I'm alive

I have a new home - November 22nd:

I have a new name - November 27th:

I enjoyed the Caribbean - November 28th - December 12th

I moved into my new home - December 12th

I look forward to catching up with my favorite blogs and sharing my progress (and then lack there of thanks to the honeymoon) with everyone :-)

Alive and well

It's been about a month since I've showed my face around these parts. I know sometimes everyone assumes that things aren't well when someone doesn't blog regularly. Well, I can assure you that I was not barricaded in a room somewhere stuffing myself full of food, sky-rocketing my weight.

I'm happy (well, not happy exactly) to report that I am still at 185lbs. I'm happy because in my past, death of family has always equalled eating for comfort, and I have not let my grandmother's death become an excuse to eat. On the flip side, no real progress has been made to chip away the pounds.

Since my last post, I've had some great weeks of exercise and eating, with one not so great week throw in there. I ate lots on Valentine's Day when my fiance and I made a wonderful 5 course meal:

Are you drooling, yet?

I had a tasting for my wedding - I showed surprising restraint because the next day I was flying to the Bahamas and my parents and my fiances' parents joined us for a great night:

Joe, Me, Mom, Dad, Donna, and Joe

It felt amazing to be in the sun and completely forget about work for a bit:

Since then, I have been working really hard. Even though I do find time to read everyone's blogs on my train rides to work, I really miss posting and commenting. It's the interaction with everyone that I crave.

Until next time, be well everyone!

Where have you been all my life?

Well, more like, where have I been for the past 2 weeks....

Desserts-o-plenty

My fiance's birthday was 2 weekends ago and we celebrated at dinner with friends, then the bar, then we drove to my parents and had birthday cake for him the next night. I made a rainbow Italian cookie inspired cake. Omg, it was amazing and beautiful:

Then I had the 5K in my home time. Following that, I was blessed enough to work from home the three days leading up to Thanksgiving, which allowed me to spend tons of time with my beloved family. I was desparately craving time with them, as I hadn't seen them in a month and a half. It also allowed me to bake some yummy desserts for Thanksgiving:

Exercise Update

In other news, I have retired my running schedule for the winter. If I get the chance, I will run on the treadmill at the gym, but it has gotten too dark and too cold for me to continue outside runs. So, I switched back to a regular rotation of the Shred on Sunday. I started small with Level 1 and 5lb weights. Ouchie Ouchie Ouchie! I totally neglected strength training to get ready for the 5K and I am paying for it.

Thank you!

A big thank you for this award :-) It's from Bare It All, one of my favorite blogs to keep up with. She's got a very realistic approach to weightloss and I feel like every woman can relate to her and get tips from her.

I've never been good about posting rules and/or passing on blog awards so why start now? Sorry, I suck when it comes to blog awards.

2 races in 2 weeks

I had two 5K races in the past two weeks:

My first 5K took place on a cloudy rather warm day. I was feeling anxious about the race so I decided to do some yoga in place of regular old stretching, and it really helped to calm my nerves. There were over 1000 participants, so this was the largest race I had ever participated it. It took my a good 3/4 of a mile to pass slower runners and walkers, so I ended up running my first mile very fast to get around everyone, followed by a really slow second mile, an average half mile and a hard sprint on the last half mile. I crossed the finish line at 31:56 , but my Nike+ had me at 30:30. Here are a few fun photos from the race.

Joe's cousin (the cute little shorty) handed out water with the cub scouts. I tried to get one from him but he was refilling when I ran by the station and I got caught up in the sweep of runners.

Here I am crossing the finish line and then right after the race:

My second race was at my old high school on a clear and cold day. Here I am waiting to start the race. My family all came out to walk or run for this memorial scholarship fundraiser, so the atmosphere was much less competitive and much more supportive than my race the previous week. I crossed the finish line at 29:23, but my Nike+ had me at 28:30. Regardless of which times were accurate, I set out to finish under 30 minutes, and I achieved my goal. I even managed to shave off 2.5 minutes in my second race. My goal for spring 2010 races is to finish a 5K under 27 minutes.

From left: Me, Joe (my fiance), Aunt Rachel, Justin (my brother), Courtney (cousin), Mom, Aunt Carol, Billy (cousin), and Brittany (cousin)

Princess Peach slims down

Princess Peach and Mario in 2006:

Princess Peach and Mario in 2009:

I love these costumes on us- but it definitely fits me so much better the second time around.

For the peanut gallery

Here are some pictures for you demanding readers :-P

Me and my fiance:

My favorite place at the hotel- our balcony! Here's me enjoying my morning coffee and catching up on some bridal magazines. And check out that view of the beach and pool:

My second favorite thing about the hotel was the friendly iguanas that lounged by the pool and let people feed hand feed them. The french fries made him curious but he didn't actually eat it. Their favorites were onions and grapes:

All dressed for the wedding:

And here are some snapshots of the food culprits. Check out my dessert- its the size of a small child. And pineapple shrimp fried rice- yum!

And another culprit- alcohol! I had fun with my free drinks at the Bacardi distillery. Everyone gets two free drinks, but my brother got us another round for free :-)

Weigh In and My Weekend

Weigh in Monday: -3.0lbs, 184.6lbs
Food
B: Oatmeal (3 pts), 3 munchkins (3.5 pts- whopps!)
S: Fiber One bar (2 pts)
L: 1/2 chicken sandwich and gazpacho @ Hale and Hearty (7pts)
S: Fruit salad (2pts)
D: Bruschetta angel hair pasta with grilled chicken and balsamic reduction (13 pts)
Total- 29.5 pts (used 3 AP earned and 0.5 WP)
Exercise: 30 Day Shred, L1 w/ 5lb weights (3 AP)

I went to the Bronx Zoo this weekend; I try to go once every summer. I love animals! It's really comforting and soothing for me to observe animals. The Bronx Zoo also does a really nice job with the animals' faux habitats so it's a pleasant experience instead of an animal in a cage kind of a feel. My fiance and I really enjoyed each other's company and were sure to act like children. Exhibit A: Take a picture with a weird prop from the gift store:

My greatest eating triumph this weekend was my lunch choice. Last year when we went to the zoo, fiance and I split the fried chicken fingers and a soda. This year fiance got his own and I chose and grilled chicken, tomato, spinach, provolone and red pepper romesco sauce on ciabatta. Props to the Bronx zoo for having choices. Eating the whole sandwich was around 11 points, which is high but I needed my energy for all the walking we were doing because the Bronx Zoo is huge!

Exhibit B for acting like children: a snapshot of some suggestive animal species

A snap of one of the lemurs in the newly constructed (2008) Madagascar exhibit. It's such a great exhibit!

There are even beautiful peacocks that roam the zoo, this one finds solace on the grass that is clearly labeled with "Keep off the grass":

My Engagement Party

After getting engaged in December, we finally had our engagement party on July 11th.

The evening was amazing but it went too fast! I feel like I don't remember much of anything, but I know I felt happy. It was surreal to have all the people in your life in one room. Joe and I looked rather "Connecticut" as my friend put it. I love the look- I really wanted to look classic, like it could have my grandparent's engagement party in the 1940's.

Me and my Joe

Sadly, I do look at some of the pictures from the event and judge my appearance. I wish my arms looked more toned and that I was about 20lbs thinner. More so though, I wish I didn't have these thoughts at all. I want to love my body more than I do already.

Me and the lovely bridesmaids: (from left) Colleen, Olivia, Me, Kristyn, Sammy, Courtney and Brittany

The handsome groomsmen: (from left) Kevin, Bryan, Joe, Austin and Justin

I don't want to look at any of my wedding pictures and judge my body the way I am right now. Admittedly, I am getting a little fed up with my lax attitude toward weightloss. I deserve better. I deserve the best. I feel content and happy in other aspects of my life and I want to feel the same way about my fitness.

Bermuda 2009 and My 24th Birthday

My fiance and I had a great time in Bermuda. It was my first big-girl vacation, as it was the first trip I had taken since graduating from college last year.

Me in St. George, Bermuda

I also celebrated my 24th birthday while we were away. My goodness, where does the time go?! Even though time is fleeting, I felt great on my birthday. I reflected on where I am now in my life in terms of weight loss and where I want to be. I realized that unless I am willing to make more concessions on my food choices, that I am destined to stay this weight because my body is comfortable here. Well, my body may be comfortable, but I am not comfortable here.

My fiance surprised me by having our cruise cabin decorated

Then he surprised me with a special blue box :-)

Happy Birthday to me: dinner at a Mediterranean place in Bermuda

More celebrating was had when I returned from Bermuda. My family had a bbq, bought me an ice cream cake, and made me play drinking games all night. Well, maybe they didn't make me ;-)

Reeses ice cream cake...drool

Losing the drinking game, pouting about it, and being punished by sitting under the table

I feel lucky and blessed to have a wonderful fiance, family, and my health. I would not be the person I am without their love and support. Their faith in me has given me the strength I needed to lose weight and become a happier person in the process.

How I Saved the Barnegat Bay with an 8K!

The Barnegat Bay from Lavalette, NJ

I saved the Barnegat Bay by running an 8K! How did this "save" the bay? I have no f*cking clue.

I woke up nice and early, dressed, ate some peanut butter on a slice of bread and drank some water. My fiance came along to take pictures and share in the moment with me. We drove over to the bay (a few minutes from my childhood home), registered, got our goodies, and hooked up a little race tracker to our shoe for time keeping.

Hooking up my race tracker

We stretched a little, but mostly hung out and soaked up the sun. There were a few real characters there though. Ya know, the ones that take themselves way too seriously even though it is apparent that they are not hardcore runners. They were doing some stretches that I have never seen before, and trust me, I have seen a lot of weird stretches before- I was a competitive cheerleader for 9 years.

Can you guess which set of legs works 10 hours a day inside and which two sets of legs belong to lifeguards?

Back to how we were "saving the bay". I really don't get it. Especially when there is a water station every mile where you grab a cup, drink/splash/pour it, and then throw it on the ground so that the garbage may blow into the bay before someone has had the chance to clean it up. This seemed illogical to me, but my cousins thought that it would be an opportune time to come up with a song to amuse themselves as I left on my headphones, running and panting, and trying to keep up with the tempo. Their little verse went like this....

Just take one cup at a time
there's no need to waste.
It's like Saving the Bay,
the month after May

It's going to happen when it's
supposed to happen.
When you find the reasons why,
one cup at a time.

Mile 2: Me, my cousin Brittany, my cousin Courtney

In all seriousness, the race was really really hard for me. The race started at 8:30am and it was so hot and sunny. I usually run after work and on shaded roads so I found the sun added a big challenge to the run. I also felt a bit faint at times during the race. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to finish, but I kept it together.

Part of the course snaked through a neighborhood filled with locals who live there year-round and who (like me) have a certain pride in being from the area. There were so many people outside their homes cheering for us. There were a few awesome houses that even put out their own water stands and sprayed hoses into the air to cool off the runners- now that is gratitude!

I had wanted to run the 8K in 50 minutes because I new I could do it (10min/mile). My pace ended up being more like 11.5min/mile or 57 minutes. I'm not going to lie, I am disappointed in that time, but I know that's not what it's about. Would I do it again? Heck yeah! I can't wait! Me and my cousins have already planned to do it again next year but with more style- I'm going to design some cute tanks for us and get them screen-printed.

The finish line

Professional photos:

Start:

http://www.printroom.com/ViewGalleryPhoto.asp?evgroupid=0&userid=JMcCoy1454&gallery_id=1625284&tcount=149&scount=88&sku=1

http://www.printroom.com/ViewGalleryPhoto.asp?evgroupid=0&userid=JMcCoy1454&gallery_id=1625284&tcount=149&scount=89&sku=1

Finish:

http://www.printroom.com/ViewGalleryPhoto.asp?evgroupid=0&userid=JMcCoy1454&gallery_id=1625285&image_id=464&pos=465

http://www.printroom.com/ViewGalleryPhoto.asp?evgroupid=0&userid=JMcCoy1454&gallery_id=1625285&tcount=521&scount=466&sku=1

//www.printroom.com/ViewGalleryPhoto.asp?evgroupid=0&userid=JMcCoy1454&gallery_id=1625285&tcount=521&scount=467&sku=1

Weigh In and Weekend Update

Boo-ya! I had an awesome loss this week: -2.6lbs! This puts me at 181lbs. I'm seriously excited considering the Panera debacle and the number of times I ate outside my home last week. I ate out for every single meal this weekend (but not all by choice).

It's been really difficult for me to teach myself that eating out is not an opportunity to eat whatever I want. Growing up, my family rarely went out to eat (usually just for a birthday or to celebrate a graduation) thanks to my mom's delicious and consistent cooking. So, going out to eat was always a free for all with my family. I am not lying to you when I say that one time at Outback Steakhouse blood was shed over the Aussie Cheese Fries. This wild event all ended with my father bleeding and my brother proclaiming to my father, "It's not my fault that you have paper-thin skin, old man!"

How many times did I eat out last week? 10 times!
Thursday
California Pizza Kitchen- pizza and red wine
Friday
Rest Stop Convenience store- cereal, apple, coffee, and a special k bar Cracker Barrel- two eggs, turkey sausage, 1/2 order hashbrowns, 1/2 order fried apples, 1/2 piece of corn bread
Saturday
Anthony David's (Italian) in Hoboken, NJ - eggs benedict with hollandaise on the side
Filipino food at a friend's home- puncit, roast chicken, lupia
Ralph's Italian Ice- small spumoni
Wild Ginger (Japanese) in Hoboken, NJ- sezchuan chicken and shrimp with white rice
Sunday
Bagel and coffee from a deli
Margherita's (Italian) in Hoboken, NJ- rigatoni with meat sauce, 1/2 caesar salad

Incidentally, my weekend of eating out ended at Margherita's, which is also the location of my and my fiance's first date. We decided to hit it up after our engagement session photo shoot, which was amazing! Check out the pictures and my weight loss progress here: Our Engagement Session

And a special thanks to Emily at Black Dog Photography for her amazing work.

A year in photos

525,600 minutes... How do you measure, a year in the life?

How about... a side by side comparison of Valentine's Day 2008 and 2009?

2008: 215 lbs 2009: 189lbs

And a body shot, which I totally avoided just one year ago: