Thursday, April 30, 2009

2d30D18: Time to take it up a notch

I had a decent training session today. It was a bit rushed because of my personal time constraints, but I think we got in everything that I should have. I think I missed out on a treadmill "break" which would have been about 8-10 minutes of walking at a pace of 3.0 mph on a incline of 5 holding 10 lb weights. We basically did exercises that I've done before, we just did them with more intensity and increased weights. I purchased 8 more sessions because today was the last day of the 2 for 1 special. I still have 3 of the original 8 sessions left, and I'm not sure what I'll do after these next 8 are finished. Unless I find a job, I can't really afford the regular prices for the sessions. It jumps to $540 for 8 sessions compared to $240.

I reported earlier this week that with the warmer weather we were having, I tried on my summer clothes from last year and that most of them fit really well and some were even too loose. Well, I made the mistake of trying on some pre-pregnancy no. 2 clothes (I don't have any pre-pregnancy no. 1 clothes left, most were size 4, and I stopped kidding myself a long time ago that I would ever get back into those clothes.) Let's just say that the clothes I tried on still don't fit as well as I thought they should. So, with a mere 50 days before our anniversary vacation, it's time to take things up a notch.

1. As I write, I am drinking my last Diet Coke. I've been pretty good about not drinking too much caffeine, but when we had my husband's family over a few weeks ago, I bought a case of Diet Coke which I have been drinking. My goal is to drink at least 40 oz of water every day. I will keep track of my water intake in my food journal.

2. I am going to make a daily meal plan for one week and then use that as a basis for making meal plans for the following weeks. I'm good about planning dinners for the week for my family, but I don't usually plan my breakfasts or lunches, I just sort of grab what looks good when I'm making the kids' meals.

3. I am going to continue working out 6 days a week. I need to workout for at least one hour. As much as I love Jillian's 30 Day Shred and as hard as that workout is, I just don't think 20 minutes is long enough. I am going to attempt to amp up my C25K running efforts. I was doing well with that, but I just couldn't bring myself to run outside, now that it's just about May, I'm hoping the weather will cooperate, and I can start running outside. If I'm sore or sick again (or, God forbid, I contract Swine flu?!?!), I will do my best to workout anyway.

4. I am going to keep track of my sugar intake and try to keep it below 40 g.

5. No more "sneak bites." True Confession: Sometimes, when I'm getting my kids a snack, I'll sneak a bite or two of whatever I'm serving them. Usually it's something like a cracker or a Cheez-it, but I've been kidding myself that my "sneak bites" aren't hurting anything. It is truly only a bite or two, once or twice a day, but I don't account for these bites in my food journal. So, starting today, no more sneaking a bite or two of my kids' snacks.

I'm certain there are other changes I can make, and as they come to me I will try to incorporate them.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

2d30D17: Break

I am taking a well deserved break from working out today. It's my first break since a week ago Sunday.

I decided to take a break because my shoulders are sore. I'm not sure if I'm sore from my training session yesterday or from the push up challenge that I did last night during the Biggest Loser, but either way, I can barely raise my arms.

I'll get back at it tomorrow with another training session.

Updated the Title because I forgot to site the day.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

My Box of Chocolates

When I sat down to write my first entry about my latest attempt to lose weight, I had no idea there was such a large community of weight loss bloggers out here on the web. I've been reading a lot of other blogs, and I've noticed so many creative blog names, which has me thinking about changing the name of my blog. I've come up with a few new names, but the one I keep coming back to is "My Box of Chocolates." It is, obviously, a slight variation on the quote from Forrest Gump. For me the title is about taking whatever life gives me (good or bad) and running with it. It is also an homage to (one of) my weaknesses when it comes to eating right, Chocolate.

The inspiration for the title also comes from an actual box of chocolates that I've been eating since Easter. I mentioned a while back that I bought myself a box of Pecan Torties when I took the kids to the Morley Candy Factory. For the past 2 1/2 weeks, I've eaten 1 piece of candy from that box each day since Easter, but for the past few days, there has been one lonely piece of candy left. I'm not sure why I haven't eaten it. I'm not saving it for anything. If my math is correct, the candies that I've already eaten represent just under 840 calories, 520 calories from fat, 56 grams of fat, and 80 carbohydrates, so honestly, what's one more piece of candy?

Is it a test of my willpower? my resolve? Am I holding onto it for a day when I "really, really NEED" a piece of chocolate? Is it some sort of commentary or symbol of my weight loss journey thus far? I'm not sure what it represents, but for some reason I haven't eaten it, yet.

I haven't committed to changing the name of my blog, and I'm not even sure that "My Box of Chocolates" is any more creative than "Julie's Weight Loss Challenge," but at least the "Chocolate" title has some meaning.

Edited to add: Today was 2d30D16 which I forgot to mention. I did not do a workout post. I had a training session with my trainer. The most memorable thing: he thinks he might have Swine flu! Really??!!? Really... he says he trains at least 9 people who travelled to Mexico for Spring Break, several of whom were sick when they returned.

Monday, April 27, 2009

I'm afraid of the scale

I can't step on the scale. I just can't do it. Despite what some people say, to me, the number on the scale is not "just a number," it is an indicator of whether all of my hard work is paying off or not.

I know I am working out hard, daily. I know I am making decent food choices 90% of the time. Yes, I have some indiscretions here and there, but I try to keep all things in moderation. So, if I step on that scale, and the number isn't lower than it was the last time I stepped on it, I know I will be frustrated or worse, quit all together. I'm determined not to let that happen, again, this time. So, for now, the scale will continue to sit on the bathroom floor, untouched. I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing and hope that it's enough, and when I work up the nerve to step on the scale, hopefully I'll be satisfied with what I see. I don't know if that's the right approach for me for the long term, but for now, it has to be ok.

Accomplishments for this past week:

1. I worked out every day.
2. I ate well (ie made healthy choices) Monday through Saturday afternoon. (Saturday evening and Sunday, well, that's a different story.)
3. With the 80 degree weather we're having here, I pulled out my summer clothes from last year, and they all fit! In fact, some are quite a bit looser than they were last summer.

Goals for this week:
1. Finish out the week doing Level 3 of the 30 Day Shred.
2. Complete week 2 of the push up challenge.
3. Make healthy food choices
4. Only one mid-afternoon snack
5. No more ice cream, sorbet is ok.
6. Maybe step on the scale on May 1, maybe.
7. Drink more water.

That's all for now. I've got a training session tomorrow morning, so I won't be posting about my workout until later.

2d30D15: Mostly

For the most part, I followed Natalie for the third day in a row of Level 3 of the 30 Day Shred. I did my push up sets (for the 100 push ups challenge) yesterday, and my shoulders were really sore this morning, so I allowed myself to do the modified travelling push-ups. I did do Natlaie's version of the walking plank and the strength move where you're in a plank position, on your weights, and you lift one arm, then one leg, and then the other arm and other leg (I wish I knew the name for that exercise), so all in all, I followed Natalie as best as I could. Oh, yeah, I just remembered, I didn't do the Rock Star Jumps, I substituted "butt kicks," but I held onto my weights, so that has to count for something!

I'm still afraid to step on the scale. I've been working so hard, I know I faltered in the eating department a few times last week, but I'm trying really hard to keep my portion sizes down. I just want the scale to reflect all my hard work, and if it doesn't I know I'll get discouraged.

Right now, I'm just going by the fact that my clothes fit well. With the warm weather we had over the weekend, I was forced to pull out some shorts. In years past, when I've pulled out shorts after a long winter's hibernation, I've had to run to the store to buy new shorts, but this year, everything I have from last year fits just fine. So, that's a good sign...

Sunday, April 26, 2009

I need some vegetables!

What a terrible weekend... at least it was in the "making healthy choices in the eating department." I should say the last 24 hours of the weekend have not been so great. It all started when we decided to take advantage of the glorious 80 degree weather by hanging out with our neighbors. I had good intentions, really, I did. For my contribution to the party, I cut up some veggies and made some fat free dip. My plan was to munch on the veggies and use the dip sparingly. I was going to allow myself 2 or 3 glasses of wine.

Well, needless to say, I didn't stick to my plan. The wine tasted too good, and the veggies just weren't cutting it compared to the spinach and artichoke dip, the chips and salsa, and the oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

If that had been the end of my weekend binge, I probably wouldn't be writing about it. No, we decided to try out this new burger joint near our house called "Five Guys Burgers and Fries." No matter how many good choices you make for topping a burger (mustard instead of ketchup and mayo for example), it's still a burger loaded with a ton of calories. I also had intentions of not ordering fries, which I did stick to, but that didn't keep me from eating the unclaimed fries in the bottom of the bag or from eating them off my daughter's plate.

Again, if that were the end of my poor meal choices for the weekend, well, that would not be noteworthy, either. The penultimate poor choice came this evening.

My husband noticed that we had a coupon for a local ice cream shop that was set to expire at the end of the month, of course we had to use it. Driving over to the shop and even walking through the doors straight to the cooler where the sorbets were supposed to be, I intended to order a single scoop of one of the sorbets. However, the sorbet choices were not in the same spot as they were last year, and of course, I spotted a flavor that I really wanted to try... Raspberry Chip Cheesecake. I should have stopped at the teeny-tiny taste that I asked for, but no, I ordered a single scoop on a cone. I was going to stop eating once I got to the cone part, really, I was. And, just as I took my first bite into the cone, my son dropped his not even half-eaten cone of Superman Ice Cream on the floor. Like any loving mother, I swooped in and gave him the rest of my ice cream. I'm not sure he enjoyed Raspberry Chip Cheesecake ("It doesn't taste like cheese, does it mom?" he asked.) as much as he was enjoying his Superman flavor, but he was thankful for the ice cream, and I saved myself additional unncessary calories. So, I guess it was win-win for both of us.

Tomorrow, back to making healthy choices.

2d30D14: Level 3, repeat

I did it again! I did level 3 of the 30 Day Shred for the second day in a row, and I followed Natalie! The only move I have difficulty with is the "Rock Star Jumps." I can feel my brain jarring around when I do those, so I must admit that I look more like Anita when I do them. I can only manage a half kick. That said, I'm really proud of my efforts!

I still have to do my 100 push ups sets, but I forgot what the sets are. I'll finish those up just as soon as I hit publish.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

2d30D13: I followed Natalie!

I followed Natalie while doing Level 3 of the 30 Day Shred! I've done level 3 before, but I've always followed Anita's modifications. So, when I got my DVD back yesterday and decided to do Level 3, I also decided to follow "bad ass" Natalie.

I haven't done Level 3 in at least 2 months, and I forgot how hard it was, I mean really, really hard, especially if you don't do the wussy modifications. Honestly, there isn't one move that is easy. From the "walking plank up-up/down-downs" all the way through to the "Rock Start Jumps," all the moves are killer, and I hate them all. I hate the jumping squats and the "weighted plank-hold, arm and leg raise" move and the "Supermans." Jillian even takes the good old "jumping jack" to the next level by making us use weights. Ok, maybe the "one-armed squat clean and presses" might be considered by some to be "easier," but you're so tired by the time you get to those, that it's not as easy as it looks.

I was pretty spent at the end of the workout. I started to do Yoga Sculpt after the Shred, but I was dripping with sweat and wasn't into it. So, I stopped about 2 minutes in and started the Cardio Autonomy Yoga routine again. It's more relaxing. The pace is slower, and I get more of a stretch because you hold the poses longer. It was just what I needed after Level 3 of the 30 Day Shred.

Friday, April 24, 2009

Let's Get Shredical

I got my Shred DVD back from my sister today. So, I guess that means I'm doing Level 3 tomorrow. I've been doing Level 2 On Demand, but I think I'm ready to move on to Level 3. My plan is to finish out the month with Level 3 of the Shred.

2d30D12: Motivation Interruptus

I don't ask for much, really, I don't. My 3 year old has an annoying propensity for waking up way too early, usually right in the middle of my workout. Usually she just has to use the bathroom, and she'll go right back to bed. However, now that it's light out at 6:30, she wants to stay awake. Depending on a number of factors like the time, my mood, her mood, etc, I may or may not make her go back to bed. If I'm in the middle of my work out, I'll let her watch TV while I finish up.

This morning, she woke up around 6:45. I had just finished my "52 Card" training session, and I had started 45 minutes of Cardio Yoga Autonomy. My daughter said she didn't want to watch TV, she wanted to watch me do Yoga. I knew at the time that was a bad idea, but I didn't want to stop in the middle of my sun salutations to turn on the TV anyway.

Her watching me lasted for approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds, which is about 1 minute longer than I thought she would. She got up to start a "project" that involved "tape." I warned her that I didn't want to be interrupted and that she'd have to work on her project quietly, by herself. Obviously, she didn't understand that instruction because she proceeded to interrupt me every few minutes with another request. I'll spare the details of the yelling that went on after the 3rd or 4th time (I'm not proud, but I was mad!). I quit my yoga practice, and she has agreed that she will take a nap this afternoon so I can do my 45 minutes of Yoga. I hope I'm motivated to do it.

Updated: MIL saves the day. My MIL called this morning to ask if she could take the kids out for lunch and ice cream. I told her about my morning show down with Madison and said that it would be lovely if she would take the kids for me for an hour so I could finish my Yoga. Now that I'm done with my Yoga, I feel much calmer. No more yelling today.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

2d30D11: Almost Motivated

I had a great session today with my trainer. I was mildly concerned that I would be weak because I haven't pushed myself very hard the past few days when I was sick, but I worked as hard as I could. I'm feeling much better except for a lingering stuffy nose.

It was just me again today for most of my session. I'm afraid I'm going to get spoiled if I don't start having another person there, but I'm fine either way. I'm sure if I were going early in the morning or later in the evening, there would be more people training. The high-lights from today's session:

1) Barbell/core presses.
2) Five point planks. This exercise was new to me, and it was killer. I had to hold myself in a plank position, lift one leg, lift the other, lift one arm, lift the other, and then push myself all he way down to the mat and then back up to a plank position. I did 3 sets of 12 of those babies.
3) Squats with shoulder presses holding 7 lb weights.
4) Deadlift/squat/press combination.

I left the gym feeling pretty good. My trainer said I did a great job. I'm really hoping that this great feeling translates into some new motivation this weekend and beyond. I made my appointments for next week: Tues at 10 and Thurs at 9:45.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Card Party or 52 Card Pick Up?

If I was more creative, I could come up with a great name for this workout plan I heard Jillian describe last night on The Biggest Loser. I'm always looking for ways to change up my workout, and this sounds like something fun to try.

Here's how it works: Shuffle an ordinary deck of playing cards. Draw a card one at a time. Diamonds represent push ups. Do lunges for Hearts. Spades are crunches, and do reverse crunches for all Clubs. The number on the card drawn is the number of repetitions for each exercise. Face cards are 10, and Aces are a one minute break.

I'm going to try this on Friday. I might modify the plan for my own purposes. First, I don't think I'll do the reverse crunches for club cards, instead I'm going to rotate through a few different exercises: (a) dead lifts with bicep curls, (b) squats with shoulder presses, (c) squats and (d) tricep kick backs in a chair squat. I'll use 5 lb weights for the lunges and the crunches. I also may throw in a few butterfly/leg raises in place of some of the crunches to work my lower abs.

2d30D10: Ugh!

I didn't want to get up when the alarm went off at 5:45. I didn't want to get up when the first snooze went off 8 minutes later, so I re-set the alarm for 20 minutes (no use snoozing when I know I'm not getting up.)

For the next 20 minutes I had to talk myself into getting up to work out. I was trying to think of different combinations of workouts that I could try that might motivate me. I did "No More Trouble Zones" the quick version yesterday, and as I wrote, I felt like I could do more. "Boost Your Metabloism" I find to be really hard, and I wasn't in the mood to push myself that hard. The DVD is mostly cardio work and no weights, whereas "NMTZ" uses weights throughout most of it. So I settled on doing 30 minutes of "BYM" for the cardio followed by 30 minutes of "NMTZ." It turned out to be just fine.

I'm glad I got up to exercise, now I'm done for the day. I feel good about myself for exercising when I feel so unmotivated, but I still don't like the fact that I'm dreading it every time I do it. I've got to snap myself out of this exercise funk. Maybe tomorrow, after my training session, I'll come out with some new motivation.

Edited to add: As I was showering after I wrote this entry, I was wondering if it being "that time of the month" has anything to do with my lack of motivation...I'm not sure, but I thought I'd mention it given that I'm trying to track my ups and downs with this blog.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

HYC check in

A brief pre-cursor to this post: I started drafting the post (below) early last week shortly after I joined the challenge. I was full of motivation and feeling pretty good about my accomplishments. Then I got sick, and if you read the entries from my blog last week, I lost most of my motivation and drive. I'm still working on kicking myself back into gear. For me, once I start faltering, the "wheels come off" and my previous efforts are all wasted. I'm really hoping that I don't wallow for too much longer. Hopefully, this challenge is just what I need to keep myself accountable.

Here's the blog entry I started last week...
I recently joined the Healthy You Challenge over at "Scale Junkie," and this is my first check-in post, so I thought I'd do a little introductory post that touches on the following topics: Who I am; How I got to be overweight; What my motivations are; What my goals are; and What I'm doing to get and stay healthy.

First thing's first, my name is Julie, and I live in SE Michigan with my husband and two kids. I am currently "between jobs" as a litigation attorney and trying to enjoy this opportunity to stay home with my kids. Like many stay at home moms I know, I'm a bit bored and sometimes a bit lonely.

Who, me?! Overweight? I never used to think so, and in fact, if I'm honest with myself, I was probably in denial about my weight for a while. I've always hated stepping on the scale. Before I had my first child, I never considered myself overweight. I have never in my life been "skinny," I was always "just normal." Before I had kids, my biggest concern was my "chunky" thighs.

Things changed during my first pregnancy. I had several complications starting in the second trimester and ended up on bed rest for four months. Not that I was active during my pregnancy before the complications, but I went completely inactive and packed on 60 pounds by the time I gave birth. I was able to lose all but 10 of those pounds before I got pregnant with my second child. I didn't gain nearly as much weight the second time around, but after I gave birth, the weight didn't come off as easily as it had the first time.

My weight seems to have settled around 140 lbs, which on my 5'2" frame is about 15-20 pounds too heavy for me. I'm hoping that with a lot of hard work and eating right, I can get down close to 120 lbs.

I re-dedicated myself to losing weight this past February. I have also dedicated myself to making sure that I set a good example for my kids by living a healthier lifestyle and eating balanced meals every meal, every day. Since that time I have been doing the following things to lead a healthy lifestyle for my family and for myself:
1. My goal is to work out 5-6 days every week. I set a plan for the week which I try to follow, I allow myself to modify the plan as the week progresses, if certain "life" issues start creeping up, but I still aim for 5-6 workout sessions. I have several workout DVDs that I use which incorporate cardio and strength training. My favorites are Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred, and a series of DVDs by Jari Love. Lately, I've tried to incorporate the C25K program into my weekly routine, but I don't belong to a gym, I don't have a treadmill, and the weather here in Michigan is just now getting to the point where I'm comfortable with walking/running outside in the morning. I also just started working with a personal trainer 2 days a week, however, scheduling those sessions around the kids' schedules has become more of a challenge than I anticipated. I also love to do Yoga and try to do it at least 3 times a week either as a stand-alone workout or at the end of a shorter workout, like 30 Day Shred.

2. I've also been very diligent about writing down everything I eat and keeping track of my calories. My goal is to stay between 1200-1400 calories.

3. I've tried to incorporate more whole grains into my family's diet, and I've tried to eliminate almost everything "white" from our diet, like white rice, white flour, sugar, bread, etc. I am more conscious of food labels, and I try to avoid products with HFCS, but that is a lot harder than I ever knew it would be.

4. In order to get more fruits and veggies into our diets, one thing that I have started doing is to cut the veggies up immediately after getting home from the store, and putting them in storage containers. This makes them more "convenient" for the kids (and me) to grab when we're looking for a snack. No more having to peel and cut when the snack attack hits, it's already done.

I guess that's all for now. I look forward to inspiring and to be inspired by those of you who are also challenging yourselves to be healthier!

2d30D9: Why is it so hard?

I hate to keep comlaining, but I STILL don't feel well. My mother, who had this cold 2 weeks before I did, told me that her cold lingered for 3 weeks. Ugh! I can't handle 3 weeks of not being able to breathe.

It took a lot of self-convincing/motivating, but I got my workout in this morning. It helped that I received a note from my son's teacher yesterday telling me she didn't need me to help with computer lab this morning which meant that I could exercise while both kids were at school this morning. Howeve, whenever I workout in the middle of the day, be it mid-morning or mid-afternoon, I'm always reminded why I like to exercise early in the morning. There are so many other things that I need to be doing when I have 1.75 hours of kid-free time: applying for jobs, revising my resume, networking, cleaning, folding and putting away laundry, cleaning out the garage, the list is endless, and it keeps going through my head while I'm working out. No matter what I'm doing, I'm plagued by guilt.

I was able to do 30 minutes of Jillian's "No More Trouble Zones," the quick version. Even though I still can't breathe through my nose, I still wanted to do the Yoga Sculpt, I wanted to be sure that it's still On Demand. Fortunately it has been renewed for another 30 days. Surprisingly, I was feeling pretty good at the end of NMTZ, and I probably could have done the full version, but I feel good about what I did. I may try to do the full version tomorrow morning. Hopefully I can get back into my routine of getting up early. We'll see, it's been awhile since I've done that. It's going to take a lot more self-motivation tomorrow morning!!

Monday, April 20, 2009

2d30D7 and 8: Wallowing

It's been a rough few days in the exercise and eating right department. I'm still not feeling 100% better. I thought I was doing better on Saturday, but we went to the Wings game and then out to a bar after. The bar was pretty smokey, and it affected my sinuses and chest. I have now developed a bad cough, and my nose is still stuffy. I spent most of yesterday shopping and cooking for a birthday party for my father-in-law, so I did not get in a workout. I didn't feel up to it anyway.

I bought a chocolate mousse, marble cake that was covered in white and chocolate candy shavings and topped with chocolate covered strawberries. The cake looked too pretty to eat, but we managed to force the knife through it and enjoys it's yummy goodness.

This morning, I still did not feel well enough to get up early and exercise. I may try to get a short workout in this afternoon after I give the kids lunch, but we'll see. I think it's important for me to get back on track; I don't want to let all my hard work of the last 30 days go to waste.

I have a training session scheduled for Thursday at 9:30, so I need to make sure I get some workouts in before then so I'm not a big weakling. Hopefully I can get things turned around today or tomorrow.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

2d30D6: Mostly better

I can breathe through my nose about 80% of the time which is definitely an improvement over the last few days. Being able to breathe better certainly makes working out more tolerable. I wasn't sure which adjective to use back there. I was going to write "more fun," but I'm not at the point yet where I consider working out to be "fun."

I'm still not 100%, but I was able to do Level 2 of the 30 Day Shred with 5 lb weights and 1 exercise with 8 lb weights. I did not use the 2.5 lb weights with the cardio segments, maybe tomorrow.

I finished off with 30 minutes of Yoga Sculpt. I did the best I could, but it was hard to take long, relaxing inhales through my nose while I held the poses, instead I was taking short, quick breaths through my mouth, which is completely wrong.

I'm off to finish prepping the house for our showing. We also have tickets to game two of the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They're "glass seats" right next to the Wings' penalty box. I hope to get a puck for my daughter. The last one I got I gave to my son.

GO WINGS!

Friday, April 17, 2009

2d30D5: Slightly better

I'm feeling markedly better, but I'm still not 100%. I didn't want to lose another day of working out, so I managed to do Level 1 of the 30 Day Shred. I started out using 5 lb weights, but after about 5 squat/presses, I realized that was a mistake. I'm always amazed at how weak I become when I'm sick and miss a day or 2 of working out and today was no exception. I did use 2.5 lb weights for the cardio segments, jumping jacks, butt kicks, jump rope, and boxing.

I finished up with 10 minutes of pilates abs.

That's all for now.

We have another house showing, so I'll be burning some extra calories cleaning the house in preparation.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

2d30D4: SICK!

I am officially sick. My nose is stuffy, my eyes are watery and itchy, my throat is sore, and my ears are even bugging me. I was hoping that it might just be allergies, but with my allergies I don't usually feel this bad. I doubt I'll get in a workout today. I moved my training session to Friday, hopefully I'll be able to make it.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

2d30D3: Not the kind of sore I was expecting

The first thing A asked me when I walked into the gym for my second training session was, "Were you sore?" I laughed and said, "Only my abs." He said he'd do his best to do better this time.

Today, I am sore, but none of the soreness is associated with the muscles that were worked out yesterday. I have a sore throat. I could feel it coming on most of yesterday afternoon, and I tried to will it away by drinking "all the tea in China," but it didn't work.

I'm not going to let my sore throat keep me from working out today, but I didn't get up early. I will report back later about my efforts.

Updated: It took every ounce of fortitude that I had, but I just finished working out. I did Level 2 of the 30 Day Shred using 5 and 8 lb weights, and I finished off with 30 minutes of Yoga Sculpt. I'm not sure if it's because I'm sick, but I sweated even more than usual today, hopefully my body rid itself of some of the toxins making me sick.

As for tomorrow's workout: I'm trying to switch my training session to Friday because my dad's not available to watch the kids for me tomorrow.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

2d30D2: Yoga Sweat

Even though I have my second training session later this morning, I was feeling guilty about not doing Yoga yesterday. I did 30 minutes of Yoga this morning with Maura Barclay from Exercise TV On Demand. The program is called "Yoga Sculpt," but you might as well call it "Yoga Sweat." I know I've mentioned it before, but it bears repeating, I drip with sweat every time I do this routine. I don't often do the routine on its own, I usually do it following a cardio/strength session, so I don't notice the sweating as much, but the few times I've done only the Yoga, I've noticed that I really sweat. As I'm sitting here typing and eating some All-Bran cereal, sweat is still dripping off my eyebrows.

As I was turning the TV off, I noticed that "Yoga Sculpt" will be available until 4/21. There were a number of "new" offerings on the Yoga menu screen, but after a quick glance at the descriptions, I didn't find one that looked like a "must try." I hope Yoga Sculpt is renewed.

That's all for now. I will file a report later about my second training session.

Updated, post training session: Wow, what a great session! It was just me today. It doesn't bother me at all to share the session, that's what I signed up for, but I ended up having a longer session, which was great. I know last time I tried to remember everything we did, but this time, we did so much, I can't recall it all. Here are some of the hi-lights: He had me do wall squats while pressing out a 15 lb medicine ball; I did arm raises with 2 15 lb weights while balancing on a balance ball; we did some boxing; I did some squats while pulling up 50 lbs to the right and left (it had a name, but I didn't catch it); The cardio intervals were jump rope, mountain climbers, hop ups on a balance board, plus I walked on the treadmill for 3 intervals of 5-8 minutes each at a pace of 3.5 mph on a 5% incline. I know there was more, but I can't come up with the moves now.

I go back on Thursday at 11.

As an aside, I came home and made the kids some lunch. My 3 year old was sitting at the island and kept sniffing and wrinkling her nose. Finally, she asked, "Mom, what's that stinky smell?" I'm making pasta fagoli in the crock pot, so I told her that's what she smells. She said, "No, mommy, I think it's you! You stink!" She's probably right, I am a sweater, I can't help it. As I'm sitting here typing, I can smell something "stinky," and I don't think it's the soup. Off to hit the shower.

Monday, April 13, 2009

I heart chocolate!

This week is Easter Week. When I was growing up, the week after Easter meant I could pig out on chocolate and not feel guilty. As a child and even as a young adult, my Lenten observance usually involved giving up chocolate. So, on Easter Sunday, the Easter Bunny filled my basket with nothing but chocolate. Not much has changed over the years. I may not get an Easter basket filled with chocolate anymore, but it is funny how the Easter Bunny mainly brings my kids the kind of candy that I like, chocolate. Oh, sure, the bunny brought some "Bumpy Nerd Jelly Beans" that I don't like, so at least I won't be eating those.

Unfortunately, I bought way too much chocolate this year. One day last week, on a pure whim, I took the kids to the Morley Candy Factory, which is a stone's throw away from our house, and well, let's just say I went a little crazy in the chocolate department. I love their chocolate eggs, and I just couldn't resist the mini foil-covered molded bunnies. I bought marshmallow eggs covered in chocolate and peanut butter eggs covered in chocolate. The kids each picked out a solid chocolate bunny. And, the piece de resitance?!? While we were standing in line, a lady was offering those of us in (the long) line, chocolate samples. I ended up buying a box of Pecan Torties, caramel and pecan covered in, you guessed it, chocolate. Those are mine, all mine!

I think I have written before that I am not the kind of person who deprives herself. If the kids are having a small dish of ice cream, then I will have a small scoop as well, just to "taste." I'll eat cake if I'm at a birthday party, and I'll certainly have a small piece or two of chocolate occasionally. I don't hoard stashes of chocolate in my nightstand drawer. I simply try to eat in moderation. That will be put to the test this Easter given all the temptation that's made its way into the house this week. Hence, I've replaced my "snack log" side bar with a "candy tally," at least for this week.

Day 31 nka 2d30D1

I've gotten into the habit of titling these posts as Day "X." I've decided to keep going with that because I think 30 days is a good measuring stick to keep track of how I'm doing. In theory, I can track the natural ups and downs that occur every 30 days, and if I start to falter, I'll have a chance to start with a new "shot clock" so to speak every 30 days.

However, I'd also like to acknowledge that I'm on my "second" 30 days. So, I came up with the code "2d30D_," which is short for 2nd 30 Day "x".

Updated: For as much motivation as I thought I was filled with at the end of my first 30 days, it didn't translate into getting me out of bed before the crack of dawn this morning. I know I ate too much yesterday, and my body repaid me by not wanting to get out of bed when the alarm went off.

I waited until after breakfast. The kids wanted to watch "Marley and Me," so I set them up in my bedroom, and I did Jillian Michaels' "Boost Your Metabolism" from On Demand on Exercise TV. This is a 55 minute workout. Sometimes, I'm only able to get through 40 minutes of it, but today, I was cruising along, feel pretty good, when right around the 45 minute mark the TV screen went black. "Ugh, not again! I complained to myself." It turned out to be a "Test of the Emergency Broadcast System" that interrupted service. It took about 5 minutes to get everything booted back up. I contemplated giving up, in fact, I tried to start the Pilates Abs workout, but that didn't work either. Besides, like I said, I was feeling strong and wanted to finish "BYM." After about 5 minutes of fuming, it started working again and I finished up strong.

According to my weekly plan, I wanted to get in some Yoga today, but that hasn't happened. I'm thinking about doing it tomorrow morning.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Lame excuse for not working out No. 103

Even though today is a scheduled day off, I was kicking around the idea of getting in a short, relatively easy workout. There's one thing holding me back: my hair.

I have medium length, naturally curly hair. We went to church today, for Easter, which means I already washed, dried, straightened, and styled my hair once today, a process which took me a little over 45 minutes this morning. Our family obligations are not over for the day, so I still have to look presentable later this afternoon, and I'm not interested in getting my hair wet and re-doing the process of making it look nice.

I know this is a lame excuse, and today is not the first time I've used "I don't want to re-do my hair" as an excuse to skip a workout, and it probably won't be the last time.

30 Days

Today is the end of my first 30 days. I'm not sure what I expected to happen on day 30 or where I expected to be weightloss wise. I have a clear goal (120 pounds) and a deadline (June 20), but I didn't set a goal for the end of this first 30 days. I probably won't get a workout in today given that it's Easter Sunday, and we have plenty of family obligations today. We'll see, if it's nice out, maybe I'll go for a walk/run... that's a big MAYBE, though.

To my credit, I have made progess this month, and I thought I would celebrate some of that here:

1. I have been working out consistently. On average, I've worked out 5 or 6 days out of seven for the last month. Some weeks I even mananged to work out 7 out of 7 days.
2. I have kept track of my caloric intake in a food journal, and for the most part I've made healthy food choices, eaten lots of veggies, and drank lots of water.
3. I've lost about 7 pounds since February when I started working out again consistently.
4. After complaining about low energy early on in this endeavor, I have noticed recently that I have more energy.

For those of you following along at home, I realize that February is longer than 30 days ago. Although my official "re-start" day for this blog is March 14, I had been working out regularly prior to that. I never stepped on the scale until the day I started re-posting on this blog on March 14. That was the day I was SHOCKED to see that I had regained virtually all the weight I had lost last summer/fall. Even though the first weight I recorded here is 143 lbs, I'm giving myself credit for losing an additional 2 pounds from mid-February to mid-March, before I started posting.

I have been reading a number of other weight loss blogs, and one thing that has struck me about what others have written is how long it takes to lose weight. Reading other people's blogs I realize that most people who are trying to lose weight "the right way," i.e. by eating right and exercising regularly, don't lose 20 pounds overnight. It takes a lot of dedication and plenty of perseverance to lose weight.

Obviously, on an intellectual level I know all of these things, but I am the kind of person who needs "instant gratification." In my experience, there is nothing instantly gratifying about losing weight. I think part of the reason I get derailed in my efforts to lose weight is because I want to see results, and I want to see them now. I've re-read a few of my posts from the last 30 days, and I see how frustrated I am with the number on the scale. I keep hovering between 138 and 140 pounds. While I'm not happy with the numbers I keep seeing on the scale, I am happy with my efforts of the past 30 days. I need to keep going and not get derailed, again. I think if I keep doing what I'm doing, eventually, I will get to my goal.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Day 29: More running intervals

One reason I've never joined a gym is that I'm a little intimidated by the cardio machines and the weight machines. I don't know how to use the weight machines at all. Part of the problem is that I'm short so I have to fidddle with the settings to get the right height. I also find it to be a pain to have to adjust the weight settings, I have no idea what weight to use. None of that seems worth the effort.

I am more comfortable using the free weights, especially since I started doing DVDs like Jillian's and Jari's which have plenty of strength training moves. I have written out a little cheat sheet and take it with me to the gym. I only feel slightly dorky doing that, but at my age, I'm beyond worrying about what other people think of me and what I'm doing.

As for the cardio machines, I know the basics of how to use them. I know how to get started, but I don't take advantage of all the different settings and training programs. I usually just use "Quick Start" and then adjust manually as I go along. I've used the elliptical and stair master machines in the past, but I don't really like those machines (I don't even know if stair masters still exist.) The past few times I've gone to the gym, I've stuck to the treadmill.

Today, I tried an interval training program. I set the time for 30 minutes, and the machine went back and forth between 2 minutes of walking at a 3.5 mph pace on a 3% incline and 90 seconds of running at a 4.7 mph pace. It was perfect!

As I have written before, I'm considering joing the rec center for the summer months, so I guess I should figure out how to use these machines to my advantage.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Completely Unrelated

When we first put the house on the market 11 months ago, the thought crossed my mind to blog about the adventures of buying and selling in this awful real estate market in SE Michigan. It was a fleeting thought that I never followed through with. Today, I wish I had started that blog. For the most part, we've had nothing but positive feedback from the realtors who have shown our home. The house "shows well," is "priced right," and is "tastefully decorated."

Yet, strange things have happened to us over the course of the last 11 months, and I wish I had written about them so that someday, when this whole mess is over, we can sit back and laugh about the process. Everyone who has come through our house has "loved it, but... ." For one family, presumably Muslims, they absolutely "loved" the house, but "the room that they'd use as a their 'prayer room' wasn't big enough and didn't face the right way." Okay....

There have been other similarly unusual "excuses," but unfortunately, I can't think of them at the moment. We've also had more "traditional" excuses. The most often sited one is "they'd like a bigger yard with more privacy." I understand the "more privacy" issue, but we live in a normal subdivision, and I don't think we have any less privacy than anyone else in the neighborhood, so if privacy is what these people are looking for, then they shouldn't really be looking in a subdivision like ours in the first place. As for the "bigger yard," I don't get that one. I don't have our lot dimensions handy, but just by looking at our yard compared with most of our neighbors, we have one of the biggest lots. Mainly, this is an optical illusion. There are quite a few ranches and split level homes in this area where the homes' "footprints" are larger. Our house is a traditional colonial, so our house takes up less of a "footprint" which makes our yard appear twice as big as most of our neighbors' yards.

The other thing that has annoyed me about the process of selling in this market is the agents who show up early. Usually it's only 5 or 10 minutes or so, and that's not a big deal. I once had someone show up 35 minutes early. I thought that was bad, until today.

Today, the agent and his client showed up an hour early!! I spotted the agent and his client walking around the house and went out to greet them. I said that my agency told me the appointment was for 11-11:30. He acknowledged that they "might be running a little early" as he glanced at his appointment sheet. I apologized (why I apologized to him for his being early, I'm not sure, it's just my nature) and said that my kids were just finishing up breakfast, and I had to get them dressed. My little one usually gets up around 6:45, but today, she decided to sleep in until 9:45... of all days. So I scrambled around, threw dishes in the dishwasher, got the kids dressed, fixed the little one's bed, and ran out the door as fast as I could... seven minutes, flat. Thankfully I was mostly prepared for the showing. I had just finished vacuuming the rug under the kitchen table, everything else was in good order. It was still early enough in the morning that the kids hadn't pulled out half of their toys, yet.

I don't know why the agents are showing up early. I think many homes that they go into are empty, so they don't think anything of it. The conspiracy theorist in me thinks that some do it on purpose, to see if they can catch a homeowner off-guard and unprepared for a showing.

I really hope these people come back for a second look. I've gotten into the habit of baking cookies for people who come back for a second look. I like to bake them shortly before they are scheduled to arrive so that the smell of fresh baked goods still lingers in the air. If these particular people schedule a second showing, I might have to bake the cookies the night before.

Day 28: Not that sore

I went to bed last night thinking that I could already feel the "soreness" coming on. I even contemplated taking a few asprin just to ward off some of the soreness, but I didn't. This morning, I'm not as sore as I thought I would be. I remember the day after my first session with M, I could not even raise my arms above my head, and I also remember by shins feeling like they were on fire. Today, my shoulders are sore and so are my abs, but that's about it. I did 30 minutes of Yoga and 10 minutes of Pilates abs earlier. I know my abs are sore because I could barely get through "The Hundred" which is usually not that hard for me. I'm glad I did the Yoga, my body needed the stretching.

On an unrelated note, I made Leek soup last night. It turned out really good. I thought it would be a good thing to have for lunch and dinner tonight so I don't eat meat today, Good Friday.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

First training session report

My first session with the trainer went pretty well. I don't think he expected me to be as strong as I was. Some of the things he had me do were pretty basic, but I'm sure it will get harder in the next few sessions, and I'm even more certain I will be sore tomorrow.

I can't remember everything we did in the exact order, but I'm going to try to give a full report so I can try to keep track of what we're doing. At least for today, it wasn't about completing "x" number of push ups or squats, etc, is was about exerting good effort for 45 seconds and doing as many repetitions as I could.

The way the 2 on 1 training works is that there is one trainer working 2 of us for one hour. I started with a warm up on the treadmill for about 10 minutes while the other person worked with the trainer. When it was my turn to work with the trainer, I did three circuits of each of the following for about 45 seconds each: (1) push ups off a bar, (2) double arm rows with resistance bands, (3) and mountain climbers holding onto a bar. Then it was back to the treadmill for about 12 minutes. The workout continued with and additional 3 circuits of (1) squats with a 15 pound weight and (2) a squat/arm press up with two 7 pounders. He also had me do intervals of knee ups. Then it was back to to the treadmill for another 8 minutes. We finished up with ab work which consisted mainly of doing sit ups while catching and throwing a 6 pound medicine ball. I think I did a total of 36 sit ups on each side. He also had me do a dead lift-squat combo. I think there were 1 or 2 other exercises in there, but I can't think of them at the moment.

All in all, I think it was a good workout. I used heavier weights than I would have doing it here at home. I also pushed myself harder than I would have at home, and that is what I need. Aaron said he'd give me some interval training to do while I'm on the treadmill, today all I did was walk at pace of 3.5 mph on a 5% incline. I'd like to run on the treadmill, but I didn't want to over do it on my first day.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a day off; I might do some Yoga, we'll see how sore I am in the morning.

Day 27: First Day

Today is my first session with my new personal trainer. As I've written a few times, I have high expectations. This morning, the scale said 138 lbs. I weighed myself at the exact same time as yesterday morning, so I can't explain the 2 lb weight loss. I'm hoping that I'll start seeing the scale keep going down, as opposed to hovering around 138/140.

I will report back on my session later this afternoon.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

How many calories...

do you burn while folding laundry for 2 hours straight?!? I have to imagine it's like one thousand, at least! All week, I've had three laundry baskets of clean clothes staring at me wondering when I'd have to time fold it and put it away. Finally, I enlisted the help of two surprisingly willing young helpers, and we got about 85% of the job done. All of the laundry is folded and the kids' laundry is put away. (Although, I just took the last basket upstairs and went to inspect the job done by my off-spring. Let's just say their efforts leave a little to be desired, but for a 5 and 3 year old, I won't complain, too much.) My stuff along with K's still needs to be put away, but I'll do that tonight before bed.

The impetus for this folding frenzy? We have a showing! We'll see what comes of this one. We haven't had a showing in over a week, so the house has gone a little topsy turvy (hence 2 hours worth of laundry folding), so I have a bit of work to do, the most disgusting of which is cleaning the cat vomit I just discovered in the basement. I had no idea he was even down there recently. I don't think I'll be enlisting any helpers for that task.

Day 26: Just Yoga and Disappointment

Today was going to be an off day, but when I was only able to get in Level 2 of the 30 Day Shred video yesterday, I decided to move the Yoga to this morning. I did 30 minutes of Yoga Sculpt from Exercise TV On Demand (yep, still working) followed by 10 minutes of Pilates Abs. It always amazes me how much I sweat when I do yoga. I mean, I was dripping all over my mat. I hope this means that I'm doing it right, and I'm working all my muscles hard. Even though I haven't done a yoga routine in, gosh, about a week, I still feel pretty strong.

Disappointment: I weighed myself this morning... 140 lbs. I just don't get it. I have been eating well, I think. I keep track in a journal of everything I eat. I average about 1100 calories per day. Some days I eat 1000 calories, and other days, I eat 1200. On weekends, it's harder to stay within the 1000-1200 calorie range, but that's not unusual for anyone trying to lose weight. Fortunately, I'm able to take comfort in the following: I feel great! I feel strong, and I've noticed that I have more energy than I did a few weeks ago, when I was complaining about feeling tired all the time. It feels like my "tummy bulge" is getting smaller. In fact, today I am wearing a pair of jeans that previously I was unable to zip. I guess I need to focus on the positve and not dwell on the number on the scale, but that's easier said than done.

Tomorrow is my first session with the personal trainer. I purchased 8 sessions, and I plan to go twice a week. At the end of those 8 sessions, assuming I've seen progress, I will purchase another 8 sessions. They are running a 2 for 1 special that ends at the end of April. Those 16 sessions should get me to the end of May, after that I will have to evaluate what to do from there: continue with the personal trainer or join the rec center gym and try to continue on my own or some combination thereof. The problem is the personal trainer will get really expensive, so I need to be really close to my goal in order to justify the expense. I have high expectations, so we'll see what the next 2 months holds.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Day 25: Resolution and a Tummy Ache

First, the Exercise TV issue seems to have resolved itself. The On Demand menu returned to normal, and Exercise TV was right where it was supposed to be this morning when I woke up to work out. Unfortunately, my stomache did not cooperate. I started a warm up routine, but I broke out in a cold sweat and I felt like I was going to pass out, so I stopped and went back to bed to see if the issue would resolve itself, which it kind of did. I took a shower, and that seemed to help.

This morning, after computer lab, I was able to do Level 2 of Jillian's 30 Day Shred with 5 pound weights. I haven't used 5 pounders in a while for the 30 Day Shred, and it was hard, but I feel good.

I haven't stepped on the scale lately. I know I need to, I'm just scared. I'm working so hard and trying to eat healthy, that I will be so discouraged if the scale hasn't moved downward. That said, I think I'll weight myself tomorrow morning.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Gym update

I had a chance to read the "rules and regulations" for the "childwatch" at the rec center. There is a 15 minute "grace period" before they start charging for the second hour. I'm glad I checked that out, because I felt rushed the other day. I also found out that there are lockers located right outside of the cardio and track areas. I had been going into the pool area locker room to stash my stuff which also added extra time. Now that I spotted those, I should be able to get my full workout in well within the allotted time.

Day 23/24: Annoyed!

First, I'll start with Day 23, which was yesterday. I didn't workout yesterday, I hadn't really planned on it as I didn't have time with having to take the kids to church and then heading over to my mom's for dinner. I did "ok" with food, but I did splurge on the peanut butter chocolate pie from Achatz for dessert, it was well worth it!

Today I am annoyed with Comcast! It appears that Exercise TV has been excised from On Demand. I cannot find it anywhere on the menu. I have tried, in vain of course, to get some information from Comcast customer (non)service, but I have been unsuccessful. I was talking to a customer service rep, and he either hung up on me or I was "disconnected." When I tried to call back, I kept getting an automated message telling me that my call cannot be "processed!!" I'm really hoping that I'm wrong about Exercise TV being gone from the On Demand line up.

I did get a workout in. I did a Jari Love DVD that I have. It's mainly a strength training DVD. I don't like it as well as I like Jillian's workout options, but at least I did it.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Day 22: Gym workout

The kids and I had a very busy day today. It started at the rec center. I had hoped to be there right at 8:30, but M slept in a little later than usual, so we didn't get there until 9:15 or so. I'm glad that I decided to have R be at the child care area with M for the first time, because M pulled her usual, "mommy, don't leave me" act. I'm hoping that she'll be fine if I decide to go back there again next week. Once again, I did 25 minutes on the treadmill, alternating 60 seconds of running and 90 seconds of walking. I could definitely do more, but the plan I'm following says to start slow and not to jump ahead, "even if you feel like you can." Now, that's advice I can follow. I then followed up the cardio with about 30 minutes of strength training. I wanted to do more, but I had to get back to pick up the kids. But, in general, I was happy with my efforts today.

I didn't do a very good job with food today, though. Between the baby shower and the birthday party, it was hard to make good choices. I declined cake at the shower, but I couldn't resist the cake at the birthday party. My mom is having us over for dinner tomorrow to celebrate Easter because they're leaving for D.C. to spend Easter with my sister's family.

Friday, April 3, 2009

Snack Log

Fri, April 3:
10:40 Soy Joy Bar, 130 calories
11:20, the Soy Joy bar didn't do it for me, so I'm snacking on celery with salsa. I'm hoping that the spiciness of the salsa will keep me from eating too much.
3:00 a few handfulls of popcorn while we were at the movie
4:00 Cereal bar 100 calories

Day 21: Sore

My legs are sore from my first "running" session. I know, I didn't really run all that much, but I ran more than I usually do. I didn't do a workout this morning, I may try to sneak one in later this evening, we'll see. I'm also planning to go back to the rec center tomorrow with the kids. The daycare center opens at 8:30, and my goal is to get there right around that time. The kids should be ok; they'll be there together at least. My hope is that M will be comfortable enough the first time (with R there) that on subsequent visits, she'll be fine w/o R there.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

A Quick Food Update

Well, it seems that my idea to "blog" my snacking did the trick, at least for today. I didn't snack at all. I will admit that I had some celery with hummus, but I was planning to have it with my lunch but then I didn't eat it and had it later. I counted it as an extension of my lunch.


Also, I went out to dinner tonight to PF Chang's with a good friend. I tried really hard to make a good meal choice. I ordered Kung Pao Scallops and it looks like from the website that it's a 420 calorie meal plus the brown rice which was about 100 calories and a side of spicy green beans which was a total of 96 calories but I only had about 1/2 a serving. I also had approx 2 glasses of wine for a total of 300 calories.

Day 20 con't: workout report

I did go to the rec center today. As I've mentioned, I'd like to start running; I hate running so I'm starting slowly, really slowly. I'm following the "cool running" plan. Today I did a 5 minute brisk warm up followed by alternating 60 seconds of running at 4.8 mph and 90 seconds of walking at 3.8 mph for an additional 20 minutes. I could have done more, but I felt good with what I did. I then went through my strength exercise routine. I found my old routine from Martin, the personal trainer I used previously, and did those exercises. I also incorporated a few moves from my Jillian Michaels DVD. I forgot to time exactly how long I worked on the strength exercises, but my best guess is about 25 minutes. When my 16 sessions with the new personal trainer expire, I'm thinking about joining the rec center for the summer. It's only $25 dollars/month. M would be free, and I can add R for an additional $10/month instead of paying $5 per visit.

My H took the Ipod with him as he's flying out of town for the weekend; so, I guess if I do this, it's my incentive to upload some music onto my still-in-the-box shuffle. I'm pretty sure I have some gift cards around here somewhere, too.

Finally, I did allow myself to drink a Vitamin water containing 25 calories and a protein bar with 140 calories after my workout. As I'm sitting here typing this entry, I really want a "snack," but I'm trying to let the feeling pass. I'll probably have some water as soon as I hit "publish."

Day 20: Trying some new things

I had grand plans of doing a great workout this morning while my daughter is at preschool, however, as I was lying in bed, I realized that I can't do what I wanted because my cleaning lady will be here. So, I'm going to try something new, I'm going to head to the Rec Center and check it out. I haven't been there since they opened the new workout facility. They run a 3 month special every summer that I may try this year if I like what I see today.

I have been eating/snacking like a pig the past two days. I don't know what it is. I've tried the old "wait 15 minutes before eating" trick, and I've also tried drinking water in lieu of eating, but I still end up eating. I've had a taste for something, but I just don't know what it is. I've tried at least to make healthy choices like yogurt covered raisins or celery with salsa or a protein bar, but still, they're empty calories I don't need. So today, I'm going to try blogging every time I feel like snacking. I'm hoping I can figure out why I'm snacking so much. We'll see if it works.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Days 18 and 19: Slipping...

I can feel myself losing steam. I didn't get up to work out yesterday or today. I did meet with the personal trainer yesterday afternoon for my assessment. He had me walk one mile on the treadmill, do 12 "real" push ups and as many crunches as I could in 30 seconds. He also had me use some sort of leg machine and arm machine and rate on a scale of 1 to 10 how hard the exercises were. I'm hoping to start next Thursday. My schedule will be Tuesdays at 1 pm and Thursdays at 9:30.

I ate terribly yesterday. I just kept snacking. I was trying to make decent choices, but at some point, even if you're eating carrots and celery, you're still just eating calories that you don't need. I had a taste for "something," I'm not sure what it was, I thought I wanted something sweet, so I kept eating handfuls of yogurt covered raisins, but nothing was satisfying to my palette.

I may try to get some sort of workout in this afternoon, but we'll see.