Home?

I must say that I miss my friends and family more than I thought I would. I thought that the excitement of a new job and new home would carry me through homesickness. I am excited and feel blessed to have the opportunity to teach, don't get me wrong, but the Ville does not feel like home yet (even though it is my birthplace). I catch myself looking for people I know and then realize the odds of that happening are slim to none. Hopefully once the boxes are all unpacked, the kitchen is done, schools starts, and I get into a routine Louisville will become more of our home than just the placed we moved to for jobs. I know this will take time, but that requires patience, which is something I don't always have.

On the bright side I was able to see some of my beautiful Northern Kentucky ladies today, oh and one very special little blue eyed boy :) Totally worth the trip of driving with crazy people, truck drivers racing each other at 70 mph, and then the out of town people who have no clue how to look at the speed limit signs, oh and construction. Gotta love construction.

Muah,
Alicia

Lessons from the Ville

I have learned some lessons my first week here in the Ville (if I offend anyone just know I was born here ;) )
1. It seems that a lot of Louisville drivers do not like to use turn signals when they cut you off, much less any other time.
2. Parking in one spot is optional.
3. "Excuse me" is not used when pretty much running someone over in an aisle or any other time.
4. Painting a ceiling without glasses is pretty dumb, plus you look like you have dandruff.
5.  Goetta has to be explained.
6. The Camry's GPS has issues. Good thing it's getting traded in and I get the Caddy :)
7. Gutting a kitchen is tiresome, but rewarding.
8. Soft Rabbit Brown has a purple tint to it. Who knew?
9. When there is a wildlife crossing sign they really mean it. Those geese take their time walking across the street. They are really cute though!
10. I miss my NKY peeps and am scared to do death to actually be teaching. Holy Cow!


-Ali

Next post should have some kitchen reno pics.

Progress!!! With Pics :)

The journey continues! So far I have been on this weight loss journey for over a year now. Although I am proud of myself for sticking to the logging, I know I need to step it up on the exercise end. I wanted to be under 200lbs by my birthday. My birthday is in 11 days and well, let's just say I revisited that goal. I've come to learn from all of this that what I want and what my body wants may be two different things. In the end I know that I will start this next decade way healthier than my last, or truly any decade I have lived through. Hope you all are eating and living a healthy and happy life!
-Ali
Beginning(Feb 2011)-April 2012

Water!

It's been a bit since I've posted. Life has been busy and hectic with my Mock Trial team competing at state. Rest assured though I have still been focusing on eating healthy. Recently I joined a challenge on www.myfitnesspal.com to lose 25 lbs by 6/17. The first week's challenge involved drinking water... and lots of it! So being the nerd I am, I downloaded a water tracking app on my phone. Not going to lie, it's pretty cool and makes it more of a game for me.
I am not a huge fan of water(and yes I know you need it to live) so at the beginning of this challenge it was really difficult for me. I am better during the week, but did give a great effort this weekend. After a week of this water challenge I lost weight! Yeah water! For now I am not bothered by drinking so much water and actually crave ice cold water-NO I AM NOT PREGNANT! ;)
-Ali

What a difference a year makes...

This week marks a year of my weight loss journey. At this time last year I was still reeling from the passing of my mother. Unfortunately my mother did not take care of herself. I did not want to be that person. Yes, she was thin, but not in a healthy way. Something snapped in me and I told myself that I had to do something about my health- my family, friends, and most importantly myself were worth it.
This journey from the beginning has been a rough one, but most weight loss journeys probably start out that way. My knees started to hurt, found out I had arthritis, then I developed bursitis and tendinitis in my right shoulder (some of the worst freaking pain I've ever had). Once that healed DJ and I were in a car accident. From this accident I gained a "lovely"(sarcasm) gynormous hematoma, which prevented me from working out for two weeks. Recently my right knee has been having a good ol time(again sarcasm) which prompted me to get a second opinion. Luckily I found out that I only have a little bit of arthritis and the cause of my pain is my kneecaps that are out of place due to my super tight Tbands. So off to PT I will go once more and if that doesn't work it may be time for surgery. Why do I tell you this? I tell you this because it should be a testament that no matter what is thrown your way you should not give up. Life is a b*tch sometimes, but how you handle yourself in times of sadness or pain reflects your true character. My old character would have given up a long time ago, but not the new me. I owe it to myself and others to be the best I can be. My health is a huge priority and so is yours. I wish I could say there is a magic pill to make the weight fall off, but alas there is not. You have to work hard, sacrifice, and make permanent changes. This not an easy task and I still struggle, but that's why it is a journey.
The beginning of this journey began with my weight at 254(highest at 265) and currently has me at 209.4(that .4 counts darn it!).Over this last year I have lost 45 pounds and gained a healthier me. I wish it were more, but I know that losing slowly is the best way to go(if you truly know me, you know patience is not always my thing). I still have about 44 pounds to go to get to my goal weight. Hopefully before this time next year I will be able to say that I am at my goal weight of 165 lbs. The pictures below show my journey from February 2011-February 2012. Thank you to everyone out there for their kind words of encouragement. Most of all I'd like to say thank you to my wonderful husband for all of your support.Much love!
-Ali

Almost a year...

I am coming up on a year of weight loss, among other losses. The spark that ignited my journey to be healthy was the death of my mother. My mother was beautiful, smart, and lovely, but she was not healthy. She was an alcoholic til the end and died due to stage four cirrhosis of the liver. Now, I do not drink much due to this factor, but I was still unhealthy. I was way overweight, my cholesterol out of control (partly due to the lovely genetics of my maternal side), and just unhappy with my health. Along the way my body has posed many daunting road blocks, arthritis in my knees, tendinitis and bursitis in my shoulder, a leg contusion from our recent car wreck (darn thing still won't go away), etc... Although all of these things and other smaller things like colds have happened, I have not stopped in my journey. I will not give up on my family, friends, and most importantly myself. Once I hit my goal weight of 165, this journey will not end but continue as it is important to stick with a healthy life style. The one year mark of this journey will officially be 2/23/12. I will post progress pics then and will have a much happier blog :) Thank you to all of those that have supported me and will continue to support me. Most of all I would like to say thank you to my soul mate and best friend, DJ. I love you will all of my heart and could not have survived this year without you.
-Ali

Birthday Challenge-Onederland!

So I have about 90 days until my birthday (it's my 30th...). Can you hear the scary music? I can! Anyway, I have had and will have many goals on this journey. In the beginning it was just to lose weight, then it was to be fit, buy clothes in a smaller size, etc... I had wanted to lose all of my weight by the first anniversary of my mom's death (2/7/12), but that quickly became clear to me that it was not going to happen. So... I reevaluated my goals and decided that I wanted to start my 30s under 200 lbs. I have 13 weeks to go and weigh 211.2lbs.This will be my birthday present to myself. I will need to focus and work even harder to make sure it happens. Let's see if I make it!
-Ali

Oh how times have changed...

So ever since my mother passed away I have began a transformation of myself that I never thought possible. I have since lost 41 pounds, but even more shocking is that I have begun to cook... and I enjoy it. Now, my mother was a beyond awesome cook and I am sure she would be shocked, but pleased to know I am in the kitchen making yummy things. Where my mom used butter and sugar, I use sugar free items, turkey, and veggies to make low cal scrumptious food. My favorite so far is Chocolate Raspberry Flan. I got the recipe off of Kraft's website(see recipe below). Garnish with cool whip and some yummy raspberries, plus a nice cup of hot cocoa.  I hope you enjoy and remember this is a no guilt dessert!
-Ali

what you need

1-1/2

cups boiling water

1

pkg. (0.3 oz.) JELL-O Raspberry Flavor Sugar Free Gelatin

1/2

square BAKER'S Bittersweet Chocolate

1/2

cup JET-PUFFED Miniature Marshmallows

3/4

cup thawed COOL WHIP Sugar Free Whipped Topping

1/4

cup fresh raspberries

make it

ADD boiling water to gelatin mix. Stir 2 min. or until completely dissolved; set aside. Place chocolate, marshmallows and COOL WHIP in medium microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH 1 min. or until marshmallows are completely melted and mixture is well blended when stirred. Gradually add gelatin, beating with whisk after each addition until well blended.

POUR into 4 dessert dishes. Refrigerate 4 hours or until firm.

TOP with berries just before serving.

kraft kitchens tips

SPECIAL EXTRA

Melt additional BAKER'S Bittersweet Chocolate; drizzle over chilled flan. Or, dust the raspberries with powdered sugar before using to garnish flan.

HOW TO PREPARE USING FROZEN COOL WHIP SUGAR FREE WHIPPED TOPPING

If the COOL WHIP is not thawed, you can still make this dessert without waiting. Just remove the frozen COOL WHIP from the tub and cut it in half using a sharp knife and a cutting board. Cut one of the halves into quarters. Use one of the quarters in the recipe and return the rest of the COOL WHIP to the refrigerator for another use. Increase microwave time to 2 min.

Updated Progress Pics

Hope everyone had a great holiday! I know that this time of year is when people make fitness/health resolutions. As lame-o as this may sound, don't call them resolutions, call them goals and you may find you are more likely to succeed. Also, do not set yourself up for failure. You will not be perfect, you will have days you eat like crap, and there will be days you should work out and don't find the time/energy, blah blah (insert excuse). I have been there, will still have those days, we all do. This has been a long journey, with many bumps in the road, but I know that I am healthier than I have ever been. If you have any questions, need motivation, just send me a message and I will be happy to help in any way I can. Last soap box message, please use myfitnesspal.com. This website is an awesome resource. Good luck!
Progress Pics 02/2011-12/31/2011(40 pounds down, about 49 pounds to go)

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It's been a while, but I am back :)

Hi everyone! Although I haven't blogged in a while I have stuck to my, weight loss and healthier me, journey. I've lost 40 pounds! I still have 49 pounds to go, but I know I can do it. Here's hoping that my lovely gift of the Polar FT7 heart rate monitor will assist me in this. I can't believe I am as excited about a fitness device! This contraption should really help me understand how many cals I truly burn and not just what the machine/MFP tells me I burned. Oh and one final change, we are also trying out a new gym, LA Fitness. So far it is kicking Urban's butt with the exception of the drive (UA-5 Minutes vs LA- 15 minutes). I'll let you know what we chose :)
Peace!
-Ali

Progress!!! With Pics :)

Hi everyone! It has been a while since I've blogged, but here I am :) I have continued on my journey even though I have not blogged, be rest assured! Recently I got a little unmotivated, but once I looked at other's success stories I was easily re-motivated. Being healthy is not easy and that is something I have to remember. Also, as cliche as the saying "Rome wasn't built in a day" is, it truthfully applies to my weight loss journey. I know that I didn't gain the weight in a day and it certainly wont come off in a day. I also know I need to pay more attention to what I eat, so I have been eating more vegetarian meals which surprisingly hasn't been hard.  What have you tried lately to become healthier?

Ali

Pics below are from the beginning of this journey to today. I have revised my goal to 165 pounds, so I have around 57 to go.

Friday weigh-in+August Pics

So... I am only down 1lbs from last week, but a pound is a pound! Total weight lost is 21.4 pounds and 53.6 pounds to go.I have my levels on livestrong.com as wanting to lose two pounds a week, but that is something I have not been able to do. Hopefully with personal training I'll be able to do that, if not this weight loss endeavor will take for forever! However, I do my best to look at not only the overall picture, but the current picture. I have small goals in addition to my larger goal of 75 pounds. One of my first goals is to get into a size 16 in clothes, without muffin top. Yuck... Another goal I have is to have less arm baggage. What are your long term and short term goals?
Ali
02/11

06/2011

08/2011

Not a good side shot because of the shirt. Normal picture clothes were in the wash.

Day 2: The Aftermath

Good grief. Is it okay to be so sore in your armpit area it's hard to drive? I have no clue, but you might not want to follow me closely... Apparently doing standing push ups is the way to go if you want to feel the burn and then feel it some more. Oh well back it tomorrow, with a prayer that arms aren't the main focus, or it could be a long time before I can move again.
-Ali
PS- So excited to have new followers, Stephanie and Eric!! Woohoo :)

Personal Training=You know I'm dedicated!

Thanks to Eric Fiegl and Mission 5 Fitness I got my first training session :) I know Eric, but was still scared for the toughness of the workout. Let me just say I do NOT know what I was doing for the last 5 months, but I am not sure it was working out, haha. I am ubber sore! It's a good sore mind you. I am super pumped and excited!

I've been stuck at 20 lbs lost so I am hopeful this will help. Based on my session today I don't see how it couldn't help my weight loss and health. I've posted some pics(well I hope they come through,also please please pretend like there is no mess behind me) below of the beginning of my journey til early June. I will take pics Friday and post more.
-Ali

Healthy Start to the week!

Weekend over, and it wasn't too bad. I started the week out with a serious workout, about 30 minutes of weights and 35 minutes on the elliptical. This is shocking because the person I used to be would never be happy about spending time in the gym, but I actually enjoy it now. How did you all start your week?
Ali

Weekend= Killer?

Not too much weight change. :( I had been down to 20lbs lost two weeks ago, but put on 2 lbs, and I am now at 20.8 pounds lost!The weekends kill me on the weight gain. I had good success last weekend on only gaining a pound over the weekend, which was gone by Tuesday morning, phew. So 54.2 pounds to go, but I know with my drive(stubbornness) I will make it. I just have a problem with being patient. This will all be worth it though since I want to live the healthiest life possible, so that I can be around for my friends and family.

So wish me luck this weekend,
Ali

Grocery Shopping

Grocery shopping while trying to be healthy is not cheap. When I consider how much cheaper it is to buy a frozen pizza than a healthy dinner such as salmon and rice it makes me irritated. How can America and other countries fight obesity and other related problems if it easier to feed your family on unhealthy cheap food while in a recession? (By the way if we are truly out of the recession, pinch me so I can wake up now from this horrible nightmare). I know that I am lucky in that I do not have a large family to feed, unless you count my furkids, but even their food is expensive. A lot needs to change in our country, maybe instead of focusing on healthcare our government should focus on the health of its people first. Food for thought...(haha, don't worry not quitting my day job to be a comedian ;)
-Sorry for the rant
Ali

Food...

Why does food have to taste so good, but be bad for you? I thought I ate pretty healthy today, okay minus the coke icee, but I tried to get cherry I swear! If you look at my plate you will see I ate pretty well, but even with exercise I went over. I will not starve myself, so I need to find a way to achieve my calorie goals, but still have yummy foods. Any ideas?
Ali

Revelations...

It has certainly been a while since I have blogged, but here I am :) I've recently come to the realization that there are very few things we can control in our lives(i.e., not getting a teaching job!). There is one thing though that I can control, and that is my weight. Is it easy? Um heck no! But I am even more determined to lose my weight. I have decided that the one year anniversary of mother's death will be my deadline for my 75lbs weight loss. Wondering why? Well you will have to wait until 2.7.12 to find out ;)Hope you all are having a healthy day and are staying cool!
-Ali

PT Tuesday

I didn't work out today(I did track), shame! Well I did if you count cleaning and PT. After all the crud I go through with PT I know I burn at least 100 cals. Unfortunately today at PT I learned that Humana will likely only approve 2 or 3 more visits. So this means a trip to the Ortho doc, which I am going with a different one at Commonwealth. Appt is set for this Friday. I don't know what they are going to want to do, but my guess is a MRI(which I don't want). However, after over a month of PT and a minimal improvement something has to give. The irony of the fact that I want to work out to be healthy and my body is hindering me is hysterical...not.
-Enough whining, good luck in your health journey!
Ali