Monday, June 25, 2012

Discovering Downtown

Back in January, I walked away from my 17-year career with BJ Services (now Baker Hughes) and did something I had sworn I would never do again. I took a job in downtown Houston. What can I say? They made me an offer I couldn't refuse. 

Even though my commute is only 10 miles further (each way), I decided very quickly that I did not want to drive in Houston traffic. Taking The Woodlands bus allows me to work, read, or even nap during my commute; it costs about the same as gas + parking; and I arrive feeling relaxed rather than stressed. The only downfall is that my bus stop is half a mile from my office, but I look at that as a way to get a jump start on my daily exercise and, when the weather's bad, I can walk in the tunnels.  Win!

I'm starting to learn more about all the things Houston has to offer, and it's high time I shared.

Market Square has regular outdoor concerts, movies and other events that are free, and you can enjoy delicious Greek food (gyros!) from Niko Niko's during the show. My son and I attended a Fondue Monks concert there in March and had a blast.

The Park Shops (across from my building) offer a wide variety of shopping and eating for busy downtown workers. They have gift shops, clothing, electronics, beauty parlors and a workout facility - just to name a few. There are so many different restaurants in the Park Shops that I haven't managed to try them all yet. A few that I have tried:  Chick Fil A (always good), Ninfa's Express (smaller menu, but just as good as the big restaurants), Potbelly Sandwiches, Quiznos, Subway (all the chain stores are consistently good), Au Bon Pain (slightly fancier sandwiches), Wok & Roll (another chain and not bad at all), Chicken Kitchen (great salads), Otto's Barbecue (yummy), and The Mediterranean Grill (okay, but can't compare to Niko Niko's). So many choices! I just checked the directory and there are still more than a dozen restaurants that I have yet to try. So far, my favorite at the Park Shops would have to be Chicken Kitchen. I love their southwest chicken salad with cilantro dressing. Yum!

On Wednesdays in June, there's a City Hall Farmers Market where you can purchase locally grown fruits and veggies, and prepared lunch items. It's a little far from my office, so I haven't checked it out yet, but it sounds wonderful.

Then there are the tunnels... miles and miles of tunnels under downtown Houston... but I think I'll save that for another post. 

Friday, June 22, 2012

Weighing In - Week Fifty One

The last few weeks (okay, four weeks) I've been bouncing up and down the same 3 pound range. Obviously, I've hit a plateau and need to change things up a bit. I haven't quite decided what I'm going to do, but I'll figure it out.  I should probably start with taking my lunch to work more often, because there are some seriously tasty (but non-healthy) lunch options in downtown Houston.  As for exercise... I have two more weeks to go with Body Revolution. After that I'll do something different.  Maybe Yoga Meltdown.  I enjoyed that one, but didn't have the upper body strength to do it properly at first. I think that maybe now I do.  It's definitely worth trying again, and I might even get past Level 1 this time. 

This week I gained 0.4 lb. and was so annoyed about that that I didn't even bother with taking measurements. Next week, I promise I'll pull out the old measuring tape and see if I've made any more progress.

My numbers for the week(s):
Pounds lost (-) or gained (+) this week:  +0.4
Total weight loss:  21.4
Inches lost (-) or gained (+) this week:  0
Total inches lost:  33.5

My current motivation:  the Meet My Goals Challenge from Mom In Management. My goals for week 4 were to exercise (6 days), drink more water, and avoid those darned coffee shop muffins.  I managed to meet my goals this time.  Yea me! 

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Weighing In - Week Fifty

There's something about extra food (and the threat of spoilage) that sparks creativity. My son came home from college with a giant jar of applesauce, and when I remembered what happened with the last jar of applesauce that entered our house, I came up with a simple idea that I'd like to share with you. Sprinkle a small bowl of applesauce with cinnamon and top with a couple spoonfuls of granola. It's super easy and tastes like an apple crisp... and it's great for those of us who are trying to keep the calorie count low.

More important than counting calories is burning them off - at least that's the way I see it. I've just started phase 3 of Jillian Michael's Body Revolution, and the workouts at this level are seriously kicking my butt.  I haven't been able to get all the way through without stopping, but I hope that I'll get there before it's time to switch to the final set of videos. Maybe I'll do an extra week at this level. 

My numbers for the week(s):
Pounds lost (-) or gained (+) this week:  +0.6
Total weight loss:  21.8
Inches lost (-) or gained (+) this week:  0
Total inches lost:  33.5

My current motivation:  the Meet My Goals Challenge from Mom In Management. My goals for week 3 were to exercise (6 days), drink more water, and avoid the calorie-laden muffins at the coffee shop.  My reality was - I missed one workout due to a power outage (completed 5, though) and I caved in and had a cranberry orange muffin with my coffee on Friday. I'll do better next week.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Weighing In - Week Forty Nine

I'm happy to say that I'm starting to get back on track again. I've completed phase 2 of Jillian's Body Revolution and will be starting phase 3 tomorrow. Each phase is more challenging than the next, and I can't wait to see what this next phase will bring. I just hope that I can keep up! 

My numbers for the week(s):
Pounds lost (-) or gained (+) this week:  -2.0
Total weight loss:  22.4
Inches lost (-) or gained (+) this week:  -0.5
Total inches lost:  33.5

My current motivation:  the Meet My Goals Challenge from Mom In Management. I met my goals for week 2.  My goals were to exercise (6 days), drink more water, and avoid the calorie-laden muffins at the coffee shop.  Check. These goals worked so well for me, that I've decided to repeat them for week 3.