Well, now I've gone and done it!

I'll just come right out and say it.  I'm a good 50 pounds overweight with a body mass index of 30. For my 5'4" frame, that makes me obese. Not obese in any debilitating way, or really so much so you'd call me that to my face (or behind my back, because you're polite that way), but I'm not comfortable in my skin - or my clothes for that matter! So, what am I gonna do about it?  

A Google search yields headlines like:

Top 10 Foods NOT to Eat

Top 5 Exercises for a Flat Belly

Yoga

Zumba

Just Call Jenny

Spray Your Fat Away

OK then, what DO I eat? When? How much? I'm over 50, will those top 5 exercises really give me a flat belly? Will yoga help? How about Zumba? And the last one is just silly. It's all so confusing!

I've got to take control and start doing some kind, ANY KIND of exercise.... That Wii Fitness program that was going to change my life? Where is it? It's gathering dust in the basement. And the treadmill I made Downtown Dad haul upstairs so it would be more accessible? It's fulfilling its destiny as, what else? A clothes rack. 

Motivation - I don't got's any.

It’s the first month of a new year. I’ve started a new job, as well as a new phase of my life.  I've got a clean bill of health.  I’ve got no excuses left – now is the time to make my health, and well-being this year’s priority. 

Here's exactly what I'm gonna do about it:

I have committed to a 13 month non-surgical, healthy lifestyle weight loss program, sponsored and facilitated by my employer – Sanford Health. Their motivation is healthier employees = better work force. My motivation is the refund of 50% of the program cost if I successfully complete it. I'd say its a win-win wouldn't you?  

This program is scheduled to start at the end of January, and is structured around a balanced three-legged stool approach.

• The first leg is a support group made up of the people who have made the commitment, and led by a licensed counselor.  
• The second leg is a personal trainer/coach who will make sure the fitness aspect of the program is covered.  
• The third leg is a dietician who will assess my individual dietary needs and monitor what, how much and when I eat. 

The whole key to becoming fit (which is the goal - the weight-loss will be the bonus) is changing my lifestyle.

It will be hard. 

I will want to quit. 

I will complain - a lot.

It will be fun!  

My biggest fear is that I won't make any progress, or that I'm just too old for this to make any difference. My second biggest fear is that I'll fail, but I've told just about everyone I know that I'm doing this, so, you know, at least I've got the peer pressure working for me. 

I'm stepping WAY out of my comfort zone on this, because not only will I be blogging here about my experience, but since I work in the marketing department, I've also agreed to do some video blogging in the hopes that I can maybe inspire others to this, by honestly relating my pain and progress.

So, check in every once in a while and follow along with me on my journey. I promise there will be embarrassing pictures - tasteful, but embarrassing.  Oh yeah, and video... yeah, video. 

Tangerine Tango

I just read that Pantone's 2012 color of the year is Tangerine Tango.  The name itself, while it does evoke a sultry Spanish couple, mashed together in a moving, maraca enhanced embrace, isn't what I would have chosen.  I would have called it Salmon Boogie, or Apricot Hustle, or maybe Coral Jitterbug.

That peachy shade has always made me happy though, and as I read Pantone's adjective heavy descriptions, I started to believe that I could make the world a better place, just by bringing a little more Tangerine Tango into my life.

People might associate me with the color and start to think of me as "sophisticated, but at the same time, dramatic and seductive, with a lot of depth."

Like these shoes.

Or, "a bit exotic, but in a very friendly, non threatening way"

Like Shakespeare in brick.

Pantone goes on to describe their color of the year as "reminiscent of the radiant shadings of a sunset, and marries the vivaciousness and adrenaline rush of red with the friendliness and warmth of yellow to form a high visibility magnetic hue that emanates heat and energy."

Like Rachel Ray cookware.

I guess I would prefer my reddish oranges to stay in the mystical Sedona cliffs,

and red tile roofs.

What do you think?  

My family's favorite sandwich

Its a pretty good thing for a mom to have a secret recipe for the whole family's comfort food.  The secret recipe that was handed down to her from her own mom.  Its a pretty good thing to be able to whisper the magical name of that comfort food and bring everybody running.  I bet you'd think it was a pretty good thing if I was to share that secret recipe... 

Well, it's not so much a secret, in fact, it's pretty simple, it may even be written on the inside of the paper label that covers the Underwood Deviled Ham can.  It by no means is health food. It's likely one of those depression era recipes - using white bread, butter, mayo, and a questionable meat source. 

My mom called them Hot Denver Sandwiches, my family calls them delicious!

For four sandwiches you will need:

2 cans of Underwood Deviled Ham

6 eggs

8 to 16 slices from a block of Monterrey Jack Cheese

Hellmans (or Best Foods) Mayonnaise

8 slices of white, or potato bread

Butter

A non-stick 10 inch frying pan

For best results, you should make the sandwiches two at a time.

First, empty one can of deviled ham into a medium bowl with three eggs. Beat with a fork until combined.

Melt a little butter in the frying pan, and heat pan just until the butter begins to brown. Pour the deviled ham egg mixture into the hot pan and swirl gently to be sure it settles evenly.  Let it cook until almost solidified, yet still a little bubbly in the middle.

Then, using a spatula, cut the circle into four equal quarters and flip each quarter individually.  Lay the cheese on the cooked side immediately and either lower the heat or remove the pan from the heat as soon as the cheese begins to melt.

Stack two quarters per sandwich, cut diagonally, and serve.  For two more sandwiches, repeat the whole process.  Make your own in the second batch so you can enjoy it while it is still warm and gooey!