Oilfield Women

Aundria and I

     One of the hardest things about living here is the friendships. The women that move in here with their husbands/fiances/boyfriends are awesome. The best women in the world come from the oilfield. That's the truth and I'm stickin' to it.  

     To follow the work and move around away from family is hard. And until you are more than a day's drive away your family and everyone/everything you love, you can't understand. The women who come up here are supportive. They obviously support their husbands, children, future, dreams and goals just in the fact of following into a life that would never be chosen. Is this the dream life? Heck no! And anybody who says it is, lies. And I don't like liars. Anyway, that support just overflows and spills into friendships. I have never had better friends than I do now. I trust these women with everything I have.

     These women are loyal. Even if you are enemies with one of their friends, they don't let that petty stuff come between your friendship with them. I respect that, you don't have to choose between friend A or B. It's not a clique. It's not about who is better. It's about being loyal to the women who are there and are the only ones who understand what you are going through on a daily basis. You think something is hard in your life? Well, I whined the other day about Sammy working nights and how it was "soooo hard". I look at one of my bestfriends... her husband works nights every single week. He has one full day off a week. I need to shut my mouth. I don't have it hard.

     I am confident that I am surrounded by ladies who would drop anything in a heartbeat if I were in trouble. Where if something happened to me or Sammy, they would dump what they were doing no matter where they were, what they were doing to care for my children. I love knowing my kids are going to be safe and my friends would treat my children just as well as if they were their own.

     These are just a few things. But what sucks about all these women? What is the biggest downfall to having the greatest friendships there are? Having to say good-bye. It's going to happen, to all of us. We all come from different places and all have plans of settling in different areas of the country.

     Tonight, I said good-bye to my first real friend since I moved to North Dakota. She is the sweetest, most out-going, kind, friendly, spontaneous, fun loving and awesome girl. She was always down for whatever. She didn't care. She was always smiling even when she is hurting/upset inside. I was driving by her old workplace this morning and it hit me... I may never see her again. As much as I want to, I just don't know. Our paths go in such opposite ways. And that makes me cry... really cry. I have tears right now. We didn't talk or hang out everyday but she was there. Always. We had so much fun this past summer and it's been an awesome time getting to know her. My favorite memory will always be stalking the Trace Adkins bus to find out what hotel he was staying at! :) My first concert ever. She is such a strong girl. I am so proud of her and so happy that she is doing what will ultimately make her the happiest. She has the opportunity to do ANYTHING with her life and I am just a teensy tiny bit jealous. I LOVE YOU SLAUNDRIA. I will never forget you and I can't wait to see all the awesome things you are about to do. No matter how long it takes you to get there.... procrastinator.

My Favorite Weightloss Tips

Dagum, check out those calves ;)

     I have a couple friends ask what I eat, what are some good pointers, what's the hardest part? And the most important: How to maintain?

What I Eat
I count calories on myfitnesspal.com. AWESOME FREE WEBSITE! USE IT. NO EXCUSES LAZY BUTT!


Breakfast:

• 3 egg whites scrambled with 1/4 cup fat free Cheddar cheese and a serving of oatmeal with  1/2 Tbs. natural, unprocessed honey to sweeten it with 1/2 cup frozen blueberries. (Total Calories: 310) 
• 2 egg whites scrambled with 1/4 cup fat free Cheddar cheese, chopped peppers, onion and spinach stuffed into a Kangaroo Whole Grain Pita Pocket. (Total Calories: 200)
• Serving of Whole Grain oatmeal with unprocessed honey and a bowl of fruit
• Caramel Greek Yogurt with a bowl of fruit

Lunch:

• 2 slices Village Hearth 12 Grain Light bread, 5 slices of thinly sliced Oscar Meyer Mesquite Turkey, tomatoes, onion, pickles and spinach.(Total Calories: 135)
• Grilled 1/2 Chicken Breast Salad with 1/4 cup fat free Cheddar Cheese, no dressing. (Total Calories: 230)

Snacks:

• Fruit!
• Veggies!
• Pretzels
• Goldfish
• Dark Chocolate
• Popcorn
• Yogurt
• 1/2 Grapefruit (usually eat 1.5 Grapefruits a day)

Dinner:

• 1/2 chicken breast grilled or baked, 1.5 cups steamed veggies and a sweet potato with 1 Tbs. of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light. (Total Calories: 350)
• 4 oz Rib-Eye Steak, 1.5 cups steamed veggies and a side salad, no dressing. (Total Calories: 280)
• Grilled Tilapia, 1.5 cups steamed veggies and a 1/2 baked red potato with 1 Tbs. Of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light. (Total Calories: 330)

Pointers

• Drink TONS of water. When you get bored with it, squeeze a lemon, lime, orange anything in it.
• If you are full after eating, wait 20 minutes. Studies show it takes that long for your body to feel full.
• NEVER skip breakfast.
• Research the food you are eating. Don't just see it's "low calorie" and choose it.
• Realize what portions are. You may think a chicken breast is a serving... cut that in half. A serving of meat should be the size of a deck or cards.
• When eating out, ask for a box when you ask for your drinks. As soon as your meal arrives, sort out your portion and put the rest in the box.
• Take it one meal at a time. If you over-eat for lunch don't think of it as a ruined day and you'll just "pick it up tomorrow". Take it as "I screwed up lunch but I can do it right for dinner!"
• Snacking, usually happens because you are bored. You're not really hungry, I promise. And if you want to snack, choose wisely! Carrots are good. I choose frozen fruit because they take a while to eat because you have to eat them one by one or **BRAIN FREEZE** and by the time you're done, you're full and your brain is done telling you to snack.
• Get off your butt. The hardest part to working out is actually starting it. I will put my DVD playing in the background and put my work out clothes on and say "Ok, I AM working out in 30 minutes". After the first 5 minutes, you will be more excited to do it.
• Find a work out you love and don't over-do it.
• Don't get all hardcore at the beginning. Take it slow and steady. <--That might just be the lazy in me talking.
• Do not set unrealistic goals.
• Set small goals, monthly or bi-weekly goals. That way, you will reach a goal and feel proud and it will make it a lot easier to keep going on.
• Oh, and my favorite tip. Get on pinterest and search "fitness", those skinny minny girls that pop up will make you want to work out!

Maintaining

• I am not the best person to ask because I am still in "weightloss" mode. Since I have JUST reached my goal, my mindset hasn't changed.
• What I plan to do is to just up my calories consumed to about 1500 a day and exercise daily. I am SO excited for spring, summer so I can get outside. I love walking and running outside is 'OK'. I am BURNT out from being inside and working out.

If you have any questions, just ask! kfarnham9@gmail.com or comment here! :)

GM Diet Failure

Starting Weight: 134.0
Morning of Day Two: 132.0
Morning of Day Three: 131.0
Morning of Day Four: 130.0

Day 4:
     Bananas and milk. Today you will eat as many as eight bananas and drink three glasses of milk. This will be combined with the special soup which may be eaten in limited quantities.
     Day Four, bananas, milk and soup sound the strangest and least desirable. You’re in for a surprise. You probably will not eat all the bananas allowed. But they are there for the potassium you have lost and the sodium you may have missed the past three days. You will notice a definite loss of desire for sweets. You will be surprised how easy this day will go.
-copied and pasted from http://health-heaven.tumblr.com/post/17089615944/what-do-you-think-of-gms-diet

     I was looking forward to Day Four. I love bananas and drink milk throughout the day on a regular basis. Then I realized I had to drink three glasses of milk. I usually sip it. After choking down the first glass I decided to go ahead and drink the other two so I didn't have to think about it again. It was pretty gross. I ate 6 bananas by 6 p.m. and instead of the soup I just ate a variety of the veggies that the soup called for.

     Then, I went over to a friends house for dinner. And I ate about 1/2 serving of chicken manicotti. I had PLANNED on eating just a salad but something came up and the girl bringing the salad wasn't sure if she could make it or not. About 10-15 minutes after I ate, my stomach started to hurt and I felt queasy. About an hour later I started to get really light headed and felt like I was going to be sick. Sure enough, I was sick. I for sure thought it was the diet. I felt terrible. I felt like I made my body unhealthy and sick and since I told people about it, they were doing the same! I was pretty upset. It turns out, it was just a 24 hour flu bug and my son had it as well. That's what happens when you go to playgroups 3-4 times a week! I quit the diet because I did not want to have the flu on tomato and beef day. Sick nasty.

     All in all, I will recommend this diet as a great cleanse and a way to rid your body of anything unnatural. I think if used correctly it could be a great jumpstart to a healthy way of losing weight. You learn during those days that your body doesn't NEED processed foods. All your body needs is natural foods. That's what they were made for. Sure, I missed my granola bars but my body doesn't need those to be healthy and is much better off without them.

     I will probably do the GM Diet again down the road and wish I could have finished the whole thing to see how I really felt. I felt awesome on Day 4 and can only imagine if I kept feeling great, what Day 7 would have been like.

      Now, I'm going to get up and eat some scrambled egg whites with spinach, peppers and onion and a bowl of oatmeal. I can't wait.

The GM Diet: Day 3

Starting Weight:                134.0
Morning of Day Two:        132.0
Morning of Day Three:     131.0

• I weigh in the morning before I eat/drink anything.

Day 3:
     A mixture of fruits and vegetables of your choice. Any amount, any quantity. No bananas yet. No potatoes today.

     Day Three eliminates the potato because you get your carbohydrates from the fruits. You system is now prepared to start burning excess pounds. You will still have cravings which should start to diminish by day four.
-copied and pasted from http://health-heaven.tumblr.com/post/17089615944/what-do-you-think-of-gms-diet

     Yesterday was horrible. It was the hardest day. I was grumpy and I had this horrible after-taste of carrots in my mouth that made me want to choose to be hungry over eating. But I forced some veggies down anyway! This morning I felt great. My husband called and woke me up at 7 a.m. when he got off work (hard workin' man he is) and I had no reason to get out of bed before 9. I should have gone back to bed but I didn't. I didn't even stay in bed while I was on the phone! I love this getting out of bed when I wake up thing.

     For breakfast and lunch I ate ginormous bowls of frozen mango, pineapple, raspberries, blueberries and strawberries. For anybody up here in North Dakota, you know how hard it is to get any kind of good fresh fruit up in this place!

     I cheated. I ate almost 1/4 cup of Chex Mix. I feel horrible about it. So horrible in fact, that I stole a handful or two of unbuttered popcorn from my three year old. I am going to get on my elliptical tonight and burn 200 calories. Hopefully that will cancel that out :(   It probably won't and I've probably ruined this entire diet/cleanse but oh well. I guess my self control isn't where it should be. Is anybody perfect out there with food though? No. And if they say they are.... they are either an A. liar or B. a crazy person. Either way, they are people you want to steer clear of.

     For dinner I ate a plate full of steamed veggies. This included carrots, asparagus, yellow squash, cauliflower and red onion. I loved it. I was dreading it because I was still sick of the slimey bites I had the day before. But, I really enjoyed them. I enjoyed having choices today. How selfish are we these days!? I can't imagine living somewhere where you eat rats that were caught in the fields every. single. day. (watched on Discovery Channel). I will probably snack on some pineapple later.

     Today was awesome. I felt like a new person. I was positive, cheery and happy! I was less shy and more outgoing. I went to a play group I haven't gone to in forever. I didn't completely shut down and feel stupid. I felt a little out of place but that's always the case when going somewhere with new people or people you haven't been around in forever. I posted my experience and pictures onto myfitnesspal.com and got some awesome responses. I got a ton of messages expressing how I was an encouragment to them. It made me feel superb! I love feeling like I have "my own" inspiration instead of trying to find it in others. I think it's helping me finally find "who I am". I know who I am inside but have always been too insecure and afraid to show who I truly am. But this is probably also just knowing I have a great group of girlfriends who are nothing but supportive, kind and honest (hollaaaaaa girlfriends!!!!). And an awesome husband :)  I am loving this new life and I'm not sure where it's coming from but I do know that I no longer want to hide. I want to meet new people, talk to people, help people, just overall be a better person and encourage and support as many people as I can.

The GM Diet: Day 2

Starting Weight:           134.0
Morning of Day Two:   132.0

• I weight in the morning before I eat/drink anything.

DAY 2:
     All vegetables. You are encouraged to eat until you are stuffed with all the raw or cooked vegetables of your choice. There is no limit on the amount or type. For your complex carbohydrate, you will start day two with a large baked potato for breakfast. You may top the potato with one pat of butter.

Day Two starts with a fix of complex carbo-hydrates coupled with an oil dose. This is taken in the morning for energy and balance. The rest of day two consists of vegetables which are virtually calorie free and provide essential nutrients and fibre.
-copied and pasted from http://health-heaven.tumblr.com/post/17089615944/what-do-you-think-of-gms-diet

     Well by mid-evening yesterday I was craving the veggies. I didn't want to eat another bite of melon. And then here came the veggie day. I loved breakfast. I woke up an hour before my alarm just starving. I had a big ole bowl of steamed potato with pepper and a pat of butter.

Breakfast

    

      For lunch I steamed a mix of veggies. Carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and red onion (my favorite). It was the biggest plate of veggies I have ever eaten in my life and by the last bite I thought I was going to gag and I never wanted to see another veggie again. I wanted a steak. Actually, I still do. For dinner I plan on eating a salad full of veggies. I have been eating carrots and celery anytime I feel hungry. Oh yea, I cheated at playgroup. I had TWO goldfish. They were amazing. I don't feel guilty. It was so worth it.

Lunch

      How do I feel? Hmm, I feel cleaner. I have had cramps pretty much all day and I feel weak. And my brain feels fuzzy. These are some of the side effects though. I realized that this is a lot more than a "diet". Well, maybe I am just reaching for something deeper but this morning when I woke up an hour early, I got straight up. I didn't just lay in bed and surf the internet like I do every morning. I didn't feel sleepy at all. I'm pretty sure my hungry stomach would have beat me up if I had tried to lay in bed though. I got up, steamed my potato while I did my hair and makeup. After I ate, I cleaned. What!? I NEVER even think of cleaning before noon. We had to leave at 9 am to go to playgroup and by 8:15 I was just kinda wondering the house looking for something to do. The kids were ready and I was ready. Weird. I am usually scrambling out the door, fussing at the kids to get their butts in gear. I felt productive and positive.

      I feel ridiculous because I feel like I am constantly "talking to myself" in my head. Yesterday I was like "Ok self, just eat this last bite of mango. Just do it. Tomorrow is veggie day, easy peasy". And today I'm thinking "Ughhh, I don't want anymore veggies, I just want some pineapple!". I am not starving myself and anytime I am hungry, I eat. It's just mind over matter. It's me being spoiled with having a choice of foods to eat and not always choosing the best option. It's my habits telling me to just eat that bite of granola bar, it's not going to hurt anything. But I DON'T NEED that granola bar. It is not going to nurture my body anymore than the things this diet require. I don't need it. I just want it. I WANT foods that are bad for me but they are not going to help me at all. Anything I need to survive and live on is in this diet. Anything outside of that is just extra, unnecessary foods. Now, I'm not being all stuck up about it because when I am done with this diet I will go back to eating how I always do. I eat ice cream, but in healthy portions. I will have a bite of granola bar, but won't down 2 of them. I am able to "maintain" a weight for months. I am doing this diet to get me down to the point of where I want to maintain.

      This is hard to write because I feel so fuzzy and if part of it doesn't make sense, oh well. It's all part of the experiment.