Celebrating My 101st Post!

So I realized today that this is my 101st posting on this blog. It's amazing how things have changed in just the short few months I have been doing this. Many of you have inspired me and I have enjoyed sharing my thoughts and passions. Thank you for stopping by. Here's to the next 100 postings!

Ok now on to the outfit. It was still really cold today, but I was in no mood for pants. If you couldn't tell, I am pretty much a skirt and dress gal. So with walking in cold weather in a cute skirt, you must double up on the tights (something I learned from Kimberly). Here is my warm in a skirt look...

Purple long sleeve tee - NY & Co
Wide belt - Dots
Pleated grey skirt - Anthropologie
Plain black tights - Payless
Patterned tights - Target
Booties - Payless

Because of the cold, yesterday's and today's dinner consist of homemade chicken soup (with spinach, mushrooms, and black beans..basically what I had in the fridge) and biscuits. KT posted this recipe on Wednesday and I couldn't resist. I had a stressful evening and I was in a baking mood. Of course you know I broke down the calorie count. If you take the ingredients in the recipe and drop spoonfuls of dough on the cookie sheet, you will make aprox 3 dozen biscuits. It comes to about 36 calories a biscuit. Unfortunately I ate way more than the two you see on my plate. Oh treadmill, I hear you calling my name...

And speaking of treadmill... Today I had to make up for those yummy biscuits and a grilled chicken sandwich (on white) I had for lunch. I worked with my trainer and she had me do a lot of lunges (forward and backwards), a lot of upper body work with machines and the medicine ball. Afterwards I kicked butt on the treadmill for 20 minutes. Running really burns a ton of calories. Hopefully I did enough damage control.

One last thing before I sign off... I wanted to send warm wishes to the ladies at Cute & The Cheap. I know you might be without power. I hope you guys managed to find some warmth. Bundle up, cuddle up, build a fire, and stay warm everyone (in the cold).

Cold Day on Wednesday

Brrrr! It's cold today. Crazy how it was 75 yesterday. Here's my outerwear outfit for my cold walk to work...

Black coat - Kohl's (love this coat)
scarf -Banana
Pants - Steve & Barry's
Walking shoes - Ross (I have heels in bag)
hat - Macy's

Here's a close-up of the print on this coat.

We come home for lunch practically everyday. Here was today's menu:

3.75 ounces of Tandoori chicken

Sauteed spinach and chopped baby bella mushrooms

1/4 of a small avocado

1/2 of a leftover springroll

lemon slice for chicken

Total Calories: 291

Sew Happy on Tuesday

Yes, I am so happy today. I made this lovely green skirt at me Sew Crafty class this past Sunday. It's my first skirt and I couldn't believe how easy it was. I am looking forward to making another. Here are is my sew fab outfit...

Black ruffled pullover-Anthropologie

Green polka dotted skirt - made by me!

black peep - Rack Room

Ribbon pearls - Francesca's

So I have to give a big shout out to Sarah at Sew Crafty! It was a great class and I am really looking forward to many more classes. If you are in Houston, I highly recommend checking them out! They do way more than just sewing.

So here is the original skirt I made my pattern from. The brown paper next to it is the pattern we made using recycled grocery bags.

Now on to the workouts...

Since I haven't had a Bodybugg screenshot in a while, I thought I'd let you know that my workouts are still going full force. I am back on the treadmill more and more and tonight was a personal best for me. I should explain how I hated running when I started working out. I had bad shin splints and would just walk. Well with the help of interval running/walking and jump roping, I can now run for 10 minutes straight. I know 10 minutes doesn't seem much, but for me it's a sweet victory. I was able to walk for 3 minutes and then run again, and so on... In my 45 minute time on the treadmill, I ran 75% of the time. I was so happy! I burned 554 calories in 45 minutes. Freakin' awesome! I hope you guys are also reaching your own personal goals. I know it can be rough sometimes, but even the smallest little victories make it all worth it. Happy workouts everyone!

Happy New Year!

Today is the start of Chinese New Year. It's an extra special year for me since it is the year of The Ox. It'll be another 12 years before it comes around again. Here is my lucky outfit day...

Red wrap top-Charlotte Russe, white tank-Gap, Converse One Jeans-Target, Unisa tan pumps-Off Fifth Saks, Gold medallion necklace-NY&Co.

Yesterday we had a big celebration with my family. Tonight Will and I are going to see some lion dancers at a local restaurant. Although my family is very "Americanized", this is the one celebration we have always cherished. I'm too old and now married to receive the lucky money envelopes, but I look forward to passing these traditions on to my future family.

Gung hei faat choi (Happy New Year) or as my family likes to say "Don't hate fat boys". Yeah, I told you we were Americanized...

Daily Outfit Catch Up

Here are the details...

1) Details of this outfit can be found on this post. This was the real pic taken that day, but my card reader was acting up and you saw an old pic. This was how I really looked that day.

2) Wedding reception outfit: Black and white dress-Ross, striped black tights-Target, Marie peep toes-Rack Room, pearls-gifted from Aunt Mae, headband-made.

3) Feeling Frenchie outfit - purple long sleeve tee-NY&Co, Mossimo short sleeve jacket-Target, grey skirt-Old Navy, argyle tights-Payless, peep toe pumps-Rack Room, belt and beret-Target.

4) Banana Outfit - Seriously, don't I look like a banana? scarf-Stockman's (Finland), Mossimo cream pullover-Target, yellow tweed skirt and brown suede pumps-Ann Taylor Loft, brown tights-Target.

5) Ode to E outfit - This outfit was inspired by the lovely E. I love how she layers up for those cold days in cute summer dresses, long sleeves and jeans. So here's my Inspired by E look... blue long sleeve-Gap, orange cowl neck dress and brown belt-Dots, skinny jeans and long necklace-Target, brown suede pumps-Ann Taylor Loft. And if you are interested, here's how I wore the dress this past summer. I think it was my 2nd post on this blog.

I hope you enjoyed the week's photo dump. I'll be posting a few more random photos by the end of the weekend.

Sorry for the absence...

As I mentioned in my previous post, I broke my card reader for my memory stick and I haven't been able to upload any pictures. I finally got a new one and I will have the week's photo dump posted tomorrow night. Hope everyone has had a great week!

Old Pic For A New Post

This is not Thursday's pic, but it's mostly the same outfit with minor tweeks. I had to go back and post an old pic for you because I am having issues uploading my pictures. I broke my card reader and I can now hear something rattling inside. I guess I'll be at Best Buy soon. Anyways, back to the outfit. Here are the details of what I wore and the things not in this photo...

Odille boat neck - Anthropologie

French Connection skirt - Lot 8

patterend tights - Target (*not pictured)

pumps - Target (*not pictured)

grey belt - Target (*not pictured)

The skirt has become a little too big for me, so it kind of hangs low on my hips. So not cute and I didn't have time to decide on a different skirt. So I hiked it up and tucked it under my bra. Yeah, Will was looking at me a little crazy this morning while I was getting dressed, but the good man that he is, he helped me tuck the back in :-) In the end, the skirt came to little above my knee and it looked way better (esp with the black tights). I added the grey belt to keep it in place. I know I need to have the skirt altered, but I'll wait till I lose a little more weight.

And speaking of weight... I weighed myself this morning. I have lost 5.7lbs since New Year's Day! A few more pounds and the holiday weight will be officially off. Yay! Here is today's screenshot...

Today was a strength/cardio day. Oh yes, I felt the burn! I'm off tomorrow and I'll cram in one more workout before hitting the road. I am off to the big D (Dallas) this the weekend for a wedding reception, visiting my best friend from high school, and Will's best friend from college. It will be a jammed packed weekend filled with lots of temptation. I am packing my resistance bands and trusty red jump rope. I'll try to eat as clean as possible, but I know it will be difficult and I'm only human. I'll let you know how I do.

Have a fabulous weekend everyone and as always, thanks for stopping by my blog!

Wednesday's Food For Thought

As promised...an outside shot. They really do look a lot better. Here I am right outside my door. Will seems to favor the slant shot when I ask him to take outdoor pics. So here are the details...

Long sleeve tee - Gap

Sleeveless top - NY & Co

Pants - Express

Tights - Kroger

Booties - Payless

Belt - Target

Necklace - Banana Republic

To answer Liza's question from yesterday's post... Yes, I do get tired! Today was a much needed rest day. No workout, just walks. To and from work plus a short walk around the lobby. So far I burned 1996 calories in the day and if I just sit on my butt for the rest of the night, I will still have hit my target rate of 2200 calories burned in a day.

So instead of giving you a snapshot of my daily activity, I am giving you a look into what I ate today and how it all breaks down. And just so you know, I am constantly eating. I don't eat all my snacks at one time. I think I just have that constant nag to much all day. So I just make sure I pack some good snacks and I graze on them throughout the day. I'm past day 10 of the cleanse, but I am still continuing to eat clean. No salt unless it's naturally there. No sugars. No processed foods. Still no dairy, or eggs. I will probably add a little eggs back in by the weekend. I love them too OTG.

You'll have to click on the images to get the full view/info.

Burning Through Tuesday

Another busy day, but thankful for it. Here is today's outfit...

Blue top - Banana Republic

Tweed trumpet skirt - Gap

Wide belt - Dots

Argyle tights - Can't remember

Issac Mizrahi pumps - Target

Pearls - gifted

I had a couple of issues with this outfit. I bought the shirt on my day after Christmas shopping spree. I love the color and style, but I really could have gotten away with a smaller size. It's really long and it bunched up all day. Another issue is the skirt. I think it might be time to give it up. I did something to the zipper and couldn't get it to zip half way down. Luckily it's a little too big and I was able to slide in on and zip it back up. My hips are what holds it on me. Lastly, the tights... I know I have worn these before, but for some reason today I noticed that they are too long for me. Did I shrink??? I already have a short complex (it's why I always wear heels). Oh well....

Also I have been meaning to take outside pics again. They look so much better. We've been walking to work and it's either too cold or I'm running late in the morning. Maybe tomorrow.

So here's proof that you can get an awesome workout while watching TV. Today is a cardio day for me, but because I was helping a friend in need, I didn't make it to the gym. That does not mean I get to slack off. Since my one of my favorites shows and big motivator, The Biggest Loser, was on....I got my workout on. I made sure I was moving for the entire 2 hour show. I started out walking in place, then jogging in place. During commercials, I would either jump rope or do jumping jacks. When Bob was yelling at Joelle to run for 30 seconds, I ran for 30 seconds with them. That's pretty much it. Doing that for 2 hours burned 827 calories! I highlighted the 2 hours on the screenshot below. So the next time you are tune into your favorite show, don't be a couch potato. Be a hot potato and get your workout on!

Red Carpet Moment

Last night my dear friend celebrated her 40 & Fabulous birthday. It was a Sex & The City theme party and she went all out. There was a dj for dancing and the red carpet for photo opps. I spent the last 2 nights at her house helping her decorate and rearrange her house for the festivities. Here was my red carpet look...

Cowlneck sweater turned into an off the shoulder look - Walmart
Navy skirt - Ann Taylor Loft
Brown suede pumps - Ann Taylor Loft
Wide brown belt - Dots
Beaded bracelet - Banana Republic
Feathered headband - made by me

Check out V's red carpet look here

So the last 2 days and nights have been crazy busy. I helped my friend decorate for her party. She had just moved into her new place 2 weeks ago so there was a lot to do. Between the party, the cleanse, and working out, I was wiped out on Sunday afternoon. My high calorie burn on Saturday made up for the low burn on Sunday (rest day). I also had a low calorie consumption on Saturday. It's not something I recommend or even intended to do. Because I had a late Friday night helping my friend, I woke up late for my trainer session on Saturday morning. I just grabbed a banana and was out the door. Of course by the time I was done with my session, I could tell that my sugar levels were low. Thank God my trainer had a pear with her. I ate the pear and had enough energy to finish my cardio. I'll make sure to eat enough next time.

Here is Saturday's snapshot... I took off the Bodybugg for the party so there were more calories burned throughout the night of dancing. Oh and I was so good. I didn't ruin my cleanse! I ate a good dinner beforehand (chicken and lentil soup) and brought 2 apples with me. When everyone was eating the yummy Mexican appetizers catered at the party, I cut up my apples and put them on a plate. Having them on the same plate the other guest were using made the temptation a lot easier.

Sunday's snapshot... you can see where sat for church and I took a long, but much needed nap. I def let my body recharge today. We also had a family party tonight. Instead of the yummy Chinese food they had, I brought my own dinner (tilapia, tomatoes, spinach, black beans, and an apple).

I wanted to give a shout out to The Fashion Therapist. Kick some butt on those workouts!


Great outfits and happy workouts everyone!

My Favorite Stores Outfit

After my last post (the fitness novel), I figured you'd enjoy a short post on the daily outfit. Here is a little bit of something from some of my favorite stores...

• Purple short sleeve tee - Old Navy
• Favorite long sleeve tee - The Gap
• Grey tweed pleated skirt - Anthropologie (Boxing Day sale purchase)
• Merona belt - Target
• Patterned tights - Target
• Issac Mizrahi grey pumps - Target
• Necklace - NY & Co (gifted by Lynette)

Please excuse the bad hair day. It's my "I went to bed with my hair wet" look.

I'm posting late on Thursday night so I'm behind on reading my fav blogs. I'll be catching up and commenting by the weekend though.

I hope everyone had a great week and a fabulous Friday!

Summing Up The 12 Days of Fitness

Okay so I know I have been slacking on posting my 12 Days of Fitness, but I have been working hard regardless. Here are the last few days...

On the 10th day of fitness my trainer gave to me... 10 days of cleansing. Okay so I know I said I was going to do 7 days of cleansing, but I really think I can stretch it out to 10 (possibly 14 days which would be the max). I have to admit, the first 2 days were tough. I felt like I was constantly eating, but always hungry. The herbal drinks tasted like dirt/roots. My energy level was down. BUT I just finished day 5 and I feel great! I'm not as hungry. My palette is free of salt and processed sugar. Fruits and veggies taste so good right now. I am discovering new ways to cook without salt, sugar, and processed foods. My energy is up, and I've even lost a few pounds. This cleanse has really kicked start my way towards better eating again. Yay!

On the 11th day of fitness my trainer gave to me... 11 healthy dishes. Since the cleanse, I have been rethinking the way I cook things. So after my cleanse, I will try 11 healthy recipes. I have already tried recipes from http://www.hungrygirl.com/ (the guacamole recipe is my fav). Melissa sent me a couple of blogs to cook healthy on my new dutch oven. So here's the question... do you have a healthy recipe for me to try. E-mail me, and I'll try it out.

On the 12th day of fitness, my trainer gave to me... 12 motivators. To help me stay on track, I need a lot of motivation. I really try to surround myself with people and things that can help me stay on focus. here are my 12 motivators...

• my hubby - he's my #1 fan and loves to workout too
• my trainer - she is ab fab! She kicks my butt when I need a kickin'
• my coworkers - Melissa who walks with me and Bel who is just starting on her journey
• my friends - they are as obsessed like me. We really try to help motivate each other
• my family - always 100% support!
• The Biggest Loser - it inspires, I do mini workouts during commercials, and I always cry
• Pound for Pound Challenge - I pledged to lose 18lbs by May 5. For every pound I lose, they donate a pound of food to the hungry. Click here to make a pledge today.
• Shape magazine - Great tips, workouts you can do at home, and I love the weight loss diary of real people each month.
• my Bodybugg - tracks everything I do
• blogging - make me more accountable. I feel like I have to report to you guys or I'll be in trouble :-)
• you guys - sharing your ideas, struggles, and triumphs. Makes me feel normal and a part of something
• daily pics - seeing how you look on camera everyday shows a lot of truth.

So I hope I have helped motivate you with my 12 days. I know it's really motivated me. If you like to see all 12 days, just click on my fitness label. I will still continue to blog about my workouts and calories burned. Here are the last 3 days in Bodybugg snapshots. Mind you that my calorie intake is lower than normal because of the cleanse. I really tried to eat more, but veggies only have so many calories in them. My calories burned were great. Again, it is amazing how mini workouts add up on your total calories burned for the day. Wednesday was a rest day from the gym and I just did mini workouts through the day. I still had a great burn!

Casually Green On Monday

The tempatures dropped last night so I had to wear a warm cardi today. Here's my casually green outfit...

Liz Claiborne green long cardi - Costco

White long sleeve tee - Banana Republic

Bitten jeans - Steve & Barry's

Snakeskin shoes - Rack Room

Beaded necklace - gifted from Ally

Seems like my whole world is green right now. The past few pieces of clothing have bought have been green, I always shop with my "green" recyclable bags, and everything I've eaten in the past 2 days have been green (esp since we started the cleanse). I have to admit. I feel like I am constantly eating, but I am still so hungry! The greens are great and all, but they sure aren't as filling as pasta :-) Since I am writing this on Monday night, this means I only have 5 more days to go. Go green!

The Ninth Day of Fitness

On the ninth day of fitness, my trainer gave to me... 9 glasses of water, hours of sleep, 7 days of cleanse, 6 meals a day, 5 cardio days, 4 vitamins, 3 strength days, 2 mini workouts, and a Bodybugg to track those calories!

They say you should drink 8-10 glasses of water a day, so I averaged it to 9 glasses. This should actually be a little easy for me because it's all I like to drink. I usually have one cup of coffee in the morning, but that got cut when I started the cleanse. Now it's strictly water for me...

So just to check on people's New Year resolutions. I know some of you are trying to make health decisions in the new year. How's it going? Today I went to the gym and couldn't believe how many people were there. There were people waiting for an open spot on the treadmills. Even though it's somewhat annoying to have to wait for the equipment, it's good to see people trying to make better changes. Last year I made a decision to really change the way I ate and lived. I am striving to continue one with m weight loss. Even though I had a holiday setback, I know I can get right back on track. Here's to all of us staying on track.

Here was today's workout:
20 minute walk to and from work 268 calories burned
25 minute walk to and from work for lunch 315 calories burned
30 minute strength training - 159 calories burned

The next season of The Biggest Loser comes on tomorrow night!
Happy workouts everyone!

Busy Weekend!

Sorry for the bad quality of pic. Friday night was karaoke night. My friends and I love to karaoke. We haven't been in a while so we reserved a small room at our favorite karaoke bar and belted out our cheesy tunes. Here's my singing outfit:

Echo hat - Macy's (after Christmas shopping)

Merona top - Target

dangle earrings - gifted

Converse One jeans - Target

my walking shoes - Ross

Bodybugg is what's on my upper right arm

I think I was singing Gwen Stefani's 4 In The Morning when this picture was taken. Don't I look so serious??? We were singing till we got kicked out. Our closer song is always Bohemian Rhapsody.

Saturday night:
Saturday night we went to see The Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring The Rockettes. Here our looks:

Will:

maroon pin strip short sleeve - Kohl's

Jeans - Dillard's

Sketchers - Sketchers outlet

Hill:

green top - Banana Republic

Xhilaration skinny jeans - Target

beaded bracelet - Banana Republic (after Xmas sale)

brown suede pumps - Ann Taylor Loft (after Xmas sale)

feather headband -made

The 7th and 8th Day of Fitness

Thought I forgot huh?

On the 7th and 8th day of fitness, my trainer gave to me... 8 hours of sleep, 7 days of cleansing, 6 meals a day, 5 cardio days, 4 vitamins, 3 strength days, 2 mini workouts, and a Bodybugg to track those calories...

Let's start with the 7th day...7 days of cleansing. Will and I decided to start the new year with a cleanse. I've never done this before so it's kind of new to me. I asked my trainer for some advice especially because we want to be able to continue to workout through our cleanse. Basically we'll be taking an herbal cleanse and eating clean for the next 7 days.

Our foods we should have are: steamed green vegetables, vegetable soups and broths, miso, tofu, mixed green salads, organic fresh vegetable juices, whole grains (brown rice, millet, oats, quinoa), garlic, onions, ginger, lentils, fresh fish, lemons, limes, fresh fruits in season, sea vegetables, herbals teas (esp green tea).

Foods we need to avoid are: Anything that has refined sugars, chocolate, ice cream, sodas, alcohol, salt, cheese, breads, dairy products, butter, nuts, fatty foods, wheat, red meats, eggs, and shellfish.

I walked to the local farmers market yesterday and bought bok choy, chinese cabbage, grapefruit, zucchini, squash, broccoli, and eggs. I bought the eggs not realizing we won't be able to eat them for 7 days. Oops!

Once we are done with the cleanse, I'll resume my 6 meals a day plan.


On the 8th day of fitness and one of my New Years resolutions is to get 8 hours of sleep. I am an extreme night owl. I think it runs in my family. I usually find myself going to bed around 2 or 3 in the morning. That's why sometimes you see my posting 1st thing in the morning or I've left comments on your blogs in the middle of the night. Well, I know that sleep s very important to our overall health. I am going to strive to be in bed by 11pm. This will be difficult so wish me luck!

Here were my workouts and calories burned...
Jan 1 (yes, I hit the gym on New Years Day)
30 minutes strength training - 155 calories burned
20 minutes jogging/walking on treadmill 224 calories burned

Jan 2
20 minute walk to and from work - 282 calories burned
10 minute walk at lunch - 110 calories burned

Jan 3
30 minute strength training - 212 calories burned
30 minutes stationary bike - 243 calories burned
1.25 hours walking to/from farmers mkt and shopping - 448 calories burned.

Hope everyone is having a healthy new year.
Happy workouts!

Happy New Year!

Just a quick post before I celebrate the New Year with my family. Here is NYE's outfit...

Chloe Dao pink/lace halter dress - Lot 8

Skinny belt - Macy's

Beaded bracelet - Banana Republic

Stewart Weitzman shoes - thrifted (from my mom)

feather handbag - Target

circle headband - made

Choe Dao was the season 2 winner of Project Runway. She owns a boutique in Houston called Lot 8. There are 8 sisters in her family, hence the name. I bought this dress about a year before her her win on PR. Fab store. Love the clothes!

Dinner and drinks were great. I hope everyone had a great NYE. Wishing everyone a a year full of happiness, good health, and fabulousness!