Monthly Archives: May 2010

My husband’s take on the 5K

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As you all know, my husband and I ran the in the Fargo 5K on May 21. He decided to write about it for a column that runs in the newspaper we both work for, the Echo Press.

The column, which runs each Friday, is called "It’s Our Turn," and it rotates among members of the editorial staff. It was his turn and he thought he would share his thoughts on the 5K. And now, I thought I would share the column with you, my readers.

It’s a great perspective…plus, he’s an awesome writer. Seriously.

You can check out his column in our newspaper by clicking on the link, www.echopress.com/event/article/id/75283/group/Opinion/  or you can read it below. Enjoy!

The title was, "Ten lessons learned from running a 5K."

I ran in a 5K race in Fargo last weekend.

Notice I said “ran” instead of “competed” because that’s a more accurate description of what took place.

Actually “ran” isn’t quite the right word either. “Jogged” is more fitting.

But even though my time – just over 37 minutes to complete 3.1 miles – wasn’t the speediest, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

I’m not a seasoned runner. This was only the second 5K I’ve participated in. But I do like to jog every now and then to burn off some stress, enjoy the outdoors and to take a break from sitting on the couch. I also enjoy going out for a run with my wife. It’s one of those shared activities that gives you a good sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. We both participated in the 5K, running each step practically side by side, except when the maddening crowd – more than 5,100 runners and walkers – made it impossible to do.

Along the way, I learned some lessons about competing in a 5K:

1. Get in line early. We arrived at the race registration headquarters, the FargoDome, hours ahead of time but we didn’t know when or where runners would start lining up until we discovered several thousand people were already ahead of us in the staging area. When the starting gun started, we were way back in the pack.

2. Be prepared for chaos. When we finally crossed the starting line eight minutes after the race had started, there were thick clusters of runners, walkers, baby strollers and little kids all over the place. We tried our best to zig-zag around them and followed other runners’ strategy by veering off into people’s yards and sidewalks. It was crazy and hectic – but kind of fun.

3. Runners come in all shapes and sizes. There is no definitive description of a 5K runner. We saw people in their 70s and children barely out of diapers. There were runners short and tall, those skinny-as-a-rail to those who looked like permanent couch potatoes. Their experience, varied too – from seasoned pros (they had enough “gear” to open a sports store) to greenhorns in their first race. The fact that we were all bonding together toward a common goal – the finish line – made all those differences irrelevant.

4. Running doesn’t take months of training or mountains of work. You just have to want to do it and make the effort.

5. Runners are generally pretty cool people. Despite the huge field of runners, there was no pushing, yelling or rude behavior. People were friendly, smiling and encouraging.

6. People like runners. Along the route, dozens of people sat outside in their lawn chairs, cheering the runners on. They held signs. They clapped. Some sprayed water on the over-heated runners who wanted cooling off. They shouted, “You can do it! Keep going! Almost there!” Exactly why they did all this was a mystery to me. All we were doing was moving our feet. But the support was a great boost.

7. A welcoming touch really does matter. The whole town of Fargo got behind this racing event, which also included a 10K, a half-marathon and a marathon. Signs were everywhere welcoming the runners. The media coverage was extensive. It was all they were talking about on TV, radio and in the newspaper. The buzz and excitement helped. It was like an added level of support and an extra shot of adrenaline.

8. Don’t be ashamed to say “it was just a 5K.” At first, when people in Fargo asked which race I was competing in, I felt a little sheepish telling them it was the 5K. But everyone I told it to was still impressed. After awhile, I accepted the fact that although my race was nowhere near a 26.2-mile marathon, it was still a personal challenge worth completing.

9. Set your sights high. The 5K was fun, memorable and rewarding. So much so that I want to take it to another level. Next year, I’m going to run in the 10K. Well, maybe not “run” but you get the idea.

10. A “fast” time isn’t as important as finishing. It was humbling to see the 5K top runner finish the race in less than half the time it took me. But then I realized how much training, time and dedication that runner must have put into his regimen. He and the other top runners deserved their fast times. My main goal was just to finish the race. In the end, we were all winners.

I’m not perfect

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Why does it seem lately that I feel out of place for trying to be healthy? The key word here is "trying."

I am not perfect in anyway, shape or form, as most people know by the blogs I write, but I definitely do try to make better choices. I try not to be preachy about my choices, or at least I sure as heck don’t want to come across that way. I don’t want to come across as being bitchy either. I don’t judge people by the choices they make. I have been in those situations, I have been in their shoes. But the thing is, I am not anymore. But I am also not an expert and once again, I hope I don’t come across as trying to be one. 

When I am with friends or family, sometimes I feel bad for making good or at least, better, choices. Most of the time, I feel proud of who I’ve become and what I have accomplished, but like I said, I am not perfect. Yes, I exercise now on a regular basis, but I don’t want to rub that in anyone’s face. People have to make their own choices. It took me many years before I finally decided I had had enough and wanted a healthier lifestyle. But it was my choice, it wasn’t anyone shoving it down my throat or "making" me do it. I did for me. It was about me. Not anyone else.

So I don’t eat at fast food restaurants anymore, or barely, it doesn’t mean I don’t eat "bad" foods once in awhile, but that’s the key, ONCE IN AWHILE. I mean, my goodness, how many times have I written about Cold Stone Creamery? Or about cake and cookies I have eaten? The key, like I have probably said a hundred times is MODERATION!!! 

People can enjoy life’s little pleasures, whether it be sweets or salty snacks or wine or beer or whatever, but I chose not to have those little pleasure all the time. BUT, I surely don’t judge people who do. It is there choice. Just like it is my choice for wanting a better, healthier lifestyle for myself. 

Okay, I will jump off my soapbox now. Sorry, I just felt the need to rant a little.

How about you check out the bio information my husband wrote for me for a website, onlynaturalfood.com, that I am going to be a featured blogger on in the near future. I will write more about that later, but check this out…I thought he did a fantastic job! 

"Three of Celeste Edenloff’s passions are writing, food and more recently, getting into shape.
So it only seemed natural for her to start a blog on the topic.
Celeste, who freely admits she doesn’t hold a degree in nutrition and is not a fitness guru, explains what it takes to lose weight, keep it off (at least for now!) and change your lifestyle in an honest, tell-it-like-is style.
Dozens of her blog followers – and more every week – thank her for providing the down-to-earth motivation and tips that have helped them lead healthier lives.
Celeste cringes at the word “diet” because she believes it’s only a temporary solution doomed to fail once the diet ends. Instead, she believes in a permanent approach to food and fitness that naturally guides people into making healthier choices the rest of their lives.
Celeste lives in Alexandria, Minnesota with her husband, Al, and 16-year-old son, Brandon. She is a reporter for a newspaper in a community brimming with lakes. She enjoys running, walking, biking, rollerblading, shopping, spending time on her computer and relaxing with her hubby and sipping wine."

Seriously, isn’t he the best! Thanks, Al!!!!!

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A healthy salad. Really?

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Salad. Simple, right? Healthy, right? Well, it all depends.

Linda, a co-worker and friend of mine, sent me an email the other day with the ingredients she used for her salad, which she thought was pretty healthy. It is a salad, after all, right. Well, as all of you know, I am not only a Weight Watchers member, but I also now work for Weight Watchers as a receptionist. 

Well, I told Linda that I would figure out her salad for her and let her know just how "healthy" it was. 

First off, she told me that she did just trim her dressing down from about five tablespoons to two tablespoons, kind of at my urging, I guess. At any rate, Linda’s salad included lettuce, Hidden Valley Ranch dressing (the full fat version), shredded cheddar cheese (the full fat version) and slivered almonds. Not bad, right? Well, you be the judge. Now keep in mind I work off the Weight Watchers point system and not calorie or fat count. 

Here are my findings:

Hidden Valley Ranch dressing – regular – 5 tbs. – 10 points (Yowsers!)
Hidden Valley Ranch dressing – regular – 2 tbs. – 4 points (Nice cut back.)
Hidden Valley Ranch dressing – light – 2 tbs. – 2 points (Wow, big difference and not a lot of sacrifice in taste, as Linda later found out when she decided to try the light version of her favorite dressing…at my urging, I guess!

So, just by trimming it back from 5 tbs. to 2 tbs. Linda knocked it down six points. Yes, 6. But she can knock it down even more by going with the light version, which she plans on doing. Right, Linda?

Kraft shredded cheddar cheese – regular – 1/3 cup – 4 points
Kraft 2% milk colby/monterey jack shredded – 1/3 cup – 2.5 points
Kraft 2% milk reduced-fat mozzarella shredded – 1/3 cup – .5 points

I showed Linda the options she has for trimming down the point value for her cheese. She was pretty impressed by it. If she chooses to go with the reduced-fat mozzarella, she trims three and a half points, 3.5, off her total. To me, that’s impressive.

Slivered almonds – 1/4 cup – 3.5 points
Slivered almonds – 1/8 cup – 1.5 points

The almonds are almonds, but by cutting back on the amount, Linda can take 2 points off. Crazy, isn’t it. 

And of course, the lettuce had zero points. But you do have to watch your portion sizes on lettuce. Kind of. You can have up to seven cups, yes, 7 cups, and still stay at zero points. But, if you go for the eight cups of lettuce, you have to count a whole half a point. Yep, a big ol’ whopping .5. 

Linda’s original salad, with the 5 tbs. of dressing, came out to be 17.5 points!!!! YIKES!!!!!
Her salad with the 2 tbs. of dressing, 1/3 cup regular cheese and 1/4 cup almonds was 11.5 points. Better, but she could still do some trimming. 
If she used the light dressing, the lighter cheese (reduced-fat mozzarella) and just an 1/8 cup of almonds, her total points value for the whole salad would only be four points!!!!! Yes, 4.

As I told Linda in an email, each day I have 24 points to use. I like food…A LOT, which is why I make the choices I make. I am all about quantity. I want the most food I can eat with the least amount of points. You know what I mean?

For instance, last week for lunch on Thursday, I had a grilled cheese sandwich (dunked in ketchup), two pickles and almost an entire bag of lettuce with 2 tbs. of Kraft free zesty italian dressing and 1 tbs. reduced fat parmesan cheese and a Skinny Cow white mint truffle ice cream bar. My total points for my whole lunch??????? It was only four points. Yep, 4.

On Monday of last week, I had my grilled cheese sandwich, ketchup, pickles, an entire bag (THE WHOLE BAG) of Birds Eye steamfresh green beans with 1 tbs. of balsamic vinegar plus a Weight Watchers giant fudge bar. Again, my total points value was only four points. Again, it was 4.

I told Linda these were just my thoughts and I just wanted to share them with her. She emailed me back and this was her reply:

Holy Crap!!!!! OMG! When I buy mozzarella I always get the reduced fat (usually that is all I can find) So I think that I will be using that for my cheese and I love the almonds but I am willing to cut down on those.

I have no idea how the points work but I know the difference between 17.5 points and 4!!!!!! I just can’t believe how many points are in the salad I eat.

Thanks for the info.

I told Linda that I would be using the information in this blog because I like to show people some of the simple changes that can be made and how much of a difference it makes.

Or at least I hope it makes a difference.

If anyone has any questions or comments and don’t feel like leaving on here, please feel free to shoot me over an email. I can be reached at confessionsofaformerfatgirl@gmail.com. That is confessions of a former fat girl at gmail dot com. Hope to hear from you soon.

The Fargo 5K!

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Well, we did it. My husband and I ran the Fargo 5K. Despite having bronchitis, and not having trained for nearly two weeks before the race, I still did it. I may not have ran the whole thing – I ended up walking four different times – I manage to run across the finish line. 

Our time? Well, it wasn’t my best, but not my worst either. We did it in 37:10. Yes, I said "we" as in that was the time for both my husband and I. He could have had a fantastic time, but he ran by my side the entire time. Ahhh, yes, he is that sweet. I kept telling him to go ahead, but he wouldn’t. Now, you understand why I love him so much.

At any rate, about halfway through the race, my ribs/muscles on my left side really starting hurting and acting up. I have done so much coughing lately, that I am extremely sore, but oddly, only on my left side. Because of the pain, that is why I had to walk. The running motion just wasn’t working. Period. 

And yes, I will admit I am just slightly disappointed, but not entirely. I did do it, despite being ill and I did run across the finish line, so I guess, maybe, I am happy about it. I just wish my time could have been better. I have done much better, but my goodness, with all the people (there were 5,197 runners/walkers!) it was hard to maneuver. 

Seriously, 5,197 people. That was ridiculous. The sucky part is that runners and walkers were all intermingled. They should have had the walkers on one side of the road and the runners on the other side. But, oh well, it’s done and over with now. 

My overall place was 2,422 out of 5,197. For my gender, I placed 1,349 out of 3,527 female participants, and for my age group (35-39), I placed 183 out of 457 females.

What I found interesting, is that our chip start, which is when we started running after the gun went off, the official start, was 8 minutes and 35 seconds. We started eight minutes and thirty five seconds after the gun went off, that is how crowded it was, that is how many people were crammed in there. Seriously, people, it was ridiculous. 

But, like I said, I finished, meaning I actually ran across the finish line and that makes me feel good. Now, if I could just get rid of this dang cough and get these ribs healed, I would be so much happier!

Here are some pictures:

This is us before the race!

This is the back of my shirt. I had my blog logo put on a shirt and it looked super cool!

This is us after the race at our friend’s house with our medals. Yes, we actually got medals. Kind of cool, huh?

I can honestly say I can’t wait for my next race. 

Haven’t been happy

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The past two weeks have not been fun. I’ve been sick. And you want to know what happens when you’re sick? You don’t exercise. My last run was on the Saturday before Mother’s Day. I have walked a couple of times since then, but haven’t done anything else.

It sucks.

On Tuesday, I finally went to the doctor and found out I have bronchitis. Oh joy. Yippee. Not happy. He gave me the good ol’ Z-Pak and some Robitussin with codeine. I am finally starting to feel somewhat better. Somewhat.

But see, here’s the thing…I have a 5K race. On Friday. In Fargo. As in tomorrow. Yes, tomorrow. I am still debating whether or not I should do it, but I have to say, I am leaning more toward doing it. I will have four days of the five-day antibiotics taken, plus, I have my son’s inhaler I am bringing with me. Yes, I talked to the doctor (who by the way is running the half-marathon on Saturday in Fargo) and he said it would be okay to use my son’s inhaler. He actually told me I should go ahead and do the race and that it might be good for me. If I am feeling better, that is.

Seriously? Well, I think he might actually be right. 

I actually can’t believe I am going to say what I  am about to say, but…I…Miss…Exercise!!!!!!

Yes, I really do. I miss working up a sweat. It feels so good to sweat, doesn’t it? I keep replaying my last run in my head and remember how good it felt. I keep thinking about the Jillian Michaels exercise DVDs I’ve been doing and how she really, really makes me sweat. I keep thinking about how good I feel when I am done exercising.

It’s amazing that in less than two weeks time, I can tell a difference with my body that I haven’t been exercising. It’s almost as if I am going backward. But, really, I know I am not. It just feels that way. I feel weak. I feel like things are starting to sag again. Not kidding about that one. It just stinks.

I just want to feel better. I just want to quit coughing. I just want my ribs not to hurt from coughing. I just want it back to normal. Yes, I sometimes, can be a whiner. 

I am hoping for a great night’s sleep tonight, with no coughing attacks and then maybe sleep in tomorrow morning. (Yes, I have been working while I have been sick. Actually, I have put in more hours than usual because I am quite busy right now, which probably hasn’t helped me heal because I have had a lack of sleep.)

Anyway, if you are in Fargo tomorrow and feel like watching the 5K tomorrow night, look for me. I will be the one dragging my butt along, breathing heavily, perhaps coughing, but nonetheless, doing it. I have to. Don’t I?

C is for Cookie

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I wanted a cookie today. It’s not unusual, really, but my mouth was watering for my favorite kind of cookie – Lofthouse soft frosted sugar cookies. The kind of cookies I used to buy and hide under my seat. Yep, those ones.

So, when I headed for lunch, I stopped by the grocery store and bought some. I really did. And when I got to my car, I set them on the seat next to me, ran a couple more errands and then on my drive home, I ate one. I didn’t hide it. I didn’t even care if anyone saw me buying them or even eating one. That’s the key. It was one. Not four, not three, not even two. ONE!

I did it. I bought a dozen of them and only ate one. And, I didn’t hide the package under my seat when I was done. And you want to know something else? It didn’t even taste that good. Sadly, kind. But happily, really. Wait, did that make sense? Oh, well. Doesn’t matter. There may be a couple of reasons why it didn’t taste that good…one, I still have a cold, which by the way, really stinks, and two, I am thinking the cookies weren’t the freshest. I didn’t look at the date, but they were decorated like Easter eggs. 

See, here’s the deal. When I walked into the store, there weren’t any Lofthouse cookies displayed up front like they usually are. So, I had to walk back to the bakery, which I typically avoid because of well, all the sweet stuff back there that always looks really, really good. Anyway, on the table where the Lofthouse cookies normally are were not the kind of Lofthouse cookies I like. Typically, Lofthouse cookies are soft sugar cookies, almost cake-like cookies, with a real, sugary, almost cake-like frosting on them. This time, the only Lofthouse cookies on the table were chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin and peanut butter…all with no frosting. I didn’t see any of the frosted kind. My kind. EXCEPT, the one package of the Easter Egg shaped ones. 

So I bought ‘em, ate one and then threw the rest of the package in the garbage. Yep, I just threw them away. Luckily, the whole package only cost $1.50. Even if that one cookie didn’t taste that great, I could have easily eaten the whole package. So, by throwing them away, it saved me a ton of calories. If that’s what it takes, I am okay with that. Really, I am.

Oh, and by the way, I did exercise this morning and I did log that one, single, solitary cookie on my Weight Watchers food log. Three points. And even if it didn’t taste that good, it was still worth it. 

Inch by inch

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The one thing I didn’t do when I started my healthy living journey was measure. You know, take a tape measure and wrap it around my hips, waist and chest. For some reason, when people decide to do something about their weight, they only think of the scale, not a tape measure. 

Well, in February of 2009, we did this eight-week program at work called NATS, which is led by Natalie Heckert, a fitness guru! She is the inventor of the NATS Total E Fit Gym, among other products. NATS stands for Nutrition and Aerobic Training Service. She’s from Alexandria and is full of energy and has an unending passion for fitness. If you want to know more about her, log on to her website, www.natstotalefit.com. 

So, at any rate, when I signed up to do her eight-week program at work, she had us fill out this paperwork, which included her taking our measurements, among other things like age, height, weight, body fat and so forth. My information was taken on February 18, 2009, here is what it was:

Height – 5 feet, 6 inches. Yep, that stayed the same. Whew, I haven’t any gotten any shorter!

Weight – 174.6. Nope, that’s not the same. That has definitely changed! I am 145 pounds now. 

Body fat – 37.9 percent. Yes, that’s right, nearly 40 percent body fat. That’s kind of yucky. The last time I checked, which was on April 25, my body fat was at 25.2 percent. That’s 12.7 percent less. TWELVE POINT SEVEN!!!! Crazy. And, kind of cool, huh?

Chest – 39 inches. Yep, that, too, has definitely changed…big time. I just measured it today and it was 34 inches. That’s a five-inch difference. FIVE INCHES. I guess that explains why I am now a 36B instead of 38D.

Waist – 33.75 inches. Yep, another big change here. Ummm, it was nearly six inches…SIX!!! When I measured it today, it was 28 inches. TWENTY-EIGHT!!! Hello. That’s a difference of 5.75 inches. Seriously. Are you kidding me? Oh, it makes me so excited.

Hips – 44.25 inches. Yep, I had some big ol’ hips. But, guess what, not anymore. The difference between then and now…like my waist, it was nearly six inches. My hips today measured at 38.5 inches! Not bad, if I do say so myself. A loss of 5.75 inches. Yowsers! I really can’t believe it. 

I wish that I would have taken my measurements when I started because when the February measurements were taken, I had already lost 15.6 pounds. Whew! It’s still unbelievable to me. So, what about the sizes of my clothes? Well, when I started Weight Watchers in November of 2008, I was a 14/16 and now, I am 6/8. Who would have ever thought? Me, wearing a size 6? Seriously. Unbelievable. 

My suggestion to all of you who are just starting out, don’t only weigh yourself, but take your measurements. I would even measure your arms and legs. Sometimes, the scale doesn’t move much, but an inch or two can mean quite a bit. So, take my advice and grab that tape measure!!

Trying the treadmill

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Last weekend, on Saturday, I was up way too early so I decided to head up to the 17th floor of our hotel, the Radisson, in downtown Minneapolis. The fitness center was located up there and I thought I might give it a try.

I actually woke up around 5:30 a.m., but stayed in bed until a little before 7 a.m. and then decided to go work out. Luckily, I brought my running shoes, my heart rate monitor, my iPod and my workout clothes with me. While I was packing, I thought to myself, "Just in case!" Because really, you never know when you might get the urge to go workout!

So, I quietly crept around the hotel room, which by the way, we were sharing with our good friends, Gary and DeAnn, and grabbed all my stuff. I slipped out of the room and headed up to the fitness center. It was about 7 a.m. when I arrived and there were three people hard at it…one on an elliptical, one on a treadmill and one on a recumbent bike. All of them I am guessing were in their late 50′s and by the looks of it in pretty good shape, which I thought was pretty cool. 

Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention that it took me several tries to finally get my key to work and open the door to the fitness room. I felt kind of stupid standing out there, but I got in…eventually.

I hopped on the treadmill that was in between a gal and guy, which later I realized were husband and wife. I found it odd that they weren’t right next to each other. Well, that is until I realized that the television on that particular treadmill wasn’t working. Crap. I could have moved because there were two more treadmills, but I didn’t want to look stupid, so I just stayed on the one with the television station tuned to the "In Fisherman" show. Yep, fishing. So. Not. Cool. 

But I thought it would be okay because I had my iPod, remember? But wait, nope, I didn’t have my iPod. Stupid me in my hurry to quietly leave the hotel room left my iPod sitting on top of my suitcase. Seriously? So now, I not only was on a treadmill with a television stuck on a fishing show, I also didn’t have any music to listen to. Instead, I got to listen to the thump, thump, thumping of the lady next to me running on the treadmill. And I thought I was loud when I ran. Nope, guess not. 

Even though I was not very enthusiastic about running on a treadmill (I so prefer running outside!), I made the most of it and tried to push myself. One cool thing about the treadmill is that is actually could sync to my heart rate monitor and my number showed up on the dashboard (or whatever you want to call it) of the treadmill. I thought that was way cool. And because I was running inside, I actually didn’t have as hard of time breathing as I normally do. 

Typically, when running outside, I get very winded and short of breath and my heart rate can jump to between 180 and 185. I don’t think it got over 170 and let me tell you, I pushed myself. I ran a total of 3.2 miles and most of the time, my pace, which was also monitored on the dashboard of the treadmill, was a little more than a 10-minute mile. I kept my speed between 5.6 and 5.8 miles per hour, which I didn’t realize was the speed I typically run at. I tried to keep it at 5.8 the whole time, but I had to decrease it back to 5.6 to catch my breath a few times.

Again, as much as I don’t really care for the treadmill, I didn’t mind Saturday morning’s run. It was kind of exhilarating. And because it was so blasted hot in the fitness center, I was sweating up a storm by the time I was done. I may have forgotten my iPod, but at least I remembered to bring my towel!

You might enjoy these pics…

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Okay, I was going through some pictures tonight and found some before pics and some after pics that I thought might like to see.

All I can say is WOW! Hope you enjoy them as much I did:

This was Christmas of 2007. Seriously, my face was so CHUBBY! I kind of miss the red highlights I used to put in my hair, though. Kind of cool, huh? 

This was April of 2008 on a weekend trip to Chicago with my sisters. Uff da. 

This was October 8, 2008. I have probably posted this one before, but this is the one that always gets me. I basically started Weight Watchers one month after this. As much as I loved this day (it’s the day I got married to the bestest man in the whole world), I don’t particularly care for the photos.

And, here are some new ones from this past weekend:

May of 2010 – my husband and I were supposed to go the Twins game, but it unfortunately got rained out. Hopefully we’ll take in a game sometime this summer.

My son, Brandon, myself and my husband, Al, went to Chanhassen Dinner Theatre on Saturday night, May 8, to see Footloose. This was taken before the play.

This was taken on Sunday, May 9 at the Race for the Cure walk at the Mall of America. This is my sister, Karen, my sister, Donna (who is battling her second round of breast cancer right now) and my mom, Leona.

Let me know what you think either by posting a comment here or sending me an email to confessionsofaformerfatgirl@gmail.com.

Mammo

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I had a mammogram this morning and I have to share a funny story. First, this is my third mammogram I have ever had. I started when I was 35  because, unfortunately, my sister has breast cancer.

Actually, she could use a few prayers right now as she is battling it again. She was first diagnosed when she was 50 years old. Then, seven years later, she was diagnosed with breast cancer again. She is currently being treated for it. She’s fighting hard this time, but I know she is going to win the fight again! So, next time you’re saying your prayers, feel free to add one for my sister, Donna. Thanks.

So, this morning, at my mammo appointment, I told the technician about my weight loss and told her she would have less boob to squish this time. I explained that I had went from a size 38D to a size 36B! Well, because of this, she had to use the smaller-sized plates and for some reason, that cracked me up. After she plopped it up there, she said, "Oh, I think I’m going to have to use the smaller plate." I just smiled.

Then, I asked if she had my pictures from last year and she did. All I can say is WOW! There was definitely a difference. 

So, that is my funny story for the day.

Now, let me tell you what my family has planned for this weekend. It should be fun, but I am little nervous because there is going to be a lot of eating out. AARGHH!!!!

Tonight, we are headed to a MN Twins game at the new Target Field – well, depending if Mother Nature doesn’t decide to downpour on us, raining out the game. 

Tomorrow, we are meeting some family for lunch at the Mall of America and then my hubby, son and I are will be going to Chanhassen Dinner Theatre to see Footloose. Really excited about this!

Sunday should be the best day of all! Several members of my family – at least two sisters, a brother-in-law, mom and dad, sister-in-law, niece, nephew’s girlfriend, hubby and son – will be walking the 5K in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure at the Mall of America! Seriously excited about this! 

I will post pictures from this weekend sometime next week.

Take care and remember, if you feel like sending me an email, you can now do so at confessionsofaformerfatgirl@gmail.com. Also, you can find Confessions of a Fat Girl on Facebook. Check it out, become a fan! I would love to have you!