Salvation Army Finds!

I've been saving up my weekly "allowance" for a few months now, and I have hardly spent any of it. Each time I got dressed, I was wishing I had some more t-shirts, so I decided to spend some of my allowance at Salvation Army on "new" clothes. I really wanted some graphic/novelty tees, but they are getting hard to find! I also wanted some jeans. I had a full punchcard for 35% off my total order, so I was feeling shop-happy.

Anyway, I found some good stuff! Not many novelty tees (actually, I think only one), but I got some other comfy tees and a few nice pairs of jeans. I got two pairs of 7 for all mankind brand jeans (marked at $179 on their website!)--I paid $6.99 for one and $8.99 for the other.

I wish I had written down how much I paid for everything, but I cut the tags and threw everything in the washer when I got home, so I don't remember. I bought some other stuff (not for me) along with it, so the total bill was more than the clothes. I think I spent somewhere around $75 for everything I got. The prices at Salvation Army have gone up a LOT in the last couple of years! But still much, much cheaper than buying things brand new. I even got a pair of designer jeans with the tags still on them!

One thing that I got was for Eli, and I am still so surprised that I found it. When I was a kid, I had a pillow that looked like a Dalmatian. I loved it, and my mom ended up putting it in the attic in case I had kids one day. She took it down for Eli when he was just a toddler, and it's probably his favorite possession (other than his fishing lures). He loves it! As you can imagine, it's gotten a lot of wear over the last 30 years!

I was super shocked, then, when I saw a brand new one on top of a pile of stuffed animals. I just HAD to buy it! It was $5.

He doesn't want to replace his, but I couldn't help myself. I've not seen another of those in 30 years!

As for my clothes... (sorry these are bad mirror selfies, but I didn't have anyone here to take pics). These jeans weren't new, but I love this shirt I bought! It was regularly $2.99, and marked half off. Then, I got 35% more off!

I love shirts with open shoulders, because my shoulders are my favorite part of my body (so odd, I know). I'm self-conscious of my upper arms, but I love these shirts with open shoulders because I can show my shoulders without showing my upper arms. Anyway, now that I see the picture, I'm not sure I'm crazy about the shirt. Haha! The jeans are Maurices, and I like how they fit!

Silver brand jeans! I was so excited to find these in my size and the particular cut that I like (Tuesday). Silver jeans are my favorite, because I don't have much of a butt or a waist to hold up my pants, and the Tuesday-fit Silver jeans actually fit me well. These were my most expensive purchase--they were regularly $28(!) but I got 35% off of that. And I think this top is really cute. Again, $2.99, then half off, and then 35% off.

These are black stretchy skinny jeans, and I was totally unsure if I could pull them off (like, wear them in public; not literally pull them off of my legs, although that was a little troublesome too! haha). And the shirt is the only novelty tee I bought--it says Happy Camper and has a very cute camper with a smile on the front.

These are a SUPER comfy pair of 7 For All Mankind brand jeans. They have a mid-rise, which I love. These actually still had the new tags still on them! I got them for $6.99. On the store's website, they are $179. I love this long-sleeved knit tee, too, but once I got it home I noticed a couple of small tears in it. So, I spent some time sewing them up. It was worth it, because I really like the shirt and it's very soft and comfy.

These are the other pair of 7 for all mankind jeans I bought. The waist is lower, but I couldn't help but buy them at $8.99. (I don't know why they were marked higher than the other pair that was brand new!). The tee is nothing special, just something I picked up and liked.

This striped tee is my favorite out of all of them! I think the color looks good on me. And it was brand new with the tags still on it. It was marked at $2.99, and I got 35% off. The jeans are American Eagle--I really was hoping to find a lighter colored pair of jeans (all the ones I have are dark), so I was happy to find these. They are super comfy, too.

This is hard to see well, but it's a very nice (and heavy) sweater. The second picture shows the design better. This was $9.99, but it was 25% off and I got 35% off of that, so it was a pretty good deal. I am always freezing in the winter, and I like to have a sweater to wrap up in at home, so this one is perfect for that.

I saved the best for last... I can't even tell you how excited I was to find this!!

A retro Surf Style jacket, just like all the cool kids wore back in the early 90's! I think my sister had this same color, actually, and I used to borrow it all the time. My older brother had a green one. I wore this to cross country practice today, and it was perfect for the weather.

So, I'm pretty happy to have some new stuff in my wardrobe (and I pulled several things out today to make room for the new stuff). I love thrift shopping!

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In other news, I got another response from Kroger about "the incident". Someone from the Michigan customer service team in Novi contacted me, and wrote a very kind, apologetic email. She said it was handled wrongly and that she wanted to make it up to me by inviting my family to a ribbon cutting ceremony for a new store that is opening on Tuesday; she also wanted to send me a gift card in the mail!

I thought that was super generous--I never wrote about it to get anything out of it; I was really just venting about the service manager. But I think it's nice that Kroger is doing something about it. I really wish I could go to the grand opening event, but I have our first cross country meet that day. I think it would have been fun to tour the new store!

I'm really happy that Kroger followed up on this. And I'm curious to see how the service manager reacts if I should ever have to encounter her again!

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Changing the Habits That Keep Us From Losing Weight

In 2011, I wrote a post called "Waiting Until the New Year" about only making changes that we're willing to live with forever. In fact, that is my number one tip that I share when people ask me for advice about losing weight: Don't make any changes that you're not willing to do for the rest of your life.

When I get emails from people asking for help getting started, that post is probably the most frequent post that I recommend for them to read. However, since it was written in 2011, it's a little outdated. Here, I will write an updated version with a downloadable PDF worksheet to help get started.

(Before I start, I just want to say that I'm going to make a lot of generalized statements in this post--I know there are always exceptions, and everybody has different issues. But, for the most part, people who have weight to lose have a lot in common.)

In general, most people dread starting a diet or exercise program. There's a reason that people wait until Monday, or after the birthday party next week, or the wedding next month, or until January 1st to make some lifestyle changes: The changes are usually difficult and miserable, because they are completely different than the habits we have already formed.

Most of us who have weight to lose are in this situation because of habits we've developed from years of overeating and/or under exercising. If we weren't overeating and our diets were healthy and well-balanced, we likely wouldn't have excess weight! So, it is obvious that we need to change these habits in order to change our weight. Right? Likewise, if we don't make any changes, our weight will not change, either.

To make changes that we don't dread, we have to come up with things that are as painless as possible--things that aren't exactly what we would like (such as being able eat as much as we want whenever we want), but that we are willing to compromise on.

If we write our own rules, we can come up with habits that aren't completely miserable--and therefore, we won't dread doing them. And we won't have to wait until Monday or January 1st to get started! We can start right now--even if we're going out for a celebration dinner tonight, or someone brought doughnuts to the office this morning, or we're having a potluck this weekend--and there won't be anything to dread.

The only reason we should dread changing our habits is if the changes are too difficult and/or miserable to do.

So, what's the solution? We write our own rules and come up with our own compromises that we can live with. Maybe they won't be ideal, and they'll certainly not be perfect, but they will be better than what we are doing now. And by making better habits, even small ones, the changes should reflect in our weight.

There is a big difference in saying, "Yes, I can do that" versus "Yes, I am willing to do that". There are tons changes that we "can" make if we really put our minds to it; but are we willing to stick with those changes forever? If it's not something we are willing to change for the rest of our lives, then the chance of us being successful in changing that habit (even for the short term) is slim. When deciding what changes to make, we should ask ourselves (and be completely honest) about whether it's something we are willing to change.

I suggest writing out a list of habits that are keeping you from losing the excess weight. We usually know what those habits are. Then, come up with a change for each habit that is do-able and that you are willing to take on. Something you don't dread. Something you could start right now.

And then I would work on changing just the top habit that you feel is hindering your weight loss goals the most. Don't worry about the others yet, and just focus on the one that has the biggest impact on your weight. There is a good chance that changing that habit alone will result in weight loss; but if not, then it may be time to work on another. This will make it as painless as possible.

I made a PDF worksheet that makes it easy to just fill in the chart and brainstorm some ideas that work for you and your lifestyle. Since everybody is different, it only makes sense that we do what works for us as individuals. The changes I made aren't going to be what's best for everybody; by writing our own lists, we can make our own changes.

We don't have to be perfect and we certainly don't have to change all of our habits to be "perfect" in order to reach our goals. As long as we change something, anything for the better, we are better off than we were before!

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Here is an example of the worksheets that I filled in. I just wrote in some sample habits to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. (You can click the photos to enlarge)

And here is the link to the PDF worksheet download: 
Changing the Habits That Keep Us From Losing Weight

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For my Wednesday Weigh-in:

I think this is up another pound or so from last week. I honestly haven't changed my eating habits--if anything, they've been better this week--so I'm not sure what the deal is. However, I am wondering if it's a new medication that my psychiatrist added for my anxiety. Last night, I got curious and looked it up; and sure enough, lots of people gain weight on this medication. Some people have gained 40-50 pounds! I'm curious if it is, in fact, the medication, so I'm going to stop taking it for a few weeks and see if that helps. If not, then it may be another cause.

For now, though, I'm just going to keep doing what I've been doing!

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RECIPE: Garlic Pasta with Bread Crumbs

I have a recipe book called Cheap. Fast. Good., and it's full of recipes that pretty much are cheap, fast, and good. There are few of the recipes that have become go-to's for my family. The book is no longer in print, but you can pick it up for cheap on Amazon if you really want it.

This recipe for Garlic Pasta with Bread Crumbs comes from that book. It's actually called Pasta with Bread Crumbs, and I just threw the "Garlic" in there to make it sound slightly more appealing. The recipe actually didn't sound that great to me, which is why it took me 12 years to try it (since I bought the book).

Click here for a printer-friendly PDF of this recipe


Garlic Pasta with Bread Crumbs (with my modifications)

8 oz. Penne (or other short pasta)
2 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
6-8 small cloves of garlic, minced
3/4 cup bread crumbs (you can make them with stale bread in the food processor, but I just used store-bought ones)
1/2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. salt (I think it needed more salt, so you may want to use 1/2 tsp)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Directions:

Cook the pasta according to package directions (don't forget to salt the water).

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat; and then add 2 tsp. of the olive oil and the garlic. Cook, stirring constantly so that the garlic doesn't burn, for about one minute. (Take a second to put your nose over the pan and smell it--it's like heaven.) Add the bread crumbs and the Italian seasoning, and stir until the bread crumbs are coated. It may see like too many bread crumbs, but keep stirring. It'll work out.

Drain the pasta when it's done cooking, and put it back in the pot. Add the remaining 1 tsp of olive oil (if you forgot to reserve it, no worries--just add another teaspoon--a little extra healthy fat never hurt anyone). Toss the pasta to coat with the oil, and then stir in the Parmesan cheese. Toss to combine well.

Finally, when the bread crumbs are nice and toasty (they should be by now), add them to the pot with the pasta, and stir well to coat the pasta. Serve with a hot side of marinara for dipping.

My commentary:

This was really good--the family all agreed it tasted like garlic bread or like the breadsticks you get with pizza. I thought it was a little dry, because there is no sauce. I think it would be delicious with a thick, chunky marinara sauce on the side for dipping. (If you were to pour it on top, the bread crumbs would probably get mushy.) I found it to be much more filling than your typical pasta, and I actually didn't even finish my serving.

Overall thoughts: Good recipe, but not one of my favorites. I would make it again, but serve it with marinara sauce for sure. It's VERY cheap, and I always have these ingredients on hand, so it's a convenient and tasty recipe to make in a pinch. I would probably give this a 3/5 overall.

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Stolen (and terribly photoshopped) photos

Thanks for the suggestions about the Kroger incident. I did end up writing the corporate office, because the more I thought about it, the angrier I was at the manager for lying to me. I wish I'd had called her out on it in the moment, but I was so stunned that I just didn't.

I do want to say that the employees at that store are very friendly (with the exception of the service managers). Some employees really go above and beyond, and I've never had a problem with them. This incident, however, was totally uncalled for.

I got a response from the headquarters today, and it was almost as laughable as the incident itself:

Not only was it a generic canned response, they actually advertised their Simple Truth product line in what was supposed to be an apology letter!

I'm pretty bummed. I have always been a big fan of Kroger--they have the lowest prices around where I live, and the next-closest grocery store is 20 minutes away. I'm not going to quit shopping there just because of that one employee, but I am curious if anything will even come of all of this. Like I said, the other employees have always been kind.

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I had another issue arise this morning when I got an email from a reader who told me that my photos were being used on a website that was advertising some sort of weight loss program. The site was in a language I couldn't read, but sure enough, there were several of my photos. Funnily enough, they actually stole one of my "after" photos (after I'd lost 100 pounds) and photoshopped it to make me BIGGER. They tried to turn it into a "before" photo! BAHAHA 😂

And they didn't even do a good job with it. I know nothing about Photoshop, but even I could have done a better job. I posted a side by side and shared it on Facebook, hoping to get a response from the company.

What the heck, right?! Even the ground on the sides of my hips looks weird. Within minutes, I actually got a Facebook message from the company. Here is what they had to say:

"Dear Katie, I sincerely apologize for this. 

It was an advertorial that was done for an outside client and the client provided us with the whole article and photos. We double checked and the agreement said that the photos were the clients. We now clearly see that is not true and will take off all the posts that include the photos and will contact the client directly and inform them of the situation and will take necessary steps and actions towards the client to prevent this from happening again.

I informed both the advertorial and sales team of the situation and will personaly start pulling these stories down. Best, Daniel"

I don't know if I'm just gullible, but I believe that he is sincere about what happened on their end. Shortly after, he wrote me a private message from his personal page to apologize and explain further. I was happy with what he had to say, and he made sure that the article was removed, and anywhere that my picture appeared had been removed.

I was very surprised with how quickly that was taken care of. Usually I have to jump through a lot of hoops when people steal my photos, but I am relentless when it comes to following through on things like this. Now, if only Kroger could be so kind, hahaha!

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I almost forgot to mention... I went for a run on Thursday 😱

At Tuesday's cross country practice, Renee and I thought a relay race would be a fun game for the kids (we were practicing at the outdoor track). We set up teams of four kids each (to do 100 meters before passing the baton). However, we were two kids short--so, Renee and I were defaulted into the race. I groaned, because I hadn't run in SO long and I didn't want to let my team down!

In the chaos of getting everyone to their starting positions, somehow I wound up being the ANCHOR (the last person in the relay). Talk about pressure! I was in the fourth lane, which is a longer distance run, and my team was coming in last by the time I got the baton. I started running my hardest to the center lane, and was neck-in-neck with Lucas, one of our faster runners. He glanced over his shoulder as I was going to pass him, and then he started running harder.

I managed to stay on his heels (the whole 100 meters, lol). I was totally spent, though. And then Renee said, "Let's do one more!" I didn't do nearly as well the second time. I did get to start the race, though, so at least I wasn't the anchor on that one.

I left practice feeling like I wanted to be able to challenge the kids. I wanted them to worry when they see me racing against them! ;) Anyway, it really did inspire me to want to go for a run. I decided that on Thursday's practice, if the weather was good (meaning that it wasn't too hot), I would run with the kids.

Holy hell, I was SO sore on Friday!! Hahaha, I only ran 200 meters, and my legs felt like I'd run a marathon. It's amazing how much fitness I've lost.

And on Thursday, it was raining--just barely. And it was cold. Which is perfect for running! On Thursdays, the kids run loops in a park, to get in as much distance as possible. A lot of the kids complain that their legs hurt, or they have a cramp, or a stomachache, or a headache, and a thousand other reasons to get out of running. Renee and I are good at being able to tell what's legit, and 90% of what they complain about are things that are no problem to run through.

I decided to run the opposite direction of the kids so that I would be able to see them more often and yell at encourage them to keep going. Most of the kids don't listen to me when I tell them to run slow and easy (because they're competitive and want to show off by running fast), and they get worn out on the first lap. Then they take walk breaks waaay more often than they are running. The kids that listen to me have no problem running the entire 30 minutes without taking walk breaks.

Anyway, I was being a stickler at this practice, and every time I'd turn a corner, I'd see kids walking. Immediately, they would start running again when they saw me, haha. I had to stop to talk with the kids numerous times, to correct running form or slow their pace, or things like that. So, my run wasn't consistent, but that wasn't the reason I was running. It just felt good to be doing intentional exercise! I only did 2.25 miles (I probably could've gotten in three if I hadn't stopped so much).

While this doesn't mean I'm going to start running regularly again, I liked it enough that maybe I'll run again this Thursday at practice. Now that we are getting some fall weather, I actually won't be surprised if I feel like going for a run once in a while.

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Finally... (just one last thing)...

I've been thinking a lot about how to go about the different direction of my blog (as I mentioned in my post about The Pursuit of Happiness). I've been wanting to write more regularly in order to develop a good routine for the school year, and one of the things that I have always wanted to do is have a particular topic for each day that I write.

And since these things always seem to use alliteration, I was thinking days like, "Mental Health Monday" (my issues or general issues surrounding depression, bipolar, anxiety, etc); "Tasty Tuesday" (post a new recipe that I tried that week); Weight Loss Wednesday (my Wednesday Weigh-in, but also any other weight loss stuff I want to write about); Thrifty Thursday (budgeting stuff, thrift store finds, etc); Family Friday (any personal things I want to mention about we've been up to lately). I'm a little stuck for Saturday and Sunday (at least for the alliteration!). So maybe I'll make those days a grab bag, if I feel like writing then.

I think it'll be easier on me if I know what topic I'm going to be writing about, and it will help to be more consistent in case certain people only want to read about certain topics. So, you may see that soon. I did just make a new recipe for dinner today, so maybe I'll post that tomorrow for Tasty Tuesday! ;)

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An odd customer service experience at Kroger

This title is not at all creative, but as speechless as I am about this story, that was best I could do! haha

Being Friday, I did my weekly grocery shopping this morning. Last night, I stayed up pretty late working on a menu for the week and writing my shopping list. One of the dinners I plan on making this week is Barbecue Chicken Pizza, so I listed Sweet Baby Ray's barbecue sauce on my list. (This has a point, and I will get to it, I promise!)

Mmmm... super easy Barbecue Chicken Pizza

(Oh! And after some of you suggested using a toaster oven while we wait to buy a new oven, I was intrigued by the idea--I never really thought of using a toaster oven in place of a real oven. We have a toaster oven, but it's a very small cheap one that we probably should have replaced a few years ago. So, after reading a million reviews on Amazon, I bought a new toaster oven and it's supposed to arrive tomorrow. It was definitely an extra expense for the month, but it's much cheaper than a new oven, and it should get us by for a long time. I'm excited to make pizza in it tomorrow!)

Anyway, I dropped off the kids at school and then stopped at Kroger to buy my groceries. When I got to the section where the barbecue sauce is, I noticed that the original Sweet Baby Ray's sauce was on sale for 10/$10--so only $1 each, instead of the regular $2.49. Awesome! I didn't know it was on sale, but when I saw that, I decided to get two of them. (Since Noah has been grilling a lot lately, I figured he could make chicken or something next week.)

So, I finished my grocery shopping and went through the checkout. When I got home, I looked over my receipt--something I never used to do! But since I've been doing the budgeting and really working on saving money, I have checked over my receipts lately just to make sure I paid the prices I had planned on.

I noticed that the barbecue sauce rang up at $2.49 instead of the $1 that the sign had said. I used to be a cashier at Kroger, and I know that most of the time when a customer says that an item rang up at the wrong price, they actually just picked up the wrong item and assumed it was the one listed on the sign. For that reason, I always double check the UPC number on the shelf tag or ad sign with the item to make sure I'm getting the right thing.

I was sure that I had picked up the correct bottle and that I didn't read the sign wrong. In the evening, I had to go back by Kroger when I took Noah to go skating with his friends, so I brought the barbecue sauce and my receipt to Kroger to hopefully get a refund of the difference. Noah and I went inside, and before I went to the customer service desk, I wanted to check the sign to make sure I wasn't wrong.

We walked to the shelf and sure enough, there was a tag that read 10/$10. I didn't want the manager to have to walk all the way back there to check it out, so I took a picture of it with my phone to show her. We walked up to the service desk and I explained what happened.

(I really love the Kroger that I shop at, and the employees are all super friendly--except for the managers. I try to avoid having to interact with them because they act like you are the biggest nuisance for just being in the store. I feel like I have to apologize for shopping there, hahaha. And I've only had an issue with a food item or incorrect price probably three times in all the years I've been shopping there, so it's not like I'm a customer that complains all the time.)

Today, the manager clearly didn't believe that I was telling the truth about the sign. I showed her the picture on my phone, and she said she was going to have to go check it out for herself. I waited patiently at the counter while she walked back there. When she came back, she said there wasn't a sign or tag anywhere saying that it was 10/$10.

I was kind of stunned--it had literally only been about two minutes since I took the photo! Noah was with me, and he saw everything, too. I showed the manager the photo again, and she still didn't believe me--she told me that I was going to have to go back there and show the sign to her. At this point, I just wanted to prove I wasn't a liar, so I walked back there to show her the tag--and it was gone.

I couldn't believe it! I'm SURE that she took the tag off of the shelf when she went to look for herself the first time. There is no way that one of the stock persons noticed it and removed it in the two minutes it took for me to walk to the front of the store! The time stamp on my photo even proved that it was there just minutes before. But she didn't want to look at that, and when I insisted that the tag was on the shelf just a couple of minutes ago, she just shrugged and said, "Well, there is no tag there, so I don't know what happened; they were on sale last week, but not now."

I just stared, kind of stunned that she would even think that I was dumb enough to believe that the tag mysteriously disappeared or that one of the stock persons removed it. She then said, "Well, if you really think you saw a sign, then I'll just give it to you for that price; but I know they aren't on sale, so if there was a sign, it was a mistake."

I know this is a long and petty story (it's just a bottle of barbecue sauce, after all) but I'm still just kind of speechless about the whole thing. Why didn't she just say, "Oh, that sign must have been left up there from last week; that's our mistake. But, since we didn't take the sign down, we'll just give it to you for that price" ? When I was a cashier, that's exactly how I would have handled it.

Noah and I laughed about it when we left the store, wondering how in the heck that just happened. If nothing else, it made for a funny story to tell Jerry later. Anyone else have an odd customer service experience like this? It was definitely a first for me!

Have a great weekend, everyone :)

(ETA: I did contact Kroger's corporate office, and I got a response from them. The response is posted here: Stolen (and terribly photoshopped) photos)

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Tidbits and Wednesday Weigh-in

Three posts in a row... I'm on a roll! ;)  (If you missed them, I wrote about my Ten Months of Depression, followed by The Pursuit of Happiness--a couple of pretty personal posts that describe the changes in my life since I was diagnosed with bipolar as well as the future of Runs for Cookies.)

I'm just going to mention some random things going on lately--not a ton to write about. 

I forgot to mention on the post about grocery shopping on a budget that we have another challenge to overcome right now... we don't have an oven! About six months ago, we started having issues with our oven temperature. I would preheat the oven, then put the food in, and when the timer went off, the food was barely cooked. So, I'd have to re-bake things several times, and it drove me crazy! I tried fixing the temperature sensor, but that wasn't the problem. 

Then, a couple of months ago, I was preheating the oven while cooking on the stove--and suddenly, the oven made a big BOOM! noise and the pot on the stove literally bounced into the air (a couple of inches), the door to the oven opened, and all the dust bunnies that were collecting underneath the oven flew out. I was kind of stunned. 

I obviously turned off the oven (we have a gas stove), and I haven't messed with it since. It's 14 years old, and we need a new one. But, we are going to hold off as long as we can, because we are determined to make our budget work. Also, it's kind of fun to come up with meals that don't require the oven. The budget itself has made it fun to face little challenges like this that pop up. 

I keep forgetting about not having an oven, though--for my mom's birthday, I planned to make a cake, and then at the last minute, I realized I'd have to make a no-bake dessert instead. I made this peanut butter pie, and it was really good--rich, too, so a very small slice was satisfying.

I mostly miss making casseroles, which are my go-to. I love one-dish meals! Casseroles, skillet meals, anything that uses just one or two pots/bowls. Actually, that's a big money-saving tip--casseroles and skillets that mix all the ingredients together make a very small amount of meat go a long way. (I can buy one chicken breast and stretch it for the whole family--some chicken breasts can be 3/4 of a pound!)

We don't eat the typical main-dish-with-side-dishes kinds of dinners; rather, we eat things like this Ground Turkey and Cabbage with Spicy Peanut Sauce, Spicy Taco Gnocchi, and Pasta e Fagioli (that's what I made tonight, actually). I never use more than one pound of meat when I cook dinner, and we usually get 4-6 servings out of each meal. (Jerry takes leftovers to work). It's convenient to have all of the ingredients from the meal mixed into one dish. 

Pasta e Fagioli for dinner tonight--this is so good!

Anyway, I do miss having an oven, but I also enjoy working around this challenge. We'll see if we can go a few more months! ;)

My Wednesday Weigh-in today:

Ugh. I cannot even describe how bloated I've felt all week. Taking that Bactrim made me SO sick, and I barely ate anything for four days because I was so nauseous. But my weight jumped up to 136 at the peak of being sick, and my belly was really distended. It's slowly going back down now, but I swear that antibiotic messed up my stomach really bad. My belly still bulges out much more than normal, and I feel enormous. I think my weight is up a pound or maybe a pound and a half from last week, but I don't know if any of it is a "real" gain. Next week's weigh in should be more accurate.

We went to the air show on Monday. I wasn't sure if we'd have good weather (it was supposed to thunderstorm) but Jerry was off work and our next door neighbor gave us tickets, so we really wanted to go. I hadn't been there since I was a kid, but I remembered really liking the Blue Angels. When we got there and set up our chairs, I realized I forgot my sunglasses at home.

I was super bummed, because it was hard to look into the sky without glasses, even though it was fairly overcast. There was a booth there selling sunglasses, and I really didn't want to spend money to buy a pair, but I finally just caved and bought their cheapest ones. Did I mention they were also the ugliest? Hahaha! But they worked SO good--they made everything brighter, but without any sort of glare, so it didn't hurt my eyes to look at the sky. 

After trying mine on and realizing how awesome they were, Jerry wanted a pair, too. But he came back with something different...

Goggles! Ski goggles actually used to be trendy for a minute back when we were in high school, hahaha. I think he was wearing a pair on his head the first time I met him! These ones weren't exactly the same sort of goggles, but nevertheless, he got them for old times' sake. And they were 2/$20, so he got another pair for Eli (who also forgot sunglasses). 

The four of us were quite the fashionable sight:

The show was okay... we loved seeing the Blue Angels, but the other parts were few and far between, so there was a lot of waiting. But it was a nice day with the family, so we all had a good time.

The kids started school yesterday! Noah is in 8th grade and Eli is in 6th grade. I can hardly believe it. 

When I started blogging, Noah was in first grade and Eli was in preschool. This was the first post I wrote about them starting back to school (starting 2nd grade and kindergarten). And here is the picture!

I cannot believe how much they've grown and how much time has gone by since I started my blog!

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Run Your Fastest 10K (Training Plan)

Want to run your fastest 10K? Well, this plan is for you.

I set a goal to run my fastest 10K when I was at a low point... my weight was more than 30 pounds over goal, and my pace was more than 3 minutes (per mile!) slower than I needed it to be to run my personal best.

I wrote this plan based on what I did to run the best 10K of my life. I set a goal, and I actually completed it! (Here is the race report).

This training plan assumes that you:

Have already built a solid aerobic base of easy running;
Can currently run 4-5 times per week, about 60 minutes at a time;
Are uninjured and have your doctor’s clearance to run per the schedule.

My intention with this plan was for a goal of running a 10K under 60 minutes, which is a popular time goal; but I’ve included other goal times and paces as well, because this plan will work for people with just about any goal from 45:00 to 1:30:00.

This plan is designed with an 80/20 ratio of easy running (80% or more of the TIME spent running) to moderate or hard running (20% or less) per WEEK. This is the ideal ratio for reaching your maximum potential as a runner.

I highly recommend the book 80/20 Running, by Matt Fitzgerald to explain why that ratio works. Here on this schedule, I’ve done all the math for you, so if you follow the plan as written, you’ll hit that ideal ratio. (Note: You’ll notice that in week 11, the ratio is 78/22—that is due to a key workout. Since the following week doesn’t have speed work, that extra 2% isn’t a big deal.)

Click here for the plan's printer-friendly PDF

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The Pursuit of Happiness

(...continued from my previous post, Ten Months of Depression)

In my last post, I wrote about a major depressive episode that I had in 2016-2017. It wasn't until I was able to get in to see a psychiatrist, come to terms with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, and start the correct medication that I started to get better. And since then, my life has done a 180 as far as my mood and outlook on life.

In a recent interview with Heather for the Half Size Me podcast (my most recent interview isn't released yet), I discussed the changes that have happened since my diagnosis--including several aspects of my life, such as my diet, exercise, daily routine, focus, and major goals. This affects my blog in many ways, so I thought it would be relevant to share here. One of the questions Heather asked me was where do I see Runs for Cookies going in the future, and it's something I've been thinking a lot about lately.

So, here is the story...

Right around the time of my bipolar diagnosis, I also made a pretty big breakthrough in therapy. I'd been seeing my therapist for nearly a year, and I really loved her (still do). She gives fantastic advice in such a gentle way, and it's very easy and comfortable to tell her anything at all. One thing that I really wanted to work on was to figure out where my binge eating stemmed from. I'd been binge eating since I was a kid, and I had no idea why.

A lot of times, you read about people with weight problems (or binge eating) that started as a result of childhood abuse or neglect. In those cases, there is a very clear connection of the abuse to the resulting binge eating/weight gain. For myself, however, that wasn't the case. I was fortunate to have had a great childhood--living with both of my parents in a stable home, no abuse or neglect in any way, and just a fairly "normal" way of life. I felt loved and cared for.

So, it was driving me crazy for years as to why I started binge eating. I finally decided that it was just because I enjoyed food and that sometimes I would binge when lonely or depressed in order to make myself feel better. Through therapy, I discovered that it was actually deeper than that, and when I learned what it was, I finally felt the weight lifted off of my shoulders and it was wonderful.

It's a rather long explanation, and quite personal, so it's kind of difficult to share. However, I think it's important to explain because it's the reason for the huge change in my life recently. The gist is that I've never really felt like I fit in with my family--in a family of six made up of extroverted, social, active, outdoorsy people, I was the polar opposite.

I was introverted, very shy, enjoyed reading more than socializing, preferred the indoors to camping, nature, and beaches. Where my family enjoys being in the sun, I prefer cool and overcast. They like camping; I like hotels. They like beaches; I prefer cities. They love parties and get-togethers; I prefer to spend time with a few close friends or family members.

I mean, look at those nerds... I was clearly the cutest sibling! ;)

Because I was the only one in my family like this, I grew up thinking that the things I enjoy are "wrong" somehow, and I felt bad about it--and bad about myself. My family never did or said anything to make me feel this way--they never even knew anything was wrong!--but I could see how different I was, and I didn't want to be.

So, I spent my life trying to be someone that I'm not in order to fit in. As a shy introvert, I try to avoid conflict as much as possible; so, I would go along with things that I didn't always enjoy or agree with rather than voicing my opinion. I kept my thoughts and opinions to myself.

Trying to be someone I'm not took a huge toll on me. I wasn't doing the things I enjoyed; and when I did, I felt like I was doing something "wrong" in some way. I didn't like being the oddball in my family, and I was worried they wouldn't like me if I was my true self. As you can imagine, this led to quite a bit of anxiety. I was always worried about disappointing people or doing/saying the "wrong" thing. (I now know that I wasn't wrong; I just had different thoughts/feelings than my family.)

I discovered early on that eating was a way to escape the relentless anxiety that I felt. My biggest fear was being a disappointment to other people, and the food made me feel better in a way that wouldn't hurt anyone else. My family never criticized or made me feel bad about my weight or eating habits, so it felt like a "safe" way of doing something that made me happy (at least in the short term).

(I do have to stop here for a moment and say that my family is amazing. I don't think I ever realized just how amazing they are until I was an adult. When I broke my jaw, especially, they all stepped up and did everything they could to take care of me, Jerry, and the kids. Whenever we've needed help with anything at all, I've been able to turn to them. I feel so lucky to have been born into this family, even if I am the oddball!)

I love this picture! I just wish Becky and Luke were in it. 

So, all of that backstory leads me to the present and future...

Since learning that about myself, and having my therapist explain that my thoughts/feelings aren't "wrong" in any way, I've felt an enormous sense of freedom to be myself around everybody--including my family--without being apologetic. After my bipolar diagnosis, I wrote a letter to my family explaining exactly what bipolar is and how it describes a lot of my behavior while growing up (as well as in my adult life).

By having the therapy breakthrough and diagnosis happen at the same time, the changes in my life happened pretty easily. With the correct medication and the newfound freedom to be myself, I felt like a whole new person. I started thinking about what would make ME happy, and what I wanted out of my life. I wanted to stop trying to please others by being someone that didn't feel like me, and start living for myself.

Thus began my pursuit of happiness...

The first thing I did was stop making myself run. I was dreading it all the time and I didn't get joy out of it anymore. Even though I was a little worried about how my blog readers would react (considering my blog is "Runs" for Cookies), I chose to do what would make me happier. I still don't know if I am done with running for good, or if it will just be a long-term break, and I don't feel like I have to answer that right now. It feels nice not to put pressure on myself!

Instead of running, I've been staying active in my day to day activities. I discovered that I love cleaning (thanks to being on the correct medication, I now have the desire and the energy to do so). I have been picking projects around the house that need to be done--closets that need organizing, or clothes that need to be donated, etc--and I've been working on them one by one.

Previously, I would have been in a hypomanic state and started a thousand projects at once, and then never finished any of them. This time, I'm working on one thing at a time, staying focused, and finishing what I start.

Cleaning keeps me active (I know it doesn't seem like "active" is the right word, but when doing heavy cleaning, I sweat and use muscles that I feel like I've never used before, so it's pretty active in my sense of the word).

I've also gotten enjoyment out of going for walks with friends (and/or Joey); playing with the kids (yard games, water balloon fights, fishing with Eli, etc); coaching cross country; meeting and catching up with friends; spending more time with my family (which is especially nice, now that I feel comfortable being myself); and several other things.

In addition to activity, I've changed my diet to make me happier as well. I don't use food to change my emotions--I don't eat to ease my anxiety, or relieve my loneliness when Jerry works nights, or even to celebrate things. Yes, I will eat at celebrations, but I don't see eating as celebratory itself, like I used to. I don't binge eat anymore. I'm not sure exactly what made me stop, but I think it's because my mood is so stable that I'm not looking for ways to self-medicate (something I did with food).

I've all-but stopped drinking alcohol. I am not anti-drinking, nor do I judge people who do drink. I've just discovered that it doesn't mix well with my new medication (even a drink or two causes very short-lived hypomania, followed by a few days of depression). I have to really weigh whether the consequences are worth it, and most of the time, I choose not to drink. It was tough at first, especially in social situations, but it feels easy now and the desire is completely gone. I never expected that!

Because my mood has stabilized, and I am able to focus on each task I start, I started a budget for my family to work on paying off our credit card debt. Even this has affected my eating habits! We have a very modest food budget each month, so it wouldn't be fair for me to spend a chunk of money on binge food for myself, or even to overeat the foods we have. I have been very reasonable with portion sizes due to our budget.

The budget has helped my anxiety in a huge way as well. We are finally ahead in our finances by doing the zero-sum budget, and we don't have to worry about having enough money to pay our bills each month. We've put a large dent in our credit card debt, and should be debt free in about seven months. Without the mood stabilizing medication, I never could have focused on (or maintained) this budget for any length of time.

These things that I mentioned have all contributed to my being happier: not forcing myself to run when I don't want to; having a clean, organized house; not self-medicating with food; spending time with and being active with my family; socializing with friends; being ahead on our finances; and most of all, being able to be myself without feeling apologetic for who I am.

I've started voicing my opinions, and I love it. It's a relief not to feel worried or guilty for expressing who I am. The people who cared about me and loved me still do--I don't know what I was so worried about all these years! I have discovered (by accident, and through therapy) that the road to happiness starts with being able to be myself and feeling good about who I am.

As far as the future of Runs for Cookies...

I'm going to keep my blog name. I considered changing it, but there is a lot that goes into changing something like that, especially when it's been so public. Having been in the From Fat to Finish Line documentary, and in several media outlets, I've become known as "Runs for Cookies", and it would be hard to change that. And who knows, maybe one day I'll run for cookies again; but right now, I am enjoying cookies without running, and it feels great ;) (Only instead of 10 cookies, I feel happy with just 1).

Weight loss and maintenance is still a huge part of my life, so I will continue to post about it. I don't expect to be struggle-free in maintenance (as you know, it's never been easy for me!), and I expect to continue the ups and downs (hopefully less frequently). I have found blogging about it to be helpful in getting and/or staying on track. However, weight loss won't be the main focus of my blog.

Going forward, I would like to write more about the discoveries I make in this "pursuit of happiness". I've enjoyed writing about budgeting/paying off debt, so I will continue to do that. Maybe I'll post about recipes that we've been trying (not "health food" recipes, but just food we enjoy). Activities that I try for the first time or do regularly. Projects I'm working on. Being an auntie to the happiest baby ever. Even just things I see on a day to day basis that bring me joy.

I almost feel like I am saying goodbye in some ways--at least to the old me. I'm excited about these changes, and I'm finally on a path that makes me feel happy about who I am currently--not who I hope to be someday. So, if you decide not to continue reading, I totally understand that! I thank you for following along. And if my current pursuit interests you, I welcome you to continue reading. And perhaps share your own path to happiness! :) xo

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Ten months of depression (and my turning point)

I've been writing quite a bit this year about doing things that make me happy. And it's been awesome--I feel happier than I have in a very long time!

I recently had an interview with Heather on her podcast "Half Size Me". I'd been a guest on the show three times previously, and I've always enjoyed it. Heather is very easy to talk to, and having lost a lot of weight herself, she really gets where I'm coming from.

These are my episodes:
The Half Size Me Show: Episode 040 (Nov 2012) 
The Half Size Me Show: Episode 126 (Jul 2014) 
The Half Size Me Show: Episode 247 (Oct 2016) 

I have been a listener since the beginning, and listening to the guests' stories has gotten me through many long runs.

Anyway, I was honored that Heather invited me onto the show again. My life has changed so so much this year, and I feel in a very good place right now to be able to talk about it. During my last interview with her, I was in a deep depression, and I felt terrible about myself. It was kind of exhausting trying to sound like everything was normal. (I've not listened to any of my own episodes, so I have no idea if it could be heard in my voice.)

I actually don't even remember much about that interview. All I remember is that I felt like a phony--and that I certainly shouldn't give advice about anything, because I was a "failure" (my feelings at the time). I don't know if this is typical of depression, but when I go through a depressive cycle, my memory is terrible. I honestly can't remember very much of the 10 months of my last depressive cycle.

This was right around the peak of my depressive episode

To recap some of the details:

Sometime in May or June of 2016, I crashed after having been on a huge "on top of the world" phase (which I now know was a hypomanic cycle of bipolar disorder). For six months, I felt beyond amazing--like I could do anything. And I had! From about September 2015 until May 2016, I was hypomanic--I lost weight pretty easily, getting down to 121 pounds; I became my speediest at running, going from 11:00/mile pace to under 8:00/mile; and I made all sorts of plans and goals. I was very ambitious! (Textbook hypomania).

At the peak of a hypomanic state

And then, within a matter of a couple of days, my mood shifted into an equal and opposite depression.

The depression got really bad in August. I always downplayed it on my blog, or just didn't talk about it at all, because I didn't want my blog to be dark and depressing. My weight went up a lot very quickly, because I was eating all the time to make myself feel better. I wanted to see a psychiatrist, because it was clear that antidepressants weren't doing anything for me; but it was damn near impossible to get an appointment! I eventually put my name on a nine month waiting list.

(Side note: I had been taking antidepressants for 15 years, and I thought they were helpful--but they actually weren't doing anything for me. When I would have a hypomanic phase, I thought it was the antidepressants working; and then when I was depressed, I thought it was just the "normal ups and downs of life".)

I wish it was that easy!

The rest of the year, I just focused on making it through each day. I was holding out hope that the psychiatrist could help me (eventually). In early February, I had a near-breakdown. I felt like I was drowning, and I had to do something drastic. Out of desperation, I flew to San Diego on a moment's notice (I was literally on a plane within hours of making the decision) to visit a friend and hope that the nice weather would help my mood. And for the few days that I was there, it worked!

In April, I got a call from the psychiatrist's office saying that they had a cancellation, and asking if I was available the following day. I felt so much relief! Before walking into my first appointment, I texted a close friend and said, "This is it. I'm putting all of my eggs in this one basket."

My first appointment would be a huge turning point in my life. That day, that appointment, saved me. It was a lot for me to process, though. Toward the end of our hour and fifteen minute appointment, the psychiatrist hit me with the diagnosis of bipolar disorder, and I was speechless. I was so sure he was going to say that it was major depression and/or inattentive ADHD, and I was prepared for that. I was not at all prepared for a bipolar diagnosis.

Interestingly, I had seen a psychiatrist in 2007, and was given the same diagnosis; I had brushed it off and thought it was ridiculous. I didn't even entertain the idea. And about a year and a half ago, when I started seeing a therapist (a psychologist), she was sure that I had bipolar as well--but I kept ignoring it, because I was sure she was wrong. My primary care doctor suspected the same thing, and urged me to see a psychiatrist for a correct diagnosis. And finally, my current therapist that I've been seeing for over year suggested it right off the bat, but still--I was in total denial. It took five professionals to finally get me to accept it!

This time, I had no other hope left inside of me. I had told myself that I would accept whatever the psychiatrist diagnosed me with and I would try the medication he recommended--even if it was a bottle of "weight gain pills" (i.e. more antidepressants). I still didn't really believe his diagnosis until he explained to me what a hypomanic episode is. And when we talked about the cycles in my life, I realized that it was textbook bipolar disorder. (I usually have 1-2 hypomanic phases and 1-2 depressive phases per year. In 2016, I had one of each.)

That day, my life completely changed (for the better). I started my new medication (a mood stabilizer, which would help keep me from getting too far "up" as well as too far "down"). There are definitely drawbacks to hypomanic cycles--while a lot of it is fun, there are some parts that are not so fun at all (anxiety is a big one).

In addition to the diagnosis and new medication, I started reading as much as I could about bipolar, and the more I read, the more I agreed with my doctor's diagnosis. Funnily enough, the most helpful things I found were actually memes about bipolar. I searched them on Google images and on Pinterest, and I found myself laughing to tears as I related to each of them.

I had felt very alone, not knowing anyone else with bipolar, but reading the memes made me realize that I wasn't alone. There were actually lots of people out there with the same crazy thoughts as me. (While some people dislike the word "crazy", I actually embrace it. I have found the humor in bipolar, which has helped me to accept it.)

Right around the time I was diagnosed, I also had a major breakthrough in therapy. I had always wondered what caused me to binge eat. I spent years reading books, filling out questionnaires, taking quizzes, doing anything I could to try and figure it out, and I never was able to--until my therapy with a fantastic therapist. It's kind of a long story, so I'll save it for my next post.

Tomorrow, I'll share about where I am currently, and how the diagnosis and therapy breakthrough have changed my outlook as well as my way of life (including things such as my eating and exercise habits). It's hard to believe that just six months ago, I never thought I would be happy again; and today, I am feeling the best I've felt for as long as I can remember!

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Grocery shopping on a budget (and debt update)

I am feeling quite a bit better today--other than a killer headache and some residual nausea, the side effects from the Bactrim are finally going down. Yesterday was another rough day--feeling super nauseous, bad headache, and zero energy. For those of you concerned I may have a kidney infection, I wasn't running a fever and my urinalysis was totally normal, so I'm 99% sure that I was sick from the Bactrim. Also, after all this happened, I remembered taking it before and having a similar reaction--nothing as severe, but I felt sick for a couple of days. I am never going to take it again!

My August was very uneventful, so my 1 Second Everyday video is probably my most boring one yet. But I still love this project, and not every day is going to be a party ;) The app just looks like a calendar, and then you tap on each day to choose the clip you want to use.

So, here is August's video:

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Budget Update

Yesterday was the last day of the month, so I spent the morning calculating how we did with our budget for the month. As nerdy as it is, I actually get really excited to do this stuff! Fridays are fun because it's payday, and I also do our grocery shopping for the week; but the last day of the month is my favorite, because I use our extra money that we saved that month to pay down our debt.

This month, we had several extra expenses--things like car registration renewal ($224, which sounds crazy); the kids' back-to-school supplies, clothes, and shoes; a birthday gift for my mom and a shower gift for Lance; and some other stuff. Oh, and I included Jerry's fantasy football in that, too, rather than having him use his "allowance". He worked 90 hours last week!! (He chose to; he didn't have to.) If spending $170 on fantasy football makes him happy, then it's money well-spent.

Anyway, after paying our bills and our extra expenses for the month, we were left with $977.50 to pay onto the credit card debt. Not bad! We only have two cards--just before we started the budget, I consolidated the cards I had down to two, and each has 0% interest for another year. The first card had a balance of $3157.75 when we started our budget in June. After yesterday's payment, the balance is down to $589.50--so we should be able to pay it off entirely next month!

Card #2 started with a balance of $7660.70 in June. Per the snowball method, we're just paying the minimum payment until card #1 is paid; then we'll apply everything to card #2. I'm guessing we'll have it paid off in about six months. Then we'll work on paying off the Jeep; and finally, the house. If all goes well, everything should be paid off in 3-4 years.

I'm amazed at how much better this way of budgeting has worked for us. We had tried so many times to follow a budget before, but because our weekly income varies so much, we never made it more than a week or two. And we were living paycheck-to-paycheck, which was super stressful. Now, using the zero-sum budget (which I explained in the post I linked to above), we don't worry about having enough money to pay the bills; and, each of us even has an "allowance"--cash that we can spend however we'd like.

[Anyone remember "Yellow Box" parties? I don't know if those still exist or not, and I don't remember them being very popular. But when the kids were very young, a friend of mine had a Yellow Box party, and of course I felt obligated to buy something. I ended up buying this huge piggy bank. It was totally blank when I bought it, and it came with paints to decorate it. I've had it ever since, and we love saving our change in it!]

I've been looking at the budget as a sort of game, and it's actually really fun! (Yes, nerdy; but I'm a nerd, so it works.) Today, being Friday, was grocery-shopping day. On Thursday evenings, I go to Kroger's website to load digital coupons to my Kroger card. They add new coupons about once a week, so I always check on Thursday nights.

Then I look at the weekly ad to see what's going to be on sale. I love when I can combine the sale items with the digital coupons. Something my mom taught me when I was young, and that I found to be very good advice, is that coupons only save you money if you use them on things you were going to buy anyway. In other words, I shouldn't buy things just because I have a coupon; but if I was going to buy Lucky Charms, for example (my favorite breakfast right now), and I can get a coupon, then that's great! I'm saving money.

I'm not, and never will be, one of the "extreme couponers" that spend hours clipping coupons and going to different stores and buying tons of things I don't need. (I actually don't even clip coupons--I just like using the digital ones I can load to my Kroger card, because I don't have to keep them organized or dig them out.) I only buy what we're planning to use in the upcoming week. But enough of this tangent...

After I load the coupons on my card and check out the weekly ad, I write a simple dinner menu for the week, and I try to include the items that are on sale or that I have a coupon for. Then I make a list of the groceries we need for the dinner menu, as well as other items we need for breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and household items--toilet paper, dish soap, etc.

I bought these "What to Eat" pads on Amazon a long time ago, and I'm finally getting good use out of them ;)

Obviously, I don't go into lots of detail--if I keep it simple, I'll actually do it.

And on Friday morning, I go to the grocery store. I always stick to my list, which I'm sure has saved us a ton of money. I used to go without a list and just buy whatever sounded good or was on sale. By using a list, I know that everything I buy will be used in some way that week, because I've planned it out ahead of time.

Today was a big shopping day, because I had to get the stuff for the kids' school lunches in addition to the usual stuff. The total before sales and coupons were applied was $218. Then after using my Kroger card, the total went down to $143! I got some really good deals today--my Neutrogena body wash, regularly $6.79, was on sale for $5.79. I had loaded a digital coupon for $3 off, making it $2.79. Then, because of another promotion, I got another dollar off. So, I bought my body wash (something I needed to buy anyway) for $1.79!

Another example is the Nature Valley granola bars that Jerry likes. They are regularly $3.99, and were on sale for $2.79. With the special promotion, they went down to $1.79. And then I had added a digital coupon for $1.00 off, so I got them for just 79 cents!

Finally, by shopping on Fridays, I get double the fuel points (100 fuel points = $0.10 off per gallon of gas). Last month, I earned enough to get $1.00 off per gallon--which really adds up when filling up the tank.

So, our budget starts fresh for September today. Since there are five Fridays (paydays) in September, we have planned to take the fifth paycheck and set it aside for next month. Jerry and I are going to Portland in October, and since he won't be working that week, his paycheck will be very low. To avoid getting behind, we're going to use the fifth paycheck from September to cover it, and then we won't have to worry about it.

Someone asked me after I previously posted about this budget how we got the money to actually start the zero-sum budget. Because you are using the current month's income to pay for next month, you need to front the money for a full month when you start--which is difficult! We were very lucky that we started our budget when we did, because it was an unusually high income month for us--there were five Fridays, Jerry worked a lot of overtime, and I had written a sponsored post. So, we ended up with just enough to start the zero-sum budget.

The fifth payday each month (if you are paid weekly) is something I've found to be a painless way to save up some money. Since most months have just four Fridays, we are used to living with four paychecks per month. If there is an extra payday, it would work out nicely to just set aside that whole paycheck; and when there is enough money to start the zero-sum budget (basically, you just need your "bare-bones" amount to start). Once you have the money to start the budget, it's very easy to keep going from there!

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I had totally forgotten about this until someone shared it on the From Fat to Finish Line Facebook page today! I was interviewed for an Oprah.com article, and it is now up on the site. You can find it here: Secrets to Keeping Weight Off.

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