Let my hopes to all those who are hoping & working so hard to make the 5% cutoff this weekend.  Due to a hectic Saturday, I'll weigh in a couple days early... which only adds to my sense of panic.  I feel like I've done my best, so I won't give in to the bad habit of beating myself up if I don't achieve that goal.  I'll just keep at it and know that I will hit that goal.

Hugs & support to all of us!

In a fit of desperation, I found myself in the snake oil aisle of a local store, comparing packages of promise in pills and capsules.  Luckily, the little voice in my head piped up, "If it came in a bottle..." and I walked away from the scary products.

For better of worse, the notion of hard work and discipline for health is ingrained in my brain and I'm too afraid and stubborn to try shortcuts.  It may be to my detriment as far as the contest is concerned as I'm pretty unlikely to make the cut.  But I know that whenever the contest ends for me, be it in April or July, I'll still have my body and mind to deal with.

I'm continuing to challenge myself and work hard meeting those challenges, but I'm also prepping myself to not cry if the scale continues to buck my hard work.

Seeing white-haired men in grey t-shirts on the gym machines in the row in front of me reminds me of all the sports that Dad and I shared

- him, a coach, missing a football game the Friday night I was born

- him coming to watch my t-ball games

- him teaching me to throw in the backyard standing by while someone else taught me to bat

- him stepping up to coach softball when other coaches weren't concerned with sportsmanship

- him helping the doctor to put my mouth back together after a softball accident

- him using my head as a crutch going up the stairs after a wrestling injury

- him, a coach, taking me with him to wrestling tournaments

- him calling me out for getting too worked up watching football or pro-wrestling

- him coming to my son's soccer game, even though it was soccer

Dad died a couple years ago today, and there are moments when missing really hurts.  But then I see the white-haired men wearing grey t-shirts in the gym and I feel better.

Is it really possible that my feet are shrinking?

My favorite slip-on shoes keep slipping off while I'm walking, and I'm having to pull the laces on my running shoes tighter & tighter.

Who'd have thought?

One tablespoon of peanut butter on a slice of nice healthy bread seems too skimpy to be satisfying, but I don't want to double the fat and calories by doubling the amount of peanut butter.

My new solutions?

1.  Heat that one tablespoon of peanut butter so it spreads smoothly on the bread, rather than tearing it.

2.  Mix one tablespoon of fig butter in with the heated peanut butter.  

Mmmmm!

That there is a picture of a new recipe I tried for my breakfasts this week.  Since the recipe makes 4 servings I figured "Yay!  One recipe for 4 days of breakfast!" 

That's what it looks like before it's been chewed.

Here's how the recipe, goes:

1 cup steel-cut oats

1 cup non-dairy milk of your choice

2 T chia seeds

1/4 t ground cardamom

1/4 t vanilla

1/4 t ginger

1/4 t cinnamon

1 pinch nutmeg

1 pinch black pepper

1 T maple syrup (optional)

1 T shredded coconut (optional)

1 T chopped pistachios (optional)

Combine all but the last 2 optional ingredients in a jar.  Put the lid on, shake it up, and refrigerate it overnight.

In the morning, open the jar, sprinkle in those last 2 ingredients, and

voila!

You have a jar of beautifully scented, nicely spiced, healthy, underdone, tough & chewy oats that could use a little more sweetness to ease the shuddering that occurs during swallowing.

1 serving down, 3 more to go. 

Looking on the bright side, I think when I make oats of any kind the right way (cooked beyond tough chewiness), I'll definitely use this spice blend and add some raisins.

The Official Scale today showed my weight being identical to my weight last month. 

And guess what.

Wonder of wonders and miracle of miracles, I'm absolutely fine with it.  There's nothing I would have done differently; I did my very best and I'm proud of my variety of little achievements.

I'm glad to wave good-bye to March and excited to keep up my newfound strength and habits into April and beyond.  And I'm hoping, all the way down to my toes, that I lose enough weight by April 26 that I may continue in the contest.