Just Feeling Good

I have no idea why, but I woke up feeling pretty awesome today.  Someone called and woke me up early, I am sore, my scale isn't really moving much, I have reading to do for class, BUT I feel great and motivated.  Isn't it odd how that works sometimes?

I went for a walk/jog this morning.  I almost did not go, because it is so cloudy and supposed to rain.  I went and was very happy that I did.  I am starting to get back into it.  Years ago I loved it, so getting back to that place would be nice.  This time I am doing it without an official program (like C25K).  I am just going out there and doing what I can, while pushing myself to do just a little more every week.  In a sense that is basically what C25K is, I am just doing it without keeping track of official times.  It takes some of the pressure off of me.  I am also learning to enjoy jogging and working out in general without headphones.  My super old (1st or 2nd generation) ipod shuffle died and I have not replaced it.  Now I am not sure if I will.  The shade produced by clouds and the breeze right before it rains was wonderful.  It was just a nice morning.

Yesterday I had another instructional class at my gym.  We did some deadlifts and squats.  The thing that really wore me out was my introduction to the rowing machine.  After getting comfortable with the machine and making sure we were using it properly, our coach made us do a 2000 meter row.  He just said do what you can, but do your best.  We are going to use it later to see how much better we have gotten.  I completed my row in 9 min 11 sec.  Of course, the coach was cheering everyone on and pleased with what we did.  I looked it up online though, and 9 minutes does not appear to be very good lol!  To be honest, it really doesn't matter to me.  I am my only competition right!  It gives me a goal to beat next time.  For someone out of shape, I know that I gave it my all and I am looking forward to smashing that time when we test again in the future.

This morning I was standing in front of the mirror and I don't know if my body is changing or if I only think it is changing because I feel so much better about myself.  I know it sounds crazy, but I am really not sure which it is lol!  I think confidence and pride in yourself does show, so maybe that is it.  I am really excited about the changes I am making for myself.  It is hard...really hard some days, but I am enjoying it.  While working out I wonder what have I gotten myself into, but afterwards I feel like a rockstar!  For me that feeling is worth it!

Don't you just love Soul Train?!?!  The video quality is awful, but in honor of his birthday.....

Marvin Gaye - Got to Give It Up

6 Week Update and Measurements

First, what's going on with Blogger?  The blogs I follow are here some days, and others they completely disappear.  It's soooo frustrating.  Anyway, I've trying to drop weight for 6 weeks now.  Here are my results...

I'm not ready to post comparison pics yet, but I do have them.  Basically, I lost 12.6 lbs and over an inch from the largest part of my stomach.  I'm really happy about that.  Here's a look at how I motivate myself to do things like workout and eat right...

I USE STICKERS!!!!!

You can see that I wasn't doing ANYTHING, before 6 weeks ago.  Seriously, I love stickers!  Some days the thought of getting a sticker would stop me from making poor food choices.  I have stickers for cardio (a heart), eating well (fruit), jogging (flower), strength training (silver star), and meeting goals (smiley face).  I'm thinking about changing out the star for strength training, because I can't see it as well as I can the others.  Here's a summary of my month:

Goals: I did not work on any goals, and pretty much forgot about them, so no goals met.

Jogging: I didn't jog any either.  I went walking quite a bit, but never actually jogged.

Strength Training: 6 days of real strength training.  I do challenges with my mom and sister, so just about everyday I did squats or push-ups, but I only give myself a sticker if I do a series of exercises.

Eating Well: 14 days.  Eating well is really a struggle for me.

Cardio: 18 days.  This was zumba, walking, or the elliptical...mostly zumba though.

Those numbers show me how I wasn't extremely dedicated over the last 6 weeks, but I definitely put in more effort than I had previously.  I know I could have had better results if I had taken things more seriously, but I am pleased with the progress that I did make.  You have to start somewhere, and the fact that I am blogging results after 6 weeks is progress for me.

For the next 6 weeks I would really like to work on eating better and strength training.  I actually love lifting weights (waaayyyy more than cardio), but I get intimidated in the weight room.  Therefore, I avoid it.  I'm just going to have to get over that.  I started today...

Leg Press (135 lbs each side)

Sundays are leg days for me.  So, here's my workout for today.  I did 3 sets of 12 for each strength training exercise...

Elliptical- 20 minutes

Leg Press- 270 lbs

Squat Machine- 105 lbs

Squat Jumps- body weight

Leg Extension- 40 lbs

Leg Curl- 50 lbs

Walking Lunges- body weight

Calf Raises- body weight

Walk/Jog- 1 mile in 14 minutes

I felt great afterwards.  My legs probably will not feel so great tomorrow lol!  The most difficult thing I did was probably the squat machine.  There were quite a few super fit guys in the weight room this morning, so I am proud of myself for going in there and getting things done.  Go Me!!!!

I have posted this several times, but it's my favorite song to workout to.  Have a great Sunday ladies and gents!

Janet Jackson- Make Me

Quick Update

Today's post should be pretty quick, but TOM has struck and I am feeling AWFUL.  Yesterday was a cardio day for me.  I spent 25 minutes on the elliptical and 23 minutes doing a jogging interval...1 minutes jogging and 3 minutes walking for 1.4 miles.

Today I did not do anything.  I have felt quite terrible all day.  I can add in today's workout with tomorrow's workout I think.  If not, I can just bump my schedule by a day.  It shouldn't be a problem.

I am sore.  My legs are so so, but my arms hate me.  My upper body is so weak.  Anyway, that's really all I have to say today.  I just feel so blah.

Here's a pic from my jogging yesterday.  Have a good one!

Exercise Feels Good

I have a love/hate relationship with exercise.  It's normally not so bad once I started.  I actually really enjoy it most of the time once I get started.  Well, I should say that I do not like cardio.  I really enjoy weight training.  I know that you need cardio though, so for me it;s mostly a matter of finding cardio that I do enjoy.  In the past I have found that to be zumba or the Arctrainer.  My gym got rid of its Arctrainer though, so I will have to figure something else out.  I am also working too late now to make it to my zumba classes.  I am just all the way messed up with cardio now lol!  I do have some options though.  I can borrow zumba dvds from my sister until my schedule changes (about a month from now).  My aunt has said I can try water aerobics at her pool.  That might be fun, but I'm not really sure what to do for water aerobics.  I have taken one water aerobics class, but that was about three years ago.  I can google it though right?  Of course I can lol!  SO basically I just have to make up my mind to do it.

I decided to wake up early and workout before church this morning.  When my alarm went off, I tried to go back to sleep.  After about 10 minutes I told myself "I need to get up.  I can do this."  So, I got dressed and headed to the gym.  I was thankful that there were not very many people there so early on a Sunday morning.  I started at the elliptical.  I did 20 minutes at level one.  Starting out I felt great.  Around 10 minutes in and I was feeling a little tired.  Well, maybe more than a little, but I knew I could finish out my twenty minutes.  I was dripping with sweat.  Man, I am so out of shape.  Afterwards, I hit 3 leg machines.  I did the leg press (180 lbs) 3 sets of 12 reps, leg extension (40 lbs) 3 sets of 12 reps, leg curl (50 lbs) 3 sets of 12 reps.  Surprisingly, that felt pretty good.  I could feel that I was working, but I was not totally exhausted and my legs felt alright.  I was shocked at how weak I am though.  I know I have to build back up, and I know I will get there.  I am planning to do squats, walking lunges, and deadlifts at home later tonight. I will let you know how that goes next time.

Next was jogging intervals.  I went to a park and jogged (1 minute)/ walked (3 minutes) in intervals for 24 minutes.  That was so so.  It went better than I expected to be honest, because it had been so long since my last attempt at jogging.  It was also extremely hot...even at 8 am.  I think we were supposed to be right at 100 degrees for our high today (105 heat index).  I normally hate jogging for about a month.  After that I get excited about it.  Now I just have to make it to the end of that one month.

All in all I felt really wonderful after working out this morning.  I had energy, a smile on my face, and a sense of accomplishment.  I have to wake up even earlier tomorrow, so I was already dreading that while driving this morning.  Then the thought came to me "How bad do you want it?"  So, I will be up bright and early in the morning.  I have a feeling that my next blog might be about soreness though lol!  Have a fantastic day!

So to recap:
20 min on elliptical
Leg Press 180 lbs (3x12)
Leg Extension 40 lbs (3x12)
Leg Curl 50 lbs (3x12)
Jog/Walk Intervals (1:3) 24 min, 1.4 miles

This song came on at the end of my jog and it was perfect!
Queen: Another One Bites the Dust

Whoa, That's a lot of Cardio!

Yesterday was supposed to be strictly cardio, so that's what I did.  At the beginning of this year my New Year's resolution/goal was to try a new food and a new exercise, activity, or fitness class every month.  I started out well, but eventually I got away from it.  I remembered that resolution on Monday and decided to do something about it before the end of July.  I don't think I'm going to make the new food this month.  I did try a new class though.

I decided to try a spin class for the first time.  When I went in I could automatically tell these ladies have been going for awhile and are pretty close knit.  They were very welcoming though.  They seemed quite happy to have a newbie.  They told me to just go at my own pace, and they warned me that my bottom would be sore.  When the instructor came in she adjusted my bike for me, and we got started.  It honestly wasn't too too bad.  45 minutes in and I was spent though.  Thank the Lord it was only a 50 min class lol!  They were right about that seat.  It did not take long for my bum to hurt.  I was thankful for the times we were told to stand up.  I don't know what I expected, but it was an arm and leg workout, because of all the standing up and leaning forward.  Like I said, it wasn't too bad though.  I would go again.

After spin class I went jogging.  I moved up in intervals this week.  I went from jogging 1 min and walking 2 min to jogging 1 min, walking 1 min, jogging 3 min, walking 3 min.  I kept cycling that for about 20 min.  I completed 1.4 miles in 19:49, which is a little faster that last week, but not by much.  To be honest, I would love to be faster, but my #1 goal is to be able to jog a 5k in its entirety.  After I can do that, I would like to jog a 5k under 40 minutes.  I know if I keep jogging, I'll get there eventually.  When I tried this last year I made it to the point where I was jogging 30 minutes nonstop, and then I quite.  So, I know I can do it.  I just have to keep working out.  Yesterday's jog started out a little rough.  My legs felt heavy from the spin class.  As I got into jogging the 1st 3 minutes, things started to get back to normal though.  I did notice that I walked slower during the walking breaks.  I'm still pleased that I finished my session with no major problems and I didn't quit.  Go Me!

After the jog, it was 9:55 and my zumba class starts at 10.  So, although it was not in my plans, I decided to go to zumba.  I finished the class, but I definitely did not have my normal amount of energy.  It was rough.  I was definitely tired from the new class and the jog.  All totaled I did over 2 hrs of cardio yesterday.  I was worn out!  looking back, it doesn't seem that bad, but I know how I felt yesterday and I was exhausted when I got home.  I probably will not do that much cardio again anytime soon lol!  It was good to push myself though.

M.O.P. feat Busta Rhymes - Ante Up  *Warning Explicit Lyrics*

Slowly but Surely

On Monday I went jogging.  Well, I am doing jogging/walking intervals.  This week I am at a 1 min jog 2 min walk.  I completed 2 miles Monday with a time of 30:29.  It wasn't too bad.  It was actually a lot better than I thought it would be considering I haven't done anything in so long.

Today I went to the gym and did lower body weights.  I also repeated Monday 1:2 interval.  I jogged 1.4 miles in 20:28.  To be honest, it started out pretty awful, but got better as I went along.

In the weight room:
Leg Curls 70 lbs 3x12
Pop Squats 3x12
Swinging Lunges 3x12
Walking Lunges 3x10
Deadlifts 40 lbs 3x12
Butt Machine 30 lbs 3x6
Standing Calf Raises

Today's Song
Vanity 6 - Nasty Girl

Beginning to Feel Like a Runner

Perhaps I should say jogger, because I don't really think I run...but really who cares. The point is something has changed for me. On Monday (3/12/12) I jogged for 30 minutes nonstop! I just went out and said I am going to do this. I warmed up for 5 minutes jogged for 30 and had a super super slow walking cool down. I was really excited! Then on Wednesday (3/14/12) I wanted to prove to myself that Monday wasn't some freak accident. First, nerves got the best of me. I kept thinking what if I can't do it again, which almost made me stay home. Then I realized my ipod was in my mom's car (she live 20 minutes away from me). Then I went to the place I normally jog and there was a couple of dogs loose. Technically, they were with their owners chasing something, but they were not on a leash and I'm afraid of dogs. At this point I got back in my car and left. Then I turned around and said I'm going to do it anyway. I'm so glad I did. I did my normal 5 minute warmup and told myself that I would not look at my watch. I just kept jogging. When I did look at my watch it said 33 minutes. At that point I thought well, I would like to be able to jog a 5k in under 40 minutes, so let's just see if I can jog for 40 minutes and where I'll be at that point. I'm happy to say I jogged 2.9 miles in 40 minutes. Whoo Hoo!

When I finished my legs felt funny. Have you ever been on the treadmill or the elliptical FOREVER and when you finally get off it feels weird to walk on the non moving ground? This is how my legs felt after the 40 minute jog. I was tired, but not wiped out. For the first time I thought, "Wow, I'm a runner." I know different people have different ideas of what constitutes a runner, but in my mind if I say I'm a runner then I am one lol! I don't have the fastest pace in the world, but I can remember when I was struggling to jog 30 seconds. So, this is a HUGE accomplishment for me. I have a 5k towards the end of April (Mayor's Cup). I'm really confident now that if I continue jogging 3 days a week I can finish in under 40 minutes. Today was my rest day, so I'm going to shoot for 40 minutes again Saturday.

It is amazing to me how my thought process has shifted. When I first began trying to jog I hated it. I hated it mostly because my shins hurt all the time, and I would become so disappointed with the very short time span I could actually jog. I had no confidence and I thought I looked like a complete idiot. I was embarrassed to run in public. Eventually, I just had to suck it up. Over time my shins stopped hurting and it felt great getting to know people who are at the park around the same time. I began to get a thumbs up, a smile, or a great job from familiar faces as they passed by. I started to get to know the guys who work at the local running store and they get just as excited as I do when I talk about a new distance. I began to reward myself with running stuff for a job well done (I got new, really cute Sweaty Bands for finally reaching 30 minutes). I began to realize that the only person judging me when I jogged was me. Everyone else just wanted to support me. Now I love it. I love being outdoors and admiring everything around me as I jog. I still have major issues with the treadmill. If the treadmill is my only option I am likely to skip running and do something else (I hate the treadmill that much). I guess the point of all this is that I feel like a new person. I'm so happy I stuck with jogging.

I started with the couch to 5k plan on CoolRunning.com. After a point I stopped using it though. I would get really upset with myself if I had to repeat a week or if the next week was too hard. So, I just decided to do what I could do everyday. I know this isn't a real plan, but it's honestly what I did. I would set my watch and go. By not worrying so much about the plan I was doing that day I was able to just go out and enjoy my jog. By no means am I knocking the couch to 5k plan. It got me up to the 20 minute jog. So, I think it's great. I just had to do something different because of my all or nothing attitude. Anyway, running is great and for the first time I feel like I really can accomplish a half marathon this year. It was on my list of goals for the year, but I did not honestly believe I could do it until now. I am super pleased with myself right now.

On a side note, I have a dry erase board on the door of one of my rooms. I use it for motivation. My sister visited me earlier in the week and this is what she left on my motivation board while I was at work.



Haha! She's so funny. It really made my day, and I'm going to keep it up for awhile. I hope you all have a fantastic day! Remember to reach for the stars, because the only person setting limitations on what you can do is you!

Long Time No See

Sorry I've been away.  I've been so so so busy (5 classes and a full time job).  I've been working out with Sam twice a week, as usual.  I normally get in 1-2 other days a week by myself.  That has really been hit and miss. 

I have not really gone jogging since I did the 20 minute jog almost a month ago.  I do sprints with Sam from time to time, but no real jogging with any true distance.  That stinks, because I was really excited about finally being able to jog for 20 minutes and I just let it go.  I'll have to work back up to it, but I'm determined to do it.  I want to do a half marathon this year.  I'm planning to do the Rock n Roll either in Vegas or the one in Miami.  I'm going to consider it my 30th birthday gift to myself.  I wanted to take a nice trip for my 30th (in July) and I also wanted to do a half.  I probably can't afford a separate trip for each the way I would want to,so I'm planning to postpone the July trip and roll it into a half marathon trip (Sept or Dec).  So, I'll still be celebrating my 30th (just months later lol) and I'll get to check off a major item on my list of things to do for year.

Today Sam said I might have a "come to Jesus" moment, and he was not joking.  Here's the list of what I did:
100 Push-ups
60 Burpees
100 Deep Squats
800m on Rowing Machine
12 Shuttle runs
36 Lat Pulldowns (80 lbs)
60 Leg Lifts
45 Lying Tricep Extensions (10 lb dumbbells)
300m on Rowing Machine
0.5 mile walk to class to cool down

I asked him if I was being punished because I had to cancel my session on Tuesday.  He laughed and said no.  I'm not so sure lol!  It was really really hard.  I did all of this over an hour.  The lat pulldowns, leg lifts, and tricep extensions were done in sets of 3.  The burpees, push-ups, and squats are a little difficult to explain.  Basically, I would do as many push-ups as possible in 1 min.  At the top of each minute I had to stop and do 4 burpees, then immediately into the push-ups.  At the top of that next minute I would do 4 burpees again.  I continued this until I had reached 100 push-ups.  This same cycle happened for the deep squats.  I hope the way I explained it makes sense. 

I felt like this was a completely ridiculous workout and I asked him several times if he was serious.  This was only me 2nd time on the rowing machine.  Oh my gosh, it works EVERYTHING!!!  I was shaking and fell like a combination of jello and dead weight by the time my our was up.  My shirt was completely soaked.  It was weird though, because although it was hard, I wanted to do it again this weekend.  This was one of those workouts that made me feel like I had instantly lost weight.  I'll probably do the push-ups, burpees, squats, leg lifts, and tricep extensions on my own at home this weekend.  It's good to leave a workout and know that I gave it my all and that I completely rocked it!

Oh, I purchased a 65cm stability ball and a 10 lb medicine ball to add to my home gym (which doesn't include much...dumbbells, adjustable weight bench, sit up rack, and tons of Oxygen magazines).  I would like to buy some cardio equipment (treadmill or bike), but we'll see.  I know plenty of things I can do for cardio without having the machines, so I'm in no rush to buy anything.

I've also been making an effort to eat better the past two weeks.  I made the pledge to do this until spring break (which is in less than two weeks) and then take a look at my results.  I'm hoping it will be motivation to make me continue to eat better.  I can already say that I feel better though.  So, it might be a a week or two before I'm on here to blog again, but I should have some measurements to post by then.  Have a great day!

Chris Brown - Turn Up the Music

I Conquered the 20 min Jog!!!!!

This blog is almost a week late, but I finally did it!  I did all of the 20 minute jog that is part of the couch to 5k program.  I did it this past Sunday.  I was planning to meet my mom to walk that afternoon, but something in me just felt like jogging.  My mother has not even gone walking in almost a year, so I knew jogging was out of the question for her.  What to do?  What to do?  I decided to go 30 minutes early. 
I had previously jogged with Sam for 11 minutes, so that is what I was planning to do.  I did a few quick stretches and I started with my warm-up.  I usually do a 10 min walking warm-up, but I really felt the urge to jog so after 5 min I took off.  I told myself I was not even going to look at my watch until I jogged to a certain point (which is about 1.4 miles).  I didn't make it lol!  There came a point when I was thinking I need to stop, so I checked the watch.  I was at 12:14.  I immediately thought, hey this is longer than I jogged with Sam, so I can stop now and feel like I accomplished something.  My calves were starting to burn, and I remembered Sam telling me that he knew I could do 20 min if I really put in the effort.  I also thought that I only had 8 min until the 20 and if I stopped now that I would always wonder if I could do it.  So, I kept going.  I looked at the watch again at 14:36 and I was really at my stopping point (or so I thought), but then one of my favorite workout songs came on the ipod (Janet Jackson - Make Me).  This gave me the burst I needed.  Not too much longer after that I saw my mom drive up.  I looked at the clock again and I was just over 18 minutes.  At this point I realized I was really going to do this.  I jogged by my mom and held up 1 finger so she knew I would be back in a minute and kept jogging.  The next time I looked at my watch it said 20:36. 

I forgot where I was and I screamed and pumped my hands in the air.  I was literally on the verge of tears.  I told my mom what happened and got words of encouragement and a hi-five from her.  Then I sent a text to Sam and he sent 3 or 4 "I'm so proud of you," "I always knew you could do it" kinds of texts.   I can't even explain how I felt when I finished.  I felt like some kind of warrior princess!  I never thought I would be able to jog 20 minutes nonstop.  I remember when jogging 60 seconds was a struggle, and I'm not exaggerating.  My legs used to hurt and I would be out of breath after jogging 60 seconds.  In some ways that seems like a lifetime ago, but I can remember it like it was yesterday.  I ended up jogging 1.6 miles in 20 minutes.  When I was done I walked another 1.5 miles with my mom.  So, to anyone doing Couch to 5k, or any other running program, stick with it.  If you have to repeat weeks, who cares, repeat it.  JUST KEEP GOING!  You can do it!  You can do so much more than you can ever imagine.  DO NOT GIVE UP EVER!  Whew!  I got excited all over again writing about it lo!

Quick Look at January Goals:
Try new exercise:  I tried the Plank Knee Raise  
I liked it.  It was something different and it was challenging.  I realized how much trying just one new thing can spice up a workout

Try a new food:  I failed at this.  I'll try to remember to try 2 for Feb to make up for it.

Oh, I have not jogged since last Sunday because I was supposed to jog again on Tuesday and ended up in a minor car accident.  I guess the woman behind me decided a red light means keep your foot on the gas and she rear ended me as I was stopped at the light.  I'm not cleared for exercise until tomorrow.  I basically ended up with a lot of soreness in my neck, shoulder, and back and a headache.
I hope you all have a fantastic day and remember NEVER GIVE UP!!!!!!!

I think this is the 3rd time I've posted this song, but since it's the song that made me keep going:
Janet Jackson - Make Me

Good News!

It's been awhile.  I'm still trying to catch up on reading blogs. 

School:
I normally keep this blog weight loss or fitness related, but I had a great day yesterday so I want to talk about it.  A professor I had last semester loved some of the research I did so much that she wants me to enter it in a university-wide competition in April.  I was really pleased that she liked it so much.  I'm also entering the same research in a competition on Monday.  On top of that I have been really stressed out with 5 classes and working 80 hrs in one week.  I have been a functioning nutcase suffering from sleep deprivation.  So, I was going to drop 1 or 2 classes.  I had to meet with one of the professors I was thinking about dropping because of a research paper.  I was with him for about 40 min and he is absolutely amazing!  I left thinking there was no way I could drop him.  He's really great.  I left feeling better about that class, but still a little down about the workload I'm taking.  Well, I came home and had a letter waiting on me from the UA. 

This came along with another letter that said as long as I complete the 5 classes I am signed up for right now, I will graduate in May!!!!  Technically, I knew that according to my calculations this should happen, but there is something about getting it officially from the university.  I had applied for graduation early in December, but had not heard anything so I was getting nervous.  I was so excited yesterday!  Whoo Hoo!  I also had dinner and a movie with my parents, so that added to my fantastic day.

Now Back to Fitness:

I see Sam twice a week.  During my work week, my exercise sucks.  I literally don't have the time.  I see him during my 90 min break between classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Other than that, I am either in class or trying to catch up on sleep.  He's going to write me up two plans: one for my work week and one for my off week.  He says the work week plan is going to be really short, but he wants me to do something.  He says sleep is very important and he does not even want me trying to do hour long workouts  (even on the weekends that I work).  He started talking about lack of sleep and hormones and weight gain.  So, I'll let you all know what he comes up with when I see him Tuesday.

I can't even remember most of the things we did this past week.  It has all been a blur.  I can tell you that he jogged with me on Thursday.  I told him how I had not done anything on my own since my work week started, and that included jogging.  I was complaining how I was going to have to start all over with my jogging and I was depressed about it, so we went to the track.  We jogged for 11 min.  I have no clue about the distance, because we were talking so I wasn't counting laps.  I learned it is so much easier when you have someone with you.  I do have a few friends who run, but they are so much faster than me and can go a lot longer, so I never ask them because I would hate to slow them down.  It was really nice jogging with someone else though.

Before I go Win, Lose, or Blog is accepting applications for their next season.  I competed in this and had a great time.  Plus, you get prizes and who doesn't like prizes!  Anyone can apply.  Several sizes are accepted.  Many of the ladies from my season had already lost a lot of weight.  Some weighed a lot less that I did and a couple weighed more.  Basically, if you have any weight to lose...apply!  Here's a link that will give you more info and tell you where to go complete the application.  Give it a shot!

Aaliyah- Try Again

Almost Lost It...

...it being everything I ate for breakfast yesterday.  Yesterday was a Sam day.  First, let me tell you what I did

3 rounds of 30 seconds each
Wall Balls (12 lb ball)
Burpees
Jumping Jacks
Kettlebell Swings (12 lb kettlebell)

3 rounds
Woodchoppers (10 each side)
Alligator Walk (12)
Walking Lunges  (12)
Sprints on Stationary Bike (2 min)

3 rounds
Modified Push-ups (10 but I had to go all the way down to the floor before I came back up)
Bicycle Crunches (15)
Lat Pulldowns (12 using 60lbs)
Dumbbell Punches (30 seconds)

2 rounds
Deep Squats (15)
Pulsing Squats  (10)

Mountain Climbers (30 sec)

I did everything except the mountain climbers for 30 seconds.  My stomach was feeling really funny and Sam asked if I was lightheaded.  I was, but only a little.  He told me I was on the verge of throwing up and we had to stop.  After about 4 min of just sitting I felt fine and wanted to do the last 30 sec of mountain climbers, but Sam said no.  So, I made it through all but the last 30 seconds of my planned workout. 

To those of you who say reading Sam's workouts makes you feel like a wimp...don't.  Remember, it takes me an hour to do this stuff.  A lot of you have been exercising longer than I have and could probably do these workouts faster and with heavier weights.

I completely bailed on jogging over the weekend and earlier this week.  I'm on the day I'm supposed to jog for 20 minutes straight and I've been completely psyching myself out.  I was supposed to do this on Sunday, then Tuesday and I kept making excuses not to go.  This morning I woke up with a back ache, but decided to go anyway.  I didn't make it.  Each step seemed to make my back feel worse.  So I was out there for about 25 min, but less that half of that was jogging.  So, I came back home.  I'm going to take a Motrin or Aleve and see if my back feels better later.  If so, then I will try it again after class today.

My nutrition sucks.  There's no other way to put it.  I think I've eaten out once a day 4 out of the last 5 days.  I don't know what it is with me and food.  Well, I do know what it is...lack of willpower.  I have stayed away from burgers and fries, but getting a sirloin with a Parmesan cheese crust and a loaded backed potato isn't any better.  It's actually about the same thing.  So, I'm going to work on it.  Telling you all about this all the time does nothing, if I don't put some action behind what I say I want to do.  So, hopefully my next post will say I've done much better with my eating habits.  I also hope to be able to say I jogged 20 minutes.

Not a Nicki Minaj fan, but this is a nice tune for me to jog to.
David Guetta ft. Nicki Minaj - Turn Me On

Busy Little Bee

Whew...I've been busy this week.  I'm sorry I'm not able to blog as much.  During my work week I used to posts blogs at work.  Now, Blogger is blocked (but facebook is open, so figure).  With work and school, I only have time for sleep during the day.  So, when I work you will probably only see 1 blog from me and it will be on the weekend.  I'm off right now, so whoo hoo!

School started on Wednesday.  I am taking 5 classes.  What was I thinking?  I work a full time job and I decided to sign up for 5 classes!  This honestly might drop to 4.  If it does, then I will graduate in August and not May.  During my work rotation I will average about 4 hrs of sleep Monday through Thursday.  Also by the end of April I will have read about 25 books for these classes.  This all seems very overwhelming to me right now.  So, we will see how it goes.  I have until the 19th to drop a class and it will completely disappear from my transcript.  After the 19th, a W will show up on my transcript, but I can still drop it.

Now for my most exciting news...I saw Sam Wednesday!!!!!!  Yay! Yay! Yay!  I didn't even realize how much I missed the entire experience of training with him.  I can't remember everything we did, but it was quite a lot.  Jogging is difficult for me, but I don't produce 1/10th of the sweat jogging as I did while I was with Sam.  Here is what I can remember that we did:
Walking Lunges (as I came up to switch legs I had to pause with my leg in the air...hard to describe...sorry)
Squats (with 25lb weight)
Burpees
Wall Ball
Alligator Walk
I probably did another 10 exercises I just really can't remember them.  When it was all said and done, my shirt was soaked, my legs were shaking, and I was breathing like a crazy person.  Sam chose that moment to say, "Welcome back.  You missed me didn't you?" He had a smile a mile wide.  lol!

I also got my body fat measured in a machine called the Bod Pod.  I'm not pleased at all with what it said.  This is supposed to be one of the most accurate ways to measure body fat.  I'll let you all know what my number was the next time I get it done.  I hate the number is so high, but I will feel better posting it if I can at least say "look it's lower than that now." So, you'll just have to wait another 6-8 weeks or so.  This machine also tell you how many calories you can eat.  Sam said I could eat 2100 calories.  Here's my breakdown. 
If I were in a coma and never moved at all for 24 hrs my body would burn just under 1700 calories.
Sam said he would consider me active, given that I am jogging 3 days a week and seeing him for 2.  As an active person I could eat 2600 calories a day to maintain my weight right now.
A sedentary person could eat 2100 calories.  Sam told me to stick with the sedentary calories in order to lose.
2600-2100=500 calorie deficit per day
500 calories x 7 days a week=3500 calories=1lb of weight loss per week.

This is the Bod Pod when you sit in it and what it looks like closed.

Jogging:
So, all last week I was referring to my jogs as week 3 of the couch to 5k plan.  I was wrong.  I was actually doing week 4 then.  I am now on week 5.  Today was week 5 day 2 which was...
10 min warm up (the plan says 5, but I have found that I need 10)
8 min jog
5 min walk
8 min jog
cool down
Here a link to the plan if anyone else is interested.

Day 3, which I should do on Sunday is a warm up and then a 20 minute jog.  20 minutes nonstop...really???  Yeah, my mind is already playing games with me.  I'm really worried I will not be able to do this.  I'm going to try really hard though, because I can imagine that the sense of accomplishment I will have if I do this will be insane.  I have to remember that a few weeks ago I never would have believed that I could jog for 8 minutes.  So, I just have to give it all I have and do my very best.

Last week I was tagged in a post by Hyla, one of the lovely ladies I met through Win, Lose, or Blog.  I am supposed to:
1. post these rules.

2. you must post 11 random things yourself.

3. answer the ques­tions the tag­ger set for you in their post.

4. cre­ate 11 new ques­tions for the peo­ple you tag to answer.

5. go to their blog and tell them that you've tagged them.

6. no stuff in the tag­ging sec­tion about ‘you are tagged if you are read­ing this.’ blah blah blah, you legit­i­mately have to tag 11 peeps!

I'm going to cheat here, because I've done something similar not too long ago and the people I would tag would be the same ones I tagged then.  So, I am going to give you my random facts, answer Hyla's questions and probably list my favorite blogs.

Random facts:

1. I bite my nails...not a good habit and I'm hoping to change this
2. I love really good hummus dip.  I mean REALLY love it.
3. I'm obsessed with Christmas.
4. I love scented candles.
5. I have cracked my sternum before...not a pleasant experience AT ALL
6. I hate to work out in front of people
7. I'm a sucker for Hallmark movies
8. I'm terrified of roller coasters that go upside down.

9. I love cheese grits.

10. I'm obsessed with keeping track of how much fiber I eat.  I know this is odd.  I really don't track what I eat, but I do keep a mental note of how much fiber is in everything I eat and I get ticked if I am below 20 for the day.  I shoot for above 25 though.

11. My guilty pleasure is watching young adult tv shows and reading young adult novels (The Secret Circle, Vampire Diaries, The Hunger Games, Artemis Fowl, etc.)

Hyla's Questions:
1.How do you plan on meeting your goals this year?  Are they realistic?  If so do you have high hopes of meeting them and surpassing them? 

I plan to reach my goals through old fashioned diet and exercise.  I think the key for me will be finding exercises and healthy food that I love.  I think my goals are realistic (40-50 lbs this year) and if I stick to my plan even remotely I should hit them.  I lost close to 25 lbs last year in about 5 months and I was very hit and miss with workouts and good nutrition.  So, I have very high hopes

2.Are you looking forward to any big events this year? 

I turn 30 this year, and believe it or not I am really looking forward to it.  I'm going on a big trip, but I have no idea where yet.  I also think I'm going to have a new body by the time I look 30 and I'll look better at 30 than I did in my 20s, so I'm pumped.

3. Where in the world is Carmen San Diego?  LOL, I meant where would you like to be? 

Lol!  I used to watch Carmen San Diego with my cousin and sister as a kid.  If I could be anywhere I'm not sure where I would want to go.  Somewhere with temps around 75, a light breeze, and plenty of sightseeing, attractions, good food, and shopping...and no school and no work lol!

4.What is your favorite piece of comfy clothing? 

lounge pants and t-shirt

5. What is your favorite piece of "I feel hot!" clothing?

a dress that properly fits me (I have a lot of over sized clothing)

6. Honestly, what are your thoughts on Facebook? 

Some days I love Facebook and other days I think Facebook is the devil lol!  I don't post too much on there because it's so easy for people to get all of your info.  I like some of the connections I've made through it though.  I refuse to have Facebook connected to my phone, because it's really not that important to me.  The people who are really important to me have my phone number, so I don't feel the need to constantly be on there checking updates.  So, I guess in a nutshell I like it, but I am not obsessed with it.

7. Have you ever done anything daring?  If so, what? 

not really.  The most daring thing I've done was probably when I was in high school.  As a senior I would leave school for about an hour every day to go eat out lol!  I did end up getting caught by the assistant principal one day, but I was one of those stellar students who made straight A's,was in every club, and never did anything wrong. He was in shock and believed I was confused about the rules of being a teacher's assistant and let me go.  Haha!

8.  What is your favorite book and author?

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (the 1st book I remembering completely loving.  I had to read this in 6th grade)

A Gathering of Old Men by Ernest Gaines (This is just a fantastic book.)

9.  What is your favorite movie?

Braveheart

10.  What is your favorite Disney princess or other princess?

Ariel

11.  Do you dream?  What about?

I hardly ever remember them.

Favorite Blogs:

Win, Lose, or Blog (motivation, weight loss, giveaways, competition, etc)
Fitness For the Rest of Us (weight loss, reviews, giveaways)
Avery and Winslow (crafting)
Runs for Cookies (maintaining weight loss, running)
Changing from Fat to Fit (running, weight loss, fitness, etc)
Gina's Skinny Recipes (recipes)
Carbie Girl (weight loss)
Girl with Curves (fashion)
365 Weighs (she has not posted in awhile, but it's still good stuff)
Pril's Place (fashion)
Hourglass Red (weight loss)

Sorry about this being such a long post, but a had a week's worth of stuff to cram in here.  Congrats if you made it through it all lol!

Bee Gees - You Should Be Dancing (Despicable Me version)  I really do jog to this song and I love Despicable Me, so this is a fantastic video.

Blah, Workouts, and New Shoes

The Blah:
I actually gained 3 lbs this week!  WTH!  I worked out hard this week and I ate better than I have in a long time.  This is complete BS!  That is what I thought when I stepped off the scale.  Then I remembered all the candy I stuffed in my face Sat-Tues.  Plus, the fried shrimp, mashed potatoes, salad, and 2 raspberry lemonades I had at Ruby Tuesday on Wednesday.  Add to that the fried catfish I had at work on Thursday night (even though I had brought grilled chicken and veggies).  Then I thought...oh...do better Briana.  So, I will do better.  I cleaned my fridge and pantry and have no junk whatsoever in them.  I went to the grocery store and filled up on only good items.  Now I have to have the will power to not go to the cafeteria at the hospital.  Can you believe I brought healthy food, did not eat it, and paid for something unhealthy instead?  Yeah, I really did that.  Anyway, I just have to do better.

Workouts:
Wednesday:
OFF

Thursday:
W3D1 Couch to 5k (my version)
10 min walking warmup
5 min jog
2 min walk
3 min jog
1 min walk
5 min jog
2 min walk
3 min jog
2 min walking cool down
Ended up being 2.2 miles in 33 minutes

Friday:
  (x3)
50 Jumping Jacks
40 Squats
30 Push-Ups
20 Leg Lifts
10 Burpees
50 Mountain Climbers
40 Lunges
30 Curl to Press
20 Tricep Dips
10 V-Ups

Today:
W3D2 Couch to 5k (my version)
10 min walking warmup
5 min jog
2 min walk
3 min jog
1 min walk
5 min jog
2 min walk
3 min jog
2 min walk
5 min jog
super short walking cool down (I was tired and just wanted to get to the car)
Ended up being 2.5 miles in 40 min

Looking at this and the workouts I posted earlier in the week.  I am proud of myself.  I have been consistent for a solid week.  So, yeah, I gained weight, but it was not from lack of working out.  I've heard people say losing weight is 20% exercise and 80% nutrition.  Now I can believe it.  So, I know what I have to do from now on.  I can do it!  I got caught in a small rain shower today while I was jogging and it felt great.  At first I though "oh no," but it was not pouring down or anything, so it was nice.  I'm also excited that my little DailyMile app to the right is changing, because it means I'm being active again!

New Shoes:
I went to out local running store on Wednesday and bought new shoes.  They are called the Brooks Pure something.

I love these shoes.  I was told they are supposed to keep you from striking with your heel when you run so much.  I am in the very early stages of beginning to run so I don't really know about all the technical stuff.  All I know is that these shoes are fabulous!

Am I the only person who looks at background stuff when someone posts a pic?  I just really noticed all the stuff I have in the background of this picture.  In can you are wondering, the Christmas boxes are what my Christmas cards arrived in,directly behind the shoes are dvds of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Spartacus: Blood and Sand, True Blood, Thundercats, and the Ocean's trilogy (11, 12, and 13).

Britney Spears - Toxic

Vacation and Getting Back on Track

I finally figured out why I was getting ads last week on blogger.  I was on vacation for the past week, and it had something to do with the condo's internet.  Now that I'm back home, I'm no longer getting ads everywhere.

I went with my family to Gatlinburg, TN.  It's one of my favorite places to go.  I love walking around and looking at everything!  We had a great time.  I'll post pics from the aquarium at the very end of this post.

Now that I'm back I need to get back on track.  I feel like I've really been slipping the past 2-3 weeks, so now I'm back at it.  I'm doing a strength training routine from the Dec 2011 issue of Oxygen 3 times a week and I'm doing Couch to 5K 3 times a week.

I told you all previously that I love Oxygen Magazine.  This is my stash...there are close to 90 issues here.  I know, I know....I have a problem lol!  But if anyone needs a back issue (minus 2011 and the last half of 2010) you now know where you can get one.  Just email me.

So this is what I did today:
You're supposed to do a 2 min warm up jumping rope and 30-60sec of jumping rope between each exercise.  I did the entire circuit twice and it took me about 40 min.  You can also do jumping jacks instead of jumping rope or just pretend like you're jumping rope without the rope..  I was thrilled to have everything I needed to do this at home.  Not every video is perfect, but I think you can get the general idea from them.

1. Squat (I used dumbbells)
2. Low Incline Dumbbell Press
3. Seated Lateral Raise
4. Seated Alternating Dumbbell Curl
5. Seated Dumbbell Wrist Curl
6. Walking Lunges
7. Flat Bench Reverse Crunch (but on a flat bench)
8. Toes to Ceiling ( similar to previous exercise, but "without bending your legs, lift your hips from the bench, directing your feet straight upward") I could not find a video of this.
9. Upright Dumbbell Row
10. Bench Crunch
11. Stiff-Legged Dumbbell Deadlift
12. Single Arm Concentration Curl
13. Dumbbell Chest Fly
14. Reverse Dumbbell Wrist Curl
15. V-Sit on Bench
16. Sumo Squat
17. Standing Calf Raise
18. Bent-Over Lateral Raise
19. Bent Over Single Arm Dumbbell Row
20. Supine Bent-Arm Dumbbell Pullover
21. Lying Hip Thrust/Bridge
22. Frog Crunch

I did 12 of everything twice.  I feel perfectly fine now, but I know I will feel this in the morning.  Tomorrow will be a day full of cardio.  C25K and maybe something else.  I'll let you all know.

Gatlinburg pics:

My sister at Bubba Gump's (with me trying to sneak in the background)

Santa's Claus-et

with my mom

just me

I have more pics, but I don't want to overload you all.  My father absolutely hates taking pictures, so he is not in ANY of the pics from this trip.  We had a FANTASTIC time!  I hope you all have a great day!

I Have to Do Better

First, the Win, Lose, or Blog before and after photos are up.
WLB Before and After Photos
I really don't think I look any different with regard to my size.  According to my cousin my pics look like the makeovers they do on the Today Show where they pull someone off the street and give them a makeover lol!  I have to admit she is right.  I took the first picture after a walk and I took the "after" photo on the way to church...instant makeover lol funny funny!

Wednesday and Thursday were exercise failures.  I had every intention of doing another c25k jog on Wednesday, but I was so sore.  So, I made plans to do it Thanksgiving morning when I got off.  I think we all know THAT did not happen.  I don't even know why I was so sore.  On Monday I jogged/walked for close to 50 minutes.  Tuesday I did the elliptical for 40 minutes and then I got on a bike for 15 minutes.  I was so freaking sore on Wednesday.  It felt like I had been lifting weights the day before.  I guess it happened because my legs were not used to the jogging I did on Monday???  Anyway, I was a bum Wednesday and Thursday.

I am proud of myself for not overeating on Thursday.  I tried a small amount of everything and I was full.  I did not go back for seconds, and to be honest I did not have much of a desire for anything sweet.  I did end of eating a piece of pumpkin bread though.  I had to wake up early in order to see my family, so I will be happy to get off in the morning and just crash.

I really need to come up with an exercise schedule for myself and stick to it.  It will probably be 3 jog days and 2 weight training days.  Oooh oooh oooh...I went to my mailbox the other day and I had the December issue of Oxygen.  At first I thought this was a mistake, then I forgot I signed up to get 2 free issues.  Let me backtrack a bit.  I have been a huge fan of Oxygen Magazine for about 5 years.  I literally have years of issues in my "workout room" at my house.  I would read them cover to cover (except the ads...not a fan of all the ads they have), and make plans to get started.  The getting started never really happened, but I just loved that magazine.  I was looking at this stack a little less than a year ago and decided to end my subscription and just recycle workouts from the old magazines.  Then about 2 months ago I saw an ad for 2 free issues, so I signed up.  Well, I had forgotten all about it.  So, I was thrilled to see the Dec issue in my mailbox.  It was so funny, because I had just read about another blogger doing an Oxygen strength training plan here.   Her blog inspired me to pick a plan from one of the old magazines.  I had decided to do one from their Jan 2010 issue.  Then I received this new issue.  There's a plan in this one that I'm going to try.  It has 21 exercises and I have the equipment to do them all at home!  You really have no idea how excited I am lol!  I did not mean to have such a long paragraph about Oxygen.  I'm a fan of muscle.  I don't like the extreme body builder look, but I do like some muscle definition.  Anyway, I'll let you all know how it goes.  I hope to try it out for the first time on Saturday.

Oh yeah, I was supposed to be talking about sticking to a schedule.  Gosh, I get off track quickly. I had originally thought about working out through the week and taking the weekend  (Saturday and Sunday) off.  I have more free time on the weekend though, so I'm not sure.   I am also considering taking Friday and Saturday off, because those are the days I am most likely to go out, and if I straighten my hair I hate messing it up by sweating lol!  I'm pretty sure I am going to shoot for working out 5 days a week.  I could do 6.  I've done 6 before and felt pretty good.  I just don't know.  I'll start with 5 and see what happens.

I'm supposed to be taking 6 week measurements on Saturday and I'm not excited AT ALL.  I think I have said this before every 6 week measure post though, so it's really nothing new haha!  I'll try to remember to take a new face photo too.  Anyway, have a great weekend everyone!

Flo Rida - Good Feeling

Finally Started Jogging Again

Whew...I FINALLY started training for the half marathon I want to do in April.  Maybe I should say I finally started Couch to 5K, because I am a long long way form a half marathon.  I'm honestly not even sure I'll be able to jog the whole thing in April, but I'm going to try.  If I can't, that's okay.  I should be able to at least jog a good bit of it by then if I stay on track.  I'm starting with Couch to 5K, after that I am not sure if I want to look at beginners half marathon plans or go to the Bridge to 10K.  I'll look into it more when I get to that point.

Today I began with Week 3 Day 1 of Couch to 5K.  I made a few modifications.
Original Plan:
5 minute warm-up
jog 90 sec
walk 90 sec
jog 3 min
walk 3 min
(repeat x2)

My Plan:
10 minute warm-up (I know from previous attempts that I need a good 10 minute warm-up if I do not want to be in pain halfway through my workout
3 min jog (I like to start with the longer jog first)
90 sec walk (I knew I did not need the full 3 min walk to recover)
90 sec jog
90 sec walk

Instead of only doing this twice I did it until I reached my car again.  I think I did this 3.5 times before I decided to walk in order to cool down, because I could see my car coming up.  I ended up doing 2.8 miles in 42:54.  This is somewhere near a 15 minute mile.  Which isn't the fastest time in the world, but I really don't care lol!  I'm just getting back into jogging and I'm super proud of myself for finishing.  So, Day 1 is in the books for me and I can officially say that I have started training for a half marathon!  Whoo Hoo!

There might be a 5k in December that i will look into.  We'll see.  I had forgotten how great it feels to accomplish something new.  Lately I had been dialing it in and fixing what I eat in order to compensate.  Well, I feel awesome right now!  My calves are starting to stiffen up a little bit, so I'm going to rub them out.  I glad I set this goal.  It seems to be what I need right now. 

Oh, Win, Lose, or Blog has ended and I will let you all know how I did on Tuesday or Wednesday.  It was a great experience.

I'm taking it back a few decades for today's song!
The Gap Band - Early in the Morning

Just Catching Up

Today's post is just full of small updates

C25K
I have not started yet.  If I was going to give excuses I would say I've been tired.  The truth is that It has been 20 degrees outside when I have planned to go jogging and i just cannot bring myself to do it.  I have just started my off week, so now I'll be able to go jogging midday when it should be around 50 degrees.  50 is so much better than 20.  Therefore, I'm going jogging today no matter what.

New Wii Games
My best friend bought me the Your Shape Wii game.

Amazon Link to game

I'm excited to try this out.  I love my Wii and I easily get excited about new workout games.  This one is not new, but it is new to me, so I'm pumped.  I'll have to let you all know what I think about it later.

Also Zumba 2 is out.  It came out on Tuesday.  The reviews for it are really good and most people are saying it is much much better than the first one.  I already know the graphics are better, you can now pause in the middle of a routine, and you can make your own playlist (those were my 3 biggest complaints about the original game).  I think my sister will get it for me for Christmas.  Yay!
Zumba 2 Amazon Link


Nutrition
My food has been awesome the past couple of days, so I am really pleased about that.  This is the last week for WLB, so although my exercise has not been fantastic I'm glad my food has been on track.  I always feel so much better when I eat the right things.  I'm going to look online for a nice crockpot meal for today I think.

Misc
I'm planning to spend a good bit of the weekend watching holiday movies on The Hallmark Channel.  I have already looked at the lineup and some of my favorites will be on this weekend.  This is the first time all football season that I have no plans for Saturday.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do.  Maybe that's a good thing and I won't eat horrible bar food lol!  Anyway, I hope you all have a great weekend!

Madagascar version of I Like to Move It

Goals

This will be a short post, because I'm actually in the middle of typing and researching a 16 page paper that's due Monday.  I'm such a procrastinator.  I needed a break though and decided to blog.

I've been thinking about goals lately.  Without Sam, my exercise dedication has been losing steam.  Don't get me wrong, I'm still doing it, but I don't have quite the same amount of joy.  It's like I have nothing to look forward to.  So, I need goals.  For the past year or so I have had dreams of becoming a runner.  I have attempted and quit the Couch 2 5k program twice out of sheer laziness.  With that being said, I am signing up for a half marathon in April 2012.  I am really hoping that 6 months is enough to get me in decent shape.  I will either be doing the Rock 'n' Roll in Nashville, TN or the Oak Barrel Half in Lynchburg, TN.  at the moment I am leaning towards the Lynchburg race.  The Nashville race will feature country music, which I'm not a huge fan of (but if Keith Urban or Kenny Chesney will be there then sign me up lol).

I can currently jog for about 12 minutes nonstop.  At the end of that time I think I'm going to pass out though lol.  So, I am probably going to give the C25K program a shot again.  I'm going to use next week and this weekend trying to figure out just where in the program I should start.  I'll try Week 1 Day 1 and see if it's too easy, or a pretty good fit.  I am going to look for shorter distance races to schedule before the half in order to keep me motivated, but the half is my ultimate goal.  Wish me luck!

On another note, I did a workout from Oxygen Magazine on Wednesday and I am so sore.  The workout I used was from the Jan 2010 issue.  I have close to 5 years of Oxygen magazines at home.  I have read each of them in its entirety at some point, and I am still overweight.  That just goes to show that you can know what to do and have all the right tools, but you will not change until you are ready to do so.  Anyway, it was a full body strength training routine and boy am I feeling it.  The soreness makes me feel alive though, in some odd way...go figure.

I tried to make this pic extra large, so everyone can read the words.  I hope they are not too blurry from my enlarging it.  No song today...Happy Friday!

Just Do You

The Week 2 WLB Results are in.  I'm down 3 lbs in two weeks and that is good, but when I look at where I rank with the other ladies...I feel awful.   I keep having to make mental adjustments.  In the past I've really only looked at my own numbers and for the most part I am generally pleased with them.  So, when I see others posting huge numbers I think "crap!"  Then I realize that I have to just do me.  A loss is a loss is a loss, and I'm losing lbs and inches, so in the words on Charlie Sheen, "I'm WINNING." Sorry, I just couldn't help it lol!

I'm currently at work and I have the urge to go jogging, which I have not done in quite awhile, so that's exactly what I plan to do.  We have had a huge drop in temp though, so it might be pretty cold when I go.  It's supposed to be between 37 and 57 today.  I like cooler temps, but I don't like the 30s.  I've been thinking more and more about getting on a jogging schedule.  I consistently jogged about 2 years ago for 2 months and after the first 3 weeks or so I really enjoyed it.  Plus, I dropped weight. 

I'm really hoping this upcoming weigh in goes well.  I am 0.6 lbs away from a weight I have not seen in 2 years.  After that, I will be about 5 lbs away from a weight I have not seen in probably 7 years.  So, I have some pretty big scale milestones coming up and I'm excited. 

Also, WLB is having a giveaway right now.  So, stop by and enter.  Pure Pearls Giveaway

Beyonce - Get Me Bodied

Overslept

I completely missed my 5k.  I went out last night with my sister and a friend I have not seen since July, so I overslept this morning.  The big picture for the 5k was the fundraising, so I at least accomplished that.  I'm a little disappointed I missed it.  On the other hand, I would not have traded the night with my sister and my friend for it.  I rarely get to see wither of them anymore, so for me it was worth it.  I'm planning to doing a 5k on my own at some point this week, just to kind of see how long it will take me to finish.  I'm also going to look at the calendar for my local track club to see what other 5ks are coming up and I'll sign up for one of them.

I have to weigh in tomorrow for WLB, and after eating (I did share them) cheese sticks, cheese fries, and drinking 4 alcoholic drinks last night I'm not so sure how that's going to go.  Other than that I've done pretty well this week with food.  I've had lots and lots of grilled chicken, baked fish, veggies, and water.

I'm still having problems with my chest being sore/burning when I do the slightest bit of exercise.  It's not a huge issue, but it's there.

Today I'm doing some ST (strength training) while watching football.  I'll be mixing in squats, leg lifts, push ups, and jumping jacks on commercials and when a team scores.  I have already started and I should have thought to keep track of it all, because I'm curious how many I will end up doing, but I didn't think of it until this moment.  I hope everyone is having a great Saturday!
Anastacia - I'm Outta Love