It's Been a Few Days

Although it has been a few days since I posted, I am proud to say that it hasn't been a few days since I've worked out.  I worked out everyday this week except for Friday well... because I just didn't feel like it.  I've heard that it takes a least 2 weeks for things to become a habit and I have been working out for at least that long and I still get that "I don't want to work out today" feeling.   Case in point, yesterday I was going to do p90x leg day.  I got up,  popped in the video, started doing the initial stretching exercises, logged into WOWY and then my body just refused to co-operate.  I just kept thinking about how I didn't want to do squats, lunges and all the other exercises. I also kept thinking that  the workout lasted 60 minutes and I ended up just turning the video off, canceling my workout on WOWY and doing nothing.  I guess it be's like that sometimes but I literally find that I have to give myself a pep talk to work out because every day its the same thing..I DON'T FEEL LIKE IT!!!!   Now,  I know I need to lose weight and I desire to lose weight but I'm just waiting for my head and body to fall in line with each other.  I'm just waiting for it to become habit where I just get up and don't even think about what I'm doing.

On another note, I have Shaun T's Rockin Body and it is so much fun.  I find myself grinning from ear to ear when I do it especially his Disco workout!   My child came in and saw me and said he was going to video tape me and put it on Youtube.  lol  That's an automatic ass whooping if he does and I find out about it because I am not trying to become the next You Tube Sensation.  One more bit of news I'd like to share.  After days of stepping on the scale and watching it fluctuate between 219 and 220 lbs.  I stepped on today and it read 216.  Not much but hey, I'll take it.  I just need to see some semblance of evidence that the work I've been doing is not in vain.    I did 30 minutes on the Wii fit and to make up for yesterday's missed activity and the Hula Hooping is no joke.  My heart rate got up to 173 bpm trying to beat the high score and I could definitely feel it in my abs.  lol I also did Rockin' Body Disco Groove too

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No I didn't fall off. Well at least I don't consider it falling off

Yes, I'm still on my workout grind. But because I had guests and the kiddies out of school for the holiday, I was hard pressed to find some time to get in a workout. That's right.... from last week Wednesday to Sunday I did nada but I was back in the swing of things yesterday and today. I did my first lower body workout yesterday and you can best believe I am feeling it today. I remember at one point I could do this entire workout and not get winded or tired...Now I had to take breaks. Just think, If I had kept it up when I first started working out, I'd be slim and trim and fit as a fiddle by now. Makes me angry when I think about it but what can I do but keep the momentum going. Normally, I'll wait to the new Year to start working out again and make my New Year's resolution that I'd undoubtedly break within a month or two. This time, by the time New Years rolls around, I'll already have a month and a half in. I have a good 50 lbs that I'd like to lose (maybe more) so I have t get with it and stick with it!

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Day 3 Reflections time to tackle Day 4

I still have my momentum going. I did Turbo Jam cardio Party yesterday and got kind of frustrated since my timer wasn't working correctly. I had to keep stopping and starting and the frustration got the best of me. I only made it through 21 minutes of the 50 minute video. eating was okay, Not as good as my first two days but I'm okay with it. I ate a few small slices of pizza. (2 oz) and yes I did weight them. lol and a few katydids ( I call them turtle candies, don't act like ya'll don't know what turtles are) Anyway, yes I ate them most likely just because they were there, My mom, "grandma" as the ids call her is at it again and sent them over with her sabotaging self. Of course she didn't make e eat them but now they're gone and no more worries. I don't think I veered off track to bad ...as a matter of fact, I don' think that they will even mess up my calories as far as my eating for the day but I'll know for sure once I plug in all the number from my meals.

Anyway, Today is a new day that started off not so good. I weighed myself yesterday and weight 219.4 and again today and the scale said 220.4. That's not supposed to happen. I know with daily weigh ins, the scale tends to fluctuate up and down quite a bit due to a variety of reasons. I also know that taking measurements and the fit of your clothes are much better indicators of how i'm doing in my fitness program but I can't help but feel a bit down about it. Today I have resolved to put my all into my workout today and get back on track with the 100% clean eating. I've already started on the right track by having a bowl of oatmeal. I had to choke it down because I didn't doctor it like I usually dow ith my cream, butter, and splenda. I'm also going to try my hardest to get a second workout in. This has been on my agenda since day 1 bt as of yet, hasn't happened and there really is no excuse.

As always, YES I CAN!

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Day 2

Right now I'm sweating and feeling great. I just finished my workout, level 1 of Jilian Michaels 30 day shred.   Talk about an ass kicking video, this truly kicked my butt.

 This is my first time using this video and I like it because Jillian is just as motivational on the tape as she is on Biggest Loser.  I had a few moments where I had to just stop and walk it out for a moment becuase this tape is a total body workout, alternating upper and lower body strength training with bouts of cardio and abs in between. Oh did I tell you the workout has no breaks!!!!!  It's 20 minutes of non stop weights , carido,  leg work and abs.

You are supposed to do this every day for 30 days but I think I will give it a go every other day anticipating the day when I can complete the entire video.  

Eating has been good so far, in a minute, I'm going to have a snack. I'll have to force myself to eat it because with all of the water I drank during the workout, I'm not hungry.

I'm still in the tweaking phase so I haven't quite gotten a routine down yet, I'm still trying to see what things work for me.. anyway that's it for now,

YES I CAN!!!

Time: 20:50
Calories 305
Avg HR157
Max HR 181.

The time and calories are a little bit inaccurate because I had my tracker paused for a good 10 minutes before I realized it.

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First day Reflections

It felt so great to be back on track with the working out and weightloss.  I felt refreshed and just excited to be working out again.

I can honestly say that I ate clean the entire day, no cheating what so ever except for a pack of Orbit gum and even that's sugarless.  I ate boiled egg whites, broccoli, chicken breasts, turkey breast, and salmon, and an EAS shake.  That's it and  I  can honestly say that I wasn't even hungry.  I tried to spread my meals out every 2 or three hours  in an attempt to get 6 meals in but  I only managed to get in 4 and I suspect that is because I didn't get to eat breakfast until 10 am.  I also managed to get in one workout but the plan was to get in two. One in the morning and one in the evening.  Today was a cardio day so I did HHA (Hip Hop Abs) earlier and I planned to do a walk away the pounds tape in the evening but I couldn't find my tapes so that was a bust.  Today I will be doing weight training. Haven't quite decided whether I'm going to break it up into body parts  or whether I'm going to go for the whole body until I get back into the swing of things.  

Upward and onward to day 2!

YES I CAN!!

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Offically Day 1

Okay well I have a little extra motivation to get it back right and tight.   Something must be in the air because  as of late, I have reconnected with several old boyfriends and needless to say, they all still got it going on while I, on the other hand, look  nothing like I did when we were together.  One is looking particularly fine these days, dayum is he looking fine, arms, chest, abs.  Whew lawd!!!!   Not to get off track but i'll be dayum if I'm gonna let them look better than me (I know it's shallow,  so very shallow) but ladies you know what I'm talking about.  Doesn't matter who broke up  with whom, doesn't matter how long it's been since you've been together, doesn't matter how many men you've been with since said relationship, you always want your exes to see you looking fierce and fabulous.    

Now don't get me wrong, that's notthe only reason why I want to get in shape.  I am just tired of looking like this,  not to mention I had a health scare earlier this year and while I'm fine, I know that my health and my happiness will greatly benefit by getting and staying in shape. I also want to be around for a long time for my children and future grand children,  I want to be one of those MILFs,  lmao!!

Anyway.  I did 30 minutes of Hip hop abs

415 calories burned

151 average heart rate

179 max heart rate.

I plan to do another workout later on this evening and I'm trying ya'll, I really am to eat clean.  

I plan to cook my food for the week so I won't get too hungry and start grabbing at the first thing I can get my hands on.

While my family can  undoybtedly benefit from a healthy lifestyle as well. They'll stone me before they allow me to take the  snacks out of the house.  

I'll just keep repeating my mantra,  

YES I CAN!!!

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The Chick Is Back

Nothing like a few photos to snap a girl back into reality.  Now I, in no way am under the impression that I am not overweight but  viewing my family reunion photos,  lawd, I look big.  

However, I still have no motivation to get myself in shape, nevertheless, I have resolved to get moving today.  I don't even like to post photos of myself because this is not the me that I want to be.  I have truly fallen off big time.  You'd understand if you saw photos of the way I used to look.  It's a sad state of affairs indeed.  On another note, I have created a  facebook account at the request of my cousin.  I have reconnected with a few college buddies  but despite the requests, I refuse to post a photo because I have  changed so much since then . Sad I know!  I figured its time for me to stop talking the talk and to start walking the walk.  I know what I need to do, I know how to do it, I have all the tools that I need to do it so there is nothing left but to GET TO IT!!  

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Time to Make the doughnuts

When it rains it pours.  Last week the kiddies were on Spring Break.  My babies birthday was on Easter and she wasn't feeling well, stomach ache, headache, and such.  Come Monday, guess who isn't feeling well?That's right, Yours truly.  I still tried to workout and power through the upset stomach and dizziness but about 10 minutes into the workout I started feeling lightheaded.  I decided to lie down and rest for a few minutes and ended up sleeping for about 5 hours straight.  I stayed in bed the rest of the day and come Tuesday, while the stomach ache is better, I have a cough, sore throat, stuffy nose, and lightheadedness.  needless to say I was no good.  It got progressively worse to the point that I couldn't taste or smell.  Can you imagine not being able to taste?  I would've though I would've had no appetite but my stomach was still rumbling.  It sucks to eat and not be able to taste though.  Anyway, While I'm still stuffed up and coughing, I have can now taste and smell again and I feel much better than I did so I'm going to attempt to workout again today. We'll see how it goes.    3 days a week minimum for the entire month of APril..that's the plan and I'm sticking to it!!

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I know ya'll are tired of me.

Yes, yes,  I'm back again.  While I have been working out (sporadically at best) I had managed to stick with my 3 day a week goal save for a missed week and a half due to circumstances beyond my control.  My diet, however, has not been that great.  I have been introduced to a little Italian spot and their chicken and shrimp Fettucini Alfredo is to die for.  You hear me?  TO DIE  FOR!!  

I hopped on the scale and didn't like what I saw (like I've ever liked what I've seen) so I think a revamping is in order.

I have decided to embark on the p90x journey and follow it to the letter.  Of course I will have to tweak a few of the routines, namely Pylo and some of the exercises for the legs, due to knee issues but that's the plan.  I did my first chest and back workout today and I felt good about it.  While I don't think I gave it all that I could have, I'm proud of the fact that I managed to stick it out for the entire workout and 1/4 of the way through the ab routine.  Thats a start  right? 

I'm still having motivational issues but like I said before,  success stories and before and after photos help me a lot.  I find it so hard to get started but one thing is for sure, Once I've started I feel great afterwards. There is  nothing like hitting the shower after working up a sweat.  I love that feeling!!  I am definitely going to have to put forth my best effort in losing this weight because I've been saying the same thing for about 8 years now and I'm still in the same situation I was back then, FAT!!   I've also noticed that I've been feeling sluggish and rundown lately.  I don't have nearly the amount of energy that I should have ad I know that working out will help with that.  Shoot, the summer is almost here and I will definitely need my energy.

So....I've got the plan and I even took some before photos but hmmmph, I will not be posting them until I can see some visible progress.  I need to take an official weight and do some measurements and I'll be good to go. I think I will do that tomorrow when I first wake up and use that to track my progress.  

Since I'm currently around 217 I think my first goal will be to get out of the teens. I have no idea how long that should take but given the 2 lb per week rule of thumb I'm thinking about a month or month and a half.

I'm also going to make a concerted effort to track my meals more diligently.  I have several programs I can use for this and I may even start frequenting  "Spark People" again.  Anyone want to start a Spark People Group?

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Such a procrastinator I am.

 I have come to the realization that I am truly a visual person.  I NEED the visuals in order to become and to stay motivated.   I can have no interest in working out, look at someone's progress photo and that is the push that I need to get off my behind.  I don't know why that is.  I know I'm a competitive person.  When I'm viewing someone else's progress photos, while I'm thinking, If they can do it then I can do it too.... I'm not really thinking that I can lose more or do it quicker than they did.  So it may not be because of my competitiveness but I guess more so inspiration.   I've also come to the realization that I'm even more of a procrastinator than I thought.  Yes,  the little project that I was working on mid January for 3 weeks kept me plenty busy and prevented me from working out. Well I could've worked out  had I not been run ragged, and dog tired when I got off.  I had no energy to do anything other than eat( and I even skipped  that a few times) and sleep.   After things returned to normal, I really had no excuse not to work out other than the fact that I just didn't feel like it.  Like I've said  in previous posts, I wake up having every intention of getting a work out in, but as the day drags on, it starts looking less and less like that will be happening.  Then my mind starts to churning and making up excuses in addition to the ones that my body has already come up with.  Today I decided that I just needed to do it and I did but my stamina wasn't anywhere  near where it should've been,  hell, it wasn't anywhere  near where it was when I started at the beginning of the year.  Nevertheless,  I got up and moved something.

I am still undecided about renewing my Bally's  membership. I just really hate driving that far. They have offered me a 20% discount on my membership renewal fee which is somewhat of an incentive so I really need to give that some thought.   There are 2 Bally's near me.  The one closest to me which is about 15-20 minutes away, you have to deal with the men trying to hit on you while you are working out, plus the amenities aren't that great.  I mean, I go in there and I put on my IPOD and you still have dudes trying to chat when it is obvious that i don't want to be bothered.  The other ( which is about 30 minutes away) allows me to work out in peace.  I love the set up of the place and they have a wider variety of equipment to use.  I mean you have your oglers there as well but they won't bother you unless invited.   When it gets warmer out, I also have a walking/running track near my home which I could also put to good use.  

The summer will be here before I know it and I've already wasted 2 months this year.  From here on out I will stay on the grind tweaking my diet and exercising regularly ( regularly for me means at least 3 days per week) although once I get my mojo back I'm sure that I will be working out considerably more than that.

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I think I'm getting my mojo back

 Did some more upper body work today on my arms and shoulders.   Shoulders are the one part of my body that I normally DO NOT work on.  Aside from the fact that they are my weakest body part, my shoulders are already broad enough.  I think that if I do any work on them as far as weightlifting goes, I'll be looking like a linebacker for the Patriots.  I worked them out a little today with light weights because that was all that I was able to do. I have to read up on it though because I don't need to be looking right everywhere else except for my shoulders.

I weighed myself this morning and the scale read 214.0  Yayyyyy!  I know I didn't lose 1.6lbs. in 3 days and most likely it was water weight but  who cares about  the reasoning behind it ... I'm just happy to see the scale moving in the right direction, DOWNWARD!!!  I do weigh myself every single day, or nearly everyday.  YES!!!  I AM A SCALE WHORE!  I know that I probably shouldn't and that it goes against the rules that I posted yesterday but  there is a method behind the madness, honestly.  I'm using a program that tracks your meals and it asks for your weight each day.  There is a work around to the daily weighing but I haven't figured out how to do it just yet so until I do, the scale will be calling me each and every morning that I arise.   

My eating is getting better but still not the greatest ( had oatmeal, kiwi fruit and a Lean cuisine meal so far today.) You're probably thinking "That's great, sounds okay to me" but I normally tend to do good during that time.  It's the dinner and after dinner hours that usually do me in.  I get crazy cravings and hunger pangs around 4-7 or 8 PM.  Most of the time they are sugar cravings and other times, I'm just itching to get my snack on.  I'm not really a sweets person in the  usual sense of the word.  Cakes, cookies, pies and the like do not do it for me,Will not do it for me!  I'm a food kind of gal, pasta is my real weakness, followed by candy( and not the chocolate kind.)  Jolly Ranchers, Now & Laters, ( yes I'm taking it wayyyyy back) BlowPops and the like.  I used to eat bags of candy a day but I have since switched to orbit gum, in  which I tend to go through unbelievable amounts .  I will, however,  focus more on the eating side of things in the next week or two.  Right now I'm concentrating on working out to make sure that I stick with it and that I don't allow my laziness(aka Lazy Ass) to talk me out of getting up and moving!  Wouldn't want to lose my mojo, now that I'm finally getting it back!

  The next two weeks will be a real challenge for me because I have to be at work a few hours earlier during that time and it will definitely interfere with my morning workouts.   If I don't work out in the mornings, I will not work out at all ( no matter how much I tell myself that I am going to.)  I am so not an evening person but I am "Determined to be fit" this year so I guess I have to do what I have to do...right?    I will also try to post daily during those next two weeks so if you notice that I haven't posted about working out or what have you,   Pleaseeeeee feel free to send me an E-smack( or you can leave me a clever little reminder in my c-box on the right) so I can get it back in gear because most likely, that would mean that  I haven't done nada.

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I recently visited one of two message boards that I had on MSN since 2002.  It has long since died but I was browsing through some of the info that I posted to keep members motivated and came across these.  (No, I didn't make this up and it's been so long, 5 yrs. ago that I couldn't even begin to remember where I got them)  I think this is a good place to start and so I am posting this just as much for myself as I am for those of you that may need a little help in devising a plan.  As you all may or may not know, I am a huge procrastinator so it may take me a little while to implement.  Enjoy!

SET GOALS

Here are a few 'real life' tools that will help get you started and keep you in the game when trying to reach your health goals.

• Pick a specific goal. You want to lose weight, but how much? For example, you would like to weigh what you weighed in high school (50 pounds lighter), but your doctor says it would be a good start if you would just take off 10 pounds. The goals you aim for don't have to be the be-all and end-all of your life, but they will help you get focused. The more specific, the better.

• Pick a reasonable time frame. Is your goal realistic for your time frame? You don't want to set yourself up for disaster and disappointment. For example, you have a wedding to go to in a month and want to lose 50 pounds. Sorry to say, but that ain't gonna happen; you're simply setting yourself up for failure. About two pounds a week is reasonable. Any more weight loss than that is unrealistic. If you're unsure what a reasonable time frame is, consult a fitness expert.

• Tell a friend. It can seem less embarrassing if you don't tell anybody what your goals are (just in case you don't accomplish them), but telling a friend helps hold you to your goals and can help provide some driving motivation. If your goal is to do 20 minutes of exercise daily and you're not feeling up to it, a friend can be the one to help you get your butt in gear. Enlist the help of a friend who's had some success in the fitness department. Or get a friend who could use a push herself to hit the gym or the road with you. It's often more fun when you're exercising with someone else.

• Make a Plan. Design your program by reading literature or consulting a health and fitness expert. Write out a day-by-day or week-by-week program that slowly but consistently increases exercise time and effort. For instance, try walking 10 minutes one day and then increasing the time by 1 or 2 minutes a day. You'll be up to 20 or 30 minutes in no time.

• Track your progress. How do you know if you are accomplishing what you set out to do? By keeping a training log so you can see where your improvements and weaknesses are. A simple calendar or weekly planner will do. It is rewarding to see that power-walking an extra tenth of a mile each day adds up to an extra half-mile at the end of the week.

• Be careful of injury. If you experience any signs of injury, revise your plan. Getting injured is one of the main reasons people fall short of their fitness goals. If you are trying to do too much too quickly, cut back.

The 10 Commandments Of Weight loss/Body Sculpting Perfection

Commandment #1: Belive in yourself!!    If not, you won't be able to achieve your desired
results!!!!

Commandment#2: Write down your goals. How can you get somewhere it you don't know where you are heading?

Commandment#3: Set New Goals Every Six Weeks. After 6 weeks, compare your results against what you had in your original goals.

Commandment#4: Place a calendar on your fridge. Mark a back slach on the days that you followed your diet without cheating. Make a forward slash on the days that your trained. If you trained and followed a good diet on a given day, you should have an "X" marked on that day.

Commandment#5: Place a picture of how you currently look somewhere that you will be able to see on a daily basis. This picture should provide you with additional motivation to follow the program.

Commandment #6: Take pictures of yourself every 4 weeks and place them on the refrigerator next to your "before" picture. That way, whenever you have a craving and go to the refrigerator you will remember the reason that you are doing this and also get motivated by seeing the progress that you are achieving.

Commandment #7: Write down the reasons why you are following this program and put them on your refrigerator. Same benefit as item 6.

Commandment #8: Keep your house free from any foods that are not good for your program. Only on FREE DAY can you bring these foods into the house. yayyyyy free day!!!!

Commandment#9: Remember to prepare all of your meals the day before,so that when you are at work, you already have all the food that you will need for the day with you. That way you limit the amount of times you will be tempted.

Commandment #10: Remember that only you can control what gows in your mouth. Food does not control you!!!!!!

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Feeling Good

Another day down.  I decided to do some upper body work yesterday.  Had to ease myself back into it so I only did one round out of the two that are required.  I'll definitely be working my way back up to that point. I even dragged out my old lunge bar  that I bought.

 

 I also did some stretching before working out, something that I never, ever, ever did in the past (I know, bad me) but honestly In an effort to save time and get the workout over quickly, I would skip the stretching before hand which can sometimes last a good while.  Not today, I did all of the stretching and I'll have to wait and see if there is a noticeable difference.

On another note, I'm still going back and forth on whether or not I want to keep up with my gym membership or let it go.  Truth be told, I can't even remember the last time I've set foot in Bally's.  On top of that, they keep raising my monthly fees to the point where I'm not even sure what it is now.  It was $8 a month and now who knows what it is.  I just hate to let it go and lose all of the money that I put into purchasing it but what's the point if I'm not going?  I just wish the gym was a little closer to me (it's not really that far but I'm spoiled like that)  The plan was to keep it for another year and see what happens and then make a decision.  I may still do that but I have to call them and see what's up with these increasing fees.  Bally's Sucks (just in case ya didn't know)

Eating was okay.  Had Tacos(yeah, yeah I know) but I promised the kiddo that I would make them today, especially since  their hearts were set on getting them yesterday.  Now what kind of mommy would I be had I let them down? lol  

Time: 22:30
Cal: 221
Max HR:155
Avg HR: 124

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Day 1 update!

So, Last Night I was thumbing through this issue of People MAgazine and I found it very inspiring.  While most of the people featured in this issue lost their weight using a diet plan (LA weight loss, Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Optifast) I still found  their success to be rather motivating.  While I don't plan to pay for a diet program, I do plan to change my eating habits (which by the way, yesterday was a bust). 

 I don't know what happened but at dinner time, as usual, I fell off.  I just didn't feel like cooking so I threw in a frozen pizza for the kiddies and it was a wrap.  I didn't over indulge but It wasn't the healthiest, most balanced meal I could've... no, I should've prepared.  Anyway,  I think I will be following a piece of  advice that I gleaned from the article.  Since I am just starting out AGAIN, I will focus on working out for the first one or two weeks and then after that, I will concentrate on overhauling my diet.  That doesn't mean  that all food will be ago, it just means that I'm going ot focus on one thing at a time.  MAybe one week, I'll do less sugar, the next, water, the next more veggies, and so on.  You get my point.  Anyway, that's the plan for now but as with everything, it is always subject to change.  Oh yeah,  If you need motivation or inspiration, pick up that issue of People!

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New Year, New Me!

So I am back on it again.  With all of the holiday festivities behind me I am once again getting myself back on track.  I got on the scale this morning and it said 215.6 lbs.  An all time high for me.  You would think  that with what the scale showed me this morning, working out would be no problem, but my mind was telling me a whole "nother story.  I really didn't feel like doing anything today.  When I woke up, I was all gung ho, but as the day drags on I get less and less enthused about working out.  I told myself that I would just start tomorrow instead of today( my mantra as of late) until I realized that tomorrow would be the same thing.  With that, I decided to get up off of my fat behind and do something.  I did my 20 minute turbo jam with every intention of starting off slow and not putting much effort into the workout. (Hey, it's my first day back working out, but after I got more and more into the music I found myself jumping, running, and sweating up a storm.)  I felt great afterwards and realized how much my body needed that.   The only bad thing is that I had about 4  chocolate chip cookies today, (they were a good size too). I'm not going to beat myself up about it but instead I will  do better tomorrow.  I plan to do a 7 day  partial fast with my church starting on the 14th until the 21st.  Haven't decided what I will be giving up yet.  

Week 1 Goals:

Drink at least 64 oz of water this week

Eat at least 2 servings of fruit and veggies

Work out at least 4 days this week.

I'm striving to get below 200 by march and hopefully lose considerably more by July 31st of this year. 

Time: 18.27

Calories: 269

Max Hr:178

Avg Hr:159

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