Catching Up

The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind of frenzied activity, mostly at my job. About half of our staff & GM went to a trade show last week, leaving me and one other in charge. Can you say HUGE responsibility??? This past week was spent doing paperwork from the trade show and retrieving our collective breaths. To add more fun to the mix, I played Super Woman and rotated my mattress all by myself. This herculean effort gave my back a whupping, almost knocking me out for the count.

I say almost, because though I was very sore, I still did a workout on Monday morning. The rest of the workweek was a wash. Both hubby and I were utterly exhausted all week, and my back was so sore by Wednesday, I had to take a half of Flexoril. That not only knocked me out enough to sleep through the night, but made me groggy all day Thursday. Yesterday, we felt better, but still slept a little later. This morning, however, we got up and after coffee, tackled the 4 mile walk.

Now, I like the 3 mile express walk that Leslie Sansone has, but after doing the 4 mile, I think I may like that better. The time is slightly longer, but you don’t feel it! She doesn’t have the strengthening and toning exercises in it, but knowing how she incorporates them into the 3 mile, it can’t be that hard to add them in.

I’m now about 2 months into my new workout routines, and it is difficult to maintain at times, yet I am finally noticing the scale begin to fall. This morning I weighed 252.2 with all my clothes on, depending on what I’m wearing I will subtract up to 2 pounds for clothing (my nutritionist did it, so I am too). This makes about 6-7 pounds since I started lost, and 10 from when the Lord started getting my attention to take my health serious.

I still track all I eat at sparkpeople.com, and I cook more at home, paying attention to what I am eating. I also am baking my own sweets, as I can control how much of each ingredient it contains and whether or not I want to substitute any of them.

Here’s to all of us who are working towards a common goal called health! Keep up the fabulous work!!

Keep On Keepin’ On

Yeah, I know. It’s been a wee bit since I’ve last updated you on all the fun I’m having with my weight loss journey. You may have thought I fell off the proverbial wagon, but I’m happy to report that I am still going strong!

Hubby and I have settled into a routine with our 3 mile workout. We actually enjoy it more than the 2 mile DVD and find it quite challenging. I’m still waiting to see drastic changes within my body. I know they are there, just below my skin, waiting to reveal themselves! I notice I have more stamina for the workout, and yesterday I was happy to note that I kept up in one part where I struggled to keep up before. Yahoo!

I’m successfully tracking my progress on my Sparkpage, and noticing that I don’t always eat the recommended amount of calories. It helps to be able to see where and what I eat more of, such as whether or not I get enough fiber, or how much sodium I’m taking in.  I haven’t seriously weighed myself since last week, I probably should, huh?

Till next time…have a super amazing week!

 

Maintaining Optimism

I like to think of myself as an optimist, but when it comes to this whole weight thing, nothing can knock me down faster than seeing the numbers on the scale move in the wrong direction. I decided to weigh myself yesterday and quickly discovered it was a bad idea. According to my scale, I have gained 2 pounds. “Well, this is damn depressing” was my first thought. I, however, am choosing not to let it bury me as it has before. I’ve taken some pro-active steps and am forging ahead.

I’ve had an account at Sparkpeople.com for a few years, yet my consistency in using it constitutes nothing short of an epic fail. Yesterday, I logged back in and began tracking my progress, again. If you don’t know what the website it, it’s a free site that offers a way to track your foods, fitness and nutrition; it has an online c0mmunity of support and it’s own social area. It’s pretty cool, actually, and I do like it better than WW. I don’t have to count points, I can simply add my foods in and it tracks the calories, protien, carbs, etc. There are over 60 nutrients that it can track, so if you are watching your sodium, it will calculate how much you’ve consumed based on what you’ve entered in your foods. I also appreciate that it calculates, mostly, how many calories you’ve burned based on your exercise and it can help you create an exercise plan. My hubby pretty much has set our workout schedule, so I don’t quite need Spark’s assistance in that area!

This has been a difficult week to get moving. I wasn’t feeling well on Sunday or Monday, so I didn’t exercise. Tuesday, we did the 2 mile power walk with Leslie and yesterday we did the stretching with Debie Seibers. This morning we popped in the Slim in 6 Start it Up and worked out. It breaks up the monotony which I can feel settling in with our walking DVD, although, had I an hour this morning, I would’ve have done the 3 mile walk. Dear Hubby insists he does not feel like working out, but I certainly can’t tell when he’s in the middle of an exercise move and trying to get my attention by making some silly face. It is all I can do to hold myself together and not fall over laughing hysterically at some of his antics. If nothing else, it’s that comic relief that keeps me motivated!

I have set a small goal for myself in my Spark account – I am determined to take off at least 15 pounds by mid-Nov. Now, who’s going to hold me accountable? Anyone?

Have an awesomely blessed day and Happy Fitness!

 

Three Mile Mark

Hubby and I are going to try the 3 mile walk today. I can do this!

I shall return later to give you the details 🙂

Happy Saturday!

Well, here’s my update…We did it! It’s an intense and powerful walk. I honestly surprised myself by sticking with it and going the whole 3 miles! The only part of my body that hurt throughout the workout was my feet. I have more stamina than I thought!

It is a longer workout, so to do this during the week means we would have to get up even earlier. I am blessed that my hubby is exercising with me & we are encouraging each other.

Great job! Gooooo me! 🙂

Diggin’ In

How serious am I? I have to ask myself this question often. I got back on the scale today to discover I’ve only lost 2 more pounds since I last weighed myself, which was maybe 2 or 3 weeks ago. This will not be an easy battle to win, but I am focused on the prize ahead! Not only a physical prize, but a spiritual prize as well!

My hubby has joined me in my fitness efforts (pretty sure I mentioned that before, but throwing it in again), which is a great bonus and encouragement. I’ve noticed more changes in him than I have in me, and it’s a great thing, actually. My husband has Type 2 Diabetes, exercise is a huge benefit for him as it helps regulate his blood sugar. We strive to work out every day, but we don’t always make it. We missed yesterday, but that was the first missed day since last Friday. I’d say we’re doing very well! We’ve been doing a 2 mile brisk walk every other day and abs/stretching on the others.

This morning was a victory for me! It was the first time through the 2 mile walk in which I did not have constant and tear-causing pain. Hooray! I guess sticking your butt out while walking is the correct way to walk! I have noticed a difference in how my back and hips feel. Since I threw out my sacroiliac joint in June, I’ve been more aware of my posture and how certain activities make me feel.

Back to my 2 pounds…now is the time for me to dig in. I have successfully formed a habit out of my fitness routine, even though it gets difficult to keep up sometimes. Now it’s time to make a habit to eat healthier. I downloaded a bunch of free cookbooks for my Kindle yesterday, and am looking forward to cooking up some healthy and delicious meals. They absolutely have to be delicious, or I won’t eat them! I am also looking around for Biblical Jewish cookbooks. I think it would be great to eat a more natural diet rather than grabbing for the quick and less expensive processed foods. I’m convinced, now, that a cake or a cookie from a box or package do more harm to a body than those made from scratch.

Enjoy your day! Don’t be afraid to share any recipes or tips to encourage me or others on our journey to health!

Kudos, Sally!

When Sally Adams found herself ready to give up, she suddenly found inspiration. So, from her to all of us struggling to stick with our programs at times…DON’T GIVE UP!

Picture courtesy of http://gma.yahoo.com/health/

Sally Adams Story

Hey, if she can do it, who says I can’t?

And I Will Walk 2 (10,000) Miles

Over the last couple of weeks, my husband and I have enthusiastically enjoyed watching the Olympics, although, while we do feel NBC did a great job of covering them, we think they were slightly biased in the events they did show. We have the basic of basic cable so we mostly rely on network TV for most coverage, and yesterday while flipping through our few channels, I happened upon Tele-Mundo showing an Olympic event I didn’t know existed. I caught the tail end of it and I don’t speak or understand Spanish, but it looked like ribbon dancing! Fascinating! I wish I’d have seen that on NBC so I could’ve understood the commentators and the intricacies of the sport.

My Inspiration

After almost every event was over, the camaraderie and sportsmanship was evident in the competitors. I think I enjoyed seeing those displays more than the actual competition. Hugs and encouragement and congrats amongst them, even those who won did so graciously. Each of the athletes worked hard to get to London this year and they earned my respect. I must say, my favorite athlete was South Africa’s Oscar Pistorius. If you don’t know who he is, he’s a paralympic athlete, known as “Blade Runner.” Incredible runner, and someone I can use to encourage me as I propel myself towards health.

Saturday and this morning marked an increase in my workout endeavor. I put the 2 mile walk in on Saturday and up until that point, I’d only done 1 mile of it last week. My hubby joined me for Saturday’s walk, and if it wasn’t for him, I’d have stopped after 1 mile yet again. This last week it has been exceptionally painful to walk. During the walk with Leslie Sansone, we do knee lifts and side steps, as well as walk in place, however I started noticing an increased ache in my hips while doing this. So much so that it feels I can hardly lift my legs, but I noticed that once I make it past the first mile, the second is much easier.

My honey joined me again this morning and I appreciated it. Together, we made it through another 2 miles…although, tomorrow I just may want to put the Debbie Seibers stretching and abs DVD in to give my little feet and hips a break. Who knows, maybe a really, really good stretch will help!!

Walk, Walk, Walk

I’m on my way through another week. It’s been a toughy. I worked out on Monday morning, felt progressively more exhausted as the day went by, noticed all my body aches and pains a little more prominently and promptly went to bed at 7:30pm. Apparently the acid reflux was feeling neglected, for it woke me up an hour later to vomit up the small dinner and Klondike bar I’d eaten and because of all that, I slept late yesterday morning.

I love food and loathe structured exercise. This has been my problem ever since I was a child. However, as a child, I was fed a more healthier and balanced mix since the women who did most of the cooking for me did not have day jobs. We were also shoved outside to play rather than spend hours in front of the TV and computer.  As a mom, I did a lot of balanced cooking for my children when they were younger and I had active jobs until about 11 years ago. That’s when I got a sit-down job and started packing on the pounds. When I worked in retail, and had to constantly be on my feet, the last thing I thought about was eating. As I transitioned into a sit-down cubicle job, I wasn’t moving so much and started thinking about eating. I kept a snack drawer loaded with unhealthy snacks, never thinking it would catch up to me. I also stopped cooking as much and ordering out more since I was now working a full-time day job.

In 2003, I had to have surgery on my foot because of plantar fasciatis caused by weight gain. And you know what? Surgery didn’t help because I’ve put on about 60-80 extra pounds since then, my feet are constantly sore – the arches, the heels and the ankles.

Recently, it has been God that has gotten my attention. All the chats with my doctor, the half-hearted attempts at working out at the gym, the “I cleaned the house today” excuse for not exercising…none of that has shown me the seriousness of the need to take care of the body God has given me. Only God did, and you know how He did it? He gave me some health scares…and I listened. First, I’m convinced that my uterus had dropped out of place (I know what I felt), yet God did a miracle and put it back. A week and a half later, I wound up with agonizing tennis elbow (I still have to occasionally wear the brace). Lastly, I threw my back out…SLEEPING! Yet, God used a chiropractor to heal me quicker than ordinarily my back would have healed. The root cause of these maladies is the overtaxing of my frame because of my weight.

Now, I walk. I miss a day here or there, but I refuse to call it quits. And you know what? I may not see the scale numbers drop significantly right now, but I notice how my body is restructuring itself. My triple chin is beginning to disappear! I do have more energy, yet my feet, hips and knees still hurt very badly. I am pressing on toward the goal because I have a grandchild coming in March, and if this baby is anything like his mother, I will need all the energy and stamina I can get!

Today I moved up from the one mile walk with Leslie to the two mile, yet I ended up having my booty kicked at the end of the first mile. I will have to build myself up to the two mile. I think I will like this one better, the music is catchy!

Walk…walk…walk!

A Right and Proper Blow-out

At almost 40 years of age, apparently I did not know how to properly blow dry my hair! Well, ladies, this particular dilemma has now been solved by Cat Deeley’s hair stylist.

Enjoy:

http://officiallycatdeeley.com/~digital1/2012/season-2-episode-15-a-proper-blowout/

Who knew it was so easy! Ha.

Yanking On My Big Girl Pants

Man, it has been a struggle the last couple of days to get through my walking workout. First, the inside of my right ankle has been especially painful, making me wonder if the golden arch of my foot is collapsing. Second, I simply don’t want to work out. Yet, I stick to it because those little baby steps are propelling me toward my ultimate goal of overall health and wellness! Well, that and the fact that I cheer along with the folks in the video when I complete the one mile walk.

I want to move up to the two mile walk, but I don’t feel as though I am physically ready for it. The one mile is difficult at times for me, and I find myself mentally asking for numerical mercy on some of the moves. Yet, I press on toward the goal of the prize, and my faith is helping me stay focused on pursuing a healthier lifestyle, not only for me, but for my ministry, family and work.

The baby steps of walking myself fit are paying off. This morning I was actually awake before my alarm clock, after sleeping the entire night. It’s been a VERY long time since I slept through the night without waking and laying there for an hour or two. Now, if only it will help me improve my memory, I can’t remember when I started all this exercise stuff!

The last few nights, I’ve been waking up with the following song in my heart.

I am coming to the conclusion that yanking on my big girl pants, sucking it up and sticking with my program I will experience freedom physically, mentally and spiritually!

Whatever I do, I am not giving up, no matter what comes my way!