Sunday, July 8, 2007

Yes...I am still alive

I've been a bad blogger lately! Work has been hectic and I've been trying to get to the barn at least three times a week. Last week Frosty was ridden four days and there was SUBSTANTIAL improvement. I'm so proud of him!

Jarrett and I helped at the Leg Up horse show this past weekend. I decided not to ride because of work commitments so we went to help all the other riders get to there events on time and take care of the horses. It was terribly hot, but still a lot of fun.

I just realized that in 20 days I will be another year older and another year closer to 30. The good thing is Jarrett and I are planning to take a little vacation and visit Brown County. My parents will be in town for the Brickyard 400 and are going to watch the girls for us. Last weekend was my 10 year class reunion. I chose not to go and decided to visit my friend Sara in Nashville, TN instead. The trip was a lot of fun and it was so nice to meet her future husband, Casey. They are a very cute couple :)

I am happy to say that I am only 8 pounds from my goal weight. I would be lying if I said I've been diligently watching my food for the past month. I haven't gained any weight, but I know that I could have lost more if I'd been a little more accountable with my food. According to the BMI charts, I am now a "normal" weight. I know if I hit the gym more I can get these last 8 pounds off.

Sunday, June 17, 2007

It's been a long time

I haven't had time to even think about blogging in like two weeks. The month of June is almost over and I dare say that most of it is a total blur. It seems this year has gone by very quickly. Work is darn near killing me. I will say the stress has helped with my weight loss and I am now only 9 pounds from my WW goal, but it has also started to make me feel old. I am just waiting for a week that is calm and productive.

My parents came to town this weekend for my cousins high school graduation party. It was very nice to spend time with them. The dogs were so happy to see them! Amelia spent Saturday night pouting and laying by the guest bedroom door. My mom and I went shopping on Saturday and I purchased some new summer clothes that fit. Now, I have a nice dress to wear for our 5-year anniversary dinner and some new outfits for my trip to Nashville, TN at the end of the month.

With all of my work issues, I haven't had much time to ride Frosty :( I actually missed my lesson today because I had to go in to work. Jarrett kindly went in my place. He said it went very well and that I have done a good job with Frosty's training. Last weekend, I did have a chance to take him to the Hoosier Horse Park for a cross country clinic and had a BLAST! I jumped some of the biggest things I've ever jumped and Frosty acted like an old pro...until the ditch. I couldn't get him over the ditch and I ended up falling off. It is something we are going to have to school on at home and then tackle it again next time.

Well, I have an early morning ahead of me...Good night!

Saturday, June 2, 2007

SADDLES FOR SALE

Hello all you horse fans!

I have 3 saddles for sale. Below you will find links to two of the three items. I will have the third saddle listed tomorrow. Pleas email me at meaghanmeyer@yahoo.com with any questions. All sales are final and payment must be made through Paypal. Buyer pays all shipping fees.

Saddle 1: 18" Medium Tree Collegiate Dressage Saddle



Collegiate Dressage Saddle -$250- 18 in seat, black, medium tree. This saddle is older and is in excellent used condition except for a small scratch on the seat. The tree is sound and the billets are in good condition. This would be the perfect saddle for anyone starting in dressage. I've had this saddle on numerous thoroughbreds and it has fit them all very well. It does not, however, fit my Percheron cross! No fittings are included in the sale.

Saddle #2: Royal King 17" Seat Western Saddle



Royal King Western Saddle - $100 - The seat size is 17 inches. I really do not know a lot about this saddle. It is in good condition, but it is not a show saddle. It has no silver or tooling on the leather. It is black and has a suede seat. There are a few scratches on the horn and skirt. This was my Percheron Crosses saddle when I purchased him. It fits his very wide flat back nicely. It would make a good trail saddle. It comes with stirrups and a leather cinch.

Saddle #3: Thorowogood 17.5" WIDE tree A/P Saddle with FISH system - Black - $150



This saddle is almost BRAND NEW. It's only been ridden in about 6 times. It comes with the FISH system and I'll throw in a pair of the synthetic leathers. This saddle fits my Percheron Cross well, however, it just doesn't fit me. This is another great starter saddle or a fab trail riding saddle. It is very lightweight and easy to maintain.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

The race is on!

It has been a busy week already! Today I mowed and trimmed the grass and then went to the gym and ran 3.2 miles. My time was exactly 37 minutes. I was doing the hill mode on the elliptical, which made me a little slower then usual. I decided not to run the 5 mile race this weekend. Instead, I'm starting with the 5K. If I make it through the 5K alive, I'll step it up next time.

Good night!

Monday, May 28, 2007

Run....sort of

I decided to run today. I've been jogging around the neighborhood for the last few weeks, but today was the first serious "run." Jarret and I went a little over six miles. I didn't die, so that is a positive. I am determined to become some sort of a runner. I will never be fast. My legs are just too short and stubby for speed. I am convinced that if I get into this running thing, I will make it to my goal weight. I plan on running a 5 mile race next weekend. I think I'm a little crazy, but I can do it.

I wore a cute running shirt that I got today for 50% off at the Athletic Annex (a.k.a. the really expensive but really nice running store). It was very comfy and cool. It not only will make a wonderful running shirt but also a fantastic riding shirt too!

Not only did I get my cardio in this weekend, I also worked my upper body by renovating Frosty's stall. Frosty decided to make a "nest" in his new stall. He basically dug a giant hole in the middle that he would sleep in during the day. It would not have been a problem, however, he started to hurt his hocks because the hole was pretty much all limestone and it was tearing off his skin. Christy was nice enough to let us fill in his hole with limestone and put stall mats on top. Now, he can't dig! If this doesn't work, the only other option is to turn him out 24/7. I'm not against this option, but he has a bit of a weight issue and would have to wear a grazing muzzle. It's also a pain in the rear end to keep a horse that is turned out 24/7 clean.

I had an excellent ride yesterday. We did some cross country fences and I had a blast. Frosty did pretty well, too. I really want to enter a three day event next summer, so the more work we get in this summer, the better. We have a cross country clinic in two weeks and I will ride well. Period.

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Update

So last week, I committed to trying to run in the morning. It hasn't happened...yet. I am NOT a morning person. I use to be, but then my sophomore year at Purdue I came down with mono. Ever since then, I have struggled to get up in the morning and require a minimum of 8 hours of sleep to feel adequately rested. Regardless, I'm slowly inching my alarm clock earlier each day to try and trick myself out of bed. I think when the sun starts coming up a little earlier it will be easier. I have, however, walked/jogged three times in the last week during the evening.

Last Thursday I got my 10% key ring from Weight Watchers. It was nice to make that milestone...again. This is actually the second time I've lost 10% of my body weight, but Weight Watchers doesn't recognize the weight I lost when I was doing the program online. It kind of stinks, but I understand why they do it that way. If I loose any weight this week it will be a miracle. I ate WAY too much over the weekend. I did choose healthy foods, but I ate too much. This was my first real fall from the wagon and I have managed to hop right back on as of Sunday evening.

I'm getting ready for another jaunt to the Hoosier Horse park on June 8 for some cross country training. The mini goal is to loose 3 pounds before then.

Monday, May 14, 2007

Random Thoughts...

I went to the gym tonight and had a FANTASTIC workout. 45 minutes of Cross Ramp (I still don't know what exactly that means...) for 3.5 miles, resistance 7 and I was in the cross training program that has a ton of hills. I burned 412 calories. I spent the next 30 minutes doing my usual weights. I managed to increase everything by 5 pounds, except the shoulder press. I'm having an "issue" with my left rotator cuff. I refuse to go to the doctor and have them prescribe physical therapy...or should I say, "A ridiculously expensive trip to a gym that my crummy insurance only covers for 4 sessions and the doctor will prescribe a MINIMUM of eight...." So, until my arm completely stops working, I'm living with it. I had a personal victory tonight. I leg pressed 250 pounds. Yes, you read that correctly. 250 pounds for 30 reps. I rule.

This weekend was fun. We went to our nephews first birthday party on Friday. He totally loved the Little People's farm we got for him. Of course, he is one so that meant that first he had to taste everything and then play with the box for awhile before he decided the toy was cool too. Saturday was busy. I got my hair cut, went to work for awhile, and then helped Jarrett do some gardening. Our yard is looking pretty nice this year. It hasn't rained in AGES so we've been watering almost everyday. The only plant that seems to have met an early death is the cilantro. I am fully convinced that someone is trying to prevent me from having cilantro in my diet. It's a long story, but let's just say the khaki pants conspiracy has a close relative called the cilantro conspiracy. We even found time to do a little shopping. I had to return some clothes to Anne Taylor and ended up picking up a few cute tops that were on sale...in a size 10! I was so excited I decided to try on some summer dresses while I was there and looked absolutely fab! They were, of course, not on sale, so I put them away to oogle another day. We also managed to find Jarrett some spiffy new clothes for my cousins wedding. His tie coordinates with my dress. Aren't we sweet??

My goal this week is to get up early and run...I am determined to work in 5 work out sessions this week and the only way I am possibly going to be able to achieve this is to get up early and run. I don't have enough time to go to the gym in the morning before work, so the next best thing is running for an hour before work. The tentative plan is to run Tuesday morning, ride Tuesday night, gym Wednesday, ride Thursday, run Friday morning. If I actually do this...I am buying myself a new pair of riding breeches. Jarrett...you have been warned!

Monday, May 7, 2007

Conspiracy

This weekend was pretty busy. Jarrett ran the Indianapolis Mini Marathon on Saturday and did very well. We had a little pre-race party on Friday night with Jarrett's family and a post-race party with some of our friends on Saturday. All in all, it was a lot of fun and I MAY be convinced to run the Mini next May.

As for the conspiracy...Someone in fashion has decided the khaki pant is "out" this season. I am in desperate need of a pair of reasonably priced khaki pants that I won't feel bad if they get bakery goo on them. Why do I need these pants so badly??? I have been waiting for 8 weeks for my new sized uniforms to arrive and they STILL are not here. The only khaki pants I have are 6 sizes too big and make me look like some kind of hoodlum because they hang so low. Totally unacceptable for work! I have a business trip to another plant on Wednesday and I really, really NEED THE PANTS.

Sigh...So, I've spent hours shopping and purchased two pairs of pants. One is khaki, the other is taupe...I guess. I like them both, but I'm returning the khaki's because they cost twice as much as the other pair and I refuse to pay $40 for a pair of pants that will fit me for hopefully only another month. I'm between sizes right now and I don't want to buy a bunch of stuff I'm not going to wear again.

In other news, I went to the gym tonight. I haven't been in forever, so I was pretty happy that I managed to elliptical 4.2 miles in 42 minutes. I also did my usual weights. I am thinking about running a race at the end of May. I haven't totally convinced myself I can do it, so I haven't signed up yet. I know that I'm in much better shape then I give myself credit for, but I still have doubts in my running ability.

I have 5 more pounds to loose to make my next mini-goal...BMI of 25! I really hope to make it before my cousins wedding in two weeks, but I'm going to keep it real and be happy if I loose 3 of the 5 pounds.

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Another busy weekend

It seems like it has been ages since we actually had a weekend to just relax. This weekend was really busy. We were up earl on Saturday to start house work. We got a good chunk of cleaning done before we decided to head out to run some errands. Running errands ended up turning into a two hour adventure at the mall. We went to shop for a new rug for our breakfast room but ended up buying clothes instead. I needed clothes for my cousins up coming wedding and Jarrett needed jeans. It just so happened we hit an awesome sale. I found two new dresses that are very cute. I even found shoes on sale :)

Saturday night we went to a concert at the Vogue. Jarrett got tickets to see Patty Griffin. She is a folk singer from Nashville. She has a great and voice and a very good band. The best part was the show was non-smoking! I haven't been to a concert in almost two years, so it was nice to get out for an evening.

Sunday was another busy day. Riding lesson in the morning, a trip to Menard's to buy a new weed eater and finally a few hours of yard work. The yard looks very nice. Unfortunately, I lost two of my favorite flowers that we planted last year. Next weekend, we are going to find something to replace the ones that died.

It's going to be another busy week. Next weekend, Jarrett is running the Mini. I hope to be there to cheer him at the finish. I just have to get out of work at a reasonable time.

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Life Update

It's been awhile since my last post. Here is what's been going on:

-I left for Philly last week on Monday and spent two days being educated about environmental issues within the baking industry. This was actually a worthwhile trip and my travel went very smoothly. My only complaint is that it is IMPOSSIBLE to eat healthy at an airport. I managed to make it back without gaining any weight, but I definitely did not loose any weight. I did workout in the gym at the hotel for about an hour and got plenty of walking in at the airport.

-Friday I went to Lafayette to help load the horses for the show. Frosty was great! He hopped right on the trailer and didn't even make a fuss about wearing his shipping boots. We got to the Horse Park about 11:30 am and immediately had to get horses ready for a cross country clinic. Christy rode Frosty for his first cross country outing and he did AWESOME! He wasn't afraid of anything! Everyone did really well at the clinic and no one fell off :)

-Saturday was the show. Show days start super early. Jarrett's parents were kind enough to let us stay with them and took care of the girls for us while we were busy with the horses. My events were at 9:00, 10:30, and 1:30. That may sound like a long time between events, but by the time you actually tack your horse, warm-up and ride, it feels like your rushed. Luckily, I had my handy horse husband to help groom, tack, and carry various stuff. He is very good about helping all the girls get to their tests on time and making sure no one forgot anything. He has also gotten very good at giving a leg up.
Frosty was a little worked up for our first test. He was upset about leaving his friends at the barn and spent a good amount of time hollering at them. For this being his first show, he was pretty well behaved. He didn't leap out of the dressage arena or any silliness of that nature. The show was a combined training show which means you could either enter only dressage or jumping and dressage. We did both. I was horrible nervous about the jumping part of the show. I'm totally out of practice at jumping and Frosty had only jumped five times prior to the show. Last year, I psyched myself out and ended up scratching my jumping round. This year, I actually did it! I was very proud of myself. It was very reassuring watching Frosty take to the cross country course like a pro the day before. I knew if he could jump a 3 foot solid obstacle stuck in the middle of a field while people drove golf carts around him, he could handle a little cross rail. He did great. We had a clear round with no refusals and no rails down :) He almost stopped at the third fence, but at the last second he determined that he could just step over it. The rest of the round went very well. He actually started to get into the rhythm by the end of the course. Our scores from the morning dressage and jumping ended up landing us a 4th place! The last event of the day was another dressage test. We ended up getting a 3rd place in that event! We ended the day with a lovely dinner with all of our horse people.

-Sunday was another fun day. Frosty got to do cross country again, this time with me riding. He did great. I got yelled at...a lot. I have a problem of not keeping my heels down and jumping ahead. This is because I do not jump enough. Solution...jump more. By the end of the day, my position had improved and it just shows, practice makes perfect.

Here is a link to pictures of me at the horse show: Show Pictures 2007

This week has been kind of rough. I started feeling kind of sick on Monday and by Tuesday I'd come down with a sinus infection. I went to the barn for my lesson Tuesday and ended up having to get off after about 3 minutes because I got a massive nose bleed. I've never had a nose bleed like that before and I hope I never do again. I went to work this morning, but left around 2:00 pm because my head was killing me.

I missed my Weight Watcher's weigh-in last week due to traveling. Tomorrow it's back to face the scale. I honestly have no clue whether I lost any weight or not. I guess I'll find out tomorrow!

Thursday, April 12, 2007

:)

It's Thursday...and that means it is weigh-in day. WW was closed due to the holiday last week. I am happy to report a 4.2 pound loss! That was even with a holiday and my brothers birthday party. I also made my mini-goal of loosing 20 pounds before my horse show a week early. Next goal - drop 10 more pounds before May, 19th. That is my cousins wedding and I would be thrilled to be 10 pounds lighter. It's a rather lofty goal, but not unobtainable.

Monday, April 9, 2007

An empty closet...it's a good thing.

I had a very pleasant long weekend. We rented a bunch of movies and pretty much stayed home and hibernated. Easter dinner consisted of tasty homemade enchilada's and guacamole...not exactly the traditional ham and green bean casserole! Sunday I went to visit Frosty and then came home and cleaned out our closet. Now, that was an adventure. I ended up cleansing the closet of six 45 gallon trash bags full of old clothes that either don't fit or even if they did fit should have been donated to Goodwill five years ago. My closet looks so empty!

We did make it to the gym today and after a very nice workout, we even ran into a few old friends. I found a new favorite machine called the Crossramp. It is difficult to describe, but it is kind of like constantly walking up a ramp through sand. It was a great workout and I burned about 250 calories. It is really interesting because you can adjust the "crossramp" to target different areas of your legs. I did the cross training program that works various leg muscles for short periods of time. It keeps you from getting tired too quickly.

This week is going to be tough. I have a bunch of work to get done before I leave for a conference next week.

I only have 1.5 pounds to loose before the horse show! I think I'm going to make it!

Thursday, April 5, 2007

Gym

I went to the gym today.

Elliptical Machine:
30 minutes + 5 cool down
3.2 miles
300 calories

Weights:
30 minutes

Other then that, nothing new around here. I'm in a rather bad mood today....

Thursday, March 29, 2007

A quick post

This week has been unbelievably busy. Between work and getting ready for the horse show, I haven't spent much time at the gym or on the computer. I did make time to go weigh in tonight. I lost 1.4 pounds this week. I could have lost more if I had gone to the gym a few more times, but when the weather is this nice, I require myself to go ride Frosty.

I'm going home for the weekend to visit family. Unfortunately, Jarrett is staying in Indy with the girls. Belle's arthritis is causing her problems and she just isn't up for a 3 hour car ride. :(

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Feeling Better

It's been a few days, but I've been very busy and feeling pretty ill. I went to the doctor on Thursday and I was fine. Then he gave me a tetanus shot and not only did my arm hurt, but Friday I had a fever and horrible joint pain. Luckily today I feel MUCH better. I don't know if it was the vaccine that made me feel terrible or if I just was exposed to other people’s nasty germs at his office, but something definitely kicked my butt yesterday.

I also had a WW weigh-in on Thursday. The verdict is down 2.9 more pounds! That makes the total since getting back on the wagon in February -14 pounds. I have 6 more pounds to go before the horse show.

The only downside to my success is my show clothes are now going to be too big. My jackets were a little large to begin with and now they are going to really hang. I think I'll get them altered after the show is over, but it takes forever to have alterations done in this town. I may end up buying a new pair of breeches. I have show breeches that were a little too small last year. I haven't tried them on this year, so maybe I'll get lucky and they will fit. I found them on eBay for $40.00 and they originally cost almost $300! If you aren't familiar with the horse world...everything is expensive. I try to buy most of my stuff on sale/clearance or on eBay. The only thing I will not compromise on is a new saddle. Frosty is a very difficult horse to fit and therefore finding the right saddle is proving to be a bit of a chore. I have a few ideas, but I may end up having the saddle fitter lady come to the barn and take a look at him. I also need to find him new boots. The galloping boots I have don't fit him. The hind boots are okay for dressage and stadium jumping, but not suitable for cross-country. So far, I haven't had any luck finding a pair that is in my price range, will fit him, and are appropriate for multiple disciplines. I plan on using the same boots for stadium jumping and cross country and just wrapping him in polo wraps for dressage. Did I mention I HATE polo wraps? They are a TOTAL pain, but they look so nice!

Time to go! Enjoy the weekend!

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Work Out

Elliptical
30 minutes + 5 minute cool down
3.2 miles
354 calories

Weights
30 minutes
I increased all of my weight increments by at least 5 pounds today.

Weird

So the vet checked out Frosty for foot issues, ring worm, and his leg bump and found NOTHING wrong with him! They could not get him to limp while she was at the barn. The weird fungus thing already started to go away, and the bump he's had on his leg for awhile now is not bothering him and therefore not worth messing with. He, unfortunately, was a bit of a butt head and was a little pushy with the vet. I'm planning to get him a rope halter to work on his baby issues.

I'm off to the gym tonight. I have a doctors appointment in the morning and weigh-in tomorrow night. I'm predicting a small loss...maybe 1 pound. I've been good with food this week, but I haven't made it to the gym as many times as I would have liked.

On a side note, it is 78 degrees today! Mimi got to go out and play ball and Belle even joined in to bark and bite her sister. It is suppose to rain the rest of the week and be nice again on Sunday.

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Animal Updates

It has been a busy week so far! Belle had a vet appointment Monday for more blood work. The good news is her Cushing's appears to be responding well to her treatment. She gets a month off before she goes back for another blood panel. Amelia survived her tooth pulling like a trooper last week and finally got her birthday cake on Sunday. Now that I have the dogs health back under "control" it is only fitting the Frosty is having issues. It appears his cold has cleared up, but today he was lame on his right front foot and appears to have some kind of skin irritation, which may or may not be ringworm. Luckily, the vet is coming to the barn tomorrow for vaccinations and will look him over. :(

Saturday, March 17, 2007

More Miles

I was good and went to the gym this afternoon.

Bike:
25 minutes + 5 minute cool down
7.4 miles
225 calories

I also did weights again.

I had my hair cut this morning. It's been at least a year since I had a hair cut, so it was about time.

Friday, March 16, 2007

Gym Time

Bike:
20 minutes hill climb + 5 minutes cool down
200 calories
5.2 miles

Weights - 30 minutes

I also ate out twice today. Usually I would say this was not a good idea, but I ate very responsibly. I had a spicy tuna roll for lunch and for dinner we went to my favorite Mexican place. I had 3 chips and one bean enchilada. I'm surely over my WW points for the day, but not be too much. Plus I haven't used any of my Flex Points this week.

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Weigh In

:) I lost 3.7 pounds this week! I was pleasantly surprised since I only made it to the gym once this week.

The goal for next week is another 3 pounds! I am also going to go to the morning WW meeting next Thursday. I figure I can take 30-45 minutes out of my work week to attend a meeting. I rarely venture out for lunch, so I'm not feeling too guilty.

Tomorrow I'm meeting Mindy for sushi. I love sushi and it is pretty low in points. I also have to remember that I get 35 extra "Flex" points a week. That way I can get the tasty spicy tuna that is has a few more calories then I would normally consume...mmmmm raw fish.

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

No lights :(

Great food day today! I went to Steak N' Shake for lunch and had a Deluxe Garden salad, no cheese, and fat free Italian dressing. Dinner was a banana and cereal bar on my way to the barn. My lesson was cut short due to Frosty's cold :( and the lights in the barn going out. I got home and had some salsa and a piece of whole wheat pita bread.

I'm feeling pretty good going into my second WW weigh-in tomorrow. I think I'll have a loss. I'm also going to cheat by wearing lighter clothes. My work uniforms are two sizes too big and weigh about 5 pounds. According to my scale at home I'm down 3 pounds this week. Not too shabby...

I'll have an official weigh in report tomorrow!

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Gym Update

Elliptical: 30 minutes + 5 minute cool down
Distance: 3.4 miles
Calories: 340

I also did weights for about 30 minutes.

Tomorrow I have a dentist appointment and then a riding lesson in the evening. No time for the gym, but riding is decent exercise.

Good night!

Where did the time go?

I can't believe Tuesday is almost over! The weekend was just not long enough and this week has been unusually busy at work and home. Jarrett was in Orlando for business Monday and Tuesday. Amelia's 4th birthday was Monday. She spent it at the vet with her sister. Mimi had a dental and Belle had to have some blood work. Mimi had a tooth pulled and spent the night being absolutely pathetic. She seems to be feeling much better tonight and is enjoying snooping out the open window.

The weekend was interesting. Jarrett and I dropped the horse blankets off for laundering. This is only the first round of blanket washing. I have three separate levels of blankets for Frosty. Everything from a thin mud sheet he's wearing now to a super heavy blanket for those 20 below zero winter days. On Sunday I had my riding lesson. We decided to see if Frosty would jump. We had only ridden him over some small stuff right before I bought him and he has not had any training as a jumper. Let's just say it started rather poorly. He refused the first jump and then I fell off :( I haven't fallen off in a VERY long time and it was a little painful. Luckily, Christy, my trainer got on him and schooled him over a few jumps and he calmed down and figured it out. I got back on and finished the lesson on a very positive note. He was jumping small cross rails and we did not have any more refusals. This was a big step in the right direction.

I also found a new tasty food this weekend. It is called Better 'n Peanut Butter. It is WAY healthier the regular peanut butter and I think it is just as good. It is a lot sweeter but I like my peanut butter on the sweet side.

I haven't been to the gym in a week, so that's were I'm heading!

Thursday, March 8, 2007

Meetings, meetings everywhere

It feels like this has been a week of non-stop meetings. We had our weekly 3.5 hour staff meeting today and yesterday I held training classes for the plant...for another total of 3 hours of fun.

Today, I had my first real Weight Watcher's meeting. I have done Weight Watcher's off and on for the last few years online. I lost about 25 pounds last year and I luckily didn't gain all of it back. I decided to get back on board about a month ago. I still have all of the material, and it's not exactly rocket science. My friend Cyndi is now a Weight Watcher's leader. She made Lifetime status awhile ago and has done really awesome on the program. This time, I set a realistic goal weight of 135. If all goes well, I hope to make Lifetime in less then a year. I am going to start with small goals. I would like to loose another 2 pounds this week. That will put me only 8 pounds away from my first goal of 20 pounds before April 20.

I cannot wait for the weekend. The weather is suppose to be nice. Jarret and I need to make a trip to Shelbyville, IN to drop off some horse blankets for washing and repairs. It has been a big challenge to find someone willing to wash blankets. Dry cleaners are NOT fond of filthy, muddy, hair blankets in their washing machines.

It's getting pretty late and I've still got work tomorrow. Good night!

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Another day at the gym

I did some "fake" running tonight on the elliptical. I claim it is fake running because it is much easier then "real" running. I HATE real running.

Distance = 5.2 miles
Time: 60 minutes + 5 minutes of cool down time
Calories = 585

I'm pretty slow, but I honestly don't think I have ever run 5.2 miles....ever.

Today was a HORRIBLE food day. We had lunch at work today and I could not help but eat two sugar cookies. My actual lunch was well proportioned. I had a small serving of pork loin, a medium serving of green beans, and a forkful of cheesy potatoes. I completely avoided the bread and cake!

I also decided that there are good healthy replacements for most foods, but some things you just cannot find a good substitute for. Here are a few:

Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing - The fat free version is NASTY. If you read the ingredients, you'll understand why. A normal consumer would not recognize over half the ingredients, let alone be able to pronounce them. I have decided that I will keep this condiment in the house and only use it sparingly. I really only eat it with my super low cal and extra tasty buffalo chicken tenders.

Smucker's Raspberry Jam - I have yet to find a good substitute for any kind of jam or jelly. The sugar free versions all taste like metal to me or have a very odd texture. I have committed to continuing to search for a suitable replacement, but I really don't eat enough jelly or jam to be terribly concerned about this one.

Cheese - Light cheese - good...Soy cheese GROSS I kept an open mind, but this one I've got to just stay away from.

Yesterday was a great food day and a wonderful horse day. Frosty was amazing. We are still having issues teaching him to canter, however, I think he will begin to progress much faster once I can get him back into the round pen. He is a very smart boy but he just doesn't really understand what we are asking him to do on the lunge line or under saddle when it comes to the canter. He will canter, however, he rushes and falls all over himself.

Belle is also feeling better. She had a rough few days after starting her Cushing's treatment. She is still a little tired, but she was much more active tonight. We can tell the treatment is working. She has slowed down when eating and drinks much less water.

Monday, March 5, 2007

Tonight's Workout

Elliptical Trainer: 4.6 miles in 45 minutes plus 5 minutes of cool down. Total Calories: 458

I think I like the elliptical. My legs were killing me for the first 5 minutes, but after they loosened up a little, I did pretty well. I didn't have time to do weights tonight, so that will have to wait for another day.

The weigh-in was not as great as I had hoped. I only lost 2 pounds this week. I know I'm loosing inches, though. I comfortably fit into a size smaller then I usually wear while I was at the mall over the weekend...it's the little victories.

Sunday, March 4, 2007

Horse Troubles

This weekend was very nice. My mom, dad, brother, and sister-in-law all came down from South Bend. They helped us install three new ceiling fans in our house. I managed to avoid a fast food catastrophe by opting out on lunch at Chick-Fil-A. Instead, Jarrett and I stuck to Smart One's. Dinner wasn't a total disaster. We went to Texas Roadhouse and I had a 6-0z sirloin and veggies. I even managed to avoid eating any of the bread and only 3 peanuts. Sunday was another great food day. Jarrett and I made our own pizza's using whole wheat pita's for the crust and fat-free mozzarella cheese. They were really good!

I didn't get to the gym on Friday or Saturday. I had my riding lesson on Sunday. It was terribly frustrating. We started by lunging Frosty. This is an exercise he does not really understand yet. He was getting very upset. I have to remind myself he is just 4 and he isn't fully trained. It will come with time and work. I really have only had him for 10 weeks and he has come so far in such a short time.

Belle, our 11 year old Shetland sheepdog, started chemotherapy this weekend. She was diagnosed last week with Cushing's disease. So far, she has responded well to the treatment. We haven't noticed any adverse reaction to the treatment. Jarrett is spending the day with her tomorrow and Tuesday to continue to closely monitor her. We hope this treatment is going to help make her more comfortable. She's the sweetest dog anyone could ever ask for and we'd do anything to make her feel better.

Friday, March 2, 2007

Happy Friday!

It's Friday! This weekend my family is coming to town. My brother is going to install a ceiling fan in our bedroom and some junction boxes in the other rooms. No gym today. I ran around enough at work that I contest I didn't need to go to the gym. I usually ride on Friday's but that just wasn't in the cards for this evening.

I had a good food day today. I am in love with the new Fiber One breakfast bars. They are awesome! If you are looking for a good source of fiber that taste great, try them.

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Bad food day...good gym day

Today was not a great food day. I had Chinese for lunch. I ate mostly veggies and a little chicken, but I know it wasn't the best food to eat. Dinner was French Onion soup and a small salad with honey mustard dressing. It wasn't horrible, but the dressing wasn't low fat and the soup had cheese on it. Jarrett and I did go to the gym. I tried the elliptical tonight and ran 2.5 miles and burned 300 calories. I also did weights for about 20 minutes. I can leg press 170 pounds! :)

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

It kind of looked like road kill...

Today is only Wednesday, but it feels like it should be Friday. Work has been tough this week and I'm exhausted, so no gym tonight. The plan is to go to bed early.

I tried to make a new dish of black refried beans, corn, and salsa tonight. Individually, all of these are tasty ingredients. Mixed together and heated in the microwave...makes it look kind of like roadkill. It is super healthy, but not super tasty. The garbage disposal ate most of it and seemed to enjoy it very much.

I'm meeting my friend Mindy for dinner tomorrow. It will be a dining out challenge. We are meeting at a local bar and bars tend to have less then healthy meal choices. I see a side salad in my future....

Good night!

Monday, February 26, 2007

The Verdict

With my new scale in hand, the verdict is in...drum roll please...6 pounds down! We went to visit with Jarrett's family over the weekend, so minor indulgence did occur, but other then that, all went well.

Tonight, I went to the gym and did 45 minutes of cardio on the bike for a total of 21.5 miles and 310 calories. I also made a tasty dinner of beansprouts and Chinese dumplings. Hungry Girl suggested trying beansprouts as a replacement for rice or noodles and I have to say, I approve. I'm going to try boiling them and mixing in spagetti sauce next.

Saturday, February 24, 2007

Random Ramblings

So it's Saturday...I'm almost one week into my renewed commitment to eating healthy and exercising. So far, I've done very well. I went to the gym on Monday and Tuesday and rode Frosty on Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday. Thursday ended up being a day of rest and work commitments on Saturday will keep me from the gym. I have kept my caloric intake under 1200 calories a day, drank my 8-10 glasses of water, and only missed my multi-vitamin one day. I can tell I've lost some weight, however, our incredibly old scale is telling both Jarrett and myself that we have either gained 6 pounds or lost 4...it depends on what moods it is in. We are planning to shop for a new, more reliable scale this weekend. We are also making a special trip to Trader Joe's, our favorite grocery store. Unfortunately, it is located a fair distance from our house, so we do not get to visit frequently. They have a lot of the hard to find healthy food items our regular store doesn't stock. They also have an AWESOME selection of frozen fish and Asian spices and sauces.

We will also be making a trip to one or both of the local tack stores. Frosty loves to play in the mud and has managed to turn his pretty tail into a dread locked mess of mud and icicles. I plan to spend some time working on cleaning it up on Sunday and then braiding and wrapping his tail until the mud clears up. Luckily, I purchased a heavy-duty sheet for him last month. If you are ever in the market for horse clothing, I recommend Schneiders. They have great prices and the quality is excellent. His sheet kept his body fairly clean but he still managed to get mud all over his face and mane.

Enjoy your weekend :)

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

The Crunch Enhancer??

Welcome to the Crunch Enhancer! My name is Meaghan and I would like you to make yourself cozy and try not to doze off while reading my blog. I'm not much of a writer, but I figured, it's free...why not. If someone out there is actually willing to spend time reading about my rather boring life, then more power to them :)

You may wonder about the title of this blog...Crunch Enhancer. It is a humble tribute to the greatest food scientist of all time, Clark W. Griswold. If you happen to be a National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation fan, you may remember that Clark was nominated as food additive designer of the year for his invention, the Crunch Enhancer. As a fellow food scientist, I tip my hat to his innovative product development skills.

I am a proud mom of three fur kids. My husband and I have two Shetland sheepdog baby girls and our most recent addition to the family, a horse. Our animals are a big part of our lives. I am preparing for my first horse show with my new horse, Frosty. He is a four year old Percheron/Thoroughbred gelding. I promise to post pictures soon.

As part of my prep for the show (April 20-22) I am determined to loose 20 pounds. I joined a gym and I am closely monitoring my diet. I started my work out routine last night. First, 5 minutes of warm-up/stretching, 45-minutes of cardio on the recumbent bike (20.2 miles!), followed by 45-minutes of weights and 5 minutes of cool-down on the stairmaster (15.7 floors). In total, I burned 320 calories.