Wow....realizing it has been a while since I posted.
I survived finals, first and foremost. I was highly concerned about that because the crunchy/salty snacks I usually like when I'm studying combined with the lack of sleep are usually the death of me during those two weeks. However, I kept on track very well while I was immersed in the books.
After finals, I went on a road trip to Tennessee with Mark. We loaded coolers with healthy snacks so we would be less tempted to eat junk food on the road. For the most part, it worked. At least until we got to Nashville. The first night, I did fajitas at Hard Rock, and unfortunately, I broke down and decided to have a tortilla and a little of the sour cream and guacamole. The guac was probably okay with the diet, but not so much with the flour tortilla and sour cream. The really bad part was passing the Krispy Kreme and seeing that stupid light on. Mark and I decided to stop and split one. I suppose it could have been worse and we each could have had one (or more!), but we still probably should have passed it up.
The next day, we decided to just walk up and down all the streets in downtown Nashville. I love the fact that any time of day, you can hear live music somewhere. We stopped in all the shops, and I was convinced I wanted a cowboy hat, but I couldn't quite find the one. Though, I think I did decide that once I hit my final goal weight, I'm going to treat myself to a nice pair of cowboy boots! Lunch was good-- I did a salad and a blackened chicken sandwich with no bun.
Later that evening, after going back to the hotel and getting changed, we made it back to the downtown area. Mark had scoped out a couple karaoke places, but funny enough, we didn't make it to either of them. We ended up at two others. The first one was okay-- Troubadour's. There were a few locals there, and one drunk woman kept trying to get me to sing with her brother in law. Mark-- the genius that he is-- finally stepped in and told her that because we met doing karaoke, duets are something that we keep for each other. I knew I kept him around for some reason :) Once we had our fill of that one, we went back up the street and stopped at a place called Wanna B's. This one was really cool. They had the main DJ in the back, but they also had one outside on the sidewalk. It had a raised stage and windows behind it that opened up to the street. The crowd was small at first, but built up a little as time passed; it was a fun crowd at least! Mark and I each had done 6 songs before we decided to call it quits.
By the time we decided to eat dinner, our options were limited. We ended up at a bbq place/bar down the street where a band was just setting up. Sadly, the bbq was dry and the service sucked, and thanks to the baked beans (the only side choice other than slaw), I ended up getting sick.
After a good night's sleep, we hit a couple other places in Nashville (Opryland area and Antique Archaeology-- one of the 2 shops owned by the guys on American Pickers), and were on the road to Memphis. ((Just as a side note-- if you ever go to Nashville, I highly recommend the Club Hotel. I got it for around $50/night on hotels.com, and it was super nice. They serve a hot breakfast and evening snacks and cocktails for free as well!))
For lunch, we were good again and ate the food we packed. I mostly ate crackers and plain chicken because I did not want to get sick again, especially on the road! And again for dinner, I was trying to be good. But at Logan's Roadhouse, they bring out these amazing looking rolls. I had pushed them over to Mark, and I learned that was a bad choice-- I should have just had the waitress take them away completely. Mark fell in love with them and suggested I try one. Well, falling back into old habits, one turned into two, because they were admittedly pretty amazing. *sigh* At least the dinner portion was in check-- grilled salmon and a double order of steamed broccoli.
Before deciding to go on vacation, I decided I would allow myself a cheat day, and decided that would be in Memphis. Yes, yes, I know-- I cheated before my actual cheat day. Still, I have to admit, this cheat day was worth it.
I just did a little fruit for breakfast before we headed out to Graceland. Mark and I did a couple of the tours (and holy crap is that place amazing!) before sitting down to lunch. We went to a 50s style diner on the grounds and sat in a booth with a signed John Stamos picture *swoon*. And honestly, you can't go to Graceland and not get a fried PB and banana sandwich, am I right? Mark and I decided to split that and the fries for lunch.
After that, we finished up our Graceland tour and got on the road to go to downtown Memphis. We had scouted out a place to go for dinner before hitting Beale Street. Mark had found a bbq place that he had seen on Man vs. Food, a show on the Travel Channel-- a place called Rendezvous. As much as I love all my different flavors of bbq sauce, the dry rub this place had was amazing. Mark and I split a combo platter with brisket and ribs, and an appetizer of smoked sausage, pickles, peppers and cheese, all dusted with their dry rub. Hands down, best bbq I have probably ever had.
For the rest of the evening, Mark and I decided to wander up and down Beale Street-- basically the heart of the nightlife there. Live music, bars galore, and they even had a small festival going on. The music was good, but all the vendors had the same stuff...the "hippie" style clothes, jewelry, and designer knock-offs.
Apparently, we had gotten there at the right time because after we had been there an hour or so, we saw the barricades where cops were doing security screens with the metal detectors and all, so luckily we didn't have to stand in line for that.
Of course, even after all that karaoke in Nashville, Mark and I find the one bar on Beale St. that is doing karaoke. This crowd was one of the most fun crowds I've been around. We were also lucky there because about 20 minutes after we got there, they started charging a $5 cover to get in! I think Mark and I each did 4 songs there, one of which I did on request (which also happened to be one I had never tried before!). I don't know about him, but I think I'm karaoke'ed out for a bit!
So, the next day, we started the trek home. We stopped at a Waffle House in Arkansas for breakfast, mostly because a) Mark has a love affair for WH, and b) Mark also has a thing for wanting to do something in each state. Two birds with one stone. I felt like there was nothing but farms all the way until we hit St. Louis. Neither of us had seen the Arch before, so we decided to go check things out. Unfortunately, we didn't get there until 4:30, so we didn't get to do much since it closed at 6, and the tram to the top was completely sold out. When we finally got out a little after 6, we started hearing the sirens going off for severe storms. Luckily, we got back to the parking garage before the hard stuff hit-- really heavy rains, nickel to quarter sized hail, high winds...it was crazy. I was just grateful we were on the inside of the parking deck and not out in it. Once it lightened up, we were on our way out of town. I had looked at the NOAA radar and saw there was another cell headed towards St. Louis so we wanted to get out of there before it hit.
So, that was my trip. It was a lot of fun, but I was a little disappointed in how much I let myself cheat. Granted, I did much better with the food than I would have in the past. However, I did put on some weight during the week. On the plus side, it only took 3 days to take off what it took 6 days to put on. However, I would have preferred to not put the weight on at all. I keep wanting to use the "Oh, well, I was on vacation" excuse. But that is what it is-- an excuse. I could have made better choices. I could have taken 30 minutes to work out at least a couple times that week. I am taking it as a learning experience. I know where the weaknesses are with it, and now I know where I can make improvements the next time I travel. Even though it is 2 steps forward and 1 back, what I have to focus on is that it is still progress!
Speaking of progress, I'm officially down over 20 lbs since beginning this 4 weeks ago!
((also, as a side note, I'll post some pics later on of my trip...once I figure out how to get them off my phone XD))
