Weigh-in Tuesday... goodbye to 3!

Happy Tuesday!  I took Monday off for Labor Day, and am buckled in this morning for a good week of blogging, and a busy week of life as well - preparing for my dad's arrival on Friday, and the  Supper Club I'm throwing for him on Saturday.  I can't wait!

I'm going to cut to the chase because I'm excited about my weigh-in this morning.  I'm down one pound.


299!

Yes, that's right, I'm out of the 300s.  And I'm determined that there will be no gains in the future that will put me back there.  I am saying goodbye to 300, and everything got me there.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm going to remember everything that got me there.  And I'm going to remember everything that got me out, and will keep me on the path to good health.  After all... I am now over two-thirds of the way to my first goal (which is to lose 100 pounds) and I'd like to meet it before the year ends. 

An old theater friend of mine commented on my previous post - saying that I looked good but that I always did.  And I'd like to clarify that I love me at 366 every bit as much as I love me at 299.  That me was the very first me to make the same decision I now try to make every day - to take care of me.

I found this image via pinterest, and it made me smile.
I *am* both.

How are you taking care of you this week?

Weigh-in Tuesday with a milestone for Tom, plus ninja athletes and a grilled dessert

Hopped on the scale this morning to find that I'm another pound down.  And kind of amusingly, I now weigh my birthday. Ten more pounds until I bid the 300s adieu for good!

More notable is Tom's milestone today.  He has now lost a total of 46.5, bringing him to 174.2 - which, at his height, gives him a BMI of 24.99 - officially no longer overweight!  Congratulations, Tom! I'm so proud of you. 

I have a long way to go until I am no longer overweight (actually, a long way to go until I am no longer obese) but since I've started, I've reduced my BMI by about 10 points.  (Though, of course, BMI is not a perfect measure; muscle weighs more than fat and I know that I've gained quite a bit of muscle since January.)

That's the tricky thing about losing weight when you begin from a pretty high starting weight.  I am freakin' strong.  But you can't see it.  Well, maybe YOU can, if you've compared my starting weight versus current weight, and you can imagine what that means for my physical power.

On the left, in December.  On the right, this past weekend.
I can hardly believe my glasses are the same size in both pictures... nothing else is!

But if you don't know me, you might see me and assume that I am a number of things.  Lazy.  Out of shape.  At a gym class for the first time.  Those first two are things that are wrongly assumed about overweight and obese people.  Even when I was out of shape, I was never lazy.  That last one, that I was a gym class for the first time?  Someone asked me that before a Slimmons this weekend.  "So this is your first class?"  Nope.  This is probably about my... 60th class.  Or so.  But the "out of shape" thing is not something anyone would say while watching me in the class.  A new guilty pleasure is noticing how much stronger I am than some of the very thin one-time visitors to class.  Just because I am obese, it doesn't mean that my blood pressure isn't better than yours.  It doesn't mean I'll struggle during a 90-minute class.  It doesn't mean I can't swim laps for 60 minutes without a break.  And I know that not everyone makes these assumptions, but when they do, I'll admit... I love proving them wrong.  In a comment here previously, Alexa called people like us "ninja athletes."  You'd never see us coming.

I've been enjoying the food we're making at home a lot this week.  I have several fun recipes to share with you, starting today with a dessert that's perfect for the summer weather that seems to have arrived on everyone's doorstep.  Today we made grilled peaches!

I aim to eat three servings of fruit per day - usually one with each meal.  I'm haunted by a bit of a sweet tooth, but I've found that fruit can be an excellent substitute for high-calorie desserts, especially when prepared in an unusual way. 

We first experimented with these at a friend's barbecue recently.  We followed this recipe, though we made a foil-pouch for the fruit instead of grilling it directly.  You can do it that way, or you can whip out your grill pan (or, if you - like me - own a George Foreman grill, you can do it that way.)

Two ingredients.  Peach and Sugar.  I use raw or turbinado sugar - 1 tsp per peach.

Slice in half, and coat the cut side with sugar.

It will look like the top of a creme brulee. It's supposed to - it'll help the peach caramelize.
Most of the sugar will stay on the grill or the foil.

Pop on the grill (directly - or in foil.)  We closed our Foreman to speed the process along.
It should be ready after about 6 or 7 minutes - but as with any grilling, keep a close eye.
When it's bubbly and softens to the touch, it's done.

Top with your favorite creamy substance - here we used ice cream.
Whipped cream, or fat free yogurt and a few berries, would also be great.

   
We highly recommend the ice cream above - Luna & Larry's Coconut Bliss in Cherry Amaretto.  It's not low-calorie, but it's terrific in moderation.  Organic, dairy-free, and a very short list of ingredients.

All right. I'm off to work, and will be back with you tomorrow for a very unusual Adventure Wednesday that I can't wait to share with you.  Until then, take good care of you!

Adventure Wednesday in 1950s Downtown

We go adventuring every Wednesday in order to treat ourselves for self-care well done, to help us refill our creativity wells, to feel a part of our city, and to explore what it has to offer.  But this week, in celebration of my fist 50 pounds lost, Tom surprised me by whisking me off downtown for an overnight adventure.  So we indulged in everything that beautiful 1950 has to offer.

Or, well, it felt like the 1950s, because we snagged an unusually reasonable room at the Biltmore Hotel, a Los Angeles landmark.

We're collectors of vintage Los Angeles postcards, and we have one just like this.

Here is the hotel, today.

You might know it as an early host of the Academy Awards ceremonies.  Or you might know it as the place you first encountered Slimer in Ghostbusters.




Or perhaps as the place where Betty Draper floated down the staircase in Season 2 of Mad Men.

If you come back later this week, you might catch me floating down this same staircase on Fashion Friday.

Dramatic!

We chose to celebrate my negative 50 lbs in 1950s here, and not only because we love the retro aesthetic. It gave us the chance to do some adventuring with food and exercise, plus it helped us focus on writing together, as a creative retreat.  We're coming close to a particular writing deadline of ours, so we the took the time to be collaborate while cooped up in luxury (and away from distracting cats and friends and chores and TVs.)

We started out with lunch and tea in the Rendezvous Gallery.

It came with a vintage tea set, complete with tea cozy.

My tea was called "Green Passion," and it was delicious.

Especially with a touch of floral honey. Yes, I admit it. I took these home. They were too cute to abandon!

I lunched on - what else? - a Los Angeles vintage classic, the cobb salad.

It doesn't have to be an unhealthy choice, as long as you leave the majority of the bacon,
half the avocado and bleu cheese, and 99.9% of the dressing, which was in a pitcher the size of my fist.

Following lunch, we explored the hotel a little bit.  After all, we had it all to ourselves.  Except, of course, all of the Red Bull employees.

And the cast & crew of True Blood.

No, we didn't see the actors. Even though we found a call sheet that someone had dropped on the ground, so we knew what time they'd be arriving.  I'm not paparazzi.  (And I don't watch the show.)

We were especially excited to check out (and make use of) the lovely Biltmore Athletic Club, which is free for all guests.  I've visited in the past, and the swimming pool is hands-down my favorite indoor pool in Los Angeles.   I spent over an hour doing snorkle-laps and absorbing the atmosphere.

Don't you just want to jump into your screen?

We even did some excellent brainstorm work while enjoying the perfectly hot-bathtub-like whirlpool.

I loved the lounge chairs. I felt like I was on the deck in "The Lady Eve."

They had a tremendous number of treadmill and elliptical machines, all with personal TVs.
There were also weight machines and free weights. A great gym for a hotel!

We managed to finish a nice chunk of our script, and even caught a movie before bed (Josh Radnor's writer/directorial debut, HappyThankYouMorePlease - which I definitely liked, but didn't love.)

In the morning, we took a few blocks' stroll to breakfast at Clifton's Cafeteria - the oldest surviving Los Angeles restaurant.

Man, I hardly recognize my silhouette anymore!

Once part of a chain of Southern California cafeterias (each with a different elaborate theme), the downtown Clifton's is the last that remains of the bunch. 

It's jam-packed with woodland kitsch.

Legend has it that the crude robotic raccoons and the (kind of) immersive theming
inspired Walt Disney in the creation of Disneyland.

Even the food offerings are retro-kitschy. 

Though very plentiful, and very affordable.

Our breakfast, which included an egg white/veggie omelet with potatoes,
pancakes and grilled potatoes, two servings of whole wheat toast,
strawberries and a bottle of water, came to a grand total of $14.

Worth a trip, whether you're a history buff, a fan of things strange and corny, or just a little light in the wallet these days.

All in all, our celebratory trip downtown was both relaxing and productive, which was exactly what we needed to be.  Now we're tucked back into our Hollywood condo, trying hard not to be distracted by the kittens or the laundry while we finish up our script.  Wish us luck!

I'll be back tomorrow with a bit of honesty and a request for you all. Until then, I hope you'll find some adventure of your own... and take care of you while doing it!

Big news for weigh-in Tuesday, plus my guest post at ALL THE WEIGH!

Good morning, and a beautiful weigh-in Tuesday morning it is.

I have some news for you.

It's big news.

As of this morning's weigh-in, I weigh 316 pounds.

I have lost 50 pounds.

I'm excited, and proud, and it makes me feel even more committed to my journey towards health and strength.  It's just a number, but to some people, it's a number that says "she isn't kidding around."  And I'm not.  This life journey is for real.

An exciting link for an exciting morning... Kenz at All the Weigh invited me to do a guest post, so you can head over to her blog to read my tips on how to be a foodie while losing weight.

I'll be back tomorrow with an Adventure Wednesday that is a celebration of my news today.  I can't wait to share it with you. And in case I haven't told you enough lately... your support is a major part of my success.  I am grateful to each and every one of you who is helping me along on my journey.

Take care of you today - and every day.  I know you can do it!