare myself for Jillian Michaels' "30 Day Shred," which I will start doing next week.
Eat at least 2 kinds of vegetables every day.
No fried food of any kind.
No processed meat (including dried fish) and canned food, but canned fish is allowed.
Buy myself a pair of 3lb. dumbbells.
Get a haircut.

Exceptions? Well, there will be no exceptions for the "No Sweets Challenge," but for the fried food one... if I am invited to an event and was served fried food, I will eat it (as it is part of my "job" as a food blogger), but I will keep in mind the amount of fried food I am taking. As of this writing, I don't have any events to attend for this coming week, so staying at home, I think I don't have to worry about the fried food. I am now currently listing out dishes to cook, just to remind myself of the many options to eat.

My food buddies Andrew and Elwood just posted an invitation for our next food trip - no date set for this, but they're thinking of doing it the first week of February, should the food trip push through within this coming week, I will just ask them to go for the healthier dishes. Way I see it, the food trip might not happen this week, but just in case, I will be more responsible this week and keep my focus straight.

Smile... Go Crazy!

2012-01-26T15:55:00.005+08:00

Day 116
25 January 2012

Day 2 of dealing with Bloody Mary and I am still in deep discomfort. I just stayed at home because I was so dizzy (I normally get dizzy this time of the month), and because my lower back and tummy were aching, I just took this day to relax and deal with the pain...

...by going crazy!

This green halter top was something I bought many years back (possibly in 2008), but I didn't really get to wear it that often because my arms were so big and even if the lower part of the blouse was loose, bulges around my tummy would still show, so in the rare times that I wore this, it was just at home. I tried wearing it again (just because) and sister said I should wear it during a beach trip if I have the chance. I think I might.

Later this afternoon, brother wanted to go to the nearby supermarket (just near the market), and because I needed to at least help myself by not wasting the day, I walked with him. It turned out to be a good decision because I was able to cross paths with a former high school classmate, whom I haven't seen for 10+ years. We weren't able to talk because she and her husband were about to get in a tricycle, but we were able to exchange smiles and waves. Hopefully soon, we will be able to catch up on the old times.

Upon getting home, I went to the garden to pull out some weeds. I just noticed that my papaya tree is actually male and can't bear fruits, but as sad as I was, I guess I would just have to try again.

I have been a member of Belle Today since 2008, but I admit I am not a very active member and I still haven't cultivated real friendships, so when they posted that they will be having a Community Challenge this February, I told them to count me in, as this will be a good avenue to be friends with the members of the community.

No Sweets Challenge? No sweat for me! Errr... or is it? Let's see!

If you want to join us and/or if you want to read the complete mechanics of this challenge, please click HERE.

taken from - Pilipinas Roadtrip
One thing that gave me a big smile today: the promise of an upcoming Ilocos trip. Well, if you back read on this blog, I already shared that I plan to do one with our neighbor Ria, but while eating dinner, mom told me Miss Nerie (one of her close friends at work) found a package trip to Ilocos and mom already signed up for it, saying she also listed me as one of the participants. They plan to do the trip sometime this April and I think I will just ask Ria to sign up for it so she can travel with us.

Checking Pilipinas Roadtrip's page, I found their itinerary:

ILOCOS TOUR- P3450 per pax
SAMPLE ITINERARY

Day 00
08.30pm Assembly Manila
09.00pm ETD from Manila to Ilocos

Day 1
05.30am Sunrise viewing at Bantay Bridge
06.00am ETA at Vigan, Breakfast Café uno (own account)
07.00am Proceed Baluarte, Crisologo Museum, Burnayan, Bantay Bell Tower
11.00pm ETD Vigan to Batac
12.30pm ETA Batac lunch, Foodcourt meals at (own account)
01.00pm Proceed at Marcos Museum, Paoay Church, Malacaniang ti Amianan (Malacañang of the North)
02.30pm ETA Laoag City
03.00pm ETA Cape Bojeador Light House, Bangui windmill
06.00pm ETA Pagudpud (rest)

Day 2
06.00am Wake-up call. Breakfast (own account)
08.00am Proceed to Patapat bridge, Paraiso ni Anton , Bagong Lipunan
11.00am early lunch.(we can buy fresh fish, and have it cook at the beachside with a minimal fee)
12.30pm ETD Blue Lagoon proceed to Bantay Abot Cave, Blue Lagoon, free time to explore the beach
02.30pm ETA Kabigan falls jump off (20 min trek to the falls)
04.30pm ETA from the falls
05.00pm ETA Pagudpud town, food trip empanada, vigan langgonisa etc.
05.30pm ETA resort (end of day 2)

Day 3
06.00am Wake up call Breakfast (own account). Check out.
07.00am Check out.
07.30am ETD Pagudpud.
08.15am ETA Kapurpurawan Rock Formation
11.30pm ETA Vigan
12.30pm ETA Vigan,lunch at Hidden Garden(own account), souvenir hunting
03.00pm ETD Vigan
10.00pm ETA Manila

p3450 per person... not bad, actually, considering the travel and the accommodation is already part of the package, we will just have to shoulder the food and other expenses (like souvenir shopping). Although I am not much a fan of packaged tours because I feel time may not be enough to go around and enjoy the place, I guess this would be a good trip to do, and is much cheaper compared to doing the trip on my own. Mom will shoulder the expenses for this trip - she said she will give this trip as her birthday gift to me. Oh wow. Amazing!

Edit - told Ria about the trip, and she's in. Yehey!

Biggest smile for today comes from this video - my super duper favorite band Hanson just released a video inviting fans for their upcoming shows here in the Philippines. About 64 days to go and I still don't have a ticket for it... hopefully soon I can purchase the ticket - I don't want to miss out on the good seat. Getting the VIP Patron seat will be amazing (the closer the better of course), but even if I just get the Lowerbox ticket, I will be fine - as long as I am in the first row of the Lowerbox area. Crossing fingers that I can get to watch this concert - Hanson's part of my life and seeing them perform right in front of my eyes (again - as I did get to watch their 2004 concert here in the Philippines) will definitely a dream come true.

Planets, align for me please!

My food today:

7:33 am - 1/2 cup garlic rice; 4 pieces fried Chicken spring rolls; 1 cup Nescafe brown and creamy coffee
1:15 pm - 1/2 cup rice, 1 piece fried chicken drumstick
6:58 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 1/2 cup Ampalaya with Chicken and Sotanghon; 1 piece fried Tilapia

Total Cups of Water: 12

Wow, three rice meals, three fried dishes each meal. Yikes.

Let's Jump Rope!

2012-01-25T14:02:00.004+08:00

Ipinanganak ka para maging maligaya.
(You were born to be happy.)
- Coca-Cola TVC

Day 115
24 January 2012

I wasn't able to set my alarm, but I was so thankful that my sister woke me up that morning. I am glad that she took the initiative for us to go to Colinas Verdes to do our morning routine. There is a big possibility that she will be back to work next week, so I need to make the most of the remaining days of sharing fitness days with her.

I decided to bring the jump rope Mr. Pipoy gave to me because I still haven't used it. Sister and I walked 'til we reached the model houses, then make a right turn so that people jogging / walking won't see us really. Hahahaha.

We took turns in using the rope. Counting the jumps I made, I was able to do about 20+ jumps continuously, and I am loving it! Though of course, I'd get sweaty and all after that, but I soooo enjoyed it. I just felt sad for the rope, though... since it's made of leather and the road was rough, it was so obvious that the middle part of the rope was scratched and sort of looked worn out. Mr. Pipoy said maybe I should just use it on smooth surface (he was calling me every now and then - thanks, love).

Both sister and I didn't eat dinner last night because of the super-duper heavy lunch we had yesterday. After about 100 jumps from each of us, sister said she was already feeling the hunger and maybe we should head back home. Ohhhhkay. I guess what we did today was already okay - at least we did something to contribute to the weight loss/fitness.

Walking back, I spotted this huge caterpillar. Part of me admired the little chubby one for holding on to that leaf for his dear life, and yes, I can relate a little bit. This one taught me that I should just hold on and keep doing what I am doing and in time I will be a beautiful butterfly -- err, this one will be a moth, but regardless, change will be great!

I wasn't able to do any of my other exercises because Bloody Mary came today. I was in deep discomfort - my lower tummy ached so bad, and I just felt dizzy the entire afternoon.

My food intake today:

8:47 am - 1 serving Pansit Palabok (minus the egg); 1 cup Nescafe brown n' creamy coffee
1:03 pm - 1/4 cup rice; 1/2 salted egg with chopped tomatoes and shallots
4:02 pm - 5 pieces breaded squid rings with sweet - chili vinegar dip
6:49 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 1/2 cup leftover Alukon Dinengdeng (alukon, lima beans, sweet potatoes, small shrimps, moringa leaves cooked with water seasoned with fermented fish paste); 1 slice ripe papaya

Total Cups of Water: 13

I went to bed way too early tonight because of Bloody Mary. I am thankful that I still haven't skipped a month since July 2004... but I really don't like it when "she's" around - total discomfort!

A Day Out with the Family

2012-01-24T14:20:00.003+08:00

Day 114
23 January 2012

Parents' wedding anniversary was last Saturday, but since we all got something to do that day and that today (Monday) was a holiday, I planned for us to celebrate this day by going to Quezon Memorial Circle to walk and possibly jog and then go to Circle of Fun (a theme park) so we could enjoy the rides and feel like we're kids again. It sure was a great plan, but when we got there, we were so sad to know that the Circle of Fun was closed because it was a holiday. Bummer. I sure was hoping it would be open because it was a holiday and for sure there will be a lot of people going to the park. I really wanted for us to ride the roller coaster and the Ferris Wheel and maybe let go of my fears of driving the bump car... but I guess we will just have to visit the park again at a later date.

We still enjoyed the first part of the day, though... we checked the shops and ended up shopping for clothes and shoes, as well as eat breakfast there - eating a hot, comforting bowl of congee and sharing some okoy.

I love doing jump shots! From the very first jump shot I did back in 2008, I think I have tried doing the jump shot every time I travel (provided there will be someone taking my picture). Before, I could only do one kind of pose, but now that I have lost weight, I can jump higher and try other poses, too! Soon, I will try to do that "karate" and "meditation" poses. :)

From Quezon Memorial Circle, we traveled to Carinderia Buffet along V.Luna (just 15 minutes away) to eat lunch. Sister and I learned about this place last year, and knowing the buffet was cheap (just p119 + VAT) and that they serve typical Filipino dishes, we figured this would be a good place for the family to try - especially that brother loves to eat.

Mom devoured on big fish heads and shellfish, brother and sister feasted on meat dishes, and while I did taste some meat dishes, too, I focused more on the vegetable dishes, just so to keep things healthy.

What I placed on my plate:

It is a buffet, so diners can get as little or as much food as they want. I wanted to try to taste all dishes, but I can't go for the pork dishes, so this was what I ate. Of course, I ate these all, but I didn't really put in a lot - just a tablespoon (or so) of each dishes. Aside from this, I also had three snails, and a little bowl of dessert (cassava, gelatin and platain bananas). My tummy felt like it will burst after lunch, but my sister and brother thought I ate quite a little for a buffet lunch. They felt I didn't get my money's worth, but I was so full that lunch, so I felt I got my money's worth.

I didn't eat dinner anymore, but I had a cup of hot coffee to help stabilize my tummy.

Even if we didn't get to do everything we hoped to do for this day, being with the family always make me happy. I am happy with the renewed spirits, with trying out new things, for feeling the love.

Saturday and Sunday

2012-01-23T20:41:00.004+08:00

Was quite busy this weekend, Internet's way too slow... and I did an act of stupidity, so I will be making a two-in-post again...

Day 113
21 January 2012

I woke up sister, but again, she didn't want to walk with me because she said she will be doing the laundry. Well, since it's Saturday, am sure there will be a lot of people walking / jogging, so I will not be really alone.

I added about 200 more meters to my route and I got to see this part of Colinas Verdes with some fire trees near a mountain. I should've shared the picture here, but I loved this image more because that one fire tree stood out more. Seeing people there, I am thinking of trying to walk more 'til I reach that mark. Maybe if I have a companion, I will.

Walking with people nearby fuels me. It allows me to keep my pacing and at times it allows me to go faster or exert more effort because seeing people trying their hardest makes me want to test my limits, too. I have yet to try jogging the entire way, but I will get there. I am just walking most of the time, but I make sure my pacing is quite faster and my strides are much wider.

Today is parents' wedding anniversary, but we couldn't celebrate it today because mom will be attending a party and my sister and I will be having another food trip. Well, even if dad's already in heaven, the family still celebrate the wedding anniversary date. It's going to be a long weekend, so we will just celebrate it either tomorrow or on Monday.

Anyway, meeting time for the food trip was 8pm, but as early as 3pm, sis and I were already out of the house. We went with mom and sis to the mall so we can walk around, do some window shopping, and pay bills. I was able to see this cute faux snake skin sandals - at p250, it sure is a cheap pair of shoes, but I didn't buy it yet because we still have somewhere to go. I will just buy it next time, hoping it would still be there. I also spotted another pair of sandals at p500... but I am thinking if I would buy it or not because my priority is to buy another pair of running shoes. Fila has a sale - 50% off, but base price was at p3000+, so even with the 50% off it was still quite expensive for the very thrifty person like me. Well, one time before the month ends, I might have the time to go back to the mall and make up my mind.

Okay... around 6-ish in the evening, sister and I already traveled to our meeting place - McDonald's along Quezon Avenue. We waited quite a long time (our fault, we got there way too early), but it was okay - there were two birthday parties happening that night and we got to see the mascots, though I only got to take a picture of Grimace because the others walked by too fast.

Andrew arrived 30 minutes earlier (knowing we were already there made him leave his place earlier, too), so we decided to leave and look for a food place to try. We still have another companion (I didn't get to hear his real name, but I think it was Elwood), but we just sent him a message that we will go look for a place and he could just follow.

Us four dined at Cuisine Centrale in Quezon City. Andrew and I have been friends since last year and this was our third food trip together with my sister. This food trip has been planned since December last year, but because our schedules don't jive, all were just plans. At the forum, we met Elwood, who's also a foodie and even if we didn't plan to meet today for a food trip, knowing we were all available today made us go with it, so we can start planning for the next food trip.

It was a very long dinner - we would order two dishes, taste it, comment about it and exchange stories. We would order the next round of dishes, wait for it, chit chat... then taste it, blah blah... It was already near 11pm when we called it a night, but I didn't eat a lot. Us four shared everything on the picture, except for the drink - it was all mine. :) We had:

Bulalo Soup - had three slurps of the soup, two with some beef bits, the other one with potatoes and cabbages.
Monggo Soup - three slurps as well.
Moringa-Calamansi Juice - drank it all.
Sisig, Two Ways - didn't taste it, it's pork!
Seafood Spaghetti in Oil and Garlic - something I ate quite a lot of... two shrimps, about 3 squid rings, 3 fish cubes, three mouthful of pasta.
Grilled Lamb Shoulders in Green Curry Sauce - I cut a small piece, that's it. The three of them ate most of the dish.
Stuffed Chicken Wings - ate another small piece, I didn't quite like this one.
Pinacolada Cheesecake - took a forkful of the cheesecake, topped it with three pineapple tidbits and a little strawberry sauce... dessert's good!

It was a great dinner. Sharing stories, laughs, comments and photography tips made me grateful I shared this moment with three awesome people. Also, I am grateful about some things Andrew said to Elwood - that he was thankful for the photography tips I shared to him when we started being friends, and we has thankful that I fixed his blog when he decided to open one. Hearing random messages like that made me thankful that I made even just a little difference in one person's life.

...but of course, the best part of my day was coming home and talk to Mr. Pipoy.

Oh, mom got sick tonight - the soonest time sister and I got home, we were wondering why she was still awake and she said she wasn't feeling good - she had to be in the toilet numerous times, so sister and I stayed up 'til mom fell asleep.

Day 114
22 January 2012

Earlier I mentioned about stupidity. I formatted my camera's memory card even before I transferred 22 January's pictures, so what I have was a picture of my dinner, taken using my cell phone. I decided to eat less today because of the heavy dinner last night, but I was happy to be able to eat alukon (that worm-like veggie) again. I only get to eat this during the first half of the year, so when I saw this at the market, I quickly bought a bunch for today's dinner.

I got to walk early this morning. I was a bit disappointed at sister - the night before, we already made an agreement that we will be walking, so when she didn't wake up even if mom and I were trying to wake her up made me just go out and walk "alone." Well, I wasn't really alone, Mr. Pipoy also did his early morning walk, so we were talking while walking. I miss this moment - him motivating me to push harder and keep at my pace - it was like we were walking side by side.

Mom was feeling better today, thank heavens!

Sad part of the day - sister and I alone at the house as both mom and bro had to attend church org services. It made us feel lazy being home alone, and sister was tempting me to eat lunch out or maybe call fast food delivery, but I was firm to say no. In the end, we had pasta for lunch - using the leftover beef with broccoli as part of the sauce. A good way to revamp leftover. :)

Taking a Break from Food Trips

2012-01-22T13:13:00.003+08:00

Creating new roles for yourself can be both exciting and stressful.
But the bottomline is, if you are courageous enough to stick to it for the long haul;
you are creating more options for yourself and the possibilities in your life shall be limitless.
- Ela's FB Status

Day 112
20 January 2012

I woke up early today to do my morning walk. My sister should walk with me, but when I woke her up, she told me she won't walk with me and would just sleep longer. Well, okay... I felt sad that I won't be sharing the early morning with her, but of course, I had to keep going because this journey is basically for me. I didn't take my camera today, though... since there weren't much subjects to take pictures of, I decided to just bring my cell phone with me to capture bits and pieces to remember the day by.

This being Friday morning - it surprised me to see more than a few people at the area, some of which were students. Near the gate while walking back, I saw a very minor accident - two guys sat on a skateboard and let the downhill road carry them, but because their speed was quite fast, they sort of fell. One guy was injured, but nothing serious - as you can see, two of his friends were still playing with the skateboard as if nothing happened. For some reasons, I felt I miss the joys of being a high school student - doing crazy little things, but at my age now, I felt like I wanted to scold them - injury is still an injury, I hope they take care next time.

By the way, remember the plump man I shared a few days back? I saw him again - this time he was walking while carrying a pair of dumbbells, which looked slightly bigger than the 2-lb dumbbells I own. It made me think - now that I lost 24lbs., should I go for a much heavier pair of dumbbells?

Was able to do my video workouts, too... and I also got to walk with my siblings late in the afternoon to buy food for dinner. In one of our neighbors' gardens, I saw this very unique hibiscus - it was already a big plant, with lots of white flowers, but for some strange reason, one of the flowers was pink. As cute as it looked, it sure made me think about life's strange outcomes. :)

What I ate today -

8:56 am - 1 serving Pansit Palabok
12:25 pm - 1/2 cup rice, Chicken Adobo (1 piece chicken drumstick cooked in soy sauce, vinegar, onions, garlic, pepper and bay leaf)
6:35 pm - 1/2 cup rice, 1/3 cup Beef with Broccoli (broccoli florets and thinly sliced beef cooked with oyster sauce and cornstarch slurry)

Total Cups of Water - 14

It was wonderful to be home... enjoying the noontime soap operas while doing work, taking a few breaks here and there to check on little Moe-Moe (the kitty), and listen to different songs that takes me on a journey.

Closing this post, I'd like to share that I received three emails today: one was for an invitation to heath and wellness (it's now on my planner, this is going to be an awesome event), one an inquiry if I would like to receive some items to review it, and one is a personalized voucher to try a yogurt store's newest product (good for two, I am planning to share it with either sis or with Mr. Pipoy). My food blog has been the blog that gave me the most rewards, and I keep on thanking the Lord for blessing me with so much.

Thinspiration: My Niece Louianne

2012-01-21T10:25:00.003+08:00

When I started this blog, I listed so many people who inspire me to go on and continue the journey. Some are celebrities I don't know personally, but before I list them as my "thinspiration," I also told myself I should seek inspiration from people around me.

Today, I am featuring my niece Louianne (read: loo-weyn).

Louianne (the one in front) is the daughter of my cousin Weng. Since I remember, she has always been the chubby kid. She doesn't look fat to me (hello, I know "fat"), but of course, since she lives in the province and most people there are very slender, other relatives would often tease her and sort of make fun of her.

This picture was taken March 2011 - the last day I saw her before my sister and I travel back to Manila after a short vacation. That time, her aunt (cousin Mhai - in maroon) would always ask her to regulate her food intake as she tends to have a hearty appetite. Her dad of course was just okay even if she eats a lot, but since we live in the same house, I saw how much she eats during every meals and I saw myself in her.

Her mom recently uploaded pictures on her Facebook page and I was surprised to see this picture. At first I was thinking if the person the leftmost part of the image was really Louianne, but it was indeed her. This picture was taken December 2011 and in 9 months, there was a transformation on her part. I am happy that 2011 has been a good year for both of us - as we both took on the road to wellness.

I still don't know what she did - maybe she had too many extra-curricular activities at school, or maybe the stress of studying is getting into her (she's studying at a well known private school and is part of the top 10), or maybe because she's now adolescent and is coping up with things being a teenager. Whatever she did, I am happy she was able to address the weight issue very early in her life - now she doesn't have to be in the same situation I was in.

Another Thai Food Trip

2012-01-20T15:46:00.005+08:00

Day 111
19 January 2012

A call from one of my friends at 4-ish in the morning (call extended until 5:30am) made me catch up on sleep and unfortunately, it was already near 7am when I woke up (thanks to Mr. Pipoy's call - or else I might wake up later than that time). I wasn't able to walk that morning, but I did do my Hip Hop Abs routines, just to make the day count.

I left the house around 4pm to attend an event at the TriNoma Mall. Traffic was very light, and some 45 minutes after, I was already at the mall. Since the event was at 6pm, I took the time to roam around to make up for the lost time that I didn't walk this morning. Although I walked at a very leisurely pace, walking around not only helped me do something for my fitness, I also saw some cool shoes on sale. I plan to buy a pair of sandals I can use for events, but at the moment I sort of feel buying a new pair of running shoes as the pair I am using now is showing signs of wear and tear.

Near the cinema of the mall is an open garden, and since the it wasn't really dark yet, I checked the place for some photography subjects. The faux waterfalls (not that big - more of a flow of water that looked like waterfalls) caught my interest, and it sort of reminded me of the photography video Mr. Pipoy let me watch the second time we met. I forgot what the aperture should be, but I remember keeping the shutter speed at 1/4. I tried using this concept at Wawa Dam, but it was so bright that day - putting my shutter speed at 1/4 sort of gave me an all-white image. The sun already set the time I took the picture above, gave me the kind of waterfall effect I was looking for - though I know I need to improve on it; zooming my camera at 12x with a shutter speed of 1/4, I really need to have sturdy arms and hands or a tripod. Hmmm... maybe I should attempt this when I travel to Hinulugang Taktak (Antipolo) or at any of the waterfalls in San Gabriel, La Union in the future.

photo by Rain de Ocampo
Yesterday, I was at the Silk Thai Cuisine. Today, I went to Mango Tree Bistro - also a Thai restaurant. It was for a "mystery event," which was by GlaxoSmithKline. It was the most unusual event I attended and sharing the story to my sister made us both laugh about it. Anyway, it sure was attended by a lot of bloggers around the Metro - some I already met before, others I consider good friends / pals, some I recognize because of their blog, some are friends at Facebook though I haven't met them yet. They served quite a lot of dishes, but I did share the dishes to other bloggers at the table. What we ate for dinner:

Tom Yum Goong - I scooped out 1 shrimp, 1 of that unusual fruit (which at first I thought was mushroom) and some broth. I didn't finish the broth, I just ate the shrimp and that other ingredient.
Thod Mun Goong - Ate one piece of the shrimp cake, with minimal sauce.
Yum Som O Goong - This wasn't served at our table, one person at the other table just passed it to us when he noticed we didn't have it (hence the not-so-good plate). I only gave it a taste - just a chunk of pomelo with some grated carrots.
Pad Thai - After mixing all the ingredients on the plate, I rotated the serving fork thrice, and I ate whatever amount of noodles was on the serving fork.
Lemongrass Tea - Drank half of it.
Gai Tha Krai Yang - Each lemongrass skewer had 3 pieces of chicken and I ate just one piece of the chicken.
Talay Prik Thai Dum - Plate contained three kinds of seafood; I ate one piece of fish, squid, and shrimp.
Gaeng Kiew Wan Nua - I took one paper thin cut of beef, one piece of eggplant and about half a tablespoon sauce.
Dessert (Name I forgot to jot down) - Slurped two dessert spoonful of the iced water mix, 3 chunks of water chestnuts, and itty bitty piece of jackfruit.

I think even if I am on a food trip, I still kept my diet intact - I just treated it like sampling some food. I also ate 1/3 cup of rice for some of the dishes.

Other food I ate:

8:13 am - 1/2 cup garlic rice; 3 pieces fried dried fish; 1 cup Nescafe brown n' creamy coffee
1:45 pm - 2 tablespoons rice; 1 tablespoon Beef Picadillo (ground beef, diced potatoes, diced carrots, minced bellpepper, tomato sauce)

Total Cups of Water - 10 at home; 3 tall glasses of water at the event

I got home around 10:30pm. It was a fun-filled day, but here are some of the things that brought me joy:

Fun phone call with Mr. Pipoy - sharing laughs about old songs (para-pap-para... a-rico mambo).
Fitting into my mom's Chinese-inspired blouse.
Saying hello to Teacher Julie, she hugged me tight and exclaimed, "Oh my gosh, you lost a lot of weight!"
Middle of the event, I got up to take pictures of the event's hosts and bumping into Alex (another bloggy friend), he told me, "You lost weight!" I answered, "Just a little," and he said, "What little? You lost a lot!"
Receiving a box of Tikoy and some GSK dermatology products.
Getting home safe.

Of Walk Trips and Food Trips

2012-01-19T10:40:00.008+08:00

If you are spending too many days
doing things that bring you unhappiness,
then you are not honoring
the gift of your time on earth.
- BigFatMommaG's Tweet

Day 110
18 January 2012

Using "Phoebe" texture by Kim Klassen
What a fun day day today - I was able to go out and walk with sister. Most of the grasses near the roads were cut, so there weren't much interesting subjects to take pictures of, but I did see this wildflower, which surely captured my interest.

Walking to the Clubhouse, sister and I weren't just walking - we also shared stories about many things... we may be seeing each other everyday, but we don't run out of stories to share. Mr.Pipoy would call once in a while, and since the family already knows about our relationship, my sister would at times blurt out words as if she could hear what we were talking about (well, she could only hear my words). I complained about not seeing much subjects to photograph, and surprise surprise... we saw a name along the road. My sister's name is Jesselyn, so seeing this on the road made us stop for a while to photograph it.

Air was so densed. Even if we were walking at a leisurely pace, it felt as if we were exerting too much effort. Sister and I decided we would just walk, but somewhere along the way, we would be playful and would chase each other - instant jog/run there! Hahahaha.

We found another way to enter the pool side of the Clubhouse. It would require for us to climb down the steep stairway, and as we tried to take pictures of us, we sort of climb the stair up and down. Taking pictures can be tiring, whew! :)

I wasn't able to do "Bump and Burn" video workout today, but I was able to do "Les Mills House" workout, which is about 20 minutes. I found it really fun to do, can't wait for Saturday to come so I can do it again!

Later in the afternoon, I traveled to Serendra (Bonifacio Global City, Taguig) to attend the re-launch of Silk Thai Cuisine. I received an invitation through e-mail from the restaurant's PR company, and since I loved Thai food the first time I tasted it and I look forward to taste more Thai dishes, I quickly sent an RSVP to the event. It was a rather simple event - no talks... just pure eating! :) Entering the restaurant, I recognized one blogger (I attended a few events with him), and while waiting for the restaurant to fill up, we thought we might be the only two food bloggers at the event - some were from print (newspaper and magazine), some were maybe friends of the restaurant's owners.

We sampled eight dishes. Most dishes were served on small plates, while some were served for the group to share. Dishes we ate:

Fresh Thai Spring Rolls - Their take on the Vietnamese dish, was able to eat my share of the spring roll, which I ate with two kinds of dip (though I didn't put that much dip).
Seafood Satay - a cut/piece each of Snapper, squid, and shrimp. Though it's my favorite dish that night, I only ate one skewer.
Shrimp and Coriander Filled Pastry - Ate a piece of it, with dipping sauce.
Vegetable Filled Roti - Ate one piece of it, with dipping sauce.
Chiang Mai Curry Noodles - Though the bowl was small, I only ate half of it.
Thai Style Beef with Oyster Sauce - Another favorite; ate what was on my sample plate. It wasn't much, though... the green garnish was the tip part of the Kaffir Lime leaf, so as you can see, the sample size didn't have much in it.
Thai Style Apple and Mango Salad - About a tablespoon of salad on the small saucer, I ate all of it.
Crispy Salt and Pepper Fried Squid with Coriander Root - Ate three pieces of it.

Overall, it was an awesome food trip. We weren't served the known Thai dish (Pad Thai), but they gave us p500 GC by the end of the event, so if ever I have a trip to Serendra, I might use it to taste their Pad Thai noodles.

Other food I ate during the day -

8:59 am - 1 serving Pancit Palabok; 1 cup Nescafe brown n' creamy coffee
12:24 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Shrimp Omelet, 1 glass Pine-Orange juice
6:30 pm - Food trip at Silk Thai Cuisine

Total Cups of Water - 9 cups taken at home; 3 glasses of water while at Silk Thai Cuisine

Since the start of the week, all is happy, bright and shiny. I thank the heavens for all the happiness and blessings coming my way.

ps - both blouses I wore on this post were my mom's. Super thankful that I can fit into most of her clothes now... but of course there were a few that are still small for me to fit into. I will get there in time.

A Morning Solo Photo Walk

2012-01-18T10:30:00.002+08:00

Day 109
17 January 2012

Sister's back home, so I was able to go out and walk with my camera today. I was happy that even if it rained last night, the sun was up today. Actually, I was doubting if I would go out today - it was super cloudy near our place, so when Mr. Pipoy called to ask if I would walk or not, I told him, since it's not raining, I'd go out and walk... and will just go home if it rains. When I reach Colinas Verdes, there were little clouds, so it was great that I decided to walk today.

Colinas Verdes now implemented a new rule for joggers / walkers: No flip flops, no dogs allowed. I am not sure what prompted them to have this rule, but since I don't have a dog and I usually wear my running shoes, I am not affected at all.

I was wearing a long sleeved blouse and a sweatshirt (to help me sweat on a cold morning), but because I was wearing a pair of shorts, the wind on my skin was giving me a difficult time walking - my muscles tend to contract - so by the time I reach the clubhouse, I decided to walk back to the gate.

Walking back, I could hear some birds chirping, and from afar, I saw this bird on a small tree. I was thankful I had my camera with me, allowing me to take a picture of it. I had to zoom my camera to 23x to get this shot, making one shutter happy person. :)

My sister's having a break from work - the building for the restaurant is still not complete, but they have been training for so long now, so the owners of the branch where she will work at decided to pull them out of training. That means, she will be home most of the time until she gets a call from her employers. She watched TV this morning and the show KrisTV is tackling about fitness and sometime in the show, a Zumba instructor gave audience a glimpse of what Zumba is - possibly the newest fitness trend in the Philippines now. I have known about Zumba since last year, and I hoped to own the Zumba fitness kit, but sadly I don't see any store here in the Philippines that sells it. Well, Zumba sure is a fun workout, and in time I hope to get serious about it; dancing is a very great way to lose weight. :)

While waiting for dinner to be served, sister and I did something crazy - curling our hair! Well, we wanted to visit the salon since the start of the year, and since we still haven't figured what we wanted to do with our hair, we just experimented how the curls would look on us. Well, considering that I have limp, very thin hair, the curls gave it volume, I might consider having it trimmed (just to take out the split ends) before having it curled - just light curls, though.

Aside from the morning walk, I was able to do the rest of my scheduled workouts for Tuesday. Hooray!

My food for today -

8:47 am - 1/2 cup rice; 1/4 cup canned tuna in vegetable oil; 1 cup Nescafe brown n' creamy coffee
12:26 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 2 patties Mung Bean Sprouts with Shrimp and Cumin
4:57 pm - 10 pieces French Fries seasoned with salt and pepper
7:16 pm - 1/2 cup rice; Sinigang na Bangus (1/2 steak cut milkfish, about three tablespoons kangkong); 1 slice ripe papaya
8:25 pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water - 13

My siblings prepared Nachos as their after dinner snack (what the...), I sure wanted to give it a taste, but it was a good thing they used ground pork. Since I don't eat pork now, it was easy not to be tempted by it.

The scales dropped today. I won't say how much, but I hope by the next weigh-in, I will be all smiles.

Starting the Week Happy

2012-01-17T14:28:00.006+08:00

Together we can fly to an endless sky where anything is possible.
We gotta start moving, we gotta do something...
- The So Manys, "We Can"

Day 108
16 January 2012

You all know about the tension / invisible wall separating Mr. Pipoy and I... things were okay (as I have written the past few days), but late Sunday night 'til the first hour of Monday morning, we had another argument. No need to divulge the reason behind it, but before we sleep, we told each other that when we wake up Monday morning, we would start on a clean slate.

Start on a clean slate we did. Monday was a great day for us, as he puts it, "We're back in each other's arms." I could say I miss moments like this - both of us sweet to each other, both of us respecting each other's space. I am happy that despite the problems, both of us can freely express our mind, be straight forward, not holding anything, and come up with a solution from there.

Today I tried on a dress I bought earlier this month. It was great that I could fit in it, but the size was just enough for me to wear it, but I know by summer I can wear this outside the house with confidence.

I cooked another one of Maiylah's recipes, which I dubbed as "a person with arthritis' worst meal," because it's made of Mung Bean Sprouts, marinated Tofu, Tomatoes, and Sesame Seeds. It tasted really good, and I think it will go well with grilled fish and / or meat.

Not too long ago, my cat Mommy Teddy gave birth to two kittens, but one died the day after. Mr. Pipoy named this one Cream-O, and he gave "Moe-Moe" as its nickname. At first, they were in the corner of the storage room, but this afternoon, Mommy Teddy took Moe-Moe and placed the cute kitty on the blanket under one of our couches. The mother cat seemed to be more confident letting her little one out in the open - and I was happy that they found a new place. Where they are now is a bit exposed, but thankful I am that none of the adult cats tried to shoo them away. I think they all loved the little one, though I feel sorry for my other cat Oreo, because this was his bed and since it's occupied by other cats, he had no choice but to find another place for him to sleep at.

I wasn't able to walk this morning because it was raining, but I was able to do the other exercises / workouts on my Monday schedule.

What I ate today -

10:10 am - 1/2 cup rice; 1/8 cup canned tuna flakes in vegetable oil; 1/2 cup Nescafe brown n' creamy coffee
2:47 pm - 2 pieces homemade chocolate pancake, served with butter and granulated sugar
6:30 pm - 1/2 cup rice; 1/4 cup mung bean sprouts, tofu, and tomatoes; 1/4 cup ampalaya with chicken, shrimps, and sotanghon; 1 slice ripe papaya
8:03 pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water - 12

The homemade chocolate pancake was another thing to be happy about - I don't really eat pancakes made from store bought pancake mix (but I do eat it on rare occasions - with grated cheese or hotdog slices), but I love to eat pancakes made at home using regular flour, eggs, and water. We didn't grow up using maple syrup on our pancakes, simple table sugar is often okay for us. This stack of pancakes was something brother cooked because it was near 3pm and I still haven't had my lunch (well, I had a late breakfast, that's why).

Monday isn't my favorite day of the week, but I totally loved how my Monday came to be!

Staying Positive

2012-01-16T20:39:00.003+08:00

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It’s gonna be a bright, bright
Sun-Shiny day.
- Jimmy Cliff, "I Can See Clearly Now"

Day 107
15 January 2012

I got to walk early this morning, but because my sister borrowed my camera and I wasn't able to charge my phone the night before, I decided to just walk alone - no stopping over for pictures... just me, my mind, and my willingness to get well.

If things would go my way, I should be walking / jogging with Mr. Pipoy today. However, the love of my life has been sleep-deprived the past few days, so I understood that he had to catch up with much needed sleep. Actually, I was hoping we'd be together, so I (with him, of course) could make a quick side trip to Sidcor Weekend Market so I could buy some dill - to be used in two of Food Friday's recipes. Well, maybe I could do that next week. :)

Speaking of Food Friday recipes, I did find Maiylah's recipes quick and easy to do, which is why I am challenging myself to cook 4 of her recipes this week. Today, I tested one of the recipes , and even if the fritters didn't look good (I didn't use a lot of oil), I actually loved how it tasted.

One "duh-oh!" moment today: I was supposed to attend a Chinese New Year-related event at SM City North EDSA, but I sort of lost track of dates / times that I forgot today's the 15th! The event was scheduled at 4pm, and it was already 3:58pm when I finally realized about it. Oh geez. Well, my sister had my camera, so even if I had the ample time to catch up, I still wouldn't produce good-quality images taken by my cell phone.

For breakfast, I ate rice with scrambled eggs, for lunch, I ate two of the mung bean fritters with rice, and for dinner, I had this chicken - veggie meal with 1/2 cup of mock tinola soup. Well, I have fully adjusted to the 1/2 cup of rice per meal... and because the veggies were crunchy, chewing on it allowed me to trick myself that I was eating more than what was on my plate.

Slowly, the path is getting clearer and clearer.

Goals for the Next 16 Days

2012-01-15T21:00:00.002+08:00

Today is 15 January... 16 more days to go 'til the next weigh in. I have had problems the first half of the month, but right now, I am concentrating on the next 16 days to do my best to lose weight the right way. With that, my goals for the next 16 days are:

Walk every morning for at least 1 1/2 hours.
List every morsel of food and drink that entered my system.
Eat at least one kind of vegetable every single day.
Back to eating basics: 1/2 cup of rice per meal, chicken and beef at 50g per meal, fish and seafood at 70g per meal.
Cook 4 healthy recipes from Maiylah's "Food Friday" share.
12 cups of water every day.
Incorporate low-impact jogging and follow the exercise schedule.

Speaking of "Exercise Schedule," I read through the Belly Dancing DVD my Aunt Bing gave me that one must mix different workouts to prevent one from plateauing. Since I am not 200lbs yet, I still can't do my Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred Workout, so I will consider January as my last month to do Hip Hop Abs. Since I have two new video workouts, I sure want to do as much as I can, so I have to keep a schedule that will allow me to mix the workouts and do everything.

Mondays and Wednesdays > Hip Hop Abs (Cardio), Hip Hop Abs (Ab Sculpt), 8 minutes Arms Workout
Tuesdays and Fridays > Hip Hop Abs (Cardio), Hip Hop Abs (Hips, Buns, and Thighs), 8 minutes Legs Workout
Wednesdays and Saturdays > Les Mills Workouts (House, and the one from YouTube), Bump and Burn
Sundays > Basically my day off, but will do Aero-Kae-Bo and Kathy Smith's Belly Dance Workout if I am not going anywhere

Exceptions? Of course, I have to be realistic that there will be days that I can't follow this schedule if I will attend events. As of this writing, I have a schedule on the 18th at 6pm at Serendra (means I have to be out of the house by 3:30pm), and one on the 19th at 6pm at Trinoma (means I have to be out of the house by 4:30pm). Since both schedules will take place late in the afternoon, I still have enough time to follow my schedule. Now, if I will receive an invitation for a daytime event, then I will have to waive off the schedule.

Oh, why the picture of a broccoli? I just remembered that Lyn (of Escape from Obesity) is currently having a challenge - to include broccoli and its sidekicks in the diet. I remembered "signing up" for this challenge, and since the nearby market is selling broccoli and cauliflower, I think I can do this challenge. For one meal this week, I will eat broccoli. :)

The next 16 days will be exciting, but of course, I have to keep in mind that this month may not give me the best results as far as numbers are concerned. Well, I am not really pushing for a lot, as long as I don't gain weight, I will be happy.

Let's get this weight loss program back on track.

TGIF!

2012-01-15T20:09:00.003+08:00

Day 106
14 January 2012

I wasn't able to go out and walk this morning, but I was able to do my video workouts and I was able to go out and walk with brother this afternoon. My emotions were quite stable today, but come late in the afternoon, I was hurt when a person, whom I consider to be a friend suddenly stopped talking to me just because he made friends with another friend of mine. I don't know why and how, but my friend Humps was right: the so-called friend doesn't deserve my friendship. Well, I know I tend to get over things pretty quickly, but of course it will still take time - possibly overnight. Tomorrow, I will be okay. Hahaha.

I wasn't able to eat any vegetable today, but I did eat fish for lunch and dinner. Fish was so expensive today, so we had Bangus for lunch (fried with tangy soy sauce on the side) and this Paksiw for dinner. This was the first time I ate such a fish, and I think I won't eat more of it because it had too many hair-like bones at the tummy area.

The day wasn't as eventful as yesterday, but as always, I have so many things to be thankful for!

Oh.. thanks to Nestle for the special membership card they sent me thru the mail. Us three siblings are members of the Nestle Club, but I was the only one who received the special membership card. Weeee! :)

Back on Track

2012-01-14T15:29:00.004+08:00

Day 105
13 January 2012

In some ways, Mr. Pipoy and I are okay already, in some ways, I could say it's not yet - because there is still this space that separates us - like when he called and there will be silence for a few seconds after the "hello."

He and I have had several arguments, but this, I think was the most difficult to resolve - normally, we would be back to normal after a few hours, but this one took us two days to finally clear up the dark clouds.

I asked him the question, "Am I becoming too much of a burden," and he answered, "Yes and No." He didn't explain why "yes," he just told me that I am not a burden because he loves me so much. Mr. Pipoy isn't the type of a person who would patronize (come to think of it, his first word to his response was "yes"), so I am do believe in what he said. Before calling it a night, he and I made an agreement, and finally, all is settled. Thank you, God!

So okay... I went back on track today. I got up early and went to Colinas Verdes to walk, and just so to give myself a fresh new start, I took a different route, still leading to the Clubhouse. There were quite a lot of people walking today, so I was able to pace myself. I didn't allow myself to have that "adjustment" period - as soon as I entered the gates of Colinas Verdes, I quickly upped my speed and went on to have a steady brisk walk for 45 minutes.

On my way back (U-Turning near the clubhouse), there was this one plump man trying to motivate himself to jog more and more. His breathing was heavy, he would let out a scream every five seconds or so, and I felt inspired. He was a very big guy, but he was trying so hard to keep his momentum, so I jogged with him - not near each other, of course - he was on the leftmost side of the lane, I was on the rightmost. In a way, it was like feeding each other with strength - my thinking was that, if he would see someone jogging with him, it would allow him to keep his momentum. I, on the other hand, is getting strength from him, because seeing him trying his hardest made me want to try as much. I jogged for 15 minutes nonstop, and it felt good.

Cooling down (I don't want to leave Colinas Verdes soaking in sweat), I got to see this moth coupling. Now... how was I able to notice this two itty bitty critters while walking along a very wide, open, space? Even I am amazed at times. Anyway, I also got to see a bird on a tree branch - too bad my cellphone couldn't capture it; will definitely take my camera next week so I won't miss good photography subjects.

Aside from walking for two hours, I also was able to do my Hip Hop Abs Cardio and Ab Sculpt. What a day, indeed!

Sadly, the food journal is still something I have to be serious at... but for breakfast, I had this corn, for lunch I think brother and I ate smoked fish, and for dinner, we had stir-fried veggies and Bistek. I didn't overeat today - both lunch and dinner had 1/2 cup of rice... and even if my tummy was churning (it wanted to empty itself), I decided to brush my teeth right after dinner, so I won't have to go to the toilet to vomit it out. I also asked brother to allow me to wash the dishes, just so I was doing something after dinner - it surely changed my focus.

Making a complete 360 degree turn was difficult, but I was able to cope up. I am a very blessed woman to have someone like Mr. Pipoy (well, my family didn't know about my psychological problem), who - even if quite far from me physically - never really left my side.

May this day be start of better days ahead.

Counting my Happiness

2012-01-13T15:13:00.008+08:00

Hooray for mornings and things that make them good
Hooray for beaming smiles that make my day
Hooray for stops and gos
Hooray for colors and quick hellos
Hooray for surprises that walk my way
Hooray for friends I'll make, oh hey...hey!
Hooray for treats that make me smile,
Like magic stripes that fill the sky
Hooray for days that make me say,
Oh Hooray for today!
- McDonald's TVC Jingle

Day 104
12 January 2012

By the end of 2012, I started receiving invitations for events. I know my food blog (Tara, Let's Eat!) isn't that popular, but ever since I re-opened it, invitations for events for me to attend kept pouring. I already attended my first one last week, and today was the second on the list - the press conference for the 2012 Bridal and Debuts Fair, organized by The Wedding Library. It's a yearly event happening at the Megatrade Halls of SM Megamall, and when I arrived at the venue with my brother (I was given the privilege to tag one person), I was blown away at how big the event was - attended by different media people (from TV, Print and Online).

I was happy to see BigFatMommaG - Grasyah Abonillo in person. She and I have been online friends since 2007 (via Multiply) with photography as our common link. We both left Multiply already, but we remained great friends updating each other's lives thru Facebook. When she posted a status that she was invited, I was so happy because I could finally see her. She is also one of my thinspirations.

from left to right: Engr. Alex del Rosario {of Juan Carlo the Caterer} | Pearl {of Sassy Chef} | me |
Peach {of the Peach Kitchen} | Marjorie {of Living Marjorney} | Alwin {of City Roamer}

The event went well. After a few minutes of Q&A with the fair's sponsors and celebrity endorsers, us food bloggers got to sit down with Engr. Alex del Rosario of Juan Carlo the Caterer, the one that provided the sumptuous food served at the event. It's normal for me not to ask too many questions, but I just love Engr. del Rosario's success story (having catered to many celebrity weddings and events) that I kept asking questions! By the way, I sat next to Pearl, but it was towards the end of the event - when she was about to leave - when I finally recognized her (I am a follower of her blog). So happy, indeed!

Some of us also got to have pictures taken with the event's celebrity endorsers - actress Maja Salvador (who's so down to earth and bubby) and Filipino-Italian model Angelo Cacciatore. I used to work at a TV Network but I never had the urge to have pictures taken with celebrities, but since it's already there, might as well pose for a picture with them. :)

As a parting gift, us invitees received a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon with rack. Well, am not a wine drinker, but this is so cute, I might use it as a table center piece during celebrations here at home. :) Thanks so much, The Wedding Library and Nuffnang for this event invitation!

After the event, brother and I walked to the Sacred Heart Parish. This church holds a piece of our hearts because we were baptized at this church. I did get to visit the church in November 2008, but of course, it felt awesome visiting the church again after two years.

When we got home, our next door neighbor handed me an envelop from Summit Media, containing the current issue of Yummy Magazine. I love Yummy Magazine, and I am so happy to have received a gift from them.

This day has been a happy day, yes. Despite the dark cloud over my head, I am happy to be rewarded with these much happiness in one day.

ps - One more happiness is this message from Mr. Pipoy. He sure was disappointed at certain things (back read if you want to know why), but I am happy that he's the type of person who loves me so much because all he wanted was for me to get well. Thanks, love.

Picking Myself Up

2012-01-13T10:10:00.004+08:00

Yesterday (12 January) was a great day as I was able to attend an event - seeing bloggy pals, having pictures with celebs, people who knew me telling me it's very obvious that I lost weight already.

However, digging deep, it wasn't a great day either. Admitting a budding psychological problem, I didn't just let myself down - I also let down that one person who believed in me: Mr. Pipoy. Today was a very heavy day for both of us, and while he still called me "love," and that he still finished his calls with "I love you," I know there's a wall separating us at the moment. He still holds my hand and he said he will never left my side, but he wanted me to have space to recollect thoughts and reflect on what I should do.

Today I am going to pick myself up and start again.
To do that, I re-read my blog and get myself re-acquainted to that person who entered the journey to wellness. I also re-read Dr. Beck's book - the first seven days (since I still haven't done any of the days after that). It's like taking a refresher course... vacation's over, time to get back on track.

I changed my ARC... instead of writing down general reasons, I made it very personal, so when I read it everyday, the reasons I listed will be powerful enough for me to keep on track.

My reasons why it's fun to lose weight:

For all the health reasons. This one's quite generic, but I will ran out of space if I'd itemize this.
Looking good in wearing smaller clothes.
Buying clothes that are not on the "plus size" section.
Ditching out the security blanket. That would be my cloth sling bag, which I always use whenever I go out so when my pictures are taken, I could hide my big frame/bulging tummy under it.
Confidence in trying new things. Kama Sutra included.
Having that sense of pride whenever I am seen with Mr. Pipoy, as if people's eyes are telling me, "He made the right choice."
Travelling with ease.
Receiving more positive comments.
That "high" feeling when people ask, "What's your secret?" or "How did you do it?"
Doing things obese people can't do. I am now excited to have my very first zip line ride, whenever that will be.
Borrowing mom's or sister's clothes.
People will not be hesitant in approaching me or making friends with me because I now look just like them. Sad truth, but yes, I have have been a wallflower for so long just because I look different.
Being able to wear high-heeled shoes.
Seeing the "before and after" pictures.
Going crazy / beautiful.
Keeping the lights on.
Being an inspiration.

Taking cue from that last word, "inspiration," if I want to inspire people, I have to lose weight without hurting myself and the people around me. I have to do it by portioning my food intake and by exercising.

Time to turn it around before it's too late. I will be an inspiration!

Oh... remember the "Credit Account" suggested by Dr. Beck on her book? Well, I wasn't able to decorate my sexy bottle, so while I still haven't bought a glue gun to stick lace and embellishment on the bottle, I am currently using an old Fox's candy tin - since no one can see what's inside, it will prevent me from getting something from it whenever I feel to spend money.

Currently, it has 584 pesos - 25 pesos was the first money I had for 2012, 500 I put in there as a starting capital, the other coins were from loose change, and the 10usd was given by my aunt Bing as her Christmas gift. Hopefully, by the end of the year, I can save enough money for me to buy something awesome to help me reach my goal weight.

Letting go of the monsters in the head can be tough, but it only requires strong will to cast it. I will be better and I can get myself back on track.

To you, Mr. Pipoy, thank you so much for the guidance and love. You truly have given me more than everything I needed. Hold on to me... I will never let you down again. I love you so much!

Last Days of Vacation

2012-01-12T08:25:00.004+08:00

You've got to get yourself together
You got stuck in the moment
and you can't get out of it
- U2, "Stuck in the Moment"

Day 102
10 January 2012

I woke up late today.

I don't know what's with the cold weather, but I just feel so sleepy and lazy! In the afternoon, I got to chat with K and aside from the usual "what's new" messages, I told him how lazy I feel today. I told him I'd go back to exercising tomorrow, and he told me, "Why not now? Go and walk... even for just 30 minutes." Well, okay... walk I did - going to the market it took me about 45 minutes walking around. Sure felt great not to sit at home, but I still feel lazy.

Gaah!

Day 103
11 January 2012

When I woke up, Aunt Bing was already here - invading the living room. She just got back from Pangasinan and because her flight going to Canada will be tomorrow, she decided to stay at Siegy's hotel so they can go to the airport together. I planned to exercise today, but with so many of her things scattered around, it seemed impossible.

After eating breakfast, brother told me our neighbor just walked his Siberian Husky puppy. I quickly got out of the house to see it and it was soooo cute! It's a female dog - just 2 months old. Well, I am often times afraid to come near dogs, but the owner told me Sheba's a very sweet puppy, so I went near and played with it. She sure still is a baby... when I tried to carry the puppy, Sheba didn't hesitate at all! I can't wait to see this cute one grow big, but I hope the time Sheba's adult enough, she'd still allow people to touch her.

From one cute thing to another...

I found out where Mommy Teddy gave birth! It's normal for cats to give birth at the strangest places - this mommy kitty happens to give birth at the storage room this time. Only one kitty this time (she usually gives birth to three), and it's 90% white, 10% orange. Mr. Pipoy named it "Cream-O" (because we already have Oreo), and I just hope this little one will grow up to be one healthy cat - Mommy Teddy being 4 going 5 years old (in human years), it will be difficult for the mother cat to take care of the offspring - her last three batch of kitties died even before they opened their eyes. Since we already lost Orange-y, I hope this kitty will complete the space Orange-y left.

- * - * - * -

This afternoon, I gave myself that quality time I needed. A time to give myself that one-on-one talk. My approach? To use my worn-out notebook. I am aware of how lax I am since the last week of December - that even if Mr. Pipoy has given me strongest of all motivations, I still feel half-hearted about continuing this journey. I haven't given up; I just see myself walking at a very slow pace, and it is wearing me down.

I asked Mr. Pipoy's help, and he gave it right there and then. I truly am blessed to have him as my partner in life - he gave me a very powerful piece of motivation that shook me up. He is right, I have everything laid out for me - the only missing piece is me... that commitment to push further.

One thing more that's bothering me - "Mia" is visiting me more and more. I never really had any eating disorder, but while I am very certain I won't become anorexic (as I don't love the feeling of empty stomach), I have the tendency to become bulimic. First encounter with Mia was in 1999/2000, when I would eat as much as a whole family can eat then feeling guilty, I'd make a quick trip to the toilet. Was able to overcome it when I spitted blood after throwing up the undigested food I binged, but when Mia visited me last day of 2011, she hasn't really left me since. I am not binging everyday and throwing it up right after, but as difficult as this is to admit, Mia was with me for the last two nights. My pattern has always been this: I'd eat a lot for breakfast, then eat little (or not eat) for lunch, then binge again for dinner. Since I am now used to eat portioned food, eating more would make my tummy feel heavy and I'd feel dizzy about it, so a few minutes after eating dinner, I'd go to the toilet. Worse, I find myself sort of emptying my tummy just so I won't feel the heavy feeling.

Our neighbor Ria is a psychologist, but I never wanted to consult her about this. I was thinking of sending an old boyfriend an email (he's a psychologist, too), but I feel he'd be more personal (attacking me) instead of helping me. I never wanted to write about this - as I know Mr. Pipoy reads this blog and this will stress him more (I surely don't want to give him more stress as he is already stressed at work and I feel I am sort of a burden if I tell him this), but I need help. One episode with Mia last year, three this year. That's a bad sign. I need to get rid of Mia. Help!

I didn't exercise today; instead, I used my time to contemplate and trace my steps. I have been good the past three months, and I am aware that this journey to wellness is for a lifetime. I just need to find that little link that put me back on track.

Nobody said it was easy,
no one ever said it would be this hard.
...oh take me back to start.
(Coldplay, "The Scientist")

This will be my last day of bumming around.
As difficult it may seem be, I will carry my weight and get back on track.

08 and 09 of January

2012-01-10T15:36:00.011+08:00

Day 100
08 January 2012

Us three girls (mom, sister, and I) went to the tiangge to shop for clothes and other stuff. In Philippine calendar, Christmas season starts on the first day of September and ends on the first Sunday of January. This day being the last day of Christmas season, this is basically the last day to buy affordable goodies as stall owners will pack up by the end of the day. It was raining - the tarp they used as roof for shoppers had holes that us shoppers tend to get wet, so I decided not to take random pictures anymore.

Anyway, we were able to buy some clothes and some home items. The home items were quite heavy, so even if sister and I wanted to visit the salon and get a haircut, we decided not to anymore. Maybe on sister's next day off, we can finally get that much needed haircut.

It will be daddy's birth anniversary the day after this, but because it will fall on a Monday and that sister's shift at work will be from 11am-8pm and that I will be attending an event on that day as well, mom told us we will just eat dinner today. That dinner turned out to be a heavy snack (around 4:30pm) and we decided to eat Mang Inasal. I only ate a piece of chicken with rice and some Sardines Spring Rolls and didn't eat dinner (or midnight snack) after that food trip.

Now comes the "problem." Lately, I see myself eating a whole lot for breakfast (exceeding my usual 1/2 cup rice) then come lunch time I won't have the appetite to eat. For today, I ate heavy breakfast then the heavy snacks at Mang Inasal and that was it. Not really healthy... and I need a very serious self-contemplation to help me get back on track.

Day 101
09 January 2012

Another lazy day for me - thanks to the morning rain showers. I told myself I will use this day to help myself get out of the rut and get back my blogging on track (my two photo blogs weren't updates for days possibly weeks now). I was about to cancel my date with my friend Ethel, when Mr. Pipoy called me around 2pm and asked if I would like to meet up with him before his shift at work. I was a bit hesitant because he had the flu this weekend and I felt he needed all the rest he can get before he stormed another work week, but when he asked the question, "Yes or No?" I quickly said yes. After that call, I quickly got myself ready to meet up with Ethel first before meeting up with Mr. Pipoy. Monday will be a great day, for sure!

It was around 4pm when I arrived at our meeting place. Ethel (the one in blue) was already waiting for me and after the initial "Hi, how are you now?" line, we just started talking about different things about life and the people around us. She sent Sam (the one in black) a message saying we were together and after an hour, she arrived. Sam has been a friend of mine - both at the forum and on Facebook - but we haven't personally met yet. Last 30 December, I was supposed to meet both Ethel and Sam, but I had to be with family. It felt great to finally see them!

Since it was just us three and we were outside Starbucks (both of them smoke), we couldn't find someone to take our pictures. We couldn't find that balance to have us three at the center of the frame, so we decided to just wait for Mr. Pipoy to arrive so he could take a picture of us.

Mr. Pipoy and Ethel got to "meet" first at the forum before I met Mr. Pipoy, but as fate allowed it, Mr. Pipoy and I became much closer and eventually entered the relationship. Ethel was the very first person at the forum who knew about my relationship with Mr. Pipoy, because being a woman, I needed that friendly woman's advice - as Ethel has been into several relationships, and I knew I could learn a lot from her. True enough, her words did help me be confident about being a girlfriend. Best advice she has given? "Always treat yourself above every woman. You being the girlfriend meant you've got something that all the other girls don't have."

Thanks, sis.

A little after 6pm, Mr. Pipoy arrived. After the initial introductions and two pictures taken by Mr. Pipoy, we quickly bid Sam and Ethel goodbye. Well, he and I only have 5-6 hours together before his shift at work, we have to maximize that time together.

I wasn't able to take a picture of our dinner, but we had KFC tonight. I went for the hot and crispy chicken with coleslaw and he had the the chicken a la king rice bowl, then we shared a large container of the fries. We took the food out and ate it at our "home away from home" - and it was so funny that we didn't have the bag didn't have coleslaw, but it did had another rice bowl. We were pissed about the coleslaw (I love pairing my h&c chicken with coleslaw), but seeing two rice bowls made us laugh about it.

I loved my alone time with Mr. Pipoy tonight. We didn't talk much about my fitness goals... we just shared the love, most of the time we were together.

If only the walls could talk.
*winks*

part two is my most favorite;
some sensitive topics used.. please watch at your own risk

More reasons to be happy for this day:

Ethel gifting me with the 2012 Starbucks Planner (Cherry)
Ethel saying, "You sure lost a lot of weight."
Mr. Pipoy allowing me to eat chicken thigh.
Massaging his aching head.
A whole lotta lovin'.
Watching Jeff Dunham's "Spark of Insanity - Walter" act via his iPhone- I can say this would be our first "movie date."
Hearty laughs.
Getting home safe.
Keeping the lights on.

05, 06, and 07 of January

2012-01-08T19:25:00.007+08:00

Saying "I have a lot of backlogs" is an understatement. I still haven't fully found that state where my blogs are all in-sync, so for now, another multiple days recap.

Day 97
05 January 2012

A few days before 2011 ended, I received a message from Janese, asking if I am available on 05 January for some food tasting with fellow bloggers. I have received different invitations before related to food and blogging, but this one would be the very first event I will attend for 2012, so I immediately said yes. Coming home from Pangasinan late at night yesterday sort of made me second guess if I can attend this, but reminding myself that this will be the very first event of the year, I woke up early to prepare for this.

There were 7 of us bloggers for this food trip - Janese, FPJjr., JayL, Flow, myself, and Aylin (check the second picture to put the faces behind the names). Jinkee was there, too, but she left early, so she wasn't part of the "class picture." Anyway, none of them are close friends of mine, but I have attended several events with them in the past. Food trip happened at Teacup located along Mother Ignacia in Quezon City. We were able to meet with the owner of the cafe, and yes... the food we ate are "on the house."

They served us two kinds of rice meals: Beef Salpicao and Chicken Cordon Bleu. FPJjr. was late, so at first there were just six of us, three (including me) got the Beef Salpicao plate, the other three got the Chicken Cordon Bleu plate. The picture above was what was left on my plate - I only ate two small cubes of the beef and a slice of JayL's chicken (the end part), just so I could taste it. They also served us Meaty Lasagna and I only took an inch thick slice, and a few sip of the coffee and iced Assam Milk Tea. For desserts, we were served Chocolate Fudge Cake and Ube Halaya cake, and again, I only tasted it, so that I have something to write about on my blog.

We left Teacup around 2pm... I was hoping I could meet with Riveria today, but she was busy, so I decided to head home so I could give sister the Oatmeal Cookie they gave each of us as a parting gift.

Day 98
06 January 2012

Today was a lazy day. So lazy I sort of forgotten what happened today.

I really need to go to the bookstore and buy that executive planner so I could have a place to write in the things I did for the day.

Just one memorable thing happened - I took selfie pictures with "Resolution" as a prompt. Well, not that awesome of a photo shoot, it sure was risky stepping on the scales with 2-inch high sandals. :)

Day 99
07 January 2012

Having been able to set foot on Hundred Islands for the first time a few days ago, I think I am starting to love this "Live life to the fullest" mantra. Today, I visited another new place: Wawa Dam in Rodriguez, Rizal.

This trip has been planned for sooooo long. My friend Nathalie and I have planned to go there since last year (or maybe last last year), but we just couldn't find that day for us to go. When I got to chat with another friend from the blue board (Jeff), he told me he could tour us around. It started a much serious planning, but because our schedules would not permit it, the trip was always put on hold. Late last year, I got the chance to chat with Jeff again and I told him this trip has to push through January of 2012. When Nathalie opened the topic a few days ago, I sent Jeff a message to ask his schedule. Well, I told him Mr. Pipoy and I have plans to meet on the 15th, and Jeff is celebrating his birthday a week after that, so the only time available was the 7th and the 29th. We immediately made the decision to push through with this trip on the 7th, since all of us are available.

Jeff is one of first few people I got to be friends with at the forum. Even then, he and I have treated each other like siblings - I call him "kuya," he calls me "ate," but we are of the same age. We have planned to meet personally since then - as he is a forrester and he wanted to help me with taking pictures of nature, but all were plans - of course, he still has to ask their office for approval. Anyway, going back to our trip... all of us met around 8am then we quickly traveled to Rizal. Weee!!!

After a short chat with people from DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources), we made a short trek then took the bamboo raft to help us get across the river. Forrester Susi and two guides from the local baranggay were there to assist us, and before we checked the actual dam, they took us first to Pamitinan Cave.

Getting to the cave required us to climb uphill. Well, it wasn't a new experience for me - I have had much strenuous treks before this, but of course, I still had to ask assistance because I was wearing flip flops and it was difficult to balance myself on the rocks with wet feet. As always, getting to the entrance of the cave felt priceless, and I truly enjoyed the climb!

Nathalie asked to be left outside the cave as her shoes were wet and slippery, and that the oxygen level inside the cave may not be good for her respiratory system. I didn't bring any flashlight (as I couldn't find any), so Jeff and our guide Ogie acted as my light as we explored the cave. The Pamitinan cave wasn't as enormous and dramatic as other caves I have entered (like the Callao Cave in Cagayan), but I was in awe of its glittering (because the walls of the cave glisten) beauty!

We didn't explore the cave that much, but asking Ogie, he told me somewhere inside the cave is a spring. I told him next time I come here, I would take a look at that spring and dip my feet in it. :)

As we head back to the "main land," we saw kids happily playing in the water. I loved how carefree kids can be, and I sure hope I'd be as carefree as them. I guess that is something I need to teach myself.

Of course, the only thing left to do is see the Wawa Dam! Seeing it up close reminded me of the one in Villa Escudero... I can't wait to see this place during summertime as they told us there were huts at the foot of the dam during summer. Oooohhh! Considering how easy it is to reach this place, I don't see any reason why I won't visit again.

I'll tag along Mr. Pipoy next time, that's for sure!

Nathalie and her husband Benj left after taking pictures of the dam as they still had an event to attend. I stayed for a while longer because Forrester Susi still had a few more things to say, something about a little partnership - them helping us see the place (and we can come back anytime) and us helping them promote the place.

For lunch, we ate a roadside eatery near the DENR office. Us three (Forrester Susi, Jeff, and I) shared three dishes and I loved the squid! At first we were teasing the owner of the eatery if the squid was the canned type (because they were small), but when we tasted it, it surely was better than the canned type. :)

After a few more chit-chats, Jeff and I bid Forrester Susi goodbye - well, Jeff brought along his car, so I hitched a ride 'til we reached Commonwealth Avenue (Litex area), then I took the jeep home from there.

I was so tired, but it was fulfilling. I realized, it truly is much easier to trek minus the 24lbs.

Big, big thanks to Jeff, Nathalie and Benj for traveling with me. Sa uulitin!

ps - I am sending get well wishes to my loveydoves, Mr. Pipoy. He has the flu, and if you're reading this, please say a little prayer for his speedy recovery. Thanks.

I love you, Mr. Pipoy. Get well soon.
Hugs and Kisses!

First Four Days of January

2012-01-05T20:55:00.003+08:00

*** another photo-studded post ***

Recapping the first four days of my 2012...

Day 93
01 January 2012

As early as 11:30pm of 31 December 2011, us siblings were already out of the house to check out the fireworks put off by some of the people in the neighborhood. We don't really spend on firecrackers / fireworks, so we just got contented seeing the wonderful display up in the sky.

By midnight, neighbors came out to join the celebration - jumping, shouting, making all the noises one could possibly do. Our Canadian visitor Siegy was culture shocked to say the least, but he did enjoy taking videos of the fireworks and us going crazy.

Around 1am, it was time for Siegy and his fiancee to return to their hotel, and since it was my cousin's husband whose driving the car and he would return the car here at our place, most of them decided to come and go on a road trip. It was just us siblings and our cousin Jayson left at home - something we all laughed about; our parents were out at the wee hours, while us kids were at home. Times have turned upside down all of a sudden. :) Anyway, Mr. Pipoy and I had a nice talk - we just had an argument that afternoon 'til early night time - it was great to resolve issues and welcome the new year on a clean slate.

Come afternoon til dinner time, us close neighbors did our annual holiday party. Though we've been doing this since 2007, this year's party was sort of hazy to the point that all of us were wondering if this would push through or not. Well, since the neighborhood kids wanted to have a party, we just brought out certain dishes and played parlor games. The kids had a great time playing the games, but I guess it was us adults who enjoyed it more - taking pleasure on the feelings of being a child again. Us family participated in certain games... and all of us won! Mom got the biggest price - p100 (a little over 2USD), while us siblings got p20 (a little less than 0.50USD) each. It was my first money for 2012, along with the five p1 coins I got when our neighbor tossed some coins in the air.

I still wasn't able to update my food journal (the little notebook), so like what I did on my last recap, will just talk about the food image I shared.

Today, I had this little blueberry cheesecake and brownies for breakfast (around 9-ish in the morning). My overall food intake today included certain food items I am not supposed to eat - including a lick of Hershey's Reeses ice cream (which is good, I tell you), but considering the amount of food I ate, I think I did good today.

Day 94
02 January 2012

I met up with Mr. Pipoy today!

The last time we met was a few days before Christmas... I miss him so much, so I was over the top happy to be able to see him again. We exchanged gifts - I gave him a book and a little container of Oryspa Meditation Balm (the same one I used for my swollen ankle a few days back), and he gave me a jumping rope and a yoga mat. His gifts were totally unexpected, but I was really touched. He really wanted me to be fit and healthy and have a good quality of life, so he is doing his best to help me achieve my goals.

We also had a talk about re-assessing the fitness plans and goals. Our word was "commitment."

For lunch, we had another Italian food trip - this time eating at Sbarro (Ali Mall). He let me choose my own food, I went for the Penne Carbonara, but I didn't eat the ham slices. We also shared 1/2 slice of the pizza (the big pizza was cut into two; she shared one smaller cut). The other half he let me take home for my sister.

My family now knows about our relationship and my mom was happy about it, even gave me a hug when I told her Mr. Pipoy and I are already in a relationship. Mom was thankful that Mr. Pipoy cares about my welfare and he wishes for us to be together long enough to help and inspire each other.

Day 95
03 January 2012

I decided to go out and walk this morning... I still can't do any of my video workouts because our living room is still full of clutter and that Aunt Bing's family (well just her and her two daughters) are still here. Given the situation, walking is the only thing I could do and today I was happy to cross paths with Andre at Colinas Verdes. She and I are batchmates at the Singles for Christ CLP and we were part of the same household. I am not active in the church org anymore, so it's been so long since I last saw her. It's great to walk with someone and catch up on the old times!

When I got home, I was faced with a question: should I or should I not travel with Aunt Bing, her family, some relatives, as well as Siegy and his fiancee. Looking at the "fitness perspective," it will take out one day of morning walks, but looking at the "living life to the fullest perspective," this trip will allow me to see a new place and spend time with family. I did choose to travel with them, and I was happy with my decision.

I did consult Mr. Pipoy about it and he did allow me to decide. At first I didn't want to travel and just take the time to re-start the video workouts, something he supported. When I told him I will be traveling, he did supported my decision as well. I love his ways of letting me decide and support my decision as well as give his words of wisdom.

Our destination was the Hundred Islands in Alaminos, Pangasinan. This trip has been planned (even before Siegy arrived from Canada), but even if we talked about this trip already, it seemed as is this was an impromptu plan. My Aunt couldn't decide what to do - making us run in circles until we decide on something. At first, they wanted us to stay at a hotel in Lingayen (another town) and just go to Hundred Islands early next morning, but when we were already in Pangasinan, they made the quick decision to just go straight to Hundred Islands and find a hotel to stay at.

While they were roaming around looking for an inn or a transient home, Alfon (the driver) and I were at the car tailgating at them. I told him I have a cousin (dad side; my companions for this trip are my relatives from mom's side) who's working at a hotel there, but I didn't bother sending him a message about this trip. What an awesome, awesome blessing that they entered a good looking building, which seemed to be a good choice of place to stay at, and when Alfon and I went down the car and join them, I was so surprised to see my cousin at the front desk! Talk about universe conspiring to my advantage!

Since he's my cousin and employees have the privilege to give discounts to certain guests), he gave us a wonderful discount that made us grab the deal. Siegy and his fiancee stayed in one room, us 7 relatives (Alfon is the husband of one of my cousins) stayed in one room. The place was more than what we expected it to be.

For dinner, we went at a nearby carinderia (road side restaurant serving already cooked dishes), and they ordered a lot of food! I went to eat one cut of fried chicken (drumstick), two squid rings (adobo), one small beef bistek cut, some milkfish belly, and a sip of my cousin's pinapaitan (a bitter soup made from beef's innards and bile). I also had a can of pineapple juice.

Day 96
04 January 2012

We brought a lot of cooked food at the lodge yesterday, which we didn't eat that dinner because Siegy wanted to eat at a restaurant, so instead of getting the free breakfast included at the room package, I just asked my cousin to serve us coffee because we will just be eating the food we brought. I didn't eat a lot as I know we will be out on an island hopping trip - my tummy might not react well.

Okay... so we went on an island hopping trip. The place is called Hundred Islands, but there were only a few developed islands for tourists to explore - most were little islands. I did enjoy the trip, but I felt time was so short for us to enjoy the experience. Well, I do understand that our Canadian companion was so used to cool / cold weather and being in a tropical country was melting him to say the least, but part of me was hoping he should've at least embraced the new world he's in.

A little over lunch and we're back at the lodge. Honestly, I didn't like the idea of staying inside the "air-conditioned" room during a trip instead of enjoying the outdoors, but like I said, I did understand how Siegy was feeling. Around 4pm, it was time for us to leave, but we did pass by the town of Binmaley to drop off Aunt Bing's husband and two daughters (they live there). I also had the chance to enter the church - first and the last time I was there was when Aunt Bing and Uncle Juaning got married in 1988; I was way too young to appreciate it. Entering the church - saying a little prayer of gratitude as well as taking snapshots made me love my decision of going on this trip more. I thank the heavens for allowing me to make a great decision.

Since our lunch was basically the same as our breakfast (way too many left over food), I didn't eat that much (again). While on the road back to Manila, I remember eating two barbecued chicken feet, which didn't give me much meat to eat... and Siegy did share his pack of cashew nuts, of which I had a few of. We weren't able to make a stop over to eat dinner, and since we dropped off Siegy and his fiancee at their hotel, it was around 10-ish in the evening when we (Alfon, Aunt Bing, cousin Rommel, and I) had dinner: at McDonald's. I went for the Fillet-O-Fish, my first time to try it. It was so delicious and I loved the tartar sauce and the cheese! Although I don't get to eat that often at MickeyD's, having this wonderful option to eat "healthier" was a ray of light.

We got home past 11pm, but I didn't sleep yet; got way too many pictures to transfer!

January Weigh-In

2012-01-05T16:36:00.003+08:00

My last post was on January 1; I hoped to update the weight change that day, too, but sharing Internet juice with one desktop, 1 laptop (my Aunt's) and 1 WiFi enabled phone (my sister's), blogging has been one of the things I was having difficulty with, plus the fact that life is sort of getting in the way (not complaining, though... I love my busy life).

It's 05 January now, got 4 days of recap on the way, but let me update my weight first.

* I was so busy I wasn't really able to have a decent solo picture, so I am using this picture with my sister, taken on New Year's Day *

Truth be told, I dread this month's weigh in. I weigh myself twice every month - every 1st and 15th of the month - but after Christmas day, I found myself checking my weight every morning (Dr. Beck said on her book that this is okay) to help me stay on track even if I am slightly slipping off of it.

Since the family didn't have any visitors and we didn't cook that much for Christmas, cake was the only temptation I had (which I grabbed), and one stellar moment happened on 27 December - I saw my weight go down at 199lbs., but after that weigh-in, Aunt Bing and her family arrived, and I just found myself eating more than the usual... and I got a little lazy to exercise.

With that, my weight come January first was:

I was so sleepy and not in the mood that day, that I used my cell phone (didn't bother to check if it was blurry or not). The image wasn't accurate, and I would like to claim that it reads 201lbs. because the red ticker isn't really at the center of 202lbs., but since it's slightly above 91 kilos, my sister suggested I read that as 202lbs., because claiming 201lbs., would make a liar. Mmmmkay then.

From last month's 207lbs., I am down to 202lbs.
A loss of 5 lbs. this month.

Since I saw the scale at 199lbs. a few days before, seeing 202 made me feel bittersweet. Of course, I am super happy with 5lbs., but part of me was thinking - "What if I didn't allow myself to binge?" Truly, the most painful of questions starts with "What If."

I claim 5lbs. as a big victory. Why?

I still haven't had a drop of soda and juice / iced tea. I do drink Yakult now, but other than that, water and coffee were the only beverages I had.
I didn't allow myself to drink any alcoholic beverages. Friends and family called me KJ (Kill Joy), but this is my body and my health. I still was able to mingle and party with them on New Year's Day with a glass of water.
I have had several injuries this month - I had blisters on both of my Achilles' Heels, then I got hit by a motorcycle... putting further delay on my morning walks and video workouts.
I was too darn lazy and way too emotional this month.

During my first month, I lost 6lbs. and I was very strict on my fitness routines. Despite the dark cloud of December, I managed to lose 5lbs., so I was very happy with it.

02 January, I meet up with Mr. Pipoy and we had a very intimate talk about goals and plan of action. This month, I am targeting to lose 5lbs at least - but of course if I lose more it will be better, if I lose less, then I have to accept it. One thing Mr. Pipoy made clear was the term "commitment." I do recognize how committed he is to me and our partnership as far as weight-loss is concerned, and yes, I do have to be as committed as he is to this. He has given me everything I needed (and more) - motivation, support, love, even fitness materials. I admit December made me feel slightly half-hearted to it, so he just reminded me and sort of gave me a wake up call to help me get back into the zone.

I am currently on "extended vacation" until this weekend because Aunt Bing is still here in our house and I still couldn't do any of my video workouts. Since it's now Thursday and I still have so many things to do (laundry is one of them), I will just let myself do the extra-curricular activities first before I totally immerse myself into the fitness zone.

For the three weeks of January, my goals are:

To lose at least 5lbs.
Morning walk / jog every weekday.
Give more focus in toning the arms and thighs.
Start with the Jillian Michaels' "30 Day Shred Program"
Learn how to use the jumping rope.
Be strict on food intake.
Cakes / juice / indulging dishes are only allowed when I attend blog events and food trips with friends (but won't truly indulge - a little of each is enough)

I have to be strict on myself because I tend to lax if I am not. In November, I was so strict on myself that I lost 13lbs., I want to be as committed as that again.

5 lbs. in three weeks?
I can do this!

I will list my weekly goal on Sunday.

The Last Few Days of 2011

2012-01-01T15:10:00.004+08:00

*** picture heavy post ***

Day 89
28 December 2011

Even if my ankle is much, much better now, I still wasn't able to go out and walk in the morning because it rained. Not that heavy, but enough to make one stay home. I still couldn't do any of my video workouts because it would require me to dance / bounce; I might re-injure my ankle.

I decided to just clean my closet and then walk around the market come afternoon.

Unfortunately, I was so lazy to jot down my food, so this whole post wouldn't contain the itemized list of food I ate. For this day's dinner, I had 1/2 cup of rice, 1/3 cup of Ginisang Kangkong and Daing na Bangus.

Day 90
29 December 2011

It was around 1 or 2am when Aunt Bing and her daughters arrived from Pangasinan. Her Candian friend Siegy will be arriving from Canada later tonight, and since they needed to fetch him at the airport, they had to be here early to give them time to rest before going to the airport.

My sleep was interrupted, but I still was able to go out and walk. It felt good to walk again, and seeing the wonderful sights made me thank the heavens for healing my ankle quite quick.

My food wasn't so good today - I remember not eating lunch because our dining area was already full (whenever we have relatives here, us siblings either eat earlier or later than them). I remember eating late lunch / early dinner at around 4:30pm - and I had 1/2 cup of rice and 1/2 cup of Dinengdeng (mostly yard long beans and a few squash slices).

Day 91
30 December 2011

No need to be lazy today; weigh-in is coming in a few days and I had to be in tip-top shape come first day of next month. I walked for 1 hour and 45 minutes today, and I really felt good!

More walking today: brother and I went to the supermarket to buy goods for the New Year's countdown party. Mom and Aunt Bing finally settled the dishes to be served, so to stay away from the hectic check-out lines at the grocery, brother and I had to go early.

When we got home, I immediately prepared to go out again - meeting up with my friend Riveria and another blue board member, Samantha Jones. However, while combing my hair, my mom came to me and talked to me with "Puss in Boots" eyes asking me to cancel my meet-up with pals and just come with Aunt Bing and her family because they wanted to take Siegy and his girlfriend to SM Mall of Asia. Mom told me none of my siblings wanted to come with them (sister left early for the Pizza Hut event - where we were both invited, actually) and I was mom's only hope to tour them around. I couldn't say no to my mom, so I went with them.

It seemed to be a good idea as I was able to see two places related to my past: the Delos Santos Hospital - where I was born and the Polytechnic University of the Philippines - where I studied college.

After picking up Siegy and his girlfriend at the hotel (G Hotel along Roxas Blvd.), we quickly went to SM Mall of Asia. Nothing much to do, really.... Siegy was a little worried about his cash situation and my Aunt wasn't in the mood to roam much (kinda like my mom, really), so after seeing some views, we quickly eat early dinner.

After dinner, Siegy still wanted to roam around - asking us if we wanted to watch a movie or maybe do something else, but my aunt was giving him lotsa reasons not to do so. I did mention about fireworks every weekend nights, so we went to check it first before heading home.

I honestly hoped I just met up with Rivs and Sam then attend the Pizza Hut event, but something good came up from this trip - I became closer to my cousins (we also picked up cousin Rommel on our way to MOA), and I think that was a nice gift; I wasn't close to much of my maternal relatives, at least now I made the first step.

I had quite a heavy breakfast with sis, but I wasn't able to eat lunch because brother and I came home late and I had to fix myself quick for the next trip. For early dinner, we at at Fish & Co. in SM Mall of Asia, and this picture was part of my dinner. Aside from that, I also had another prawn and a cut of chicken (as big as the fish on the left side of the picture) from the second platter we had.

It wasn't enough of food for me. Traveling home, I asked Alfon (the driver - husband of my cousin Roselle) to enter a drive thru so I could buy something to eat. I had the Jollibee hotdog meal - but I didn't eat all of the fries and I gave Alfon my softdrinks cup.

Day 92
31 December 2011

Wasn't able to walk today, and this was such a hectic day for the family. We cleaned the house, re-arranged furniture and decorated the house for tonight's party. We all helped cutting the ingredients and prepare the dishes, and as early as noon time, the star of the table arrived: the lechon. In my 31 years of existence, this was the first time we've had one whole roasted pig on our table, and as much as I wanted to attack it and indulge, I just couldn't. This picture above was just for posing... I didn't really give it a taste; all just for fun.

For dinner, we have a few more relatives over, and while I wasn't the super-friendly / sociable relative, I did give myself the chance to socialize with the other members of the family. My outfit didn't give me much justice, but most of them commend the weight loss. They all said it was noticeable that I already lost weight.

Our other relatives left around 10pm so they could welcome the new year in their own homes, so us left at home just prepared to welcome 2012. I wasn't that good - part of me was sad / depressed / hurt / jealous, but sister coming over my room and lied next to me, hugging me made me feel much, much better.

By 11:30pm, we all went out of the house to wait for the skies to light up - we don't have fireworks / firecrackers, so we just watched the show along our street.

While I didn't eat the shiny lechon, my food choices today wasn't at all good either. I ate a lot of the breaded cream dory fish sister and I cooked, and I found myself scooping more and more of the spaghetti as well as munch on the grapes and the "surprise bread" Aunt Bing prepared (it had a mix of cream cheese, sour cream and mayonnaise). Around 7pm, my siblings and my cousins realized the cooler was already empty, so we made a quick trip (us siblings with cousin Jayze and Alfon) to Lagro to buy drinks. They bought 8 cans of San Mig Light, 2 cans of Red Horse, 8 bottles of Tanduay Ice. I made a vow never to drink alcoholic beverage for this celebration, so I just asked brother to buy me an ice cream at 7-11. It was way too much for my tummy to handle, but I allowed myself to be such a glutton today.

Healed!

2011-12-28T15:27:00.002+08:00

"Andun na yung kaluluwa ko, kailangan na lang simulan at gawin."
- Romi Garduce

Day 88
27 December 2011

The night before, Mr. Pipoy asked me to put some liniment on my swollen ankle and wrap it with bandage. We didn't have liniment, but I do have the Oryspa Meditation Balm, which I often use whenever I have body aches. In the many times I have used it, it delivered great results, so I tried to use it on my ankle before wrapping it with a cloth.

I am not sure if you'd call it a miracle or not, but when I woke up this morning, my ankle was no longer hurting! It was still swelling a bit, but no more pain whatsover... just a little discomfort (because of course, all is still not well).

Of course, I didn't walk to Colinas Verdes today, but I did go out and walk to the market late in the afternoon. All was okay, although stepping up and/or down gives me a little pain. Nevertheless, I was so impressed and happy that I am now healed... sort of.

Before dinner, my ankle swelled a bit more, which worried me a bit. No pain, but the fact that my ankle became a little "fatter" troubled me. Mr. Pipoy just asked me to continue with the ice pack followed by the liniment, to help heal the ankle.

Today's food -

6:43am - 1 piece sliced White Bread (toasted) + thin spread of Magnolia Lite Margarine
9:01am - 1/2 cup Pansit Bihon
11:21am - 1/2 cup rice, 1/2 cup leftover Vegetable Kare-Kare, 1 Chicken Wing (fried)
5:00pm - 1 pack Shing-a-Ling
6:56pm - 1/2 cup rice, Sinigang na Bangus (90g fish - weighed as a whole, kamote tops cooked in sour broth)
8:06pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water: 12

Weather's quite cooler now, difficult to drink 15 cups of water, but I guess 12 is okay. :) I ate quite a lot today... I guess doing nothing at home makes me hear more of my tummy thoughts. Hahaha.

I am questioning myself if I will go out and walk tomorrow, but I will just have to listen to my body and make the decision from there.

The Day I Had an Accident

2011-12-27T20:38:00.004+08:00

Spell "committed," I'm it.
- Mr. Pipoy

Day 87
26 December 2011

Since Christmas is now over, it's time for me to go out and walk. Lately, the sun rises quite late, so instead of going out at 6am, I tend to go out at 6:30am, just so it's not dark outside. Along our street, I saw some cute puppies, which are so cute and friendly; when I came near them, they quickly came to me, but taking pictures of them was so difficult because they were so playful!

I have been walking to and around Colinas Verdes for quite sometime now, so the trail seemed to be easy for me to handle already. Today I decided to add a few more meters to my trail... instead of making a U-Turn near the Clubhouse, I walked past the Clubhouse and turned around after a few meters. This picture above was taken on my way back to the main gate, the building with the red-orange roof is the back part of the clubhouse.

I walked for one and a half hours around Colinas Verdes, and the only stops I had were the very few times I took pictures of things that caught my interest. The day seemed alright, until I met a minor accident.

I normally take the jeepney from Colinas Verdes to the market place. When I asked the driver to stop, he pulled over near the sidewalk (so the traffic would run smoothly and the passengers getting off would be safe). As soon as I made my first step going to the sidewalk, a motorcycle hit me. It was running slowly - maybe it was still getting momentum because it was on the sidewalk - but because it was running and the vehicle was a bit heavy, my leg (I had my right leg forward) wasn't sturdy enough to keep my balance. As the driver and I tried to minimize the harm, I twisted my ankle before I fell on the ground softly, and her motorcycle hit another motorcycle parked on the sidewalk. I instantly felt guilty and scared because the driver was with her daughter (around 7 or 8 years old) and she nearly got sandwiched between her mom's motorcycle and the parked one. Fortunately, the child was unharmed, but I instantly felt pain on my right leg, and because the parked motorcycle fell, it caused people around to gather and watch how things were going.

The driver of the parked motorcycle quickly came and angrily scolded the lady driver. She was quick to say sorry, but the man was so proud and so angry that he started berating the woman. His motorcycle was unharmed (the way I saw it) - side mirrors were intact and I didn't see any scratches. The woman was so scared and disoriented that she didn't even say sorry to me, but she did ask if I was okay. I told her I am fine, just in pain.

The man, still angry, started asking for the woman's license. She said she doesn't have any and that the motorcycle belongs to his husband. The man got more angry and the way I sensed it, he either wanted the woman to settle it financially or he would press charges.

In my own perspective, I was okay. In pain, but okay. If I was in the woman's shoes, I'd be very scared as well, and seeing her daughter crying and worried, I felt pity. I sure didn't want to be in the position she was in, so I went to the woman, told her I am good and she should just face the man's emotions because it can get ugly. She didn't say thank you, but I saw in her eyes the look of relief and sadness. As I limply walked away, the man shouted at me and asked where was I going. I shouted back I am good - that I have forgiven the woman, so they just let me walk away. I am not a martyr, I just don't like confrontations, and I didn't want any more troubles (for her) so I just let it go. I could still walk - I am fine, that was all that mattered.

If there was a regret... I'd say I wasn't able to take a picture of it.

I still was able to walk from the market place to our house (funny, I didn't even take the tricycle - maybe walking was already a habit), but near noon time, my right ankle started to swell a bit and it was quite difficult to get up and make the first few steps. Mid-afternoon, I already had difficulty sitting down (especially using the toilet). I started to fear if my ankle was broken or something, but if you know me, you'd know I don't seek medical attention right away, if I still can endure it. I told myself I will let this day pass; if I get fever, if the swelling gets worse, I'd go to the hospital.

Despite what happened, I was thankful and happy. It was a minor accident and everything could have gone worse, but it didn't. Somehow, the accident wasn't so surprising - I dreamt about my late father the night before and in my dream, my dad was saying something about a "flight," and in my dreams, I saw myself accidentally hitting my head on the sides of the bed and as soon as I hit my head on the floor, there was a pool of blood - kinda like the day my dad had a heart attack which caused his death. I am not sure if the dream was a bad omen, but ever since my dad died, I have had a few dreams signifying he was trying to get me, but in all instances, I wouldn't allow him to take me. Being alive, writing this story makes me happy.

Of course, Mr. Pipoy was concerned about me. He sounded upset about something, but despite that he was still the ever supporting fitness buddy who not only gave me pointers what to do, he also showered me with care, love and compassion. Before he went to work that night, he told me to apply some liniment and wrap it with a bandage, but because we didn't have any bandages, I just used a long cloth to wrap it.

My family was much concerned, too, but them seeing I was okay somehow relieved them. In many ways than one, I am a superwoman. :)

Oh... Mr. Pipoy and I had a minor argument (my fault, I was back to my jealous, insecure self when I told him words I shouldn't tell), but even if I hurt him and he was so disappointed, he still muttered the words "I love you so much" and he spoke about being serious and being committed. We quickly ironed out that argument and in the afternoon we got to talk about something and he mentioned about "you're my boss." Never have I encountered a man who values and loves me the way he does. God really loves me for giving him to me. Mr. Pipoy erased all my past heartaches and yes, he made whole again. I could never thank him enough... and I will love him for as long as I am alive.

*iBlush*

What I ate today -

9:36am - 2 teaspoons Ube Halaya
12:34pm - 1/2 cup rice, 1/2 cup leftover Vegetable Kare-Kare
7:19pm - 1 cup Pansit Bihon, a slice of cake
8:01pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water: 14

I am not the type of person who loses appetite over something (before, I could have a serious flu and still eat like a truck driver), but today I just didn't have the appetite to eat much.

The Beck Diet Solution: Day 7

2011-12-27T14:46:00.003+08:00

Let's continue with the Beck Diet Solution.

Like what was written on Day 6, you shouldn't tell people around you that you're dieting if you don't want to. It's true that some people - especially close friends and family members can tease you and try to sabotage your diet by asking you to eat something you're not supposed to when you tell them you're dieting, but looking at the other side of things, it's also great to tell people about your journey because you never know - some of them were just waiting for a companion. When I first traveled this journey in 2007, I told our neighbor Charmy about it and instead of teasing me, she actually supported me and even joined me in my morning walks. My brother sort of teased me at first... but when the family saw (this year) that I was so serious about this and that I am already reaping the success of traveling this journey, my brother is now the first to remind me that I needed to jot down my food intake, he now reminds me that the dish will have pork in it. Overall, telling people about my situation puts me in a much better position, because people are all rooting for my success. I guess it was like that - people will tease you to the point of testing your resistance to certain food... but once you're losing weight, they will be there to back you up.

Today, we will make changes around us. Food is often the biggest reason why people are overweight, so when the need to lose weight arises, dieters first change their eating habits. Dr. Beck shared tips about changing the environment around home:

Remove your personal temptations. Check the cupboards, fridge and desk drawers. If you keep food items that you think will sabotage your diet, get rid of it - by either trashing it or giving it away. Yes, you used money to buy it and there are so many hungry people around the world... but think about this: would you rather waste the food in the trash can or in your body and health? If you can't bear the idea of trashing good food, then just give it away.
Rearrange your dishes. As you know by now, small plates mean less food to eat, so replace the plates on your rack with smaller ones, or arrange plates from smallest to biggest, so that the small ones will be easier to reach.
Consider others. If you share the house with other people - spouse, kids, co-workers, relatives... you might want to ask their help to your advantage: maybe ask them to keep their snack items in places you cannot see (either in their own rooms or maybe in a container at the topmost part of the cupboard). If you don't want to be super imposing, you can ask their help in a very nice way.

I do eat a lot during meals (before entering the journey), but I am not a "serial snacker," like my brother is. Here in our house, we have this containers where we put the snack items, and since these containers are on the floor and most have lids, I sometimes forget what was inside it. My brother has his own container inside his room - and when I started getting rid of softdrinks, he would drink his softdrinks inside his room (or when I wasn't around the dining room). Now that my control is much stronger, he drinks his softdrinks in front of me without worrying I'd take a sip.

I guess I am at the point in the journey that I am much stronger, but I still have so much to learn. I agree with the quote "Out of sight, out of mind," but if you're a parent who has kids who would love their fast food and snacks... you can make a compromise by treating them to a small pack of chips or a small bag of candies every weekends, or maybe encourage them to do good at school and if they get at least 5 stars, they can have the bag of chips. Win-win situation, eh?

For those who are working, changing the environment will be much difficult - because it would seem impossible to ask the admin to get rid or move the vendo machine... and it would seem awkward to ask co-workers to keep their snacks in their drawers and not place it on the table, but you can at least try. Worst case scenario - you have to work on your control; but if things go your way, the better. Don't be afraid to ask things... but of course, you have to be nice and not be so assertive and bossy.

Arranging the environment means compromise. There will be certain things you don't have control of, but always remember... you can control your emotions and perspective. Like what I shared with the "star system," you can also apply it to yourself - you can challenge yourself not to eat any cupcake from Mondays-Thursdays, and come Friday, treat yourself with one cupcake. I don't normally use food as a way of rewarding myself, but if that will get you to eat less, then go for it.

I work at home, so I can only make changes here at home. Aside from keeping certain food items in their own containers with lids (most aren't transparent), I arrange certain items by keeping the healthier options at sight and keep the unhealthy ones under.

This is a difficult task, I know... but just remember the key word: compromise.

ps - the paper bag in the picture contain a lot of snack items - mostly flour based (crackers, cupcakes, biscuits), but none tempts me because I am not into crackers and biscuits, and the idea of eating a small cupcake with 170 calories is enough to lose my interest in it, so even if it's open, I don't glance on it, really. These snack items we will give to kids of the Joy Foundation (I forgot the full name), because they always come here during the holidays.

Last Set of Goals for 2011

2011-12-26T21:10:00.003+08:00

This will be a very quick post; time for me to sleep, but I still haven't updated my goals since last week, so this week, being the last week of December, here are my goals:

Walk as much as I can. If I can go out and walk to and around Colinas Verdes, the better, but if not, will resolve by walking to the market or use the Elliptical Machine.
Make water as the main drink. Since the neighbors often drops by here right after welcoming the new year, we would often have some alcoholic drinks, which is a big no-no. Juices and Iced Tea are somewhat okay, but not more than one glass.
A little taste will do. On the 29th, I will be having a food trip with Asmodeus and some members of the Blue Board, then my Aunt Bing's friend is coming over from Canada on the 30th... my Aunt asked if I can come with them touring her friend around the metro, so I will have "no control" of what food will be served; what I have control of, fortunately is how I treat the food in front of me. Of course, I am a foodie, I have a food blog, I am a friend and a family member. I will treasure the moments, but I will do my best not to sabotage my diet. A taste of each of the dishes will do.
Get enough sleep. After Mr. Pipoy's call at 9pm, I should start preparing myself for bed, so when he calls around 10pm, I am already lying on the bed. Lights off after his call before entering the company's building.
Be careful of the impulsive eating in between meals. The holidays often leaves us with lots of left over food, so I have to watch over myself, making sure I won't take a bite of something whenever I pass by the dining room.

December wasn't a good month for me, but while I can't exercise much, all I can do is to help myself by watching over my food intake.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-26T19:43:00.004+08:00

Tonight, think about how rich you are:
(1) Your family is priceless,
(2) Your time is gold,
(3) Your health is wealth, and...
(4) Your Savior is the greatest treasure of all!
May you and your family always be rich in things that really count!
- Djoanne's text message

Day 86
25 December 2011

By the time us girls came home from the chapel, we already anticipated the Noche Buena and the annual Christmas family photo shoot. At first I was wondering if we could do the tradition because brother was already asleep, but a little past 11pm, he got up to cook the Pansit Bihon - our Noche Buena meal.

I changed clothes; I decided to wear the summer dress I bought at the tiangge. Since we only have one dish to cook, sis and I just played with the camera while mom took a nap - to ready herself for Christmas Day.

After eating the pansit and the other food given by our neighbors, I set up the camera for the family photo shoot. Again, brother wasn't in the mood - he was busy checking Facebook and waiting for something from his girlfriend - but a little more push, he came out of his cave to pose with us. We took about three pictures before we asked brother to change his shirt because we felt us girls were dressed and well-prepared, while he was wearing the same house clothes he was wearing since he took his shower this morning.

He did change shirts, but he refused to wear something for his feet. Since our camera was programmed to take just one picture after 10 seconds, brother set it up to take 10 pictures after every 3 seconds (first one will be taken 10 seconds after hitting the shutter). It was like having pictures taken in front of the photo booth, but we had to be quick if we want to have nice pictures.

My top 3 pictures for the first batch:

Ten pictures were taken, but only around 5 were okay... simply because the camera was on portrait orientation and there weren't much space for us to move around. The other 5 pictures I plan to delete because it looked as if I was this person trying to fit in the picture and the only part of me visible was my head. Oh gawd!

Second set, I put it back to the landscape orientation, to give us more space, but less head room to work around. My top three favorites:

This batch was much better because mom let down her guard whenever her pictures were taken. It was so great to have pictures taken 3 seconds apart because the scrambling often brings out the crazy side of us... and we even got to let mom do the "rawr!" pose. It became our most favorite picture of the entire shoot.

* Please click any of the pictures, if you want to see the bigger version. *

I slept around 2:30am and woke up around 8am. Brother and I walked to the market to look for Puso ng Saging (the one used in Kare-Kare), but we couldn't find one at the market place outside of the subdivision. Glad brother went with me to Tungko, and happier to have found what I was looking for.

We didn't have guests today, so we had quite a lot of leftovers to eat. One crazy discovery today - I was 12lbs heavier today than I was yesterday. Oh no! Well... no need to worry much, all will be back to normal the next day.

Mr. Pipoy was able to call me today, yey! He wasn't able to subscribe to the UnliCall, so it was late at night when we talked, but hearing his voice made my day. I miss him so, so much! :) Merry Christmas, my love!

What I ate today -

12:20am - 2 cups Pansit Bihon (pansit, chicken flakes, carrots, snow peas, cabbage, chicken gizzards), 3 tablespoons Macaroni Salad (macaroni, mayonnaise, chopped apples)
8:07am - 1 cup Pansit Bihon
12:11pm - 1/2 cup rice, 1/2 cup Vegetable Kare-Kare (puso ng saging, sitaw, pechay, talong, fried tokwa) + 1/8 teaspoon bagoong alamang, thin slice of cake
6:44pm - 1/2 cup Aglio Olio spaghetti

Despite the carbs ruling my diet today, I was happy that the Vegetable Kare-Kare turned out good. I guess whenever the cravings for Kare-Kare arise, I can just go for the veggie kind.

No merry-making this Christmas because we didn't attend any party and nobody dropped by to visit us; it basically was like any other weekend, but of course, we didn't forget the reason why we are all celebrating this day. I didn't sabotage my diet and I did get to still walk (even for just 30 minutes), and I am thankful for that.

Christmas Eve

2011-12-25T15:39:00.004+08:00

Merry Christmas, darling.
We're apart, that's true.
But I can dream, and in my dreams
I'm Christmas-ing with you.
- The Carpenters, "Merry Christmas, Darling"

Day 85
24 December 2011

The night before, I was asking my family if I will go out and walk today. Mom answered a very sounding "yes," and I told her I was sort of hoping she'd say, "Don't go out and walk, it's Christmas." She said, "Well, it's not yet Christmas tomorrow." Toinks.

I woke up a bit late (because I did wake up around 4am again, but I went back to sleep because it was chilly - bed weather), but I still prepared and went out to walk. Very few people walking around Colinas Verdes today, but I was happy to still see several people walking and jogging, at least I wasn't completely alone.

Before going home, I passed by the market to buy ingredients for the Pansit Bihon, but I only brought along p150 and I was only able to buy chicken and the vegetables. My money wasn't enough to buy the pansit (haha), so brother and I went back to the market around 9:30am. Late afternoon we went back to the market again, just to see the chaos. Hahaha. Wow... I walked a lot! :)

I wasn't expecting any material gifts this Christmas (our family isn't into gift-giving), but I received a wonderful gift today - a message from Stephen. He was one of my very first online buddies, and he will always be one special man in my life because he is the only person who has given me flowers (you can read about that HERE). Well, a few weeks after I received the flowers, we got into an argument that caused us to stop talking, but sometime this year, we started talking again, but no talks about past feelings - just pure online subjects. Last time I spoke to him was last August, when I asked him about placing social networking buttons on my blog.

He's a friend on Facebook and he's on YM buddy list, but even if I see him online, I don't talk to him - I guess we've grown apart already. I was surprised to see a message from him saying he misses me. We got to chat after that exchange of PMs on Facebook, and it was great to talk to him in much personal tone again. However, like what I wrote on my personal blog (if you happen to click the link on the last paragraph), we will never be lovers. None of us are still willing to relocate, and he is still in the process of re-building his life and currently, he can't even support himself so he said even if he wants to, he can't be my boyfriend yet.

Well... the fact that he and I are friends again, I am already thankful. I love reconnecting bridges!

Around 9pm, us girls went to the nearby chapel to hear mass. I wore a blouse that I used to wear - my mom bought this for me sometime in 2002 or 2003, but I only got to wear it once because it was too small for me - my arms were so big for the sleeves, and my tummy bulges were too visible. After that one instance, I quickly placed the blouse inside the "for donation" bag, but never really gave it away. Every time I'd attempt to lose weight, I'd try it on, but I never got to fit into it again - until now.

Sweet gift indeed to be able to fit into something so small to me before.

Okay, about the homily. It was short and sweet... and it was about the reason for today's celebration: the gift of life. God gave us His son, and each and every one of us is a gift. This year, I am certainly most thankful about the gift of life, and I thank God for giving me a loving family (far from serious sickness, harm, and other negative forces), I thank God for giving me awesome friends - I don't have much friends, but what I have I truly treasure, I thank God for letting me meet people who has inspired me in more ways than one, and I thank God for gifting me the wonderful gift of being myself - being able to handle problems, sickness, pressures, and heartaches. Life truly is the best gift I have received.

What I ate today -

8:45am - 2 squares Biko
11:49am - 1/2 cup rice, Paksiw na Bangus (1 steak cut), 1 tablespoon Eggplant Omelet
5:20pm - 1 slice cake, some chicken cartilages (after flaking the chicken for the pansit we plan to cook for Noche Buena)
6:47pm - 1/2 cup rice, 3 medium sized prawns, 1/2 cup Pansit Bihon

Total Cups of Water: sorry, I wasn't able to count, I stopped updating the white board at 6 cups.

About the slice of cake... it wasn't too thick, just enough to satisfy a sweet tooth.

We had Noche Buena around 12:45am of December 25, so expect a longer food list for tomorrow's post. :)

And I Walked Again!

2011-12-24T19:42:00.003+08:00

Day 84
23 December 2011

Mr. Pipoy's "motivation" sure made a big impact on me... I woke up at 4am! Oh my goodness! Well, I decided not to go back to sleep anymore because I might get headaches; I decided to just get up do some Internet works while waiting for the time to go to Colinas Verdes.

It was a cloudy day, something I was thankful for, because it made the walking much easier. My blisters are much okay now - not watery anymore, but all were itchy because of the friction. Well, the itch is something I could bear, at least I am walking again.

I decided to stop by the Clubhouse today and it was such a cool change to see the pool clean now. Seeing the great change, I told myself I will bring my camera next time to capture much better pictures; my cell phone takes great images, but part of me wants to capture it using my camera.

Walking back from the Clubhouse back to the main gate, I spotted a purple flower that took my interest. I went near to take a picture of it when a surprise came to greet me - a small caterpillar! Talk about being at the right place at the right time!

Sister's duty at work was at 10pm, so she had the whole day at home. We planned to eat out today, but she got home at 6am and she had to sleep, so when she woke up around 1pm, we decided to go to the tiangge to buy some clothes and shoes as we still don't have our Christmas outfit.

I was able to buy a pair of black leggings and a dress. The dress was an ordinary summer dress, but I loved it! I loved how it looked on me, which is why I plan to go back to buy two more dresses, after all it only cost p100 each. As for the shoes, I wasn't able to buy any. I wanted to wear a pair of elevated wedge shoes, so I thought of just buying at the tiangge, after all, I am not going to wear it that often - I still prefer the flat ones for everyday use. I did get to see this beautiful pair of red wedge shoes, but the size 9 look a little small on me. I sure hoped they have size 10, but there weren't. It made me sad because the vendor already agreed for me to pay p310 for it - it's base price was p350. Other stores sell the same kind of shoes at p380, but they didn't have the red one.

Well, I may not have a new pair of shoes, but I am fine with it. I am already thankful for the dress and the time spent with my sister.

Today I ate -

8:22am - 2 squares biko
12:26pm - 1/2 cup rice, 2 pieces Chicken Franks + 1 teaspoon mayonnaise
6:24pm - 1/2 cup rice, 40g Halabos na Hipon + Datu Puti Pinoy Kurat vinegar dip
8:02pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water: 13

Overall, the day went well. It was so nice to be able to go out and walk again - feel the cool morning wind... then walk around the tiangge to check for items to shop. I feel amazing!

Time to Wake Up

2011-12-23T20:06:00.003+08:00

I'm yours indefinitely...
- Marit Larsen, "What If"

Day 83
22 December 2011

I told myself I'd walk today, but I wasn't able to, because my blisters were still watery. I also wasn't able to do any of my video workouts because of my period, but the universe was conspiring to help me, that while flipping the pages of Yummy Magazine (to look for healthy, pork-less recipes), I saw this page:

I really, really need to go out and do my morning walk! Sure, I walk to the market and buy ingredients for dinner, but I really miss walking to and around Colinas Verdes! Since I can't do any video workout for now, I felt not being able to walk makes me think about food most of the times. Exercise has truly became a part of my life that in the few days that I am not doing anything, my body is already longing for it.

When Mr. Pipoy called me tonight, I told him my situation and asked him a favor: to get angry at me tomorrow if I didn't go out and walk. He agreed that I really should walk again and not only did he promise to do my favor, he also told me a very powerful motivation. It was a kind of motivation that really woke me up. Thanks, Mr.Pipoy!

Well, my day wasn't really wasted - aside from the late afternoon walk to the market, I also cleaned my room and did the laundry. :)

My food for today -

8:02am - 2 squares Biko
11:07am - 1 cup Fish Sarciado Pasta (spaghetti, Dalagang Bukid fillets seasoned with salt and pepper fried in Lite Margarine and Olive Oil, spaghetti sauce, dried basil leaves, chopped fresh tomatoes, bell pepper, onions and garlic)
6:46pm - 1/2 cup rice, 1/3 cup Ginisang Kangkong, 60g Fried Fresh Dilis (dusted with cornstarch, flour, salt and pepper), 1 slice ripe Papaya
8:20pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water: 14

Sometime in 2008, I attended a scrapbooking charity event and we were served Red Snapper in Marinara Sauce Pasta. It tasted so good that it was the only seafood pasta (aside from tuna) that I wanted to eat. I wanted to re-create that pasta this year and serve it for Noche Buena, but I might have to think of another dish because even if I liked my version, none of my siblings really dared to taste it.

Green eggs and ham?

Anyway, I think I will just cook two pasta dishes for Noche Buena then, or maybe I will just ask mom to cook Pancit Bihon - using chicken and shrimps. Our family don't really serve much during Noche Buena, but since it's the day we celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ, I just want to have something special on our table. What will you serve for Noche Buena?

The Beck Diet Solution: Day 6

2011-12-23T05:49:00.001+08:00

I was supposed to post this last night, but Internet's way too slow, so let me just continue now.

I've said this, and will say it again. The road to losing weight and wellness is a journey you don't want to take alone. Even if you're this super-strong of a person who can do everything in solitude, somewhere along the way you'll realize you will need the help of another person and you will realize that it can be fun and much easier for all of these to bear if there is someone whom you can consult to or air our sentiments to.

Today is about Finding a Diet Coach. I do understand that some dieters prefer to keep things to themselves, because letting people know they are on a diet would often times cause other people to be critical - making them see things negatively. When I started this journey, I was basically alone, too... but I sort of told people about how I am doing (I have this blog and I sometimes would comment about friends' Facebook statuses). Even so, I didn't really have a "Diet Coach" then, simply because my family would always tell me to "go for it" every time I'd consult them should I eat something "unhealthy."

So... why the need for a diet coach?

To keep you motivated. You can psyche yourself every second that "you can do it," but sometimes, emotions do get the better of us, and if we have a diet coach, he / she can help us carry ourselves during emotional days.
To build your self-confidence. During moments of defeat, the diet coach can give that push and can help you stay on track. He / she can also shower you with positive words that will help build your self-confidence.
To help you solve problems. Sometimes, we encounter problems not related to dieting and fitness - perhaps you had a fight with your significant other or you had a quarrel with your siblings or perhaps you encountered a problem at work. These problems can cause you to slip off track because you needed to focus on the other problems first. Your diet coach can help you solve problems by giving you a fresh set of eyes - a new perspective to look at the problem, he / she can give out suggestions how to come up with a solution.
To keep you accountable. Knowing that you have to be really honest to your coach, he / she will help you stick to your plan. Sometimes, the thought of you having the need to report to your coach (about what you plan to eat and do) will help you stay on track.
To help you take a more useful perspective. Says in the book, when you plan to stay away from your plan, think, "What would my coach say to me?"

Simply put, the diet coach isn't just there for the fitness part of your journey... he / she is there for you - no matter what the situation is.

Personally, my diet coach is no other than Mr. Pipoy. Ever since we became friends, we would tell each other what we plan to eat, or what we ate from the previous meal. He is very supportive to say, "Oh that's a good food choice," but there were times he would be strict on me when I plan to eat something that will sabotage my diet. Like when I first told him I plan to eat pork. He wasn't so okay about it, but he told me lessen the pork intake, even challenged me not to eat a morsel of pork for one week. I was able to survive that, but after that one week, I allowed myself to eat pork and one instance he really got mad at me. It was all for the best of me (we all know pork isn't a healthy meat) - and eating it just seem not worthy of hearing him upset at me. I'd rather say goodbye to pork than lose my precious Mr. Pipoy.

Anyway, he and I talk everyday, so I always consult him about food choices, and I tell him if I plan to eat out. No, I am not being too dependent, I just wanted to tell him about these things so if I overlooked something, he can give me a reminder. Actually, I did ask him if I was too dependent, he answered, "I want you to." Well, for the most part of it, he would let me make my own choice - like whenever I ask him if it would be a good idea to attend this food event or not - he would often say "your choice... do what you needed to do," but whenever I raise doubts about how I will carry myself if I was served a lot of food at the event, that's when he would tell his thoughts about it. Basically, he will allow me to make my choice first, then whatever option I'd go for, he will share his thoughts just to help me stay on track even if I decided to go ahead and attend the event.

You don't need to tell everyone or shout it out to the world that you're on a journey to losing weight if you don't feel like it, but do consider having that one person or a small group of people whom you can share the journey with. In the book, Dr. Beck gave out suggestions on how to find a Diet Coach:

Enlist the help of a close friend or a family member. If you want to keep your diet a hush-hush, then go for your best friend or a family member. They may or may not have the experience about dieting, but what's important is that you choose someone you know will be supportive and proud of you.
Consider starting this program with a friend or family member. If you're on the same journey, you can motivate and keep track of each other.
Join an organized group. You might go and check if your neighborhood has a group for this or maybe check the Internet and see if there's a group you might want to belong to. Personally, I am a member of Belle Today since 2008 (I go for "janujennifer" as my handle there), but while I am not good friends with anyone in the site, it just feels great to know that there are people doing the same journey. The Belle Today team are actually very easy to approach, I just haven't really had the chance to make friends with them yet. In time, I will.
Find a diet professional. You may also consider going with professional help, but that's totally up to you. I guess Dr. Beck listed this, because some people can be productive if they deal with a person that really related to them.
Investigate Internet Support. There are so many blogs about weight-loss, and it can help to share the journey with other people even if you don't see each other. Likewise, there are forums about weight-loss, too, which you might want to be a member of, because talking to people on the same boat as you are may help you reach your goals easier.

Sharing an important detail Dr. Beck highlighted: You want a Diet Coach who helps you identify and counter your unhelpful thinking, gives practical advice, is highly encouraging and motivating, and is willing to help you implement this program.

When you found that person you want to become your Diet Coach, you should tell him / her about your diet program and your plans. Likewise, it will be best if you are honest about everything that has to do with your program. Mr. Pipoy and I are very honest to each other. Whenever he asks what I plan to eat or if I went out to walk, I'd tell him about it - even that one instance when I ate pork even if I promised him that I won't anymore. Why? because we are responsible for each other. We want to be really honest because we are looking at each other's welfare.

It is true that certain things we should keep to ourselves. However, it is much better if we have someone to share things with - to give that morale boost and to help us get back on track when we are slowly slipping away from our program. I hope you'd find that person.

A Shower of Blessings

2011-12-22T13:49:00.003+08:00

...because even if I was flat broke,
you made me feel like a million bucks.
- Brandi Carlile, "The Story"

Day 82
21 December 2011

Before I talk about the blessings, I have a confession to make: I really don't know how to handle a relationship. I have had several relationships in my life, but because most of them ended up in shambles and that those men never really loved me, there were times I hope there's a manual for relationship dummies like me.

Take for instance this situation: Mr. Pipoy calls me at 9pm while walking from their house to the gate of their subdivision - like he always do. To make sure he is safe, we won't talk (no calls/text) while he is traveling to work, and he would just call by the time he reaches the company's building and he would call again around 2:45am - during his break. The other night, he called me around 9pm, but a few minutes before 10pm, I received a message saying he would run from the jeepney stop to the building to catch up time and would just call me during his break. Break time came, he sent a text message saying he couldn't call because he was feeling sick and would just take the time to rest instead. He told me he would just call me by the time he's off at work. 7am, another text message came saying he couldn't call me because his UnliCall service expired and there were no stores open where he could purchase load credits for his phone. To his last message I responded "Ok." I received a call from him around 8am, while he was walking from the entrance of their subdivision and he told me he felt a little sad that I gave him a very cold "Ok" message and he was sort of expecting I'd ask about how he was feeling. I told him I felt a little sad, too, because I wasn't able to talk to him and I sort of felt he was distancing himself. I was quick to recognize my doubts and my negative thoughts and yep, I could be a little too self-centered at times. I easily feel bad when some thing won't go my way that I forgot the bigger picture (him being sick). Sorry for that, Mr. Pipoy. You know how much I care for you even if I don't tell or show it at times.

Anyway, I heard another wonderful message from the Korean soap opera "Scent of a Woman." It's in the Filipino language, but the jist of the story is that William fell in love with Helena and even broke off the arranged engagement just to be with her. But when he found out Helena has stage 4 gall bladder cancer, he got angry and broke up with Helena. Of course, he realized that he loves Helena so much and when he saw Helena crossing the road without minding the cars passing by, he quickly drove his car to save Helena. His car was hit and he had to be hospitalized.

In this scene, he told Helena, "After the accident, I realized there is a bigger possibility that I will die first. When that happens, I will regret why I didn't fight for my love."

I could relate this to what Pipoy told me a few weeks after I met him. He said, "I shall pass this way but once. Therefore, any feelings I can show, any emotions I can share, any love I can give... let me not defer it, for I shall never pass this way again."

I am thankful that in my life, there is one Mr. Pipoy who loves me so much.

Okay... today I have two icky pimples! Well, I normally get pimples whenever I have my period, but it's just weird that I had the pimples near the end of my period - I usually have them before Bloody Mary drops by for a visit.

I wasn't able to exercise today because of my period and because I couldn't fit my feet into my shoes. The blisters on my Achilles' heels were too painful and the wounds would stick to the socks, I decided to just call it off and try again tomorrow.

What I ate -

8:20am - 1 piece sliced White bread (toasted) + thin spread of mayonnaise, 1 cup Nescafe Brown n' Creamy coffee
12:57pm - 2 pieces sliced White bread (toasted) + thin spread of Magnolia Lite Margarine, a handful of peanuts
6:22pm - 1/2 cup rice, Salmon Belly Sinigang (30g salmon belly with some cabbages cooked in sour broth), 1 slice of ripe Papaya
8:13pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water: 13

I wasn't really in the mood to eat lunch, but nearly 1pm, I already felt the hunger, so I just toasted some bread. Dinner was so delicious... I love salmon! If I can eat salmon once every week, I will be a happy foodie!

Blessings / gifts the family received today:

6 bottles of Datu Puti Pinoy Kurat spiced tuba vinegar. I was already expecting this since last week, but I sort of feared I might not receive it because of our location. Early this morning, the delivery man came by, and even if he traveled more than two hours to get to our place, he told me, "It's all good... I was able to joyride." Such a nice delivery man, really.
A goodie bag from Rebisco. Mom received this, and even if most of the goodies I chose not to eat, the biscuits inside we can give to the carolers.
Biko from Manang Lita. Manang Lita is one of my mom's friends and a very good cook. Mom said she dropped by her office to give her a bilao of Biko and some of it we gave to the neighbors because our family couldn't eat it all.
Hearing the words "I love you."

One doesn't have to wait for Christmas to count gifts and blessings... blessings are around us everyday, we just have to open our eyes and see it.

The Beck Diet Solution: Day 5

2011-12-21T15:24:00.002+08:00

Let's continue with the Beck Diet Solution...

One of the diet / weight-loss tips that I often read is: "To eat slowly," because it takes time for the tummy to give the brains the signal that it is already full. This topic has been tackled in one of Lyn's Habit-a-Week Challenge, so this is already something I can say I already mastered.

Still, for the benefit of those who are just starting out, Dr. Beck gave out some suggestions to help you slow down while eating.

Change something in your eating environment - change the plates and utensils or maybe put something new on the table. Every time you notice the change, it will be a reminder for you to slow down.
Set a timer to beep every one to three minutes - says in the book... put down the flatware after the beep then wait 10 seconds before picking up again, and when you do, remind yourself to eat slowly.
Take sips of water after every few bites - This was something effective to me, but I only take a sip as I do want to enjoy my eating and not focus on the drinking.
Eat something hot - Because you need to blow air on your hot soup or rice before putting it in your mouth, it might teach you how to slow down.
Pay attention to your body - Listen to your body and look for signs that you're starting to feel full.
Look at the clock - Record how long you normally eat your meal. The next time you eat, try to eat much longer than the recorded time.

When I first applied this to my own eating pattern, I didn't change my plates and I didn't do the beep thing, but I did do some things listed here. Also, what I did was, I'd mix all of food together - flake the meat / fish and mix it with rice, just to make it look as if my plate was full (tricking my mind that I was eating a lot). After each bite, I'd put down my utensils and place my hands on my lap while I chew on my food. At times, too, I'd chit-chat with my family members (making sure I swallowed my food first before I speak) to help extend the eating time. Near the end of my meal (some 1/4 of food left), I'd get up and get my papaya from the fridge or get some water or volunteer to refill the rice bowl for the family. Now, even if I am eating about 1/2 cup of rice and viand (if it's brothy or saucy), there were times my family members (who ate two, three helpings of food) would finish eating before I did.

In connection to The Beck Diet Solution - Day 3, I notice, I can focus more on my food if I am eating sitting down. Once I tried eating in front of the television and I didn't notice I already ate everything on my plate and I was still feeling hungry. It sure helps to eat at a relaxed environment, but like what Dr. Beck said, we all have to teach ourselves to focus on food even with some distractions. I guess, now that eating slowly and mindfully is something easy for me, I still have a lot to learn about having some distractions while eating.

Nestle Fitnesse Cereal Free Workout VCD

2011-12-21T14:34:00.003+08:00

Lately, I have been eating either bread or rice for breakfast, so when brother and I went to the supermarket, I told myself I'd buy myself a box of Nestle Fitnesse low fat whole wheat cereals, because I already miss eating my morning cereals.

Normally, I'd buy the big box (330g) because it seemed more practical to buy compared to the 180g box. When I checked the shelves, I noticed a freebie on some of the cereal boxes - a can of Nescafe ready-to-drink coffee, and I saw something else on the box - a sneak peek of a VCD inside. I am a sucker for freebies, so I decided to grab a box of the 180g cereals, just so I can get the freebies (the big box had nothing, by the way).

There were two workout videos to choose from: Latin and House. I chose the House.

Copying what was printed on the box -

BodyJam House is a workout with emphasis on having fun as well as breaking a sweat. Featuring easy ultra-fun dance combos, you'll love getting your groove on with simple moves that follow the latest music and dance trends.

I watched the video this morning, and I found it so fun to do - the steps aren't too fast nor too technical, and I definitely can do it. The routine runs for 20 minutes and it features 3 upbeat songs.

I checked the website printed on the box, but I always encounter an error, so I think I will go ahead and buy another box of cereal so I can have a copy of the BodyJam Latin workout. The 180g box of Nestle Fitnesse cereals cost around p99, not bad, considering the VCD comes as a freebie. If you're lucky, you might even see the box with free coffee! :)

I checked YouTube to see if there are any videos (so you can see a preview), but I didn't find any. What I found, fortunately, is another video... something I am interested in doing as well. This is like tae-bo, but not too fast, so this will be great for the those ultra-heavy people (like me) and for those who are just starting with the program.

I think I can do these as my weekend workout - just to take a break from doing the Hip Hop Abs routines. When I get my copy of the Latin workout... I will do all three. 20 minutes x 3 = 60 minutes of fun workout! :)

Thank you, Lord for more fitness blessings!

Blistered and Skinned

2011-12-21T11:58:00.005+08:00

I can be an asshole of the grandest kind...
- Alanis Morissette, "Everything"

Day 81
20 December 2011

Let's start this post with what I ate today:

8:39am - 1 slice each of Bibingka and Sapin-Sapin
12:26pm - Bibimbob at Kimbob's SM Fairview food court (I only ate half of it)
6:57pm - 1/2 cup rice, 1 piece Daing na Bangus, 1 slice ripe papaya
8:06pm - 1 Yakult

Total Cups of Water: 13

The actual name of my lunch is Bibimbap (one of my favorite Korean dishes), but the food place called it "Bibimbob" because of the name of the place. Anyway, I liked it, though I'd say I still prefer my own way of doing Bibimbap - my sister said she already tasted this and still loved my own version.

I couldn't do any of my video workouts because of Bloody Mary, so I went to Colinas Verdes to walk. Walking has been my best friend today - I walked two hours in the morning, then brother and I walked around the mall (I paid bills and we did grocery shopping), and when we reached the market place, I let brother take the tricycle because I will go ahead and walk. Legs were tired, but this was better than doing nothing.

However, I made a very crucial mistake today: when I went to Colinas Verdes to walk, I decided to wear my brown doll shoes instead of using my running shoes, since I figured it would just be a leisurely walk. Eeeek, wrong. By the time I reached the gates of Colinas Verdes, I could already feel something on my Achilles' Heel, but I still continued walking. Since I pushed myself to walk 'til I reach the Clubhouse, I had blisters.... and walking back, the friction from the shoes caused the blisters to pop, causing more pain and damage. Both my Achilles' Heels are blistered and skinned, but my left foot (pictured above) suffered more. It was painful, watery and icky.

Pipoy surely got upset, but I understood where he was coming from. This mistake I did may compromise my morning walks, and I only have myself to blame. Sigh...

Still, something positive came today - while at the grocery, was able to find a box of Nestle Fitnesse with free workout VCD, which I will talk about later. Stay tuned for that.