Cold Turkey

Welcome back! I hope you all have had a great week and are keeping warm! It is fall in Tennessee, right? I keep expecting to look up to the sky only to be hit in the eye with a snowflake. At this point in my plan to quit smoking, today would be day 7. I should have had only 4 cigarettes today. That didn't happen. So, even though I am usually quite the stickler when it comes to my plans, I'm going to have to try Plan C. Plan A, just tapering off of them on my own didn't happen. Plan B, setting an actual schedule to wean off of them didn't happen. On to Plan C. Cold Turkey. I'm determined to quit, but this is so much harder than I thought it would be! It's not even so much that I crave cigarettes. It's the rituals, if you will. I smoke while I drive to and from work. I smoke after a meal. I smoke after I shower. I smoke while playing Candy Crush for a ridiculously long time.  I've got 11 cigs left as we speak. The pack that I have now will be the last pack I ever purchase. In order to help me fight the habit, I've purchased these sugar free goodies.

Someone, who shall remain anonymous, has discovered my stash...

If going cold turkey doesn't work, I will move on to Plans D-Z. I did the math this week. By kicking the habit I will save approximately $85 a month. That is $1,000 a year! Holy savings, Batman! My health and my wallet cannot afford to take this any longer. Any tips from you all are welcomed and appreciated!

For the past few weeks I have been working like a mad woman. I've been putting in 55-60 hours a week. I've done this before with previous jobs, but those jobs were not third shift. Working 6:30PM-6:30AM is no joke!  That being said, I also have yet to join Planet Fitness. I've worked 3 out of the last 4 Saturdays. I'm off tonight, so I took today to get my weekly meal planning and grocery shopping finished, along with catching up on cleaning around the apartment. I've still been hopping on the elliptical throughout the week, but I'm hoping to join the gym soon!

Speaking of meal planning, that is something that has really helped me stick to my diet. By writing out what I'm making for dinner each day of the week, I avoid the urge to run to McDonald's or order a pizza and cheesy bread from Papa John's. I've got to give mad props to Matt for being the best guinea pig I could ask for! He's tried everything that I have cooked. With the exception of a Mexican dish made with whole wheat tortillas ("These things taste like newspaper..."), he's liked, or at least pretended to like, all of the dishes I've had him try. I decide what to keep in rotation by how rapidly the leftovers disappear! 

Friday, aka "Eat Whatever I Want" day, was glorious this week. I don't cook on Friday, so we hit up Rice Box. If you haven't tried it yet, you're missing out! It's not quite up to par with Ichiban, but it beats the pants off of Little Tokyo. It's located in the Bi-Lo shopping center in the Rivermont area. I had 3 rolls of sushi. I divulged in a Philadelphia roll, a spicy shrimp roll, and a crunchy crab roll. They were divine! As I was going to town on the rolls, I realized they weren't terrible for me. None of them were fried or drizzled with mayo based sauces. I can't say that the 2 pieces of Cho-Cho chicken were good for me, but boy were they good. I also made sure to squeeze in 2 caramel apple cookies that my sweet friend, Kim, brought to me. Before I knew it, Saturday morning was upon me and we all know what the means. Scale time! This morning I weighed in at 251 lbs! That's 3 lbs for the week and 16 lbs since I began my journey! I'm so close to the other side of 250 that I can taste it! I have to lose 51 lbs to reach my ultimate goal of 199 lbs by June 18th. At this rate, I'll be there by March! 

A few of you have reached out to me and said that I have inspired you. I can be a pretty tough cookie, but my heart absolutely melts when I hear or read what my story has done for you. I've said from the get go, and I will continue to say it, that if this blog can help motivate just one person, I will have accomplished more than I ever intended. Thank you to each and every one of you for keeping up with me and sending me words of love, support, and advice. I leave you with my super awkward selfie of the week! Until next time...

Bathroom cleaning is on tomorrow's agenda...