I was somewhat appalled yet oddly amused to learn that one of the characters in the low-rent ping pong comedy Balls of Fury is named Maggie Wong.

Amazingly enough, this may solve my Halloween costume dilemma for this year. I had been worried about how I could scrounge up a costume without buying any fabric, notions, patterns, or clothing items, but it just so happens that I already have a red satin and gold brocade qipao gown from my wedding and a long black wig which has seen service for two Halloweens already. All I would need to obtain is red lipstick, some gold-tone gauntlets, a ping pong paddle, and a ball from under the couch (the joy of cat ownership!).

The only roadblock I can foresee is the 10 lbs of fat and 30 lbs of muscle I’d have to lose in order to look as twiggy as Ms. Maggie Q in this photo:

Since I’m not willing to go anorexic just for a Halloween costume, I guess I’ll just have to settle for being a buffer, mutant knockoff.

I was a bad girl and went to bed way too late last night–probably close to 1 AM–because I went into OCD mode while checking my personal finances in MS Money 2007 again. I was considering applying for the Amex Blue Cash card after reading about another personal finance blogger’s good experience with it, and was compelled to do a lot of online research on the rewards terms *and* make a spreadsheet to calculate how much cash back DH and I could earn using the card exclusively, in combination with our Discover Gas cards, and just the Discover Gas cards alone. In the end I did apply for the card, but still didn’t get to bed for another 30 minutes because I discovered that the wrong amount had been transferred from my personal checking account into our shared expenses account and had to do some emergency transfers and date changes on some upcoming automated payments to make sure I didn’t rack up an overdraft fee. And then I got distracted by my Money budget and cash flow charts….

I had to resort to coffee this morning to get me through my boring drive to work without yawning too much.

Forza went well last night and this morning (I split the workout up) though, and I will still get in Shoulders/Abs and 30 minutes of cardio today. I should be able to do 3 or 4 of the shoulders/abs exercises at work with the stability ball and resistance tubing I have at my desk, leaving just half of the workout for the evening. Cardio will be my usual 15 minute walk and 30 minutes on a gym machine on the way home. If the gym isn’t too busy, I’ll do the remainder of my strength workout there, but if it’s mobbed as usual with stinky boys I’ll finish up at home with my Powerblocks and bench.

DH (who stayed up too late reading a Marvel Civil War comic book compilation and overslept) needs to do HIS P90X Shoulders/Arms workout tonight, however, so getting everything done at the gym might be a better idea to avoid any equipment sharing conflicts.

I have convinced at least 4 of my co-workers to join me at the UCF 2-miler in October, and I’m starting to look forward to the event. It’s great to have a REASON to run during my workouts again. I am going to shoot for improving on my best 2-mile run time from my Army PT tests–I think I need to beat 17:45, but I’ll check on that tonight.

Did anyone else catch The Biggest Loser last night? I usually don’t watch the show on a regular basis, but DH had it on, and both of us got caught up in spite of ourselves. I am secretly pulling for Jillian’s outcast Black team. Of the three trainers, I respond best to her drill sergeant beeyotch style the most. When I am doing something that is difficult psychologically and physically, I find that anger and a tough love attitude are much better motivation than hugs and sympathy which just make me feel like it’s okay to throw in the towel.

But maybe that’s just me.

Oh, and I am SOOOO in love with my protein fudgsicle recipe right now (had one as part of meal 2 already today, woowoo!) that I must post it again here in case anyone missed it the first time around.

- Maggie

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WORKOUT
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- Shoulders/Abs (45-50 min)
- Walk (15 min)
- Cardio - Bike sprints (30 min)

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Chocolate Protein Fudgsicles / Popsicles

I made the following popsicle recipe this weekend and tested it on my picky husband. He loved them and said that he couldn’t tell they were mostly protein. No additional sweeteners were needed since the protein powder and pudding mix were already sweetened.

I get 8 rocket-shaped fudgsicles out of this recipe, and eat 2 of them as a snack with 1/2 oz. of nuts or by themselves if I just need a protein boost.

INGREDIENTS:
- 1 box sugar-free instant Jello Pudding mix (French vanilla or chocolate)
- 2 cups 8th Continent Light Soy Milk Original Flavor (This brand is ~ 50 cal/cup. Use of other brand or skim milk may change stats slightly.) or 2 cups skim milk
- 2 scoops Dymatize Elite protein powder (Gourmet vanilla or Rich chocolate)
- 4 T. baking cocoa powder (Optional if you are already using chocolate pudding mix AND chocolate protein powder, or if you want a non-chocolate pop)

DIRECTIONS:
Mix the ingredients together in the following order: milk, protein powder, pudding mix, and finally cocoa. Blend according to the instructions on the pudding mix box. While the mixture is still fluid but thickened, pour into popsicle forms, ice cube trays, paper or paper cups. Freeze for several hours until solid.

Makes 4 servings.

NUTRITION INFO:
Calories: 121
Carb: 11.3 g
Protein: 16 g
Fat:
2.1 g
Fiber: 1 g