My job did a thing...

So, we had a BIG announcement at work on Wednesday.  We rebranded AND we announced our super-secret partnership with XBOX Fitness!  Check out the video:



I'll give you a hint at who did the camerawork and lighting...LOL
Actually, I can't take all the credit on the lighting - that goes to my Production Supervisor. He's a BEAST when it comes to lighting! Check out this side-by-side we did while we were testing our lighting set-up for the announcement video shoot:


He did such a great job (and Heather was nice enough to sit in for us to get some test footage).  I'm so glad we can now green screen instead of fudging through it with some grey paper and and RGB Key.  Okay, okay, enough nerd talk.

I am really excited about the XBOX Fitness partnership, though.  The classes are AWESOME - and I'm not just saying that because I work there, I'm saying it because it's true!  They're only 30 minutes and time flies by while you're doing it!  If you're one of the lucky ones to snag an XBOX One, I urge you to try the Mossa classes!  I believe they're free for a year if you have an XBOX Gold membership...I'm not sure how the memberships work since my old man is the keeper of the XBOX at our house (it's just a Netflix / Hulu box for me! Ha!).

But seriously - try the Mossa workouts.  They're great.  I never thought I'd enjoy the Mossa Fight workout (because Group Kick always intimidates me) but Fight is so much fun and you'll feel AMAZING afterwards!  Take it from me!  It's the thing I needed to break my weight-loss plateau.

Who's getting an XBOX One?  Let me know how you like the Mossa workouts!

Weight Loss Update

This was posted to She Loves You Fit Blog here
_________________
You know, on my way to work this morning, I realized I haven't done a measurements post, like, AT ALL.
First of all let me say that I'm truly amazed at how far I've come.  When I "officially" started in January of this year, my goal was was 70 lbs away.  70!!  It felt so far away and yes, I felt like giving up that first month but my BF kept me on track by pushing me and going on this journey with me and together, we've lost a lot of weight.
When I started with Lose It, I was at 206.4 lbs.  I hated that number!  Absolutely hated it!  I also hated the fact that in order for Lose It to work properly, you HAD to weigh yourself everyday so that it can calculate how many calories you have for the day in order to reach your goal weight.  My goal is to lose at least 1.5 lbs a week.  That's pretty reasonable, right?
This morning, I weighed in at 167.6 lbs.  I've lost a total of 38.8 lbs and I'm roughly 30 lbs away from my goal!  Time really does fly by!  I can believe I'm down this far already and while some days are harder than others, it has been a great adventure.
I know sometimes you don't feel like working out or counting those extra calories you've eaten - and believe me, I've had plenty of over-my-calorie-budget days - but it's all worth it.  And I'm the WORST when it comes to that but you know, I've been taking a different approach since my friend passed away a few weeks ago.
I've changed my outlook on life since that happened.  I don't know why it just clicked but it did and I'm very grateful that it did because I feel like I have a different perspective on things now.  I'm getting better about not sweating the small stuff - like not working out for a few days or having a little extra food here and there - that stuff doesn't bother me as much anymore because I'm trying to see the bigger picture.  Sure, I still have to work hard to reach my goals and I get that but I'll try not to be so hard on myself for stumbling along the way.  There's no point in wasting time on those little things.  So long as you reach your goals, you did it and that's all that matters.  I'm almost there and I'm so proud of myself for getting this far and I know I still have further to go but you know, instead of preparing myself for the worst, I'm excited because the outcome will be worth all the moaning, groaning, sweating and calorie counting.
Just remember that when things get rough, it's okay to take a break.  You owe yourself that much.  But know that you have to get back on track bigger and better every time because that's when you'll truly start seeing results.
Much love to you all and thank you for joining me on this journey!  You guys are awesome!!

Short Update

Month 3 is almost over on my weight loss journey (!!) and I'm still sticking to it.  Well...kinda sorta.  In Asheville, I didn't exactly keep up with my calorie counts via Lose It like I normally do but because I had started that new habit, both the old man and I were way more aware of how much we were eating - which helped us make way better decisions.  But since we were on vacation, there were a few exceptions (of course!).
Like this:


That's right, I had the Juicy Lucy milkshake of the month and I HAD to have it with a burger that complimented the bacon flavor, right? Of course. I didn't really count it as "cheating" because I was plateauing and I felt like this could maybe break up my routine. Nah, who am I kidding - I just really wanted it. But you know what? I hardly gained anything while we were gone but I think all of our climbing and walking helped.  And honestly, the more I think about it, I think regularly breaking up the same old routine with things like hamburgers and onion rings (The Varsity's please!) helps keep my body from plateauing.

Seriously.  My weight loss has been slow and steady and I'm enjoying it!  I've lost...wait for it...
25 POUNDS already!!  I'm so pleased with myself because I've made it this far and I'm sticking with it!  And on top of all that - I need new clothes.  This is a good thing and a bad thing.

The good thing about that is that I get to go shopping at places I couldn't shop at before.  Hooray!  The bad thing is that I have a lot of articles that I LOVE and I don't think the hoarder in me can get rid of them so easily.  And I don't exactly have tons of money to be throwing at new clothes right about now but NOTHING fits.  My bras, my jeans, my shirts...NOTHING fits.  The plus will be that the things that I can and will part with will be going to the Goodwill.  I wouldn't throw all that stuff away!

Anyway - I hope you guys are having a good week.  I'm still all sad panda about the MCR breakup but there's something sweet on the horizon: The new Wavves album!  I pre-ordered it (with the hopes of getting the limited edition vinyl!!) and it should be arriving any day now!  AND Mr. Williams and Co. will be performing here in about 2 weeks!  Can't wait!!  It's been way too long!

Hearts for Marshall Lee

Sorry for the extreme lack of posts!  :(
Things are getting CRAY and I'm trying to get it together so I can blog on a regular-ish schedule...

Here's a few updates:
My weight loss challenge is going pretty well.  I had a bit of a  wagon-falling-off moment this past weekend but I'm trying to get back on - without any excuses!  Although, I know this - I HATE running in the cold so it's working out at work and the elliptical and Gossip Girl in my living room until the weather warms up.

Did anyone watch Adventure Time last night?  It was another cute Fionna and Cake episode.  You might have noticed a super special guest star as Marshall Lee...


That's right - it was Donald Glover!  I loved it!  It was too cute!  And, as always, Neil Patrick Harris as Prince Bubblegum was adorable, too.  It seems as though Tumblr is freaking out over Donald Glover as Marshall Lee.  Aww.  Fandoms.  Gotta love 'em!

Did you do anything fun for Valentine's Day?  I know it was a Thursday but I still *tried* to spread the love around the office with some Hello Kitty valentines for the ladies and Avengers valentines for the guys.  I don't think it worked because the aura is still weird here at the office...
Weird auras aside, Valentine's was good.  The old man and I used that Saturday as our V-Day date and cheat day for  February.  Where'd we go?  Bone Garden, of course!

I took a restorative yoga class with Lauren on Friday.  Man, I needed it!  At work, we don't stay in one position for longer than 30 seconds at a time so to hold one pose for 3 minutes, well, that was a challenge!  There were lots of great hip openers and I think I was able to let go of a few things - even if it was just for the length of the class.
If you're in Atlanta, please check out Sacred Thread Yoga.  They're wonderful!

I'm still working on my super-secret project that I'm hoping I can share with you guys soon.  We have some behind-the-scenes filming coming up and I'm hoping I can release that before the finished product is available.  It's going to be very exciting!

I'm also doing something that's way overdue - I'm trying to get my show reel together and on top of that, I'm also uploading the full videos to my Vimeo and/or YouTube.  I haven't decided yet.  I'll post links when they're ready!  I can't wait to share them with you!

I'm making a doctor's appointment now, to try and head off this cold!  I'll try not to let it slow me down!

Weight Loss Goals - Challenge Accepted!

In my last post, I talked about my resolution to lose weight.  Why is it so important to me?
Well, a few years ago, my Dad took me out to a nice lunch and proceeded to tell me that he would help me find a weight loss program to be on while he was away in Iraq.  It sounds mean and I took it the wrong way, as I would, and even though we worked it out and I ended up on a diet program that didn't really work for me, mentally and emotionally, I did it for 3 months before deciding to stop it.
It was taking an emotional toll on me.  I know that sounds like an excuse or something but it really did take a toll on me.  I was hungry all the time and I wasn't exactly advertising that I was on a diet at work because I feared extreme judgement from my coworkers.  They can't be that cruel - but they do make jokes about 114lbs being "huge".  Ouch.
I felt withdrawn.  It was almost like I was grounded.  I felt like a bad kid constantly being in trouble and it was awful.  Yes, I was losing weight but I felt miserable emotionally.  I hated feeling that way and after pleading with my Dad in very emotional emails, we cancelled it.
There were a few upsides to it, though.  I learned how to eat healthier and I thought I was making better choices.  I also learned what I like and don't like as far as cooking goes.
But I was still gaining weight.

A few weeks ago, I had a dream.  I dreamt that I received a wedding invitation to a wedding in Montana.  There was a note inside from the bride-to-be telling me to get down to a size 10 by March.  How specific.  And you would think that I would be upset by this in the dream and waking up but, surprisingly, I was very calm.  In the dream, I achieved my goal by getting down to a size 8 - what what! - and everyone was impressed.  When I woke up, I had a very Barney Stinson moment



And I proceeded to tell my friend (and coworker) my goal - just for the sake of getting out into the Universe.  I'm hoping that even though I'm feeling discouraged because of my weight GAIN, I don't lose momentum.  In fact, I have made another deal with myself - which will remain secret because it's very personal - and I'm hoping I can make good on it very, very soon.

Onward and upward!

2013 Resolutions...The Weight Game

We are well into 2013 and - SURPRISE - one of my resolutions is to lose weight (like most people at the beginning of each new year).
I've tried diets and exercising and all that and I really enjoy the Lose It app but I haven't seen any results.
So what's different this time?  The old man is joining me and we are super serious about getting this weight loss thing going.
And there's already a problem.  I hate - HATE - measuring food out but I'm doing it like a good kid and eve though it makes me cringe, I am portioning out EVERYTHING.  Believe me when I say my measuring spoons and cups are getting a major workout.  LOL.  I kid.
But seriously - I'm measuring out every single thing I put in my mouth.  I've gotten over that Dragon Lady stage of being hungry all the time and I've now come to accept the hunger pangs until my body readjusts but I've GAINED weight since I started losing it!
I was on a slow and steady losing streak all last week (which was our first full week) and then I weighed myself last night and, to my surprise, I'm almost back to the weight I STARTED at.  Bummer.
I've even doing the things I hate.  Along with measuring every freaking thing, I'm looking at fitspo blogs for motivation, following fitspo people on Tumblr AND Instagram and cooking more with recipes from Hungry Girl and Skinnytaste.  I'm even running (with my Nike+ GPS app) - and I HATE running. I'm freakin' running at my old high school track - which I avoided like the plague when I was a student there.



The first two are both from Saturday. I ran the track a few times and then ran the stairs for about 10 minutes and cooled off with one full lap around. I was getting ready to leave when my iPod played a few songs that I was like, "Awww hell naw - I HAVE to run to this!" and then I ran a couple more laps. 
 The second track is from yesterday. Not as many laps on the stairs but I went ALL OUT on those steps!  I was a sweaty mess afterwards that I walked the rest of the time we were there.

So that got me thinking - what if the weight gain is purely muscle? After all, on my two track running days (Saturday and Sunday), I ran the stadium steps too, so...why not, right?  It only makes sense.  And my legs feel like cannons!  They haven't felt this solid since I was weight training ages ago.  Why did I stop?  Because of a lower back injury that still hurts me.  I've consulted with the fitness folks at work about it and they all say the same thing: Katzi, you're just too top-heavy.  I don't expect my coworkers to feel the pains of a large-breasted woman...but they're usually pretty nice about it and I've cooled off on the weights.

But now I'm like: What do I do???  I don't need to get discouraged.  On my Saturday early morning TV watching, I saw a bunch of infomercials for Tapout XT or whatever and diet pill after diet pill but the one that stuck out the most for me was the NV commercial with Tami Roman.



I don't watch Basketball Wives or anything but I enjoy this commercial because even though she kept popping out and interrupting this fake conversation



She does say something helpful: "Tell her the first two weeks of weight loss can be the hardest."  Okay - something helpful to keep me on track...But how much longer can I take?!  I think once I get settled in, I'll be able to get it together and maybe, just maybe, start seeing results.  After all, the first two weeks are the hardest, right?  And I'm on day 13.  Oh dear...  Maybe she meant the first month???

Why is my weight loss a big deal?  I will share those two reasons soon...