A new challenge

So, I'm back at it!  VIP Challenge number 2 began this past weekend.  I completed workout number 1 of 30 this morning at 5:30 am.  Felt really good to get back to the same routine.  I didn't exactly take last week off, but I tried something different that the gym offers, Figure Camp.  I enjoyed it, but ultimately I decided that I want to lose more weight before I move onto tightening and toning.

Also this past week, I was nowhere near perfect with my diet. During my off week, I went out to eat a few times, drank some alcohol a couple of nights, and had some cookies and other sweets. I haven't stepped on the scale since the final weigh-in for the first challenge on Dec. 13. I imagine I have gained back a few of the pounds that I lost doing the fish and asparagus diet...  I'm planning to step on the scale on Wednesday or Thursday of this week to see where I am.

The next six weeks are going to be a challenge for me. We are heading to North Carolina for a few days after Christmas, and then in January we are taking the kids to Florida for a long weekend. I'm not as worried about making time for workouts, but eating the right foods will be difficult. I am going to do the nest that I can.

My goal is to lose another 20 pounds, I will have to work really hard to accomplish that goal.

I did it!

I did it!  I lost more than 20 lbs in this, my first VIP challenge.  I know I haven't checked in here for over 10 days.  It wasn't because I stopped or faltered or cheated or anything like that.  I simply dedicated all of my spare time to working toward my goal.  In my book, I smashed that goal by losing 23.6 lbs in 6 weeks. AMAZING!

Let me back up-- The last time I checked in here, I had set a goal of losing 4 lbs in week 5. I did not quite make it as I only lost 2.9 lbs, leaving me with 4.8 lbs to go for the final week.  I lost 8.2 lbs this last week!  Again, amazing!

Here's what I did: First, I upped my ESC to over 1 hour every day.  I couldn't do it all at once, I had to make time 30 minutes here, 40 minutes there, etc, etc.  For the last 10 days, according to my Jawbone, I averaged 22,826 steps.  Second, I followed the VIP Emergency Instructions.  I think I mentioned those a few posts ago.  Essentially, the instructions were to eat fish and asparagus for every meal (5 servings) for the last four days of the challenge.  On the day before weigh-in, I did a mini-fast.  I ate nothing after 11:00 am and drank only 16 oz of water, 8 oz of black coffee, and a Smooth Move tea at 4:00 pm. For the record, the Smooth Move tea did nothing for me.  Third, I believed.  I set out to prove to myself that I could do this... workout 5 days a week at 5:30 am, eat clean, and lose 20 lbs, and I did it, and then some!  I'm very proud of myself.  I haven't felt this proud of myself since I passed the bar exam in 1998.

What's next?  Another challenge.  Yep, that's right.  I'm doing it again.  20 more pounds need to go!

Rough patch ahead

Checking in mid-week.  I'm still plugging away and repeating my mantra.  My at-home scale suggests I'm down 2 pounds already this week, maybe I can eek out another 2 pounds by this week's weigh-in.

That said, I'm heading into a bit of a rough patch.  Friday night we have my husband's office holiday party and Saturday we are headed out to dinner with friends and then to a Red Wings hockey game. I made my dinner selections ahead of time and will have to make sure that I keep myself in check.

We're nearing the home stretch, after tomorrow morning's workout, I will only have 5 mandatory workouts left.

Here's my current plan to finish this challenge strong!

Friday, 12/4 workout # 25, 5:30 AM at the gym
Saturday, 12/5 - planned rest day
Sunday, 12/6 - at home work out #26 (pending permission)
Monday, 12/7 workout # 27 5:30 AM at the gym
Tuesday, 12/8 workout #28 5:30 AM at the gym
Wednesday, 12/9 workout #29 5:30 AM at the gym
Thursday, 12/10 workout #30 5:30 AM at the gym
Friday, 12/11 workout #31 5:30 AM at the gym

Saturday is a mini-fast (no eating after 11 AM) and the instructions say "no exercise today" except for a light walk.

Sunday, FINAL WEIGH-IN! There will be a sign-up sheet on Monday, Dec. 7 for weigh-in times. I'm hoping to get an early slot...