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!

Finding A Groove

I'm starting to feel alright about working out.  First, I'll tell you what I've done since my last blog. 

Friday:  I don't think I did any exercise.  If I did, I don't remember what it was.
Saturday: 1 hr of zumba
Sunday: 1:2 jogging interval for 20 minutes (1.33 miles)
              Leg press 90 lbs 3x12
              Squats (body weight) 3x12
              Rotary Calf Machine 70 lbs 3x15
              Leg Extension 50 lbs 3x12
Today:  DB Chest Press 12 lb db 3x12
             Modified Push-Ups 3x12
             Tricep Pushdowns 30 lbs 3x12
             Lateral Raises 5 lb db 3x8
             Front Raise 5 lb db 3x8
             Elliptical for 20 min

Zumba is always fun, and I'll do it pretty much any time I can.  You just dance, who would not love that.  Plus, I love Latin music, and from what I hear 60% of any zumba class should be Latin music.  I also love weights.  I hate the soreness that follows, but I love using weights.  My problem always comes with cardio and eating well.  I don't know why, but I just hate cardio.  It was such a problem for me to stay on the elliptical.  I originally planned to do 30 min, but I was bored and just didn't want to, so I bailed after 20 min.  My gym used to have an Arctrainer.  I loved that machine and it made getting in cardio much easier.  About a month ago they got rid of them and bought new ellipticals.  I wish I could have afforded to buy them from my gym, but they wanted $2000...yeah...no thank you.  I remember getting to the point where I really enjoyed running.  I'm hoping to get to that point again really soon.  This week will start a new set of intervals for me.  I'm looking at the C25k plan and tweaking it for me and what I feel comfortable doing.  I'll be sure to come back and post what I decided to do tomorrow.

The soreness from Thursdays leg session was pretty intense.  Those deadlifts were something serious lol!  Deadlifts are one of my favorite exercises, but I have always been using pretty light weights (normally 20 lbs because I only have 10 lb db at home).  So, jumping up to a total of 40 lbs gave my hamstrings a shock.  It was pretty easy to do, but the soreness said otherwise lol!  I can still feel the soreness when I stretch.  Shockingly, I feel no soreness at all from Sunday.  I would normally have sore quads and calves, but so far...nothing.  I did cheat a little on Sunday, because I was sore from Thursday.  So, I did not use any weights for squats, and I halved the weight on the leg press.  I'll pick it back up next time. 

I guess the bottom line is that I am feeling alright, and I feel like I am finding my groove.  I know I can work harder, and hopefully I will this week.  I'm just happy to be active again.

I know it's weird, but this song pumps me up lol!
Phil Collins - Sussudio

Keep it Moving

So far so good.  I have nothing earth shattering to report, just that I am still moving.

Saturday:
30 min Zumba

Sunday:
30 min Zumba
50 Modified Push-ups
50 Squats
50 Leg Lifts

Monday:
60 min Zumba

Today:
50 Mountain Climbers
50 Jumping Jacks
10 V-Ups
(I did this circuit of 3 exercises 6 times for a total of 300, 300, and 60, then)
15 Modified Push-ups
15 Squats

I was planning to do more push-ups and squats, but then I realized I am scheduled to do quite a few of them tomorrow, so I stopped.  The point is that I am moving and have been moving for 4 days in a row.  I had forgotten what it felt like to be sore...thank you 50 squats and push-ups from Monday.  I hate and love the soreness all at once.  I hate it because it hurts...no brainer.  I love it because I know I worked out. 

I was looking over some of the workouts I used to do with Sam, and I'm wondering how the heck I used to do all that stuff without vomiting.  I decided in December that I am probably going back to him.  Do I "need" him? No.  Can I physically do his workouts on my own? Yes.  Do I want to train with him? Does he motivate me? Do I think he is the best trainer ever? Yes! Yes! Yes!  So...I will probably be back with him at some point this month.

Here's my food diary from yesterday:

Ugh!  I have the absolute worst time with pictures on my blog lol!  You can always just click on the picture though to bring up a larger version of the chart in full.  I think my sat. fat and cholesterol are cut off on the side lol!  Saturated fat for the day was 9 and cholesterol was 162.  I don't really track food a lot.  I know it helps, but it takes up too much time for me.  The only thing not listed is the Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning I used on the chicken breast.  The point is that I was doing GREAT until I went out to a sports bar last night.  I had a small order of cheese fries, which I assume was about the same as a large order from a fast food place.  I also had two 6 oz. amaretto sours.  Do you see the calorie count and carbs in those 2 drinks????  944 calories and 152 carbs...whoa!  This is why one of my goals for the year was finding ways to celebrate that do not involve drinking.  Anyway, since I don't track often I just thought it would be nice to share the one day I did track with you all.

Have a great day and keep it moving everyone!

Breathe Carolina - Blackout

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

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!

A Case of the Blahs

Tonight I'm feeling very blah.  I can tell TOM will arrive tomorrow.  This leads me to the subject of weigh-in.  I hate stepping on the scale when I'm bloated.  I know the number is up because I'm bloated, but that does not mean I have to like it.  It still disappoints me.  I always post a huge gain when I'm bloated....I'm talking 3-5 lbs. 

Enough period talk lol!  This morning I tried Insanity.  I don't own the dvds.  My coworker purchased them and when he watched it (he did not do it), he decided that he needed time to mentally prepare lol!  So, he told me I could borrow the set for a few days while he gets his mind right.  I LOVED it!  I had to stop for a few seconds a couple of times, but so did the people in the video; therefore, I did not feel bad at all about stopping.  It's definitely called Insanity for a reason.  I did a 40 min crazy cardio dvd and then 16 minutes of cardio abs (which was on the same dvd).  When I finished I was pumped and wanted to do more, but I decided not to push it.  Good thing I stopped, because I woke up sore (and not quite as in love with Insanity lol).  My thighs are not very happy with me right now.  I can completely see why people get results with this program.  I was sweating within 8 minutes, and that was still the so called warm up.  Maybe I'll get to keep it longer than expected while my co-workers mentally prepares.

Now it's time for my ode to Sam.  I had my last session with him on Friday.  It was bittersweet.  I'll probably end up going back to him in December or January, but it was really hard for me to accept that I won't be seeing him twice a week anytime soon.  He's going to write me out a program to follow while I'm away.  I feel that's really kind of him.  I know I don't NEED him, but he's wonderful.  I mean it.  I really cannot say enough about how great he is.  He is so supportive and pushes me out of my comfort zone, so that I can be my best.  His belief in me makes me feel I can do anything he asks me to do, and it makes me WANT to do it.  I thank him all the time and he always says there is no need to thank him, because I'm the one doing all the work.  He's freaking fantastic.  I wish I could wrap up mini Sams and send one to all of you.

Did I mention he's super cute? lol!  Anyway, I love Sam.  He's perfect and I'm going to miss him terribly.

Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams

Turning Into One of THEM

Sorry for the delay.  It's been a busy week...research, work, studying for exams...you get the idea.  Anyway, this has been a super week.  I've had some really great workouts that have challenged me every step of the way.  I honestly can't remember everything I did on Monday and Friday.  Wednesday was homework day.

2 laps
10 push-ups
2 laps
10 burpees

I had to do this for 6 rounds.  This means I jogged 3 miles, did 60 push-ups, and 60 burpees.  I thought it would never end lol!  It took me 50 min 50 sec to finish.  I went to do this at the Rec Center as soon as I got off on Wednesday morning.  I was in the middle of round 1 and guess who comes upstairs with a client...Sam.  He looks at me and says "faster faster" lol!  Part of me was happy he saw me doing things on my own, so he knows I'm really putting in the work.  Another part of me was thinking oh no, now I really have to do it lol!  When I met with him on Friday he said when he saw me jogging on Wednesday he was so happy and felt like a proud father haha!

Let me give you a few videos of exercises I had to do this week that completely wore me out:

1. Weighted Rope Jumping Jacks
This is incredibly hard.  These ropes are super heavy and I felt like my arms were going to fall off.  I had to do 3 rounds of 30 on Monday.

2. Stability ball Push-Ups, Stability Ball Knee Tuck (In and Outs), Stability Ball Press
I could not find a video of what Sam called a press.  I did the push-up, immediately went into the knee tuck, and from the tuck to the "press".  Basically when you are back in the push-up position at the end of the knee tuck, press your hands into the ground and your body backwards on the ball (almost like you're trying to roll off of it backwards).  Once you push back as far as you can, then bring yourself forward again to the push-ups position.  It's almost a kind of stretch, but it works your arms and core like crazy.  Sorry if I did not explain it well enough.  I don't have a stability ball, so I can't just film myself.  I did 3 sets of 5 of these and believe me...that was PLENTY.  I'm sore as I type this.

3. Thrusters
I had 2-15 lb dumbbells.  I've done these in the past and it has not gotten any easier.  I had to do 3 rounds of 13 on Friday.

4. Box Jumps
For some reason these were very intimidating to me.  To be honest, I can remember the last time I jumped onto something with both feet like this.  I was always paranoid that I was not going to jump quite high enough and only hit the edge of the "box" and fall lol!  I did 3 rounds of 30 of these on Friday and boy they can wear you out big time!

5. Walking on Incline
On Monday I had to walk at a 12% incline.  At first, I thought "no problem".  After about a minute I was thinking will this ever end?  haha!  It was difficult for me, but I can say that if you do this consistently you should have killer legs!

It's funny how hard workouts motivate me to do more.

My food this week has been pretty good except for last night.  I went to a Mexican restaurant and had a taco salad made with steak.  I honestly probably wasn't too bad on its own because I did not eat the fried shell it came in.  I DID eat chips and cheese dip though plus a frozen mango margarita.  Eeeek!  Other than that I had a great food week.

This morning I woke up and my arms and core were pretty sore.  I thought to myself "Hmmm...it hurts so good.  I like this.  Sore IS good.......wait a sec.....Did I just think that?  Oh my, I'm turning into one of those crazy fitness people...mmm mmm mmm."  That was literally what when on in my head lol!  Then I got out of bed and did Zumba on Wii for 45 min.  Here's the sweaty pic I took afterwards.

So, looking at this now, you can't really tell I was sweaty, but I PROMISE I was soaking.  It just didn't translate well in the pic.  Yes, I know I look a mess with the headscarf on, but I like that my face looks thinner.  So, I'm posting it anyway!

Today I'm posting a zumba routine instead of a song since that's what I did this morning.  Try it out and let me know what you think!

Zumba - El Bacilon



Feeling Yesterday's Work

Man, I am really feeling all of the hard work I put in yesterday.  I'm especially having trouble with my thighs and core.  My thighs eventually warm up and feel better, but not my core.  I always realize what muscles are used for what when I'm sore.  It hurts to sit, stand, you name it lol! 

I went jogging this morning.  I'm beginning to doubt I can finish the 5k in under 40 min.  We'll see how it goes though.  I still think I can do it if I really push myself.  This morning I did 2 miles in 29 minutes.  I'm such a slow jogger, but at least I'm out there.  Plus, I get to see really cute guys on my trail lol!  One of the guys I saw this morning was just lovely haha!  It was funny because I was trying to keep my pace AND get a good look.

I still have a few more weeks until I take measurements again, but I know I'm getting smaller because of the way my workout pants are fitting.  When I first bought these pants they were tight and I liked them because they did not slip down when I did burpees with Sam.  I hate feeling like I'm mooning someone.  Anyway, these are beginning to slip now and they are not as tight.  The seat has become baggy and I have to pull them up after every two or three burpees.  Also, I looked in the mirror this morning and noticed my butt looks a little better.  So, I'm excited to take measurements in the next few weeks. 

The song for today is "Canned Heat" by Jamiroquai.  I'm using the Napoleon Dynamite clip though just because it makes me smile.
Jamiroquai - Canned Heat

Started Out with Good Intentions

Today was a jogging day.  I went early (6:45 am) and I made sure to take my water.  I started my 5 minute warm up and all was well.  I started jogging and that's when things went downhill lol!  The muscles near my shins were not cooperating AT ALL.  I was honestly pretty disappointed, because I felt great heading out there.  I think some of the problem comes from the short amount of jogging I had to do yesterday.  I did not jog much, but for some reason I pound a lot harder when I'm on a treadmill and I was a little sore from yesterday.  I might ask Sam not to jog on Tuesdays or I might stop jogging on Wednesdays and add a jogging day on the weekend.  I walked most of this, but I did 3.2 miles, which is a 5k, in 49 minutes.  When I race in less than 4 weeks I really want to finish in under 40 min, so I really need to push myself.

I think we were in the high 70s or low 80s early this morning, but the humidity is still ridiculous!  I was sweating like a crazy person.  I could not keep sweat out of my eyes and I don't even want to tell you what my shirt looked like when I was done.  Thank goodness my t shirt wasn't white lol!  I'm going to have to start jogging with a face towel.  I had to go to the grocery store immediately afterwards, and a guy looked at me and said, "You've been jogging."  Haha! 

I LOVE this song.  Skip the first minute and a half of the video to get to the song.
Nelly Furtado - Maneater

Sore Core

Sorry I have not blogged in awhile.  I've still been at it though.  I am still seeing Sam twice a week and he is still kicking my butt lol!  I really have to do better when it comes to my own cardio at home.  I am the type of person who does it just to say I did it.  I really need to get in the habit of pushing myself though.  I know I won't have Sam forever.  We did two new exercises on Thursday and I was really feeling it yesterday.

Plank on Stability Ball
This was the first of the two.  It was harder than I thought it would be.  I only did 3 of these and I held each for 60 seconds.  I was sweating like a crazy person!

Stability Ball Knee Tuck
I thought this was going to kill me lol!  It was insanely hard to do.  I did not do many of these at all.

Today I am feeling better, but yesterday I was hurting in parts of my core that I did not realize existed.  Soreness always makes me realize which muscles are used when I do simple things like walking.  I can tell I am getting much stronger though, and I absolutely love that.

Here is a list of the rest of my workout:
120 squats
90 modified push ups
60 leg lifts
a circuit of (10 burpees, sprinting half a track, 15 modified push ups, walking down stairs, back up stairs, 10 walking lunges, and sprinting the other half of the track)  I did this circuit twice.

I've been asked what a burpee is, so I'm including a link to it too.
Burpees

I can remember back 7 weeks ago, and I never would have been able to do all of this.  I have really improved.  My eating is better too.  When I do go out to eat I am learning to only eat half of what I get.  It has truly been a learning process.  I definitely have a long way to go, but I'm definitely making progress.

Today's song has grown on me.  I did not like this song at all the first time I heard it, but now it really makes me move.  Enjoy!
Jason Derulo - Don't Wanna Go Home

He's Right

So, it was another day with Sam.  I was still SUPER sore, and he said he doesn't want me that sore and we took it a little easier today.  He said that if I'm constantly in terrible pain from soreness it will be all I ever think about and I will not want to train.  Honestly, he's right.  I was absolutely dreading going to my session today and I almost cancelled, because I just didn't think my body could do it. 

I'm glad I went.  Don't get me wrong; he worked me hard.  I am sore, but I can move comfortably right now.  I don't feel like body parts are going to fall off lol!  We had a chance to talk a little more today, and I feel blessed that Sam was assigned to me.  He really cares and I could really tell that today.  This is his career.  It isn't just a hobby or side job for him.  It is what he's passionate about doing, which makes him more invested in me.  He doesn't want me to simply set weight loss goals.  So, I have other goals like taking steps to eating clean, 25 regular push ups with perfect form, a 5k, a 10k, and eventually a half marathon.

I was doing bicep curls set at 35 lbs and I told him, "You think I'm stronger than I really am."  He looked at me with a grin and said,  "You're a heck of a lot stronger than you think you are.  I'm not the one confused."  After some reflection, I've come to the conclusion that he's right.  This is my 3rd week with him and I'm doing things I never would have thought I could do.  There have been several moments when he tells me to do something and I think I absolutely cannot do this.  I think my body is going to fail me.  Well, I have done every single thing he has asked me to do, so he must be right...I AM stronger than I give myself credit for.

Rough Day

Yesterday was a training day with Sam.  I walked into yesterday's session not feeling my best.  I did several push-ups, step ups, shoulder presses, squats, chest passes with a weighted ball, flutter kicks, leg lifts, etc.  I really can't remember everything.  I can remember that it was hard lol!  I was truly exhausted and afterwards I felt like I was going to vomit.  I think I had some kind of a short term stomach bug.  I spent much of yesterday sick.  I know Sam has worked me harder than what we did yesterday before, so I was probably just a little under the weather since the queasy feeling lasted all day and into the night.

I'm feeling much much better today, but the soreness I feel is awful.  Being sore is the worst part of working out.  I did Zumba on Wii for 45 minutes today and that cardio did help to loosen up my muscles a bit.  I really hate the pain of being sore.  I'm not sure if it will ever go away, because he is constantly changing what I do and challenging me.  I wish losing the weight was as easy as gaining the weight.