Blah Blah Babycakes

Until next time

I'm at the point in my vacation where I'm shopping for any and everything that will help me recreate my holiday experience back at home. Suddenly, I have a new wardrobe of Balinese mumus and sarongs, incense, tea, spices and recipes. It's beyond ridiculous. I had to check myself when I started pricing mosquito nets for my bed.

Nick asked if I was going to burn garbage in the yard and drive a moped around while ignoring basic western traffic rules, but I think I'll leave those things behind. 

All this just to say that I have fallen in love with Bali. I can't believe I dragged my feet for so long planning this trip, wondering if it really mattered whether or not you traveled to exotic places when I was perfectly comfortable on my couch in Minnesota. Now, as I prepare to leave I'm already planning my return visit.

 

Welcome to Bali

We arrived in Bali several days ago and the jet lag is still kicking my ass. My body is taking far too long to adjust to the 12 hour time difference, but thankfully my schedule includes only the following: beach, spa, nap, yoga, shopping, dinner, repeat. So, I'm able to manage. 

Our lovely villa, complete with our own Hindu temple, is in the Seminyak beach area, which is also known as the French district or the fashion district. It's a little less crowded than the more popular Kuta, which I've heard is the Cancun of the South Pacific. (Not that there's anything wrong with that!)

My favorite things so far: The amazing, rich, smoky smell of Bali, the wonderful floral smell of your clothes when they come back from the laundry, the food, the warm Indian Ocean, the smile and the laughter on the faces of almost everyone I meet, the delicious tropical fruits, and the offerings (canang sari) the Balinese set out everywhere, several times a day to thank the Hindu gods and placate the demons.

Still so much to do and see, which we will if I ever get out of bed and Mr. Henry ever recovers from his travel/sun/foreign microbes-induced fever. Poor baby. What kind of fool mom brings a kid halfway around the world?

 

Henry makes an offering our first morning:

Third stop: Hong Kong Intn'l airport

Sometimes, when you are far away from home, it's the little things that give you comfort and peace.

-blogged from my iPhone

First stop: Dallas, TX

It's 82 degrees here and it feels so nice that I wouldn't be too upset to just stay here.

I'm lying.

Sadly, there have been zero cowboy sightings.

-blogged from my iPhone

How I lost 10 lbs in one month

 (Without wanting to kill myself.)

I desperately wanted to lose some weight before my trip to Bali.  Mostly, because I'm vain, but also because I read somewhere that it's a hot vacay spot for Italians, and we all know how beautiful and tall (in that non-German way) Italian women can be. The last thing I want to be is the fat American on the beach.

So I set about to lose a few lbs in just a few short weeks. I've never really dieted before. In the past (before I turned 30) I could skip dinner one night and I would be a size smaller.  Now it takes a little more effort, but my method was simple: calorie deficit.

I needed to be strict with myself. Strict and obsessed. Recording every single bite I took into a calorie counter was an obsessive joy and I took it very seriously.  I even recorded the 10 calories in my chewable vitamin B-complex.  I was not to go over 1200 calories and the few times I did, I was sure not to go over my maintenance caloric intake number of 1700.

So what did I eat? Well, I'm a big believer in the twinkie diet.  That is, I don't think it matters what you eat, it's how much. Luckily, I'm a healthy eater to begin with, so I didn't have to try and break a bunch of bad eating habits (except for polishing off Henry's leftover mac + cheese). I didn't worry at all about fat, carbs, or sugar, but I did try to get at least 25 grams of fiber in everyday. 

My diet grocery list:

Pepperidge Farm thin bread

GG crackers

smoked slamon

pre-cut veggies

blackberries

blueberries

grapefruit

grapefruit juice

Honest green iced tea

Laughing Cow cheese
mustard

cornichon

hard-boiled eggs

chicken breast

Smart Ones lasagna florentine

pistachio nuts

whole wheat pasta

deli-sliced turkey breast

Fiber One cereal

Oatmeal

white popcorn

coconut date rolls

Trader Joes Chocolate Nibs

One important factor for me was to never let myself get hungry. So most days I ate 200 calories every few hours. This took some advanced planning, but again, that's where obsession helped out. On Sunday afternoons I would plan out exactly what I would eat for the week and I didn't deviate. This made me feel lame and boring, but I was goal-oriented and I knew this wasn't going to last forever.

I didn't have much time to increase my level of exercise.  I could fit in one short run on Saturday mornings during Henry's swimming lessons, and I started taking the 5 flights of stairs to my office every day, but that burns such few calories that I didn't bother to enter them into the calorie counter. (Obvs if you work out harder and longer you can add a few more calories to your day.)

To keep motivated I alternated between wearing pants that were getting too large and pants that were still a bit tight.  The loose pants days helped me feel like I was making progress and the tight pants days were a good reminder that I couldn't afford to cheat.  

The only thing I felt was sacrificed was my social life.  Most nights I went straight home and after an early dinner, washed my face and changed into my pajamas lest I be tempted to have a glass of wine (I don't drink in my pjs) or a last minute dinner with friends.  I did go out a few times and I over-indulged in red wine one evening, but mostly one strong vodka martini was all the happy I could be.  

And I did it!  I reached my goal just in time and now I can go about the business of slowly gaining it all back.

*Remember, I'm not a doctor or a nutritionist...I'm not even very smart.  But I do look better in a bikini.