Snow day and some thinking

I woke up extremely early this morning.  Just couldn't seem to sleep/  I'm sure that later today I will fall asleep again.

We are getting snow this morning, it started late last night and is supposed to continue for the next few hours.  Today's pick from my kitchen window is a little snowy.

Lately it seems like I have been on a downward spiral again. I seem to get it together for a week then fall apart again. 9 years ago I lost 60 pounds relatively easily, I walked more, drank only water and coffee and didn't eat after 7pm. It worked awesome at that time. I have since then stayed under 200 pounds, as low as 162 and as high as 198 which is much better then my highest weight of 259. But it has been a constant yo-yo fr the last 9 years. I'm tired of it. When I first lost the 60 pounds I felt great I could do things again, stairs didn't hurt me, I could breath when I walked. I want to feel better again.

Things that I know about myself, I do not do well or like restrictive diets, I will not stop drinking my coffee/tea. I can increase my walking easily. Having worked with a dietitian for years for my daughter I know that my diet is healthy, not perfect but healthy, I eat too many unhealthy snacks, I love my Cheetos and cookies
So my wants are to stop losing and then gaining back these same 20 pounds. I want to drop them for good. I need to change my snacking in the evening, I can't just eat a handful of Cheetos, if I could it would be better but I can't seem to stop until the bag is empty. I know that I'm not even hungry it is just habit to sit and watch TV after I have put my youngest to bed and snack.
Now that I know my biggest want I need to figure out some realistic goals for me to work on.
I need to keep better track of what i am eating and drinking, including those darn Cheetos. So the goal will be to track all food and drinks.
I also need to make sure that I am working at increasing my steps count during the day. I will do this my tracking my steps every day and going for at least a walk around the block every day.
I also need to add some exercises back into my daily routine. I have found that if I don't do them first thing in the am they just don't get done. I need to change my am routine to include my video workout again. I was doing really well with it but then used the excuse that my son was sleeping in the family room (his choice) to not bother with it because I didn't want to wake him up. I need to, he has a bedroom to sleep in, he can move there. I can't use that as an excuse to not exercise anymore. So my next goal will be to add my video workout 5 times a week.
So my new goals for the next 30 days are.
#1 to track all food and drink when I eat or drink it#2 to meet or exceed my step count for the day 8000 steps right now#3 to add my video workouts 5 times a week ( Monday thru Friday weekends off)
In 30 days I will reevaluate my goals.

This morning I woke up a little early made coffee, checked my emails, Facebook and SparkPeople accounts.  It's a little overcast outside.  I saw a new recipe for banana muffins.  They are delish.

Here is the recipe, originally from Chocolate Covered Katie

Banana Muffins

Ingredients

1 cup mashed banana

2 tbsp milk of choice

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 tsp white or cider vinegar

3 tbsp oil OR 1/4 cup nut butter (or 3 tbsp banana, for fat-free)

1 cup spelt, white, or oat flour (here's a flourless version)

1/2 tsp + 1/8 tsp salt

1/2 tsp each: baking soda and baking powder

1/3 cup sugar, unrefined if desired

Directions

Whisk first 5 ingredients in a large bowl, and set aside for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 F, and line a muffin tin. In a new bowl, stir together all remaining ingredients. Feel free to add 1/4 tsp cinnamon if you wish. Pour dry into wet, and stir until just evenly mixed. Portion into the muffin liners. Bake on the center rack, 19-20 minutes or until muffins have domed and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out mostly clean. Let cool. (I've found that if you loosely cover overnight-either on the counter or refrigerated-the liners then peel off easily, and flavor and texture are even better too!)

They disappeared pretty quick.