Long Bones

Here are the before pictures:

The Long Bones is on the left, the Shondar is on the right.

You can’t tell by looking at it but I am 6′0 and Shondar is 5′3″. Our BMIs are almost identical but our body types are about opposite.

We went to Old Navy and found some mannequins to emulate. My idea was that clothes would fit better on me because my body shape is long and tall and not so good on Shondar because she is shorter and curvier. However:

The trendier clothes were obviously built for a less curvy figure:

By the way, you’ll never see me in skinny jeans again (after the next picture). Ugh. So even though the close were built for taller women without important things like boobs or hips or a waist (like me!) Shondar could still fill out a shirt like mad:

Also, clingy shirts clung in the wrong places on me, while they made Shondar look amazing (it doesn’t help that the only one in my size was white and see through):

Shirts with more float and flounce looked better on me: If there wasn’t enough definition I looked good and Shondar looked lumpy:

This could alo be called a love song to Gladware 3 cup/24 oz containers.  I work in downtown Fairbanks Alaska and while Fairbanks is quite a small city at the lunch hour I am still within walking distance (one mile) of a barbecue joint, an awesome Italian place, a Greek restaurant, two Thai places, a Korean food restaurant, three coffee shops, two diners, a really nice restaurant/wine bar, and three bars. At least – I just thought of another restaurant that I’m not sure how to classify. Lots and lots of food options. In fact, Big Daddy’s Bar-B-Q and Banquet Hall is literally one parking lot away from my window. So we can say the temptation to eat out is insistent.

Office View - the orange building is Big Daddy's

Thank goodness for my perpetual lack of financial skills in this one area. I cannot afford to eat out all the time – I could if I budgeted right but there’s always a book or a skirt or a movie…and then all of a sudden I can’t. So I was already not in the habit of eating out every day when I started losing weight last April.

Gladware sealed the deal. Here’s my tip – when you are at home at night preparing a clean and healthy meal for you and your family (if you have one – I don’t), make one extra portion, immediately toss it into a gladware/tupperware/genericware container and put it in the fridge. That way someone won’t accidentally munch on it as a second helping or a snack. You could label it “My Lunch” if that’s a problem in your house. Then put the container in the fridge and grab it as you leave. You don’t have to worry about packing a lunch in the morning before work or trying to scrounge a meal from the condiments drawer at the office (or, the horror, ordering take-out Chinese!!).

Now I know that there are these crazy people out there who are not enthusiastic about left overs. I know people who just refuse to eat them, they throw away whatever is left over from dinner and never look back. While I don’t quite understand these people I do say there are plenty of low calorie solutions that still involve bringing lunch to work with you. For instance, toss together a salad – hold the dressing out so it doesn’t get soggy. (In fact, I keep a bottle of balsamic vinegar on my desk). Make sure you measure out your portion of dressing – it adds up fast!! Or you could make a whole wheat sandwich with lots of vegetables and hummus and low-sodium cold cuts. Add some fruit and you’re set. None of these take up a lot of time in the morning and all will save you from huge restaurant portions.