Ninja Fingers 2.0

Tebowing

2012-01-12T13:30:00.000-08:00

I am a diehard Dallas Cowboys fan folks, and since my boys didn’t make it into the playoffs (said as I wipe a tear away) I have to admit that I’m rooting for Denver. Usually the Patriots are my fallback team because we lived in Boston for three years, I think Belichick is funny and Tom Brady, even though a DB, is just a freaken stellar of a quarterback. I don’t watch a lot of football, even though it’s on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and sometimes Thursday for hours on end in our home. I can handle a game or two, but sitting in front of the TV from 11am to midnight watching it makes me want to clean the house, or read, or poke my eyes out. Kyle is a huge Chiefs fan, and I mean huge, and he can’t even help himself when it comes to Denver this year. The story of Tebow is hard not to get caught up in. A good kid getting drafted and playing his heart out, honoring his God, and not being a thug or jackass has won a place in my heart. Saturday night’s game is now being called a miracle.

This got me thinking, I don’t think that Tebow is being blessed with amazing wins and talent because he is such an awesome Christian. I think he is being blessed because he is highly visible and is allowing God to use him. If you look back at the people God used in the bible all of them are jacked up in some way or another. Noah got drunk and naked, Moses killed a dude and buried him in the sand, King David sent a man into battle so the dude would die and David could have his wife…. The list goes on. So often we are afraid of what people will think of us when they find out we are Christians. Will they still like me? Will they think I’m weird? What if they tell other people I’m weird? Will they think I’m going to beat them over the head with a bible? Will they think I don’t like them? I think these are the questions that get in the way of letting God use us to our fullest. It’s funny too because the people that don’t ask these questions are the ones that we look up to. They are comfortable in their own skin and being around someone that is content brings contentment in our own hearts and minds. I know that it’s only a matter of time before boy wonder does something to fall from grace, but honestly, I would seriously question his authenticity if he didn’t. We are all human, and we all do something that’s stupid and that is what makes us human again.

So make fun of the guy that inspired “Tebowing it”, and disagree with his beliefs, but you gotta admit, he’s a pretty stand up guy.

Boxing myself in

2011-11-15T07:51:00.000-08:00

This morning was successful, but I wasn't happy about it. I just didn't want to get up. Last night was my normal stay-up-until-11-watching-a-football-game-I-don't-really-care-about Monday night, but at least Nicole and I ate decently healthily. I really didn't have any reason to sleep in, not to be really tired. But, I drug my unhappy butt out of bed and commenced with one of the few workouts that I enjoy- hitting a heavy bag in a boxing workout. It's good exercise and it helps me get work frustration out.

I may have mentioned this before, but there are really only a few exercise routines that I like. I hate running. I despise swimming. Even road biking sucks. I'm perfectly content riding an exercise bike in my basement, lifting weights, boxing, or playing basketball (which I haven't done in probably 10 years.) This makes a program like Ninja Fingers a little more of a challenge to find something that gets my heart rate up, yet I won't either get bored or get frustrated and quit.

Any suggestions?

The work/exercise balance

2011-11-10T08:03:00.000-08:00

One thing that I have realized in restarting Ninja Fingers is that I had a totally different work/life balance the last go around. When we started the first time, I worked for a company that was going out of business. I was still getting paid by them, but we basically didn't have anything in stock to sell. As a result, it was easy for me to either exercise in the mornings, and go into work a little bit late, or to come home mid-afternoon and work out. I'm one of these people that either has to exercise first thing in the morning, or at a time that is a couple hours after eating. I'm also taxed at the end of the day, so I have a hard time working out right after work.

This go around, I work sometimes 12 hours a day. I'm usually at my office between 8 and 8:30 am, so to find the time and energy to work out in the morning is tough.

I'm trying not to sound whiny, or that I'm complaining- it's just tough to drag myself out of bed at 5:45 or 6 am to work out. So, if you see me, please give me a fist bump, and tell me to stop being lazy.

Trying to restrain "Cheat Days"

2011-11-07T07:36:00.000-08:00

One of the things that a lot of successful lifestyle eating and exercise plans share in common is the concept that if there's really something you want to eat, go ahead and do it. Just realize that you will have to do some extra work to cover for it.

At the beginning of Ninja Fingers, Nicole and I each allowed ourselves one cheat day per week where the rules were relaxed, and we could indulge those food fantasies that had been following us around all week. We usually set aside Saturdays as the day where she would eat fast food, I would eat buffalo wings, and we would always feel bad on Sunday.

This weekend, I failed miserably. Friday I should just write off all together as the caloric destruction I did to my body Friday night was of epic proportions. Did that stop me from doing it all again on Saturday? Nope. Oh, maybe Sunday was better. Nuh uh.

This week, I will continue to try to make healthy decisions every day, exercise as much as I can, and keep my cheat day to what it should be- one day.

-Kyle

My name is Nicole Harsha, and I’m addicted to TV

2011-11-06T12:19:00.000-08:00

As I come out of my six hour movie haze I realize that I’m hungry and thirsty. I get up from my couch bed and make my way past the shoe cemetery, dog hair tumble weeds, dirty laundry dump, clean laundry dump and enter the land of crusty dishes and slimy pots and pans. Never mind that this is the fifth cup that I have had a beverage out of today, creating more dishes for me to clean, I still reach for a clean glass and pour myself some water. Here is what goes through my head as I look around on my way back to the couch.

Man, this place is a mess.
What’s that smell? Is it in the kitchen sink or the trash?
Look at all that laundry.
Why do we always leave our shoes in the living room to step over?
Where did I put my, ooooh, Hanna is now available on demand. I’ll watch that then clean. Yeah, that sounds good.

I love TV. Actually, I love movies and now that we have a million movie channels I find that I can’t pull myself away from the screen. They are my way of escaping the world for a couple of hours. Ever since I was a kid I’ve had this way of tuning out the world and only hearing what was on TV. My sister used to make a game out of it and see how many times it would take me to realize she was calling my name. It never got past five.

Lately, I’ve let television rule my life. Instead of using it as a relaxing couple of hours I’ve been escaping into oblivion. The entire weekend Kyle was gone fishing I watched movies. I could have done so much with my time, but I chose to “rest” instead. Even as Kyle watches football (something I don't enjoy watching all day), I still lie around and do nothing. Well, I’m tired of being a filmy goo on the couch. I say that as soon as I’m done typing, which I’m secretly using as a procrastinating ploy, I’ll clean this house and do the laundry! Damn it, I will be lazy no more.... at least until Cowboys and Aliens is available at red box.

Charlie nesting in a pile of dirty laundry.

I am fat, and I am tired

2011-11-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

Hello all. Yes, we are back again and I am fat.... again. Here are my problems with being overweight.
1) I have struggled with this my entire life. Realizing that it will be a life long thing sucks.
2) My clothes don’t fit and they don’t make clothes I like in my size.
3) Girls that have a “pooch” are not fat. So please stop complaining about it. It infuriates me.
4) I hate having my picture taken.
5) Its effected my health on the inside. My liver enzymes are pretty elevated and my doctor thinks it’s due to my fat intake.

I have to say that I’m comfortable with my squishy body until I actually see myself. We had our Smashie team pictures taken and I hate the way I look. I thought that they were going to "fix" it by photo shopping off belly pounds. Alas, it did not happen so I’m stuck with it. I look pregnant (which I’m not) and I have to deal with it being my fault. I ate the food, I didn’t keep on top of it, so now I have to lose the weight…again. Here is the pic. Everyone looks pretty smoken, except me. Oh well, I’ll get over it one day.

On a lighter note, our first local bout is on Saturday! I’ve worked for about year to get to this point and I am so excited!!! We are lined up to play the M-80s who are picked to win the championship this year. This was starting to play with my head a little until we scrimmaged against them this week. It was just like playing any other team. We can so do this! We’ve got AMAZING seasoned players on our team and I have been just blown away by their knowledge and athleticism. These girls are awesome and I am so honored to be on a team with them.

These past few weeks have been pretty busy with work and derby. Practice until 10pm and getting up at 5 or 5:30 is starting to take its toll. I've neglected my love and my laundry. So my love took care of the laundry! Big thank you to Kyle for folding, straightening, and washing this week. I really really appreciate it! xoxo

Go Smashies!!!!!

Rest

2011-10-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

We need rest.

As a nation, Americans are over-worked and under rested. Just think about it- the term "workaholic" has almost become a badge of honor in our society. We are constantly caffeinated, and even when we aren't "working" we are constantly inundated with a stream of information from our emails, cell phones, Twitter feeds, Facebook pages, Sportscenter, News at 6, Texts, etc, etc, etc.

This has led us to become a nation of people that will die early while being fat, stressed to the max, and with no concept of real connections with people.

We have forgotten what it is like to sit back, relax, unplug, and enjoy the world around us.

This weekend, I decided to change that. I went down to the Lake of the Ozarks with three other guys that I barely know. On Friday, after we watched the end of the Cardinals game, I turned my cell phone off ((GASP!!!)). Not once until I got home Sunday evening did I check my email, twitter, or facebook.

You know what? It was awesome. We spent time as guys fishing, farting, playing cards, cussing, and talking about relationships, God, and how we were going to fix the problems of the world. By the time I got back on Sunday I realized that the information overload that I had unplugged from had very little relevance on my life during that day and a half. My company was still in business, my wife still loved me, and my house hadn't burned down. I was a great combination of rested and exhausted- it felt great.

I would encourage you to do the same. Sometime soon, truly unplug for a day or two, you'll thank me for it.

Gettin Physical

2011-10-27T14:04:00.000-07:00

So, today I did something that I haven't done in probably a decade. I went to the doctor for a physical. Let me say from the beginning that I'm not proud of this. The "longest time between physicals" is not a game that you want to win. Especially if you are starting a new health regime, it's pretty critical that you get yourself checked out so you know what your baseline readings are for weight, cholesterol, blood pressure, etc.

You know what? It really wasn't that bad. I had lost 5 lbs since I was last at the doctor's office (in August for a small procedure that you definitely don't want details on), my blood pressure was perfect, and my ekg looked just dandy.

I did have a small problem with getting my blood drawn. Here's the deal- I hate needles. I would make the world's worst heroin addict. It all stems back to me getting freaked out by that scene in Star Wars where they are about to pump Princess Leia with truth serum from that floating basketball-robot-needle-thing. As an impressionable lad, that scene scared me into thinking all needles were bad. Just ask my folks about my various incidents at doctor's offices growing up. So, when the medical assistant stabbed me with the jagged metal, my face turned pale. She looked at me, and said "You can't faint, because I'm not going to catch you." Luckily I didn't pass out.

The doctor said that we are doing the right things- eating better, exercising more, losing weight.

We'll see how my blood work looks next week, but I'm not worried.

Until then, have a great weekend- I'm going fishing.
Kyle

Version 2, day three

2011-10-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

This is kind of the first "real" day of Ninja Fingers. Monday I ate healthily, but had a big dinner at the Dorm Room. Yesterday I made my first sophomore mistake by forgetting to bring my lunch, resulting in me having to buy lunch (actually not too bad- a wrap from Chick-fil-A, no sauce, no fries, and an unsweetened Iced Tea.

Today, I woke up feeling hung over even though I had zero to drink yesterday. I have a headache, my ears are ringing, and I have cotton mouth. It's weird, I remember this happening a lot at the beginning last time.

That being said, if you are trying to start a new, healthy lifestyle- don't worry if you feel like crap the first couple of days. It's just your body adjusting. The best thing to do is just try to make one healthy decision each day.

Today- Protein shake for breakfast, sandwich and water for lunch, and some glazed pork chops from E-Mealz.com for dinner.

Tomorrow will likely be more expletive-laden, as I'm going to a doctor to get my first physical in about 10 years. Great.
Kyle

Ninjas are back!

2011-10-25T14:52:00.000-07:00

Okay, so many of you have followed this blog since its inception a couple of years ago as the original Ninja Fingers health program. At the beginning of 2010, we decided to try to eat better, lose weight, and be generally healthier people. It worked really well for a while. Kyle dropped about 40 pounds, and Nicole lost around 20. Well, as often happens, life got in the way. No excuses, we just quit paying attention to our eating. As a result, we are both back to the weights that we originally started, and need to start over.

We will do the same plan as before- portion control our meals, eat less carbs and fat, drink less alcohol and soda, and exercise a lot more. Saturdays are our "Cheat" days where we can let loose a bit. It's really not rocket science, and there's no pill/dvd/website/monk chant that will do it for us.

If you are new to this thing, check out our trials from early last year- it's a fun ride.

This blog took a slight hiatus as Nicole documented her rolly derby experiences- those will still be posted on here, as that is how she will be exercising. As for Kyle- who knows. It will likely be a lot of boxing, lifting, and exercise biking in the "dojo".

Glad to have your support- don't buy us beers during the week.

Balancing Act

2011-05-11T11:30:00.000-07:00

Okay, so last week was the derby draft and I didn't get drafted. Whaa whaaaa. So the process of the draft is that teams scout for months and then on the draft night the rookies scrimmage and then the captains decide which ladies they would like on their team. Let me preface this with since February I have had tickets for Kyle and I to go see Jimmy Buffet. It was Kyle's birthday present and the concert was May 3rd. Aaaaannnnnddd the scrimmage draft… yep, was May 3rd. When I realized what was happening I of course flipped out because 1) I have been crazy stressed at work with a new position and 2) I have been a little overwhelmed with my new schedule of working and derby practice. So what did I do? I cried on Jezebel’s shoulder (a vet skater whom I love), then I cried on Brandie's shoulder (a rookie whom I love), and then I cried on Romo's shoulder (my coach whom I love). When I finally got control of the flood gates and had let all of my frustrations and fears out, I followed all of my derby ladies advice and went to the concert with my hubby. I'll admit it, I'm bummed I didn't get drafted. BUT, I'm also super happy that I got to go spend time with my love. I got to see Kyle truly enjoy a night of crazy, grass skirt, coconut bikini, dancing in the street, parrot head shark fin wearing nuts. Even though it was freaken 30 degrees outside and our faces were frozen, they were at least frozen with smiles.

The night before the scrimmage Jezebel told me to decide what was more important, and I feel that I did just that....

Bobby Blizzard

2011-04-08T06:23:00.001-07:00

Today at work I probably drank eight gallons of water and as a consequence had to pee about 20 times. One of these times hit me hard and fast and as I was part skipping and run walking to the bathroom I was reminded of the time I met a football player named Bobby Blizzard.

When I was in college we all decided it would be a grand idea to have some drinks before we went to a party. This way we were guaranteed to be smashed by the end of the night even if nobody had anything to drink at the party. So being the responsible 18 year old that I was, I used my handy dandy older sister’s license and bought us all alcohol to enjoy.
When we had a good buzz, we all piled into the cars, with our DD’s, and headed out to let the shenanigans ensue. As we were driving, our friends behind us flashed their brights and one of the boys in my car thought it would be funny to flash them back with giving them the bird. Well…. come to find out it wasn’t our friend behind us, and it wasn’t funny.

A black SUV of very large men pulled up beside us and rolled down the windows. One of the boys in my car yelled, “Oh my God! That’s Bobby Blizzard!” in a, I love that guy, slash, I’m terrified, sort of way. For those of you that don’t know, ol’ Bobby was a Wildcat football player who had many football friends. So, It was at this point, through the yelling, screaming, and cussing, that we realized all the boys in my car were about to die because there was a red light up ahead. We all start screaming at our DD to step on it! Through all the mayhem the driver made the only sober decision he could think of and floored it through the light ahead leaving Bob and his buddies behind. Win! However, what we didn’t see was the lovely lady cop sitting at the same red light. She of course did her duty and pulled us over. Lose! Now, I've had copious amounts of drinks by this point in the night and I’m holding my boyfriends open container and I have to pee, really, really, reeeeeeally bad. Our driver explained that we were being chased by large angry football boys and that we HAD to run the light or she would have been picking up the pieces of our bodies from the side of the road. She listened, talked, gave our DD a sobriety test, talked some more, and then made us wait for about 10 minutes while she checked on some stuff in her car. Did I mention that I had to pee? Yeah, so by the time we had been sitting for about 30 minutes I was in tears. Oh, and while I’m holding it, I have a beer bottle pushed up against the car seat behind my calf and my leg is cramping. The boys were great and kept telling me to hang on we’re almost in the clear, it’s going to be okay, you’re not going to jail, and please don’t pee in my car. The lady cop reappeared and blessed our DD with a ticket for running the red light and then let us go to continue our night. The boys cheered and I cried and laughed from relief. Once we finally made it to the party we became heroes because we escaped Bob Blizzard, the lady cop, and I got to pee behind a bush. Phew!

Spectacular Spills

2011-03-15T07:39:00.000-07:00

I had the most spectacular spill last night at derby practice! Actually, it was a couple of spills. We were introduced to blocking and they had the Bevo Kill just lay us out. The first hit I took really well but because I didn’t stick my butt out enough I tripped on her skate and literally landed on my shoulder then head. It was awesome! Then we were doing another blocking drill and I took the hit again but when I went to do a turn around toe stop I was all of the sudden floating. You know how wrestlers jump in the air and then land flat on their backs? Yeah, I had slipped backwards again and was on my way to land on the floor into a full on body slam. I think I was so scared that I would hit my tail bone again that I tucked my butt and straighten in the air. Thank God I had a helmet on or I don't think I would have remembered how to type this morning! It didn't hurt, just jarred me a little. I laughed so hard! It must have looked something awful because even my coach asked if I was okay. I had so much fun! My shoulder is a little sore and scratched from doing a half summersault on it, but nothing that a little ibprophen won’t fix.

We have a skills test we will have to take eventually to get cleared for scrimmaging and we’ve been practicing 20 laps in 5 minutes while in a pack. Endurance right now is not my strong suit so by lap 13 I can barely move my legs or breathe. One of the newbie’s, Sherry, saw that I was really struggling so she got behind me at number 17 and started pushing. I was a little embarrassed at first but then oh so grateful that she helped me out. I didn’t want to be the reason we didn’t make our time and my teammate didn’t let that happen.

I know what I need to work on personally and am trying really hard not to compare myself with the other girls that are much faster than me. I always feel so bad for the people that have to partner up with me when it comes to the endurance stuff, cause we’re going to go slow when I’m pushing or pulling. I still love the challenge and I still really love derby!

Week One…

2011-02-21T09:36:00.000-08:00

Last week was my first full week of practicing with the vets. Whoa, what a freaken learning curve!!!! Mondays are just dedicated to teaching NewBees basic skills and I sucked bad that night mainly because I didn’t eat or drink very much water during the day. Big mistake. Huge…. I have to go shopping now… wait… sorry, lapsed into movie quote mode. Come Tuesday I had learned my lesson and rehydrated, but then subjected myself to 30 min of off skates conditioning led by Artemischief. The most amazing kick ass 30 minutes of work out I’ve gotten in years, BUT, oh my, can I die now please? Thursday was a power practice from 6 to 7 that I couldn’t make, but I really enjoyed regular practice from 7 to 9. On Friday I went to visit our coach Romo at her derby store Rockstar Skates and bought some laces, new ball bearings, and toe guards to protect and dress up my skates a little. Sunday brought the All Star Traveling team practice. Advice to those who are new to derby… when you switch out your ball bearings, you go much faster. In fact, they are so much faster that I fell backwards again and hit my tailbone… again. I’ve never hurt myself so badly that I wanted to throw up until yesterday. The pain that shot through my body did not go away until I took one of Kyle’s pain killers left over from his hernia surgery! But there’s more!!! Not only did I fall, but the muscle next to my right shin was balling up and starting to pop out. I was only an hour in and really embarrassed that I couldn’t finish. What I was feeling can only be described as like a Charlie Horse, but on the front of my leg. Because I was skating faster I was leaning forward and gripping for dear life with my toes therefore overworking the muscles in my legs. Chewblocka was awesome though and could tell I was in a lot of pain and told me to stay off skates for the rest of the day. So I went home with my head hung low and all embarrassed that I couldn’t finish.

Because I didn’t know what to expect in practices at the begining of the week my anxiety levels shot through the roof. What if there aren’t any other NewBees there? What if I’m the slowest one? What if I suck so bad that they all talk about me behind my back? What if…what if… Hello!!! It’s my first week and nobody expects me to be perfect. Compaired to the other girls I am the slowest and also the least in shape, but that’s not why I’m doing this. I’m not there to compare myself to other people. The vets have truly been so amazing with encouragements. One point in Tuesday’s practice I thought I couldn’t go another inch and as Trippity skated by she said, “Come on you can do it!”. It was just what I needed to get my head back in and finish strong. Downtown Dallas and the Foreclosure both offered words of comfort when I was last to finish yesterday in a drill. That’s why I’m there, support and empowerment to finish strong! Thanks ladies and yay derby!

I'd also like to send a quick thank you to Kyle. He's been so sweet and supportive through my anxiety, mood swings, and freak outs. Thank you love and I appreciate everything so much!!! xoxo

Love for Derby…. I'm 30!!!

2011-02-16T07:15:00.001-08:00

At the beginning of our relationship, Kyle made it very clear that he is NOT a fan of Valentines Day. The poor guy got dumped twice by different girls on this sappy sweet day and has never forgiven it. I figured since my birthday is three days before and if Kyle showers me with love and affection during that time, I could agree to not do the V day. So tonight instead of going to a restaurant and getting tons of candy and flowers from my hubby, I will be going to my first ever practice with the ladies of the derby.

Speaking of my birthday….. I had an absolute blast for my 30th! I took the day off on my actual b-day, Friday the 11th, to sleep in, get a hair cut, and go to dinner with my sister and Kyle. The next day we slept in again, had a huge breakfast cooked by Kyle, and then off to a bout. I helped set up and get ready for the sold out event, but had asked if I could watch the bout with my friends. They agreed and I am so thankful they did! It was the M-80s vs. The Rebel Skate Alliance and because it was the playoffs everything was kicked up a notch! It seemed a lot more violent and exciting! I was so glad that my friends got to see a bout that was awesome till the end. After the Rebel Skate Alliance won we hightailed it out of there to commence the birthday celebration at my friend Cat’s house. I was totally blown away by all the preparations. There was a litany of homemade salsas, guacamole, chips, pulled pork sandwiches, Cat’s awesome homemade pickles, and the cherry on top, a nacho cheese fountain. Oh my!

Thank you to all my friends that went to the bout with me and for also celebrating at Cat’s house. A special thank you to my friend Cat that threw me the best party ever and also to my husband that made my celebrations go from one day to two! Love yall!

I’m an Arch Rival Roller Girl!!!!

2011-02-08T06:10:00.001-08:00

I was so nervous last night that I showed up at the rink an hour before we had to be there. I found myself literally walking in circles at home… have to get my stuff together, no clean the kitchen, no get my skates, no change clothes, no wait… where am I going? So I left an hour and 15 minutes before I actually had to be on the rink. Once I walked through the door my anxiety level dropped from “I’m going to lose my mind”, to “I’m so crazy nervous”.

We warmed up and had a powwow with Romo where she told us what was going to be expected of us. I fell with grace, plow stopped with awkwardness, and skated as fast as I could. The one thing they really wanted to see was our passion, so that’s what I gave them. I pushed myself hard and made sure I was sweating! One saving grace was that we were running over time so they had to skip the hopping drill. Thank you Lord! That was the one thing I was really freaked out about because my tailbone is still pretty tender. If I had fallen on it again I might have thrown up. But, we didn’t have to do it so I was in the clear!

I want to thank my sweet husband for all of his support and being so excited for me when I saw my name on the list. When I told him I made it he ran around the house yelling that I was a roller girl and popped some sparkling wine for me. It’s a moment in our marriage that will forever stay with me. Thank you also for the support from our friends and family that let me know they were behind me. It means so much to me to feel that love so thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Me after tryouts flashing my tryout number!

Postponed :(

2011-02-03T11:48:00.001-08:00

I haven’t posted lately to tell you if I made the league or not because tryouts were postponed. I had all day to work myself up and then was let down by the weather once again. It didn’t even get bad until later that night. My mother in law calls it divine intervention; I call it a pain in the butt. Oh well, better safe then sorry….I guess.

So tryouts are going to be the same time and place next week. Come Monday I will be all sorts of nervous and crazy so I might not post again until I find out on Tuesday if I’m in or out. In the meantime I will be visualizing (per my sister), squatting and lunging (per Kyle) and trying to sit still at work (per my boss).

Tailbone update…
My tailbone has gotten much better, but is still very uncomfortable. I don’t think it is broken, but it is really hard to sit in the car, on the couch, or at work without squirming for hours. Thankfully I don’t have to sit for tryouts. As long as I don’t fall on it again I’ll be alright. Honestly I think it’s helping me stay low and forward while skating because I’m too scared to fall backwards again. Thank you for your concerns and please pray that I don’t drive myself mad with nerves on Monday!

And then there were 20…

2011-01-25T10:47:00.000-08:00

Thinking back to information night a couple months ago, there were 58 girls lining up to try out for derby. We all had dreams of smashing, falling, pushing, and pulling our way to the top. Through the weeks of meet and greets we lost a few, but not enough to stand out. Last night I counted 20 lovely bad ass ladies still in the game to fight for the right to wear fishnets in public. It was our last practice before the big tryouts on the 31st. I’m scared, excited, and ready to skate my heart out. But will it be enough?

I do have one set back. I hurt myself pretty bad last night. We were doing a hopping drill and I slipped backwards and landed on my tailbone really hard. It’s pretty badly bruised and I’m not sure how it’s going to affect my tryouts. As long as I don’t fall on it again and concentrate I should be okay. It cracked my confidence a little and when we skated five laps around the rink my time was a few seconds worse than last week. A hurting tailbone is funny because you feel pain, but aside from lying on your stomach, there is nothing you can do to ease it. I’m currently trying to sit on a yoga mat that is intricately folded but it is still really uncomfortable.
Please pray that I heal quickly and that I’ll be able to put up an honest fight come tryout night!

Week 2 of Booty Camp

2011-01-18T12:41:00.000-08:00

Last week there was no Booty Camp due to the weather that did absolutely nothing. There was a ton of hubbub in the news about, “The snow! The snow! We are all going to die because of the snow! So hunker down everyone and go to the grocery and by milk, eggs, and bread!” The short of it is that we had maybe a couple of inches and it was sloppy and wet. Damn! (Can you tell I’m bitter about having to go to work the next day?) I digress.

Last night was week 2 of Booty Camp. We learned weaving, hopping, marching, four point fall, skating in a pack, running on our stoppers, and how to skate wicked fast. At one point we had to skate five times around the rink, without instruction on how to do it correctly, and our coach Romo timed us. She said that as a Potential, a minute and ten seconds is a good goal. I heard some girls chicken out to be the first to go and I thought, "screw it, lets get this done". Plus I knew I would be faster than the other two girls skating with me so even if I was super slow they would make me look faster. A little strategy done on my part, sorry if that’s mean! What was my time you ask? 55 seconds! I did cross the line out of bounds a couple times but one of the veterans said that eventually it would get to the point where I would build up muscle memory and learn not to do that anymore. I would just instinctively know where to go on the track to stay in bounds and not get a penalty.
Today I feel pretty good but I know that Wednesday will be rough as far as soreness. My left knee is killing me, but I think that will go away as I lose weight and build muscle. It was really encouraging to see all the vets help the potentials with pointers. They were all more than happy to help and I was more than happy to hear it.

In other news, Kyle had hernia repair surgery on Friday last week. He’s had some ups and downs but came out of it fairly quickly. I’m so glad that he feels better and so happy that the little alien in his abdomen is gone! Yay Kyle!

A look at the subconsious

2011-01-07T08:39:00.000-08:00

For Christmas this year I got a book called A Course in Weight Loss by Marianne Williamson from my sister. Usually giving someone a book like this would be grounds for a beat down, but my sister and I are very open and honest about our weight and she knows I struggle with this subject. (Heeellllloooo, hence the blog.) Plus she wants to read it after me. Each chapter of the book is a different lesson and has a different visualization exercise at the end. So far it’s been a great read. It’s been more about the spiritual side of losing weight and letting go of your fear and worries at God’s feet. The entire concept of the book is that if you are an overeater, which I am, then there is something going on subconsciously in your mind and you are not giving it to God. Ever hear the term eating your emotions? That’s what this focuses on. It gives you the tools to recognize that you are upset and should be praying instead of eating.

The best chapter I’ve read so far is the one on the thin you and the not so thin you. The author makes you picture the thin you actually meeting the not so thin you. I like to call these two people in me, Whippen Dixie (the thin me) and Rolie Colie (not so thin me). At the end of the chapter you have to write a letter from each perspective to the other. In doing this exercise I realized that I am almost afraid of the person I might become when I’m thin. The last time I was really in shape I was immature, flighty, and irresponsible. I’ve worked a long time to grow spiritually and emotionally and on a subconscious level I think that I will turn back into the other person if I lose all the weight. Self preservation is what they call it in the book. Now I’m trying to get to like the thin me so that I wont be afraid to become her.

Whoa, that was deep… I’ll keep you posted on more of my revelations as they come.

Ouch….

2011-01-05T07:05:00.001-08:00

This morning I woke up to find that my muscles are really angry with me. Yeah I was sore yesterday, but that was nothing compared to what my legs feel now. Ouch is all I have to say. I think the only thing that will help at this point is lots of stretching and lots of moving around.

On a lighter note, one of the girls that is already in the league, but not on a team, got all of her gear stolen out of her car last week. Sad day indeed because just your normal decent pair of skates is about $100 and that doesn’t even include all of the padding you need. So all the girls she practices with took up a collection and gave her money for new skates! All together now, awwwwe! Everyone always thinks that derby girls are this rough and tumble group of girls, but they have great hearts and big love for each other.

Hearing this story only fuels my passion to get in the league this year. Getting back in the skates tonight to workout those hurten muscles!

Booty everywhere!

2011-01-04T09:05:00.000-08:00

First day of high school, first tryout for the dance team and the first performance in front of a crowd are all examples of times I was so nervous I wanted to throw up. I can now add the first night of booty camp. When I pulled up to the Skatium all I could hear in my head was Adam Sandler’s voice saying “They’re all going to laugh at you!” My palms were sweaty, my heart was jumping out of my chest, and I felt so stupid for getting this nervous. Kyle had suggested that I listen to Metallica to pump myself up on the way but I assured him that my heart was plenty pumped.

While staring at the door for a bit I calmed myself down and entered the land of kick ass. Once I found the other girls I noticed that they looked as wide eyed as I did so I was put as ease. We quickly checked in and then hit the floor to start some training. We skipped, lunged, and grapevined the length of the rink and were all sucking in some major air. After a water break we then commenced to learn how to fall, recover, and stop the derby way.

My legs hurt, and my knee is swollen, but I had an absolute blast. The veterans that were there were more than willing to help with pointers and I appreciated any information they were willing to give. There are a lot of girls trying out and the coach, Romo, said that this group was the most prepared group of potentials she’s ever seen. (which could make it harder to get in the league this go round) I know that I’m not the best potential out there, but I’m also not the worst. I’ll practice on my own Wednesday and hope that come Monday I’ll be ready for it again!

2011

2011-01-03T11:49:00.000-08:00

This year I am not going to make a grand resolution to do something. I am not going to make this year the year that I will eat less, exercise more, write a book, climb a mountain, run a marathon, pray more, read more, or make more money. All I am going to say about the year 2011 is that I really just want to have a freaken blast. This year the possibilities are endless and I am heading into it with eyes wide open, and a smile on my face. Whatever God has in store for me, I’m game. So let’s get it on!

Booty Camp

2011-01-03T10:37:00.000-08:00

Tonight is the first night of booty camp. Yikes! I’m scared out of my mind and also so crazy excited.

Someone asked me last week why I decided to do roller derby and my initial thought was, “Why not? Helllloooo, because it’s awesome.” And then I realized that I want to do this because I’m turning 30 in February. I feel like my 20’s were all about figuring out who I am and the kind of person I want to become. Well I don’t have it figured out yet, but I am much more comfortable with the person I am becoming. I think roller derby will help me find my voice and build confidence. Plus it will work me out like I’ve never been worked out before!

And so it begins…..

Wipeout…

2010-12-03T11:22:00.000-08:00

****Posted by Nicole

Last night we turned the Harsha Wines Warehouse into Harsha Hot Wheels Skating Rink! I’ve been a little embarrassed lately to strap on all this gear to do what little kids do so easily and without fear. So Kyle and I put on some Black Crows and I got my skate on while he did some paperwork in the office. I skated around the delivery van, pallets of wine, and shelves of bottles but my wheels kept getting nicked by little rocks and pieces of wood. So I grabbed the massive broom we have and started skating and sweeping at the same time. When I came around the last corner the broom got caught on a rough patch in the cement and stopped while my skates continued to skate. The next thing I knew I was looking up at my feet and falling down hip and hand first, fast and furiously. Uh oh, this is going to suck.
All Kyle heard sitting in the office was some commotion and a loud “OOOF” followed by some moaning. He came into the warehouse to find me rolling around on the floor grunting something about my wrist and sweeping. After sitting on the floor for about 3 minutes I was able to get back up on the horse and keep going. It did shake me up a little and my wrist and hips took a beating. I thank God that I had my wrist guards on and didn’t have to finish the night in the emergency room. Phew! I came out of my first real wipeout with no broken bones. Win!

The Meet and Greet

2010-11-24T11:54:00.001-08:00

****Posted by Nicole

Monday night was the first of three meet and greets that the roller derby league set up for the girls that want to try out. It was held at the Rock and Rollarena in Arnold and I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t know if we would be doing drills, just skating, or learning new tricks. My stomach was in knots not only because I was nervous but also because I thought there might be a squirrel making a nest in the middle of my guest bed upstairs. (Another story for another day)

So I walked in the rink and thankfully found some other girls that were just as lost and freaked out as me. As I strapped on my knee pads, elbow pads, and wrist guards I noticed that little kids started pouring in and this was just a regular skating rink. I honestly thought they were extinct! They did all the normal activities that we used to do as kids; the hokey pokey, limbo, and couples skate! I was in heaven! I had stepped into some kind of time warp. Back when things were simple and all I had to worry about was not hurting myself and if they were going to play my favorite jams Walk Like An Egyptian and Who Made Heaven a Place on Earth.

Overall I had a great time. I didn’t fall once! (Wobbled a lot, but no wipeouts.) I met a ton of really nice girls and am still really excited to do this Derby thang!

The rink!

The only thing that bothered me when I got home were my shins. Ooof! So I listened to Kyle and put ice on them. The next morning I felt great!!!

Butterflies…..more like angry little elves!

2010-11-22T12:29:00.001-08:00

****Posted by Nicole

Tonight is my first meet and greet with the derby girls and my stomach is all a flutter with little mean elves. It feels like they have a gymnastics competition going on in there! I know I’ll be fine once I get there, but for now I want to just throw up. You see, I have a little something called social anxiety. It’s not so bad that I won’t do things, but it’s just enough to make me really nervous before I do something new by myself. I had to take an Excedrin Migraine too and I think the caffeine might have just fueled the fire. If anyone reads this before 5:30 please pray that my stomach stops flipping out enough so I can skate without having to run to the bathroom!

It’s ALIVE!!!!

2010-11-20T06:45:00.000-08:00

****Posted by Nicole

One night in June or July Kyle was roasting a chicken while watching TV. All of the sudden our oven started beeping crazily and flashing F1. Ever since that frightful night the stove top worked but the oven did not. We would be sitting in the living room all nice and quiet and out of nowhere it would start beeping and yelling at us again. It’s been difficult to live without an oven mainly because a lot of low fat recipes require baking, but we have managed. Well Thanksgiving is upon us and we have a turkey to cook. So in order to participate in one of the most glutinous holidays in America, we bought an oven to cook our turkey in.

I am so excited to use our new toy because it’s gas not electric! A wonderful, trustworthy, neighbor and friend helped us set up our kitchen to have the option to use gas. (side note: While he was doing this he also found a gas leak in our basement. Yikes!)

Big thanks to my parents for funding the purchase! They had given us trips to Mexico for Christmas, but Kyle wasn’t able to go. So they let us keep the cash and spend it on whatever we needed. Also another huge shout out to our neighbor Will that spent many hours in our basement and kitchen. It would have cost us at least a thousand dollars to do this with a professional so we are so grateful for his help. It’s so much fun to see how God blesses and provides for us with the people in our lives!

So proud of my Hubby!!!

2010-11-18T07:51:00.000-08:00

****Posted by Nicole

Last night Kyle and I got to go to a launch party for a new local golf magazine called Avid. Through some contacts, and his Sippin blog (http://www.sippinstl.blogspot.com/), Kyle got tapped to write a couple of articles for their release!

The party was in full swing when we got there and had a lot of very fancy people, that I did not know, hobnobbing and schmoozing. I met the one person Kyle knew in the room, ate some shrimp, had a couple drinks, snagged some magazines, and then left to have our own launch party a couple doors down at the Fatted Calf. I gotta say, the food there was much better! We had surprisingly tasty humongo burgers that were not very Ninja friendly. I did make a conscious decision to switch coke for water and also to share an order of fries and mushrooms. We finished the night at our favorite place, 33 wine bar, and called it a successful launch/celebration night.

I am super excited and proud of Kyle for always looking for new ventures and never being afraid to put his name out there. Love you sweetheart and bravo!

Kyle with one of his articles!

Me with my burger!

Yes, I said Roller Derby …

2010-11-16T08:55:00.000-08:00

****Posted by Nicole

Last night I found myself in a meeting with women named Stitches, Enya Nightmare, Bare Knuckle Smack, and The Punctuator. Yes, I was checking out the Saint Louis Arch Rivals roller derby team. A couple months ago Kyle saw the movie Whip It and decided that was the perfect thing for his shy bride to get involved with. He talked it up, I saw the movie, we watched a documentary, and I checked out the Arch Rivals on the internet. Slowly I began to cross over and think, maybe I can do this.

I signed up for the information night to see if it was something that I really might be interested in, or if it was me just wishing I could be that bad ass. Come to find out these chicks are crazy serious about their….sport? It is very physical and a lot of work and time. To even be considered you have to first go through three weeks of Booty Camp, which is basically your try out. Then you are picked to be a newbie and go through extensive training. Aften you get smacked around for a few months you get drafted onto a team. The entire process takes about 6 months to a year, and that's only if you are drafted. They train you for a long time because the better in shape you are, the better off your body will survive the shoving, falling, bumping, tripping, and sliding.

I’ll keep you updated on my adventures and I am super excited to try this out. I have until December 13 to get my skate on and kick some butt! Wish me ….lots of padding!

http://www.archrivalrollergirls.com/

Walk it off

2010-09-13T07:56:00.000-07:00

When we were first starting to figure out how to lose weight and live in a healthy manner, I was directed to the Dr Oz book "You, On a Diet". This book has some good stuff in it, even though it is written in a manner that is often silly and irritating. One of the things that the good Dr. says is that we all need to walk 30 minutes per day, no excuses. Now, I'm not going to claim that I have done this since we began this monster of a project. Heck, I didn't even walk most of the days last week. However, today I did and it struck me- This is a really easy way to benefit your body. Here's why you should be walking:

1. It's Free. You don't need any special equipment, trainers, memberships, or dvd sets to do it. You have shoes- put them on and start walking.

2. You get to know your area. I mean really get to know it- not just knowing the names of your neighbors, but rather you start noticing things as you are strutting along about peoples houses, likes, schedules, and yard upkeep. One thing- make sure you look up. Don't just stare at the sidewalk in front of you. Notice the trees, buildings, etc that are all around you.

3. It starts your day off right. Walking is a great way to get you into the mindset to be successful today- you break a little bit of a sweat, and you loosen up your muscles.

4. Walking is easy. With the exception of about your first year of life, you have been walking for a long time. You are probably pretty good at it already.

So, kick your excuses out the door, put on your shoes, and walk. You'll be glad you did.

Cookin' Cajun Style

2010-09-08T07:09:00.000-07:00

Folks, if you see Nicole this week, ask her for the recipe of the Shrimp Etouffee that she cooked last night. It was out of our Weight Watchers cookbook, and was delicious. I was a bit skeptical when she asked to make a shrimp dish at first- who is this lady in my house asking for shrimp, and what did she do with my wife? However, I guess she is getting tired of chicken, and wanted a change. Yeah, it made our house smell funny and our live-in room mate (whom doesn't eat shrimp) politely declined the offer to join us for dinner, but let me tell you, the dish was really good.

Well played, honey!

I am such a girl…

2010-09-02T11:17:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

A couple days ago I mentioned that I was nervous about going to a wedding back in Kentucky where I went to high school. I had to rerecord my old tape that kept telling me I was fat and old. Well we had a great time! We laughed, we danced, and we got to catch up with people that I hadn’t seen in almost ten years. I’m such a girl. Created all this drama in my head and everything was fine.

One of the people I got to talk to was a girl that I would like to refer to as Regina George, as in, the mean girl from the movie “Mean Grils”. This would be a hint as to what she might have been like in high school. As we talked throughout the night she opened up and told me that after college she had developed an eating disorder. Normal counseling was tried, but didn’t work. She finally decided to pack up her bags and move to Florida for about three months to get really deep into therapy. She said that she was so worried about what everyone thought and she dealt with it by controlling what she ate. What if they didn’t like her, what if they thought she was stupid, or said the wrong thing or that she was fat? This was beginning to sound very familiar…..

Fast forward to this morning as I was reading Luke 6. I came across a verse that I’ve heard a million times but for some reason hit me different. Everyone has heard it, “The golden rule”.

Luke 6:31 – Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

It got me thinking. I have been too busy thinking about what other people think of me rather than making others feel at ease about themselves. I don’t care what people are wearing or if they are overweight or what their hair looks like. So why would they care about the same things? Why am I almost 30 and just now figuring this out? I am such a girl. So much drama in my head and everything is fine!

September 1 Weigh in and Pic

2010-09-01T04:41:00.000-07:00

Ain't it pretty?

I weighed in this morning at 319. That means I've only collectively gained 1 lb since our last official weigh in, which makes me a bit happy. It also means I'm down 36 pounds on the year, which is good. I'm not happy that I gained, but happy that we didn't completely tank everything. I'm looking forward to getting back into this, eating healthier, and working out when I can. The work schedule makes all of that tough, but I can also learn to go to bed earlier.

****Posted by Nicole

Unlike my handsome husband, I have gained ten pounds since my last weigh in. Ugh, sounds like I’m confessing to a priest. So that puts me at 203, again. Oh well, I’ll lose it. So my plan of attack while at work is no coke, vending machine goodies, or eating lunch without checking out the calories first.

Today, of all days, my boss is buying all of us lunch from Buffalo Wild Wings and I had to really study the menu to make a final decision. By Googling "Healthy things to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings" I was able to find something with only 260 calories. The veggie burger it is. (blech) I substitued the fries for a salad and presto, a helathy lunch. Thanks for reading and go Ninja's!

There's no I in team, and ..... we're going to give a 110 %

2010-08-31T07:20:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Hell yeah, what Kyle said below!

Finishing Strong

2010-08-31T06:36:00.000-07:00

I'm about to mix a bunch of sports analogies. When we started NF, we agreed that it would be a "marathon, not a sprint". Well, the middle part of the marathon has not been run at a very fast pace. We played hockey well the first period, not the second, and are going into the third. Football practice went well for warm ups, the drills in the middle were sloppy, and we're about to head to wind sprints.

For those of you that watched the Emmy's on Sunday Night, and not the NFL, the first episodes of our tv season were solid, the middle part was really flat, but we're leading up to the big finale.

In other words, we did really well eating right and working out from January through April. May through August- not so much. However, we are determined to finish strong. I don't know what this will say for our blog frequency, but starting tomorrow, we will post pics and weights on the first of each month.

This truly has been one of the toughest, most humbling, yet exhilarating and exciting things we have ever done. We have lost weight. We do feel better than we did in January. We can get our rings on and off. Big-picture wise, it has been a success.

We look forward to talking to you in December, after finishing strong.

-Kyle

Outward Sin

2010-08-25T09:39:00.001-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Kyle and I follow a blog called Stuff Christians Like (http://stuffchristianslike.net/) and today he talked about sin creeping up on you. It got me thinking. There are very few sins that are more blatantly obvious than gluttony. It does creep up on you though. I didn't eat a cheesburger one night and wake up the next day and think "Oh! Look at that, I'm fat now." It was gradual and over many years. Other sins you can at least try to hide for a while. You can’t really hide the fact that you’ve over indulged so much that you are now in a size 14 and 40 pounds overweight.

I know that sometimes overeating is related to a deeper issue so last September I started going to a Christian Counselor through church. She helped me deal with some anxiety and self image problems and one of the things we talked about was the tape that plays in your head over and over again. Your too fat, they don’t like you, your so big they are going to talk about it behind your back.

Why do I say such horrible things to myself? Amazing how some spiritual warfare can completely rock your world. We worked on rerecording my tape and she gave me some scripture to memorize to help me get over the anxiety it caused.

So, I have a wedding to go to this weekend and I am totally playing my old tape. I am once again embarrassed about my fatness and I know it’s nobody’s fault but my own. But, as much as it bothers me, I can’t let it get me down. Those people don’t care that I’m overweight. They care that I came. We are all there to celebrate a good friend’s decision to spend his life with a great gal and nobody is going to be looking at me. They will all be looking at the beautiful bride. Rerecord the tape. I will lose my weight eventually, the only thing they will talk about is how much fun everyone had, smile and have a good time.

Here are some of the verses that my counselor and I came up with to help me. Maybe they can help you as well. Thanks for reading and enjoy!

1 Peter 3:3-4
Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious.

Psalm 139:13-16
For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them

The Tomato Basil Massacre

2010-08-11T07:39:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

The past few weeks I’ve been afraid of our garden. When Kyle and our friend Kelly planted it I knew the day would come when I wouldn’t want to go out and look at it. Either I would get tired of taking care of it, or the job would somehow overwhelm me. Well it happened. The monster tomato plant and the heat of the summer scared me away.

However; Last night I conquered my fears and waited till the sun went down to attack. Armed with a headlamp and shears I pruned (more like hacked) my way through our tiny garden. I started with the Basil and chopped all the flowers off. Then I moved to the monster. It fought back hard with mosquitoes and ants, but in the end I won. It had grown so big that it was leaning over the fence and was inching its way through the grass in our back yard. There weren’t any tomatoes on it and had produced plenty to eat, so I cut it to a more managable size. I’m not sure if this was the right way to treat it, but it needed to be done. Our roma plant just needed a few limbs cut off to keep it contained and same with the pear and cherry tomato plants. Overall there were few fruits harmed and I walked away with 7 mosquito bites on both arms and a victory under my belt.

Drum roll please!!!

2010-08-04T06:59:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Attention all! I now have award winning tomatoes!!

This past weekend Slow Food sponsored an event at Sappington Market celebrating the tomato. They had different booths with local food you could try, a band, fun things for kids, and contests for the best cocktail and tomato. There were four categories in the tomato contest; heaviest, tastiest, prettiest, and ugliest. Yes, this proud parent put her best tomato in and won for …… wait for it……. are you excited…….. The Ugliest Tomato! Taaadaaaa!

In all honesty that’s pretty much what I was going for. I couldn’t find one ripe enough to bring for the tastiest, so I figured I would find one that would stand out the most. I walked out into the heat of the back yard that morning and fought hard against the bugs to find the perfect entry. I called it the two headed monster. It was two tomatoes connected by the head and truly grotesque. In my excitement after the win I completely forgot to grab my lovely and take a picture for the blog so alas I have nothing to show you. There were prizes for all and my lucky butt won a free 50 min massage! Yay for gardens and yay for Slow Food!!!

If you are wondering what Slow Food is all about please check out their website. They are a great organization that is doing amazing things within our community. Thanks for reading! http://www.slowfoodstl.org/our-mission/

Just say no!

2010-07-30T06:07:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

I’m slowly but surely getting back into the habit of just saying no. Last night I desperately wanted to eat after dinner and I just said no! Instead I poured a glass of water and went for a walk on the treadmill. This morning my teammate offered to get me a McDonald’s breakfast and I just said no! I’ve found that unhealthy snaking and portion control are my two worst enemies.

Even though I’ve worked out every night but Wednesday I have this sinking feeling that what I’m doing isn’t going to be enough. When I was running 2.5 miles I was burning at least 400 calories at a time. That’s almost a meal! Now I’ve lost my running stamina and can barely walk for 30. I am trying, just not really hard like I was in the beginning. Damn, this is so frustrating. Is it this hard for everyone else? Has anyone else gone through what I am right now?

Some other good news is that I've not had a carbonated beverage all week. This is an accomplishment because I love love love coke and Dr. Pepper. I'm going to see how long I can go without one. So far we are Five days and counting!

Reasons for the Blogging Decrease

2010-07-29T07:02:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

I know that Nicole has been doing a lot of the blogging lately, and I want to apologize. The reasons for this are multi-fold. First of all, my brother and I went on a road trip last week. This caused me not to blog for a couple of reasons- first of all, I haven't started blogging from my phone (and I'm not sure if I want to). Another reason is that our road trip centered around eating at BBQ joints across the Midwest- not exactly the type of thing that's good to talk about on a blog that encourages people to lead healthier, more active lives.

Another reason for my laziness is that Ninja Fingers is slowly turning into a lifestyle. When we first started this thing, we were excited. We were losing weight, feeling great, and wanted to shout it out across the world. Since then, this thing called "life" has gotten in the way. We are both working really hard, and have stopped losing weight at the rapid rate it fell off before. We still try to eat the same healthy things that we used to- Whole Grains, more Veggies, less fried stuff, less soda. Last night we went out to eat. Instead of gorging ourselves on huge meals, we split some appetizers. It was nice, light, and didn't kill our caloric sensibilities. Let me publicly praise Nicole- she has started her gym membership back up again, and is doing well and feeling better as a result. My workouts this week have come from (literally) moving hundreds of cases of wine in my warehouse by hand.

So, there are my lame excuses. I will try to be better about posting. I will also post more recipes that we are eating from Cooking Light- great stuff I must say!

Have a great day, make at least one healthy decision.

Reporting in….

2010-07-28T06:28:00.000-07:00

This week so far I’ve worked out every day. Okay so it’s only Wednesday, but I’m trying to get into the habit of giving myself only one day off a week. Trust me when I say that I am not excited about this decision, but I think it’s necessary. I’ll give myself one day a week off and it will be a floating day. I have to work out at least 30 minutes and it doesn’t matter what that is. Biking, running, walking, climbing stairs, doing a video, whatever, just something to keep my heart rate up. Surely I can do just 30 minutes a day!

Ice Cream Social

2010-07-22T07:18:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Yesterday was the building ice cream social. I am not into ice cream or socializing with people from the buiding so I decided not to go. As I stared into my computer screen doing work like a good little girl, my teammate wheeled over and asked if I wanted to go down and get some ice cream. No. I told him I wasn’t going and he said that he didn’t want to stand in line by himself. I proceeded to call him and girl and then found myself walking to the elevator with him. I’m not a huge ice cream fan, but on a hot summers day, it sounds pretty freaken good.

As we walked through the lobby I saw some people coming in with Drumsticks. Ugh oh, a bowl of ice cream is one thing, but a Drumstick is another! I told myself to “Be strong!” and proceeded to stand in the massive line. My teammate and I chatted about the steamy weather and I gazed ahead to watch the chocolate dipped vanilla melt down the hands of my fellow office/building friends. I wanted to whimper like my pups do when they want a piece of cheese from my hand.

As we got closer and closer I noticed that they were giving out an array of flavors. Mint chocolate chip, vanilla, strawberry, chocolate, and freaken oreo. Really? So I pulled myself out of the line and waited for the weenie boy to get his free treat. As we headed back up to the 6th floor and I watched my teammate gobble up a large bowl of chocolate chip ice cream I smiled at the thought of not wasting my dinner calories on one thing. Yay me!

For my friend not so Fatty Patty

2010-07-21T10:34:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

I got an email from a dear friend of mine today that had some recent pictures of she and her family on vacation. As the pictures came up on the screen I noticed that she looked like a freaken rock star. She had a baby about a year ago and has not only lost the baby weight, but also the weight she and I both put on after high school and college.

I love her dearly and have been friends with her so long that I can’t even remember life before her. I’m ashamed to say that when I saw her pictures my heart sank. I hate that there is still that little voice in my head that screams “Noooooooo! We are supposed to be fat together and lose the weight at the same time together!” She and I have always been about the same size. I had gained weight, so had she. I was rolie colie and she was fatty patty. We were going through the same struggles and hardships with our self image and eating habits. I am very proud of her for losing so much weight and I want nothing more than to be happy and celebrate with my friend.

I refuse to wallow in my self pity and am going to fight my horrible jealous, sinful, tendencies and keep on the positive road. I will one day get to where she is, just not today. I will one day be able to look at a picture of myself and think, “yep, I’m good. I made my goal.” It just won’t be next week. So here is to one of my most cherished friends that looks amazing and I am so very proud of!

But it’s a girlie night!

2010-07-21T06:59:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

When I was a kid, every now then my mom would have what we call a girlie night. It was when my dad would be out of town and we would get something really good and naughty to eat and it would be just us girls. We would watch whatever and eat whatever. I’ve continued this tradition and lately it’s been happening a little too often. Whenever Kyle goes out of town or has an event I want to head straight for Taco Bell. It’s fast, it’s convenient, and it just wrecks my stomach and diet. So the next time he's out of town I’m going to pledge to be good. I’ll watch a girlie movie, but I will not stuff myself with tacos, nachos, pizza, or cheese. I will go to the grocery and get something that is healthy and low in fat. I will be good until Saturday, I will be good until Saturday, I will be good until Saturday….

No, seriously, we really are trying

2010-07-19T06:43:00.000-07:00

One thing Nicole and I have both realized is that a lifetime of bad habits is really, really hard to break. This last week, our pastor gave an amazing sermon on leadership. One of the things that he talked about is that leaders (in the church, but I think you could extrapolate that out into effective leaders in every facet of life) need to be free of any current addictions, including food. This is a problem not only with me and Nicole, but with a lot of people that we know. So many of our friends and even some family members spend a significant portion of their time focusing on what they just ate, what they are eating, and what they are going to eat. Now, anyone that knows me realizes that I'm not a fan of crappy food. I like good food- whether "healthy" or not, I like food that is well prepared from quality, fresh ingredients, and tastes good. But, me "liking" food and using my job/social situations/my mood/etc as an excuse to commit the sin of overindulgence is what got me in trouble in the past. This, combined with inherent laziness when it comes to working out alone, is a dangerous combination for anyone.

What about you? Are you using food as a crutch? Do you eat to fuel your body, and enjoy it, or do you literally think about it all day long? How many times this week have you said "well, since I've already blown it today, having some more [insert food or drink item here] won't hurt."? Do you eat when you are bored/upset/happy/probably just thirsty? I'm not hating on you. I have done all of these in the last week, which is one of the reasons I have actually gained weight for the first time since we started Ninja Fingers.

So, fellow ninjas, just check yourself. Are the little "cheats" that you are allowing yourself really small rewards, or are they symptoms that you are addicted to something less sinister, but just as harmful, as any drug?

Ninja Classes

2010-07-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

***Posted By Kyle

Whereas Nicole was reading up on Plus Sized Models, I was reading about where to take Ninja Classes. Check it out.

http://www.cloud9living.com/new-york/private-ninja-lessons

By the way, sorry for the lack of posts. I was travelling a bit over the weekend. Trust me when I say that I walked a lot, ate fairly unhealthily, but sweated it all off last night watching a concert outside.

Have a great week!!!!

Be who you are

2010-07-15T05:43:00.000-07:00

I found a really good article today on yahoo about a plus sized model. I found it to be enlightening as I struggled just this morning about the way I feel about myself. So take a peek if you get a chance!

http://shine.yahoo.com/event/bikini/model-kate-dillon-speaks-out-about-being-too-skinny-too-plus-size-and-whats-up-with-the-crystal-controversy-2015056/

Bad food, Wasted calories

2010-07-09T08:55:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Last night Kyle and I had to go to a church BBQ. It was at a very lovely home and we met some very lovely people, however, we did not eat very lovely food. I was really excited when I saw it put out because they had burgers galore and hotdogs for days. I went for the burger. It looked a little overcooked, but I figured that’s okay, I can deal, and I’m in the mood for a burger! Kyle and I sat down and dug in. This is where my foodie snobbery comes in. I’m embarrassed to say that it was the second worse hamburger I’ve ever eaten. I would have stopped eating right then but the people who cooked the food sat down at the table and my Texas upbringing wouldn’t allow me to not eat the food that was cooked for us and in front of me. So I ate it. My mother calls it wasted calories, I call it a huge disappointment. How hard is it to mess up a burger that bad? Even I know how to cook a decent burger. In their defense they were cooking for the masses and did provide the food free of charge. I know, I’m ungrateful. Now it’s off to try out my first class of Zumba tonight and work off those wasted calories.

Ditched

2010-07-07T07:32:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Last week I got a call from my friend that I called Vern. We had decided that we were going to just get to the gym and go for it. We coordinated our schedules and were going to make it happen. Well, Vern did not make it and I was ditched. She had to pick up her little girl from school so I gave her a get out of jail free card this one time. :)

Going back really felt great. A lot of the regular ladies recognized and welcomed me back to class with open arms. The normal instructor wasn’t there, but I was a little glad because the sub put in some “Zumba” routines in with the “Drills That Make You Sweat”. It’s kind of like Jazzercise and done with dance moves but with better music and a cooler name. I loved it and have completely changed my dinner/workout schedule today to go to a real class. It was just what I needed to get excited about working out again and I can’t wait to see what an hour of this stuff can do!

P.S.
I think my body is in shock because every muscle was screaming at me this morning when I got out of bed. Ouch!

Hittin' the Sack

2010-07-06T15:40:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Kyle

Well, fellow Ninjas, we're definitely back- Nicole is in the gym as I'm typing this, and I just got done doing a heavy-bag boxing workout in the dojo. Wow, I forgot how freaking hard that workout is, and I skipped the push-ups and crunches that I used to do in the middle of it. This "back on the right track" thing hurts, but will be so worth it!

Thanks for all the prayers, support, letters, notes, texts, messages, and emails....we can't do it without you!

Small success, caloric destruction

2010-07-05T08:57:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

This last week, I flew to Denver for the night. One of the things that I whined about at the very beginning of this project was how embarrassing it is to be on an airplane, and have to ask for the seat-belt extension. No matter how discreetly you do it, someone overhears you, and you can just feel the people around you judging you immediately, whether they know you or not. Trust me, it sucks. At any rate, this was the first flight that I have taken since losing the pounds, and I am happy to report that the "normal" seatbelt fit comfortably. This may not mean much to you, but man, it literally almost made me tear up.

So, what did my dumb ass do? In celebration I ate a bunch of bad food in Denver, and continued the caloric atomic attack over the 4th of July weekend. Nice job, bonehead. Now, I'm in a meat hangover, I don't feel like working out, and I have a lot of office work to get done.

Oh well, one week at a time, right?

It’s good to have friends

2010-07-01T14:16:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Lately it’s been really hard for me to get downstairs to workout. I did so good for so long, and now all of my efforts have been reversed. Man it’s frustrating. I worked out once this week and that’s about it.
Today I received a call from a friend that couldn’t have come at a better time. She made a trip to the doctor and was told she needed to lose 10 pounds. It might not seem much when you’re looking at losing 30, but as she said, better to lose 10 now then 20 next year. She knew that she needed some motivation to work out and that she would meet someone there, but not go on her own. I feel the same way! Perfect! So, next Tuesday we have a workout date and I am pumped! (no pun intended!)

Thanks to my friend (we will call her….. Vern) for phoning me up in the nick of time!

New Pants

2010-06-30T09:23:00.001-07:00

**posted by Kyle

One of the cool things about losing poundage is that eventually, your fat clothes don't fit anymore. Between this, and the fact that I have been rotating between the same three pairs of dress pants for about two years now, I decided to go get some new clothes for my upcoming business trips. I am happy to report that I have finally been able to move from the "Big and Tall" section of the store to the "regular" section of the store when it comes to selecting pants. As the kids say these days, "Woot, Woot!"

Tadaaaaah!

2010-06-30T07:57:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Our first big tomatoes!!!!

The I Don’t Care Bear

2010-06-29T06:12:00.001-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Today is a dangerous day because I don’t quite care what I put in my mouth. I don’t care if it’s cookies or fruit, I just want to be satisfied and not think about it. Dangerous words my friends. Pray that what I come across today is healthy and not greasy or fatty and that I stop before I am too full.

This could be a rough one....

The Thrill of the Grill

2010-06-28T10:16:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Anyone who knows me for about 30 seconds knows that I love anything dealing with grilling or BBQ-ing meat. I love standing by the grill (or sitting by the smoker), even when it's wickedly hot outside, with a cool beverage in hand, creating a perfect crust on the muscle matter of a dead pig, cow, chicken, fish, or any other animal really. This grilling obsession is fairly ninja friendly, too. As long as you don't eat too much of the high-fat stuff, its a healthy way to cook.

Recently, however, this activity has been more out of necessity. A couple of weeks ago, our oven went beserk. I'm serious- it started making all sorts of beeps (I think it was yelling at me), and then just won't turn on. It still makes a random beep every couple of hours, just to let us know that the demon is still inside of it. So, this has caused us to use the grill much more often, which is fine except that sometimes you need that warm oven.

I want my oven back.

Fighting the Boredom Hunger Monster

2010-06-25T10:10:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

This is one of those days where there is a bit of "down time" at the new office- I don't have anyone else here, and the bulk of my phone calls are done for the day. The problem with this situation is one that I have dealt with for years- I get bored, so I want to eat. I have already had a sandwich for lunch, but all I can think about is heading down to O'Aces Bar and Grill, and getting one of their patty melts. I even caught myself wandering around the office, headed towards the kitchen area, just to get up and moving.

So, if you are one of those people who tends to eat when you are a little bit bored, stay strong- I'm here fighting the fight with you!

Attack of the killer tomatoes!!!

2010-06-25T06:40:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

This is me being attacked by the biggest freaken tomato plant ever. I was checking on the garden last night and the plants have gotten so big that Kyle couldn't see me.

No worries, the gnome saved me

The funny thing about it is that this mammoth of a plant has one tomato on it and it’s all gnarly and weird…

Can you see me on the left? I’m not even sure this is a tomato plant anymore!

The other plants seem to be doing very well. The basil and cilantro are out of control and we've gotten some jalapenos and tiny sweet peppers. This picture was taken of the basil after Kyle harvested most of it. We did get some little pear tomatoes for dinner last night and I got to eat my first fresh tomato and basil salad! Yum!

Gigantic, Colossal, Massive Tomatoes!!!

2010-06-24T09:38:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

The tomato plants that Kyle and our friend Kelly planted so many weeks ago are starting to produce already! Check out our first three tomatoes, they’re huge! I’ve never seen them so large before....

I mean, these suckers have to win a contest or something....

Ugh…. Okay, so maybe they are only cherry tomatoes and next to a regular sized tomato seem a little tiny, but man they were huge in taste! :) We put them in our eggs on Saturday and rather enjoyed them. I’ve heard that by the 4th of July we should be in tomato overflow so if yall want the extras that we can’t eat you place your orders now!

Back in the Dojo

2010-06-24T09:03:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Kyle

I'm not going to say that I missed the dojo. In fact, when I went down there today to work out, I winced a little. I had been in this spot before- trying to get back into an exercise routine. It was still a short enough time frame that I remembered what I could do regarding push-ups, bike, punching bag, etc but long enough that I had lost a step. I jumped on the bike, thinking "oh, no problem- surely I haven't lost that much stamina." Wrong again, bucko. Where I used to do five sets of intervals on the bike as a warm up, I felt like my heart was going to leap out of my chest after three this morning. Oh well, that's what I get for taking a month off, right? Bummer.

Food-wise, I will let Nicole cover what is going on with our garden. Remember Little Shop of Horrors? I'm fairly certain that plant lives in our yard.

Keep it up Ninjas- good to hear that Hollie, Chuck, Kimberly, and my folks are all back in the healthy saddle again. Also, let me give a shout out to Mark- his doctor told him to drop some weight, and to lower his cholesterol. We're rooting for you, man!

Peace.

A Creepy Red Robin, and a Movie sans Mike and Ikes

2010-06-23T08:06:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Last night, Nicole had a headache, and wasn't feeling well. Some of us guys went out to dinner and to a movie (A Team- I highly recommend it, especially if you like explosions). We headed to Red Robin for dinner. Part of the highlights of this joint included watching some poor sap dressed up like the robin, scaring the crap out of little kids, and a high school cheerleader with a baby- good stuff. I decided to forgo the 1400 caloric disaster of a burger, and get a salad with salmon. Blech.

We then headed to the movies. Let me say that this was a struggle for me. I'm the guy at the movie that spends half my paycheck at the dang concessions counter. I usually roll in with a XXXXXL Mountain Dew, a big ol' popcorn, and a 6 lb box of Mike and Ikes. Not this time, fellow ninjas. Not a dime was spent.

I'm almost mortified- you mean I can make it through a movie without snacks? Dang.

Def Con 4

2010-06-23T05:44:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

My head still hurts. I’ve had this headache for at least three days now and yesterday it reached def con 4. (5 being the highest when it makes me pray to the porcelain gods) All I could do last night was lay on the couch in a Tylenol PM coma and there was so much that I could have been doing. I've learned through the years that I have to listen to my body and rest when it tells me to. So I’m praying that it will subside today and I can carry on with my life. Here’s to hoping the Excedrin Migraine works…..

Just Go and Do It

2010-06-22T11:52:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

My first day back on Ninja Fingers wasn’t too bad. I fought the urge to go on the hunt for chocolate in the vending machine and I repeatedly reminded myself that I didn’t have anything in my desk drawer to snack on. I treat it kind of like my pantry at home. I open it mainly to just stare at it and think that something will magically appear that I hadn’t seen before.... Yeah, Not so much.

The biggest battle I had was after dinner when it was time to workout. Here is how the conversation went in my head.

Should I bike or run tonight?
I don’t really feel like running, but it burns more calories.
My neck and head hurt, maybe I should just go to bed.
Okay, focus, Bike or run
I haven’t gone running in a long time so it might hurt and man, I need to do my nails, this one is chipped and I need to file that one
Oh, stop it!
Just go and do it!

So I did.

I started out on the treadmill but soon switched to the bike once I couldn’t control my breathing. I don’t know how far I ran, but I do know that I kept my heart rate up for 30 minutes. Woohoo!

Now it’s off to just say no to Oreos. One of my new teammates brought some in to get rid of them. I do wonder though, if I just eat one, will it help my headache go away? Hmmm....

Wow- people still read this thing!

2010-06-22T05:17:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Despite all of our whining, cussing, failing, and not posting, I was amazed to see the reaction about Ninja Fingers 2.0! I literally got emails, facebook messages, texts, and phone calls from people saying they are excited to see us ramping this thing up again. This go-around might be a little different, though. Last time, I was so fixated on my actual weight that I failed to see the great successes that I had in other areas. Sure, I dropped almost 40 lbs, but I wasn't celebrating the fact that my knee rarely hurts anymore (it still does on some occasions), that my acid reflux had all but disappeared, or that I was fitting into clothes that I hadn't seen since the second year we were married. In that spirit, I will only be weighing myself once a month, and really just focus on how my clothes fit instead. This morning I weighed 315, and I will post monthly weights as usual.

Thanks again for all the support- we couldn't do it without you all!

Ninja Fingers 2.0

2010-06-21T06:32:00.000-07:00

As my beautiful (and thinning) bride eloquently put it, we got lazy. It's true- when starting your own business, and working on it 10-16 hours per day, the last thing you want to expend more energy on is blogging, working out, and actually thinking about what to eat. I started noticing a couple of weeks ago that my acid reflux was returning, and I also had 3-4 people ask me about Ninja Fingers in the last couple of weeks.

We're back, and we're going to continue- this is the tough part. We need y'all to help keep us accountable. Ask us, chide us, encourage us, slap us, whatever it takes to remind us that someday we want to have kids, and it would be nice to be in good enough shape to run around with them.

Thanks folks- we truly love you!

Back in the saddle

2010-06-21T06:14:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

This past weekend Kyle and I decided to have a “reboot” of Ninja Fingers. With Kyle starting a business and me traveling and working like I have it’s been a really easy to make excuses to not workout and not eat right. I have to admit that yesterday I stomped up a fuss when we discussed blogging every day verses once or twice a week. (And I literally stomped my foot like a child, one of my shining moments as an almost 30 year old adult) I wanted to blog once or twice a week and Kyle was saying everyday. The point of everyday will keep us more accountable and on target. Alright! Fine! Gosh! I’ll blog every day. But I don’t have to like it!!!

To be honest with you, I really didn’t think that anyone was reading Ninja Fingers anymore. This past week I had four people ask what the deal was. What happened? The short answer is that we got lazy and I’m sorry for that.

So here I am, once again ashamed of my weight and ready to start again. This time starting will be much harder to get into the grove of things because I’m not as excited. I do have a short term goal date in mind. My next big event is one of my oldest friend’s wedding. I would like to lose 20 lbs by August 27th.

Now for the embarrassing part, since my last weight in I’ve gained. I was at 193 and now I’m back up to 197. So frustrating! I had a minor melt down when I saw some pictures of myself from a family reunion back in April. I actually felt pretty decent about myself that day and the pictures proved me wrong. After my reality check I had to squeeze into my bathing suit and go swimming at a friend’s house. Ugh, I was so mad at myself not sticking to the plan. Oh well. I’ll get my strength from praying and from Kyle always reminding me of our goals. (even when it makes me angry!) :)

Thanks for reading and keeping us accountable!!!

One of my Bestest Friends!

2010-06-01T07:25:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

A couple weeks ago I got to go visit one of my most cherished friends, Angela. We met in college through our bible study many years ago and quickly became bff’s. We got to share our clothes, families, apartments, and wedding days. Most of my fondest memories from college have her in them and I love her dearly as a friend.

The past few years she and her husband Jordan have tried to start a family and after many tests and doctor visits they figured that God was telling them to do something different. So they decided to adopt. My trip down to see she and Jordan in the great state of Texas had a bonus; I got to meet their son Rylin for the first time. After our emotional reunion in the airport, I was able to compose myself long enough to see through my tears of joy and take a look at his toothless grin for the first time. I’ve been following Angela’s blog so I’ve seen many pictures, but nothing beats the real thing. He was just as excited as Angela and I were and has the sweetest face I’ve ever seen.

I had decided that all bets were off that weekend when it came to eating and the first thing I requested to do was stop by Taco Cabanna to grab some fresh flour tortillas and queso for the road. Man they were good! Even though I wanted to indulge in all things naughty to eat, Angela kept me on the straight and narrow. She made us Texas caviar (with beans, veggies, and fat free dressing), and Tacos that had low fat meat.

It was so amazing to see a couple make something that can be so devastating to so many people into something joyful and beautiful. Not only have my friends been blessed with a child, but Rylin has the best parents a kiddo can ask for. It was such a treat to see my best friend in a strong marriage with a happy little boy and I feel so blessed to have them as my friends.

Thanks for a great weekend lady!!!

Back on the horse

2010-05-25T05:49:00.001-07:00

****Posted by Kyle

Okay, so we had a set back. We got busy, distracted, whatever you want to call it- we got lazy. We fell back into some of the old habits that got us in the bad place we were before. This time, we recognized it early, though. Nicole will start taking the stairs at work again (make sure you ask her how she's doing with that). I will stop eating meals out at accounts, and get back into serious workouts (don't forget to ask me how I'm doing with this). Together, we will get back into the routine of planning our meals on Sunday, and shopping then. Most of all, we will get back into praying for further success, and thanking God for the wonderful amount of success we have had to this point.

Off to the Ninja Dojo!

Happy Anniversary Love!

2010-05-24T07:49:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

As of today Kyle and I have been married for a total of seven years. Kyle has been my rock, my heart, and my best friend for what seems like a short while, but has been for many years now. He makes me laugh until it hurts and holds me when I cry. I am always in awe of his kindness for others and devotion to God. We’ve had our share of bumps and bruises but it’s only made us stronger as husband and wife. My heart swells with pride when I think of him having the courage to make his dream into a reality and I smile every time I think of what God has in store for us.

It’s been a fun and exciting ride so far love, can’t wait to see what’s next.
I love you sweetheart and happy anniversary.

Apathy

2010-05-21T06:13:00.000-07:00

I have heard it said before that Success breeds Laziness. I'm starting to believe that. I'm sure that our wonderful followers have noticed the decline in the number of posts, both from me and from Nicole. We are at a funny spot in Ninja Fingers. We have both lost weight, and we both feel good about ourselves. Truth be told, however, the newness of it all has worn off. The honeymoon with the Ninja is over, and we have both sort of hit a wall. Nicole stopped taking the stairs at work for a while, and I stopped watching what I ate as much. We just need a second wind. We need a breath of fresh air into this deal.

My New Favorite Salad!

2010-05-17T10:07:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Last week Kyle and I got to enjoy our first herb from our garden. I do have to say that nothing beats fresh basil from your back yard. We decided to add it to our avocado, red onion, and farmer’s cheese salad. The dressing consisted of red wine vinaigrette and olive oil just sprinkled on top. It was light, fresh, and very good. I highly recommend it!!!

This Ninja Needs a Tailor

2010-05-11T05:47:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Last week, I had an event for Sip of Knowledge, my wine consulting company, that required me to wear a suit. This was fine, since I had purchased two brand new suits last summer, one is dark blue and one is brown. However, when I purchased them, I was in my pre-ninja, rounder shape. My belly was also 7 inches bigger. Add this to the fact that I bought the suits just a bit large for comfort and they just simply don't fit anymore. Tonight, I will have Nicole take a picture of me in one- it's almost comical how big the pants are. I feel like a little kid putting on his dad's suit and playing office.
Normally, in the past, I would just donate the suit to charity, and go suck it up and buy a new one. However since I resigned from my position at my job on Friday (another story, you will read more about that soon), I spent $700 on the suit last summer- and have only worn it once, and will need a summer suit for a couple of upcoming events, I need to get this thing to fit. I have called a tailor that evidently does amazing work out of her home, and will meet with her tomorrow. Stay tuned for more details!

May Weigh in results, and pics

2010-05-07T03:31:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

We did our May weigh in, and pics. I'm not as happy with this month's results, but that's okay- I need to keep reminding myself that this is a marathon, and that the weight loss would taper off. At any rate, this morning, I weighed 314, which means I have unofficially lost over 40 lbs, and officially lost 37. My waist, around my belly button, is 55 inches, which means I have lost 7 inches off my waist. Not bad, if you look at it that way.

First picture:

This morning:

Hyenas are cooler than Hernias

2010-05-06T08:24:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

So, the results are in. The lump in my abdomen is actually a small hernia. The doc wants me to consider surgery, however, he also wants me to continue losing weight. I'm going to keep shedding pounds, so that the surgery will go easier (as my dad said, "less stuff to dig through"). I have an appointment to go back in November, and we will make a decision at that time. Thanks again for all the thoughts and prayers!

In other news, Nicole and I had an early "cheat day" last night. I had done a sommelier gig, and she had gotten her hair done, so we met up for a late night drink and nosh at one of our favorite restaurants- Five. The kitchen was closing down, but the chef still sent out a killer charcuterie plate with different meats, pate, and cheeses. After that snack, we were both still hungry, and walked up to a place called Guido's that we had never been in. We got a goat cheese app, and a small thin crust sausage, garlic, and bell pepper pizza that were pretty dang good. Needless to say, we will be skipping our normal "cheat day" on saturday.

Weigh-in and measurements, complete with pics tomorrow!

Enjoy this beautiful day folks!

Where's the Beef?

2010-05-04T05:40:00.000-07:00

**Posted by Kyle

...It's in our freezer, that's where it is! I need help from some of you all. Basically, I need good, healthy recipes that are low-cal, and use beef. You see, several foodie friends of mine and I all went in together and bought 2 cows. Yep, we bought 2 entire cows and had them processed. Yesterday, we went and picked it up. I now have a deep freezer full of lots of bovine. I have ground beef, sirloin, ribsteak, porterhouses, marrow bones, liver, heart, oxtails, and soup bones. So, I'm putting the call out to you healthy cooks- Whatcha got?

Oh, in other sports news, I also need money. I agreed to do this fundraiser for a ministry I used to work with called Summit Adventure in Bass Lake, CA. Esentially, I'm supposed to go on a shower strike until I raise my $$. I only have $250 left to go. So, for Nicole's sake, please email me at kyleharsha@yahoo.com on instructions on how to donate.

Thanks, and have a wonderful day.

Apologies…

2010-05-03T06:55:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

Just recently my position at work had a bit of a shift. One of my teammates got moved to another account. We did get a replacement, however, I have not only been training him, but also doing my work and the work that my teammate was doing. This plus busy season and I have been a crazy working lady. My poor husband has been picking up the slack at home and on the blog, so I do apologize for not blogging lately.

I have learned that when working late it has been impossible for me to make my workout classes. I miss working with weights and need the flexibility Pilates offer. Thank goodness we have a treadmill in our basement or I wouldn’t have had any kind of workout the past two weeks. So, I have asked our friend Donna, who is a trainer and Pilates instructor, to make me a workout with weights so that I can still use my gym membership. I enjoy running so I would really like to keep it up. Last week I finally ran up to 2 and half miles!!! I did push myself a little too hard though. The next day my calf muscle killed and I had to ice it after I ran again. I’ve been resting it the last couple days just so I don’t injure it more.

Staying on top of eating healthy has been a bit of a struggle. I find that I am starved at around 3:00 and usually I can make it home before I get too hungry, but there were a couple of nights I didn’t make it home until 8:00. The vending machine at work doesn’t exactly offer apples to snack on, so I found that having some hummus and peanuts at work helped tremendously. I have stopped taking the stairs, mainly because I’m just to dang tired in the morning.

I do want to make a special shout out to my sweet husband who had dinner on the table every night when I would get home. Seeing how I can get kind of weepy at the drop of a hat when I’m tired, he was very understanding and wonderful during my stressful times. Thanks love!

Dreams

2010-04-30T06:08:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Those who read both of my blogs (this one, and Sippin' Saint Louis) will notice a similarity between the two posts today.

I'm a little more open on this one, so I will reveal that for the past several weeks I have been seeing a counselor at our church about some mental issues that I have. Nothing huge, but the sessions have been very helpful. One thing that he asked me a couple of weeks ago was what Nicole and I dream about- What are the things that we want to work for, and have in our idyllic situation. We talked about it, and have decided to print out pictures of two dreams that we have. The first is this one:

Nicole has always had the dream of buying an Airstream trailer, fixing it up, then travelling around the country for a month or two. We would do so without a set agenda. If we wanted to stop in a certain place, we would. We could stay as long as we wanted, and move on when we wanted. I have to agree, this seems like it will be an awesome experience- exploring America with my beautiful bride.

If that is a picture of her dream, then here is a picture of mine:

Yep, a beach house. You see, I grew up having access to our family's lake house in Arkansas, and I have so many wonderful memories of family vacations there. I'm also sort of a beach guy that just happens to live as far as possible from a beach. My dream is to have a place that our family can go to whenever we want, and hear the ocean.

Nicole hasn't posted for a while- she's going nuts at work, and is really tired. If you see her, give her a hug. She has been doing great about working out- in fact, we have both had great workouts every day this week. I guess tapering off in the weight loss area got us both back into the game.

Have a wonderful weekend- be careful out there.

Frustrated

2010-04-28T08:11:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Today, I'm frustrated. I really am. Last weekend, I weighed myself, and I was down 5 lbs for the month. Not a great loss, but not bad. I figured I would work really hard this week, and get more off before our next official weigh in. Yesterday, I weighed myself again (thus breaking my own advice), and I had GAINED 4 lbs since Friday. Doh! How could this be? Yeah, we ate some pizza friday night, and I had a brat on Saturday, but most everything else was fairly ninja-appropriate. I dont' know if I just happened to be a bit dehydrated on Friday, or what. At any rate, I weighed myself again this morning- sure enough, I am only officially down 2 lbs on the month. I know that my weight loss would taper, but I have no idea what's going on. I have worked out every day this week, and have really tried to eat well. If this thing is about being open and honest to our followers, just know that today, I'm pissed off.

Ninja Hollie Update, Newsflash

2010-04-27T06:12:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

We just heard from Ninja Hollie, and she is down a total of 20 lbs so far! Great Job Hollie! Once again, she is proof that a healthy diet (nothing extreme- she's just cooking out of a Weight Watchers cookbook), and moderate exercise yields great results. Keep it up!

In other news, a report on Yahoo News today says that a combination of smoking, drinking, inactivity, and poor diet is bad for you. Duh.

Have a great day, folks- make one healthy decision today.

Basement Clothes

2010-04-26T13:17:00.000-07:00

**Posted by Kyle

Even after a weekend of fairly unhealthy eating, I had a minor success story today. You see, everyone that is in the slow process of weight gain does something with their clothes. They start noticing that certain jeans, shorts, or pants don't fit anymore. After a few rounds of "Suck in and Squeeze" doesn't work, they put these clothing items aside, saying to themselves "I'll be back into these in a few weeks, so I don't want to donate them to Goodwill quite yet." These items never get used, and eventually end up in a pile in the corner of a closet, or in our case in the basement. Today, while working out, I noticed said pile of clothes. "Maybe, just maybe" I thought between deadlifts "they will fit." I pulled out four pairs of shorts, and a slightly dated pair of pants. Boo Ya. They fit. That's right, folks, I fit back into my previous wardrobe. Look out previous-previous wardrobe (the one before the one I discovered today)- I see you, and I'm coming for you!

On a side note, I had lunch today with my uncle and cousin. My uncle has lost over 30 pounds this year, and looks great! He even eschewed the burger and fries at lunch for a bowl of soup (I had spinach salad.) Great job!

Beware of "Healthy" Cereals

2010-04-23T08:32:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

If you look at Yahoo's main page, they often have little articles from "Eat This, Not That!" which can be eye opening. This morning, they talked about breakfast cereals, and how the ones we perceive as being healthy aren't very good for you. For years, I have been a fan of Raisin Bran. I guess I never really looked at the nutritional info on the back. However, one cup of it has more sugar than Lucky Charms, Reese's Puffs, or Cocoa Krispies! The one that really blew me away was Quaker "Natural" Granola- one cup has 420 calories, and over 30 grams of sugar! So, to all you Ninjas out there, consider a protein shake for breakfast. Most have less than 200 calories, and will really help you get a move on your day.

Impatience

2010-04-21T06:19:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

I am an impatient person. Just ask Nicole, she'll tell you. I think this stems from my many years in the restaurant industry. When the dinner rush is hitting, I would ask one of my employees to do something, and I meant NOW. In that situation, 30 seconds is a lifetime, and can mean the difference between a customer having an amazing experience, or walking out the door upset. However, in "real life" this simply isn't the case, and I fear this garden is going to bring my impatience out of the deep recesses of my personality. Dang, I'm going to have to deal with it.

You see, I only planted the thing last week. I was hoping that we had some sort of miracle dirt, and that our little garden would already be producing tomatoes, herbs, peppers, onions and potatoes. We didn't even plant onions or potatoes. However, I want them in my yard, and I want them NOW. I guess I'll just gave to wait.

Accountability

2010-04-19T10:47:00.000-07:00

As Kyle mentioned earlier we went to Kansas this weekend for a plethora of celebrations. Since Friday we ate Steak and Shake on the road, I didn’t feel right having a full cheat day on Saturday. Thankfully Kyle’s sister in-law loves protein shakes as much as we do, so breakfast was easy. Lunch on the other hand wasn’t.
The entire family knows about this blog, and some of them even read it every once and a while, so when it came time to eat I really felt like I was under a microscope. I know that it was probably all in my head, but I was still very careful as to what I ate, and how much of it I was eating. BBQ and sloppy joes were being served, so that’s what I ate. I had a tiny bit of each and a whole wheat bun to scoop with. There was a taco salad, that I enjoyed, and also baked chips and coleslaw. The struggle came when it was time for dessert. I eat rice crispy treats once a year and this is the event that I get them. Kyle’s sister in-law makes them the best and I could eat an entire pan. One square was all I allowed myself and it was so amazing that I had to walk away from the table. Phew! I did it!

Once we got home I remember thinking how nice it would be to have just one more rice crispy treat. Alas, they were all gone when we left the reunion. I noticed that I was pretty sore from playing with nieces and nephews all day so I thought I would scrounge for some pills in the kitchen. I walked upstairs and, oh can it be?! Another pan of rice crispy treats on the counter and they had my name all over them. As much as I wanted to shove each one in my face while skipping around with glee, I assure you that I only ate one more. My surprise had totally wiped out all the pain in my legs and I went to bed smiling.

The next day Jack stack was being served at my father in-law’s retirement party and if it hadn’t been for Kyle’s aunt Lori telling me she reads our blog, I would have had seconds and maybe thirds of the cheesy corn and bread. (oh how I love carbs) I had to fight with myself to stay seated and not eat anymore, because I was full and didn’t need it!

This blog was created to help keep us accountable, and it is doing just that. I am so thankful to our friends and family for keeping up with us and we had a great time this weekend. Now all I have to do is lose the three pounds I gained this past weekend! Oh well, I can do it.

Family Reunion, Parties, and Ninjas being successful

2010-04-19T06:01:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

To say we ate poorly this weekend is an understatement, but it was worth it. Friday, we drove over to Kansas City to see my family. On the way, we normally stop by Chick-fil-a for a semi ninja-friendly dinner. 40 was a mess, so we took 70 instead, and went through Steak-n-Shake. This was mistake numero uno. Both of us, upon eating our disgustingly fatty, calorie and grease laden foods said out loud "This is not going to end well". Nicole literally lasted 16 minutes before she was in a gas station bathroom. Friends, this crap will kill you. For real.

The next day we had a family reunion in the afternoon- not many healthy choices for eating, but it was fantastic to see family, go fishing, and shoot guns. We even saw fellow Ninja Hollie, whom looks and feels great, and is really improving her lifestyle. That night, it was pizza for my dad's 59th birthday. I did discover that I just can't put down as many slices as I used to be able to, which is a good thing I guess.

Sunday we had my dad's retirement party, catered by a barbecue company (Jack Stack's in Kansas City- yes you have my permission to be jealous). It was interesting to see the viewpoint of my cousin, whom is a rancher, regarding pasture-raised versus feedlot-raised beef, and free range versus "regular" chickens. He leans towards the latter, and he takes the stance of being a person that is simply trying to eek out a living, raising food for people that need it in a cost effective manner. I understand both viewpoints, and will not use this blog to take a stand either way. Let it suffice to say that both sides have valid points.

Last night, we came home, grilled some meat, ate some veggies, and slept well.

In other sports news, congrats to fellow Ninjas Kimberly and Chuck. They have lost a combined total of over 60 lbs so far, and are feeling great! Good job guys!

This week, it's back to the rhythm of eating healthy, exercising, and enjoying the weather.

Not 40 Acres and a Mule, but 84 square feet and a shovel

2010-04-16T05:47:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Yesterday, our friend Kelly came over to our house to help me with the installation of our garden. Now, keep in mind we have never had a garden before. I once killed a cactus. This might really be an adventure, or it might be a collossal mistake. At any rate, if you are planning on starting your own garden, I wanted to let you know what you are in for. It's a really good workout- digging holes and hacking at roots takes a lot of energy and sweat. Hopefully the fruits (or in this instance vegetables) of your labors will be worth it. It is also something that is wildly uncertain. Things like bad soil composition, a cold night, rabbits, birds, squirrels, planting at the wrong time, too much sun, too little sun, too much rain, too little rain, etc, etc, etc can flat out ruin your chances of growing anything. If nothing else, I learned a ton.

Here is a pic of the corner of our yard that we decided to use for the garden. The plot that you will see in the next few pics is about 7' x 12'.

The first (and most difficult) thing to do was to remove the sod in the area that we were going to use. Here's Kelly, smiling about it:

After that, if you don't have a tiller, you basically dig down into the area that you are using, creating about 6" of loose soil. The hard part here was cutting through all of the old roots from my neighbor's dead trees. Fortunately, Kelly kept saying what good soil we have!

After adding all kinds of stuff to the soil (cotton burr, some clay stuff for baseball infields, chicken manure, and some other things that I have no idea what they were), we created two rows with a gully between them to plant the garden in:

Next, you just put the plants and the seeds in the ground. This really was the easy part. We put in a couple of different kinds of tomatoes, basil, oregano, cilantro, celery, sweet peppers, jalapenos, and some other stuff that I am super excited to use in Ninja-Friendly dishes!

At this point, we were about 2 1/2 hours into the project, and already exhausted. Kelly left, and I don't blame her! Let me give her a huge, huge THANK YOU for all of her help!

After that, I went inside, sat down for a minute to watch the first inning of the Cardinals game, then got back up to finish the job. I had to go to Lowes and get fencing to put up around the garden, as we have several "wascally wabbits" in the yard that would love to chow down on the buffet I had just provided them. I put up a small fence around the garden, cleaned up, and I was basically done.

I do still have to get some burlap to put over the seeded areas, which I will do today, and I have to get the most important piece: a garden gnome.

I'm sure this garden will give us a lot more fodder to blog about in the near future. Stay tuned! We will be at a family reunion this weekend, as well as my Dad's birthday and retirement celebration. On Monday, I will try to put up a recipe that we just discovered out of Cooking Light for a Shrimp and Grits Casserole that was awesome!

Later.

Green Thumbs? We'll see!

2010-04-14T06:33:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Since we started this project in January, we have definitely increased the amount of veggies that we consume with our meals. Asparagus used to be a once-a-month type addition, and Broccoli was almost unknown to us. Now we eat each at least once or twice per week. Along with this increased veggie intake we have discovered that, not only are vegetables (and especially herbs) fairly expensive at the super market, but they are seldom from local purveyors, and not very good quality. With that in mind, we have decided to plant a garden. This will either be a raging success, or we will destroy a 120 square foot portion of our yard. Our friend Kelly is going to help with the installation of said garden tomorrow, and I will report back, replete with pictures and anecdotes.

Until then, get your butt outside to enjoy the Spring, and do something active!

Finally!

2010-04-13T13:26:00.000-07:00

I know I know. I should have posted this forever ago. We’ve had visitors, Easter, Kyle’s birthday and work is crazy right now! So here is my much anticipated picture. I think it was taken a week after my actual weigh in and instead of my usual Cavit shirt I have a lovely t-shirt on my mom gave me for Christmas, but you get the idea.

Here are the stats!
Begining Weight: 212
Current Weight: 196

And I lost an inch and a half off my abs!!! Woo Hoo!

Before

After

A Very Non-Ninja Weekend

2010-04-12T06:32:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

It's a good thing I'm not famous yet. If papparazzi were following us this weekend, our little blog here would be blasted for being hypocritical. Friday was my birthday. As we have mentioned before, our birthdays and anniversary are the two other "allowable" cheat days we get. To say I took full advantage is an understatement. Bacon for breakfast, wings for lunch, pulled pork for dinner, and gobs of beer and wine. Whoops. Saturday we did a little better, but not much. A friend had a crawfish boil, which means you really have to work hard to eat a lot. Plus, it took me well over 2 hours in the hot sun to mow and trim the yard, so I feel like I worked out. We tore it up at a local new restaurant for dinner, and I'm fairly certain things like bacon-wrapped meatloaf and Fried Scallops aren't on the new eating plan. Sunday, we continued the feeding frenzy with pizza for lunch and burgers for dinner.

Am I sorry for this weekend? Absolutely not. I had an amazing few days spending time with my beautiful wife and friends. We ate too much, laughed a lot, and ditched the Ninja Way. Now, it's just time to prove that we are serious about this whole program being a lifestyle change, and do well this week. It will be hard, as I am on vacation, and tend to eat when I'm bored. However, it will also give me plenty of time to work out, shop for deliciously healthy foods, and chill out a bit.

Thank you to all that continue to follow us, encourage us, critique us, and pray for us. On the subject of prayer, please keep me in yours. As I have lost weight, I have discovered a rather large lump in my abdomen. I have had four different doctor friends look at it, and they are all in agreement that it is probably just a large Lipoma- basically, a benign fatty tumor. I'm going in to have it checked out in early May, and will keep you updated. Please don't worry (I'm not, and neither is Nicole)- just pray.

Thanks, and have a great week!

Ugh, I’m hot

2010-04-07T13:12:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

To me, there is nothing worse than being hot all day. I am at work right now and I am sweating my hinny ho off. Someone please turn on the air!!!! The sauna effects that I am experiencing are not wanting to work, not wanting to eat dinner when I get home, not wanting to workout, and a good hair day from the humidity. Aside from the good hair, this really sucks. At least when you’re cold you can put on more layers. When you’re hot, there is only so much you can take off. Blech, I feel so gross. Can anyone tell I’m in a mood?

The real reason I’m writing is in response to Kyle’s blog earlier. I think it really stings the first time a person doesn’t do as well as the last few weigh ins. Thinking back to the first time I didn’t make the weight or lose the inches I wanted, I was really bummed and stressed out. This past weekend I was two pounds from my goal weight, however, I had lost about an inch and a half off my abs. That’s still awesome! So all the ninja’s out there remember, as long as you keep losing, you are doing a great job. Don’t let the numbers get you down. At some point your weight loss is going to slow down and that’s normal. Just keep pushing forward and know that you will eventually get there!!!

Tryin to Keep a Rhythm

2010-04-07T12:02:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle
On Saturday, after our measurements, I wrote that I wouldn't let the fact that I didn't make my monthly goal tear me up. The truth is, I was more disappointed about the decrease in loss on my waist size. I got to where I was losing a couple of inches a month, and this last month, it was only an inch. Sure, the weight is coming off of other places, but guys notice it in their gut the most. This put me in a bit of a funk. I started down the mental slope of "well, I have had decent success over the last couple of months, I can relax a bit." This is a dangerous place to be. I worked out some on Monday, ate poorly, and didn't work out on Tuesday. Today, I must pull myself back up, eat healthily, and work out hard. It will suck, but that's okay- I want to be at 285 by July 4, and 250 by Dec 31. I know I can do it, as long as I keep the right mental attitude, and don't slack off.

What time is it?!?

2010-04-05T10:08:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

This morning as I pushed my snooze button one more time, I noticed it was much harder to wake up than normal. Alright alright, I’ll get up. I started my morning ritual of letting the dogs out, making a protein shake, and watching the news. Man, was I tired. Even the people on the news looked tired.
I sat there half listening and I heard the anchorman mention the time. Wait, what time did he say? I rewound it and listened again. Yes, It’s what I thought he said, 4:30. What?! I get up at 5!
What happened you ask? My alarm clock automatically resets when daylight savings time happens. The problem is that a few years ago congress voted to have it changed to an earlier date and my clock is still set to the old date.
By this point I had been up for a good 45 min. and would have been even more tired if I had chosen to go back to sleep and wake up again. I went ahead and got ready and showed up for work early. However, I was so out of it I not only forgot my workout clothes, but I didn’t remember that I could have worn a baseball t-shirt to work because of opening day.
I am all messed up and turned around. Oh yeah, and sleepy.
Hope everyone had a good Easter and I promise to post my picture soon with my results! They are all good, so no worries from me!

Go Sox!

Q1 Results are in: Weight is down, Good Feelings Abound

2010-04-03T12:07:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

So, today we had our April weigh-in and measurement session. I was at 321, meaning I have officially lost 30 lbs, and have taken roughly 6 inches off of my midsection. Truth be told, I wanted to be at 318, but I'm not going to let 3 lbs over the course of 3 months get me too wound up. I want to again say "Thank You" to everyone that has supported us with comments, letters, emails, texts, and prayers. We honestly cannot achieve the goals we want to without you! Here are the Before and After Pics:

Jan 5

April 3

Weighing in

2010-04-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

I’ve started to discover that weighting in every month causes a bit of stress for me. Kyle and I were talking yesterday and he is concerned that I might be putting a little too much emphasis on my weight. When we started this we both said that we would think of this as a marathon and not a sprint. We would set our goals, but if we didn’t reach them when we thought we should then it wouldn’t be the end of the world. I pondered this for a while and knew that even if I took weighing in away I would be constantly measuring myself to see results. Then he threw out the idea of not looking at any of it until July 1. I don’t like that idea mainly because I think it’s good to see my progress.
My solution is to pray about it every time I think I’m not losing enough or don’t reach my goal by a few pounds. That was the only thing I could think of. I won’t eat less, because I’m eating the right amount of calories for my body, and I won’t exercise more because I think that 40 minutes to an hour a day is fine. If I can’t do a work out for whatever reason, then that’s life and I will move on. As long as I keep losing then I’m doing what I need to be doing. So here's to a happy weigh in tomorrow whatever the results may be!

If anyone has any other suggestions that has worked for them in the past then let me know! Thanks for reading!!!

Ninja Hollie is down 11 lbs!

2010-03-29T14:45:00.000-07:00

Hollie just checked in, and has reported that in 4 weeks, she has dropped 11 pounds! See folks- it works! You don't need any crazy diets, body cleanses, or grapefruit enemas to lose weight. Just burn more calories, eat less of them, and eat healthy- it comes off!

I’m kind of hungry….

2010-03-29T10:30:00.000-07:00

****Posted by Nicole

I’m kind of hungry today. I usually have a protein shake and a piece of fruit for breakfast, but we are out of our normal protein shake and I really really don’t like the taste of the stuff our roommate drinks. (No, I’m not stealing it, he offered it to us) So instead I had a stale bowl of multigrain cheerios and now I’m starved. To ease the pain a little I had a ¼ of a cup of peanuts and 30 min. later I am hungry again. These are the days that it’s hard to be good. I desperately want to reach my goal of losing 3 lbs this week so I refuse to give in to my hunger pains. The vending machine is calling to me, but the only healthy option there is a bag of peanuts. I’ve already got peanuts! I have to be careful though because I can get a wicked headache if I wait to long to eat. Maybe I’ll have a tiny bit of hummus and that will hold me until lunch time.

My boss just gave me a peanut butter cliff bar thinking that would help and ……gross. It is helping, but it does not taste good. Blech… I should have stuck with the hummus.

Bad week gets better, Junk food addiction

2010-03-29T06:41:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

So, I'm sure you noticed that last week was a bit of a bad one for us. Neither of us worked out as much as we should have, and we had a couple of nights straying from the "ninja way" when it comes to eating. This week will be much better- we will eat healthier, exercise more, and get ready for our weigh-in on Saturday. My goal is to be down 10 lbs from last month, putting my loss total at about 33 official pounds. I'm feelin' it, it's going to happen.

In other sports news, cut and paste this link into your browser for an interesting article:
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/637430.html

It's the recap of some research done by the scripps institute. Basically, scientists have found that there is actual evidence behind the theory that "the more you eat of something, the more you want of it" that trainers have been teaching for years. Our bodies can literally become addicted to junk food, the same way that we can get addicted to alcohol or drugs. Pretty interesting stuff!

Have a great week- make a healthy decision, and cook a dinner at home for your family this week using fresh ingredients!

Mental Health Evening

2010-03-26T06:08:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Yesterday was an interesting day for the Ninjas. We got bad news from a couple of different sources- My dad will likely have to start radiation therapy for a potential relapse of his cancer, my good friend lost his job, and I have 4 other good friends that are dealing with marital strife. Combine that with really nasty weather, and it was not a day I would want to repeat.

So, Nicole and I decided to switch our "cheat day" to yesterday, and met up at one of our favorite wine bars. After some riesling and some Italian red, paired perfectly with pizza and salad from Pi, things started seeming a bit better. The "true" ninja way would have been to exercise, eat something healthy, and go to bed early. That wasn't what we needed though. It just goes to show you that sometimes laughing with friends and being flexible with your regimen can be the cure you really need.

Today, it's back on the horse with a protein shake and a long workout session, then meeting up with friends tonight to hang out, complain about our problems, encourage each other, and try to remember that we aren't going to fix the world.

Smile, y'all- it's gonna be a good day.

Healthy Comfort Foods???

2010-03-24T05:31:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Last night, my sweet bride proved again that there is such a thing as healthy "comfort food" out there. Over the last week or so, I have had a wicked combination of head cold and allergies that has pretty much derailed me. All I wanted last night was a big, huge, hot serving of something to make me feel better. I didn't care if it was chicken fried steak, a bowl of chili, or a steaming plate of butter and gravy laden mashed potatoes. I wanted to whimper, whine, sneeze, snot, and eat. Thank the Lord, Nicole offered to cook, and made up this recipe:

Steak Taco Chili with Pinto Beans
(Cuisine Lite Magazine)

Ingredients:
1 T chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground coriander
8 oz trimmed top sirloin steak, diced
1 T evoo
2 c diced onion
1 c diced green pepper
3 c low sodium beef broth, divided
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 c chunky salsa
2 6-inch corn tortillas, toasted and diced (we did this in the oven)
salt
pepper
6 T sour cream (we used lite)
6 T crispy tortilla strips for garnish(just cut 2 corn tortillas into strips, and saute in a bit of oil until golden brown, drain on paper towel)

Combine first four spices, divide in 1/2. Toss steak in half of mix.

Sear steak in large saucepan until browned on all sides (5 min), remove to a bowl.

Sautee onion and bell pepper in oil until tender (8-10 min)

Deglaze pan with 1/2 c broth, then stir in remaining broth, beans, tomatos, salsa, toasted tortillas, and remaining spice mix.

Simmer, covered, until tortillas begin to disentegrate (will take about 30 min).

Return steak to chili, season with salt and pepper.

This makes 6 servings, 284 calories each, including when you top each bowl with Sour Cream and crispy tortilla strips.

Give it a shot, I know you'll like it. Also, if you want, check out this link

http://bit.ly/c3y0Ea

for more healthy comfort foods.

Back to bed.

Update on Ninja Kimberly

2010-03-22T12:34:00.000-07:00

***Posted by Kyle

Check out this blog by our friend Kimberly- she lost 18 lbs her first month, simply by changing her eating habits. Amazing!

http://www.rhubarbandhoney.com/2010/03/182-pounds-gone-that-is.html

Great job Kimberly- keep it up