Shuffling

Today on my run, I thought I'd live on the edge.

Throw caution into the wind. Be
a pioneer. I wanted to be less controlling and more spontaneous. Let my hair down. Lighten up. You get the idea. So how did I do this?

I put my ipod on shuffle.
I know it sounds silly but it is really a big deal for me. I have a lot of playlists that are organized in a certain way. They songs start slow and build in intensity and speed. They get more motivational towards the end of my workouts. But I thought maybe I should let my hair down and do something crazy for a change. Here is how my songs were shuffled out.

Rockstar by Nickelback
Dance, Dance by Fall Out Boy
Get Busy by Sean Paul
Irreplaceable by Beyonce
Sugar we're going down by Fall Out Boy
Beautiful Girls by Sean Kingston
Check on It by Beyonce and Slim Thug
Gold Digger by Kanye West
Mama Said Knock You Out by LL Cool J
Two Princes by Spin Doctors
Party Like a Rockstar by Shop Boyz

Not too bad. It was different but fun. Maybe I'll do it again someday. What did the world do before ipods? No one really knows.

People don't know....

Today while I was running the track during boot camp. My instructor and I had a little chat.

Me: I love this class.

Mary: I'm glad. And it looks like you've lost a little weight.

Me: Um...ya. A little.

I realized that people don't know. And how would they know? People can't look at me and tell that I've been working my butt off exercising since August. Dieting since April. People don't know. To my instructor I look like a New Year's Resolution chick. Nothing wrong w/ resolution chicks... you go girls! I am just not one of them. This has been going on for a long time and people I meet today don't know. And that is okay. I was just taken aback for a minute that she mentioned I'd lost a "little" weight. I am used to people who know me seeing me and they are like "Oh my gosh!" Etc. It was refreshing, in a way, for someone to just think I needed to drop 20 pounds. The conversation ended w/ me telling her I've lost 50 pounds. Because people don't know.... and I don't mind telling them!

Lighten Up!

It has been brought to my attention that my blogging is getting a little heavy as of late! I agree. My earlier entries are so much lighter and funnier. I feel my blog is representing my life right now. Very serious. No excess. No time for fun. And that needs to change b/c it is not good for me (or you sweet dears who are reading this!) While I still need to be focused I think I need to "lighten up". There are fun and interesting things happening all around me. I am just not paying much attention to them b/c I am so crazy about losing these last 20 pounds. Of course the focus at Weighing In will still be weight loss, exercise, eating healthy, etc. And let me know if you have a topic you think I should blog about. Goodness knows I need all the help I can get! With all that being said, I had a fabulous, fun run tonight. I ran intervals w/ Lisa sitting on my bed. She read and played w/ a sticker book.She was an angel for the whole 3 miles. She loves when I run at night b/c she feels like she is staying up late. And I guess some nights she does get an extra 15 minutes to half-hour out of it. You'd think it was midnight the way she talks about it! When my run was done she wanted to take a picture of me. Geesh! Oh well. Here's to lightening up!

Fat or Fiction?

I have a scale that measures body fat percentage. Well, it is supposed to.When you step on it an electric current runs through your body and determines how much of it is fat. I stepped on it last weekend and it said 30%. I thought- "That seems high.... I really need to workout more and get myself pulled together." When I mentioned this percentage to my trainer she looked at me like I was crazy and set up an appointment for me to be measured by the body-composition-measuring-chick at the YMCA. So this morning I was measured using those Caliper-pinching things.My results came back.... 16% body fat!!!! What the heck? Now I am really confused. Frankly, I don't think either one is accurate! To understand where the percentages fall see the American Council on Exercise's body fat chart here. My Dad said he had a similar experience w/ the scale measuring almost twice what the Caliper test did. So how do I figure out what is right? I am considering having it done a 3rd time but then I feel like I am just getting it done until I have a result I like. (I guess I like the 16%! I just don't think it is correct.) Hmmmm. What to do? I must know the truth!

Dog Tired

Boot camp was so hard today. She seriously like, wiped the floor w/ us. I think we did 500 jumping jacks. And a really hard weights routine. I came home and napped w/ the kids... Which is something I never do anymore. I am so unbelievably exhausted. (Isn't this tired puppy so cute?)

Adjustments....

Tonight I had my second meeting w/ my trainer. It was at 6:30 so my Dad came over to watch the kids b/c that is too late to bring them to the Y. (Thanks Dad.) The place was packed! I actually had to wait to get a parking spot! And once I got inside I could not get over the crowd. There were so many people. And different people. Not the stay-at-home-moms and retirees that are there during the day. Tons of buff men and beautiful women. I felt like I was in high school again! Anyway, the session went great. I had a lot of questions I needed answered and she was really able to help me. She then worked out 4 great routines for me to rotate at home. I did the first one tonight and WOW! This really worked for me and I can feel it. She made a few adjustments and I am glad. I definitely feel more challenged now. Okay- The Biggest Loser is over... I am going night-night.

Moving On

Today's 5K time. Yay!!! I realize that if I was running an actual 5K my time would be slower due to hills, turns, etc. But doing this every few weeks really helps me to push myself. And when 5K season starts this spring I'll see what my road times are like. The fastest I have run a race since I was an adult is 32:58. That was in 2005. I think I can beat that no problem.

As for today's weigh in.... not so great. I was actually up 1 pound!!! What the heck? I was so upset when talking to my consultant. I said "Doesn't it take 3500 extra calories to gain a pound? I did not eat 3500 calories beyond my plan for the week!" I don't go off plan more than a hundred calories a day here and there. And that is only on days when I have really hard workouts and need more than 1500 anyway. My consultant reminded me that it could be water weight. Or maybe last week I was a little dehydrated and didn't lose an actual 2.6 pounds of body fat. I know there are a lot of reasons why it could be up a pound. I just get upset b/c I want the scale to reflect my work. Okay... moving on. Next week will be great! I can feel it!

2 Weeks Down!

I made it to my Boot Camp class today. I was so happy to be there! The class is growing as it gets more popular. I really tried to push myself b/c I felt like I was not working out to my fullest potential this week. I have to be a little late on Friday's b/c Lisa has swim lessons from 9:30 to 10 and class starts at 10. So I am 10 minutes late on every Friday. The rest of the class has already done some running on the track. At the end of class I had not run as much as everyone else. (They had all done a mile.) After class I went back up to the track and finished the mile out and then ran another one. I really love this class and how good I feel doing it. Our instructor says that during the third week we should start to feel stronger. That is next week! Bring it on!

Get Well Soon

I managed to run 3 miles this afternoon. Lisa sat on my bed and read books. Baby Jack was napping. I decided to run intervals b/c I missed Boot Camp on Wednesday and that is an interval workout. I ran for 10 minutes at a medium pace. Then did 4x90 second intervals w/ 90 seconds of active recovery each. Then finished up w/ 10 minutes at a medium pace for a cool down. It was a good run but I was worried about Lisa the whole time b/c she is coughing so much. I am hoping not to have to go to the ER in the middle of the night. She got pneumonia 3 times last year and was hospitalized twice. If you have a second, please say a prayer for her. This is a picture of her from one of last year's hospitalizations. Poor thing. So, the run was good but I am distracted.

Early Bird

What a day! This morning Baby Jack was up at 4 am. Up for the day. Ready to go. So, I was up too. Geesh! I gave him his breakfast and a bottle. I let him play for a little bit. I had him back in bed for his first nap by 6:30 am. The one thing that was good about this early rise situation is that I had my run done by 8 am! Of course I've been tired the rest of the day but that is okay. It is so nice to have my run out of the way so early. I also did my weights tonight at home. I had to cancel my meeting w/ the trainer for tomorrow b/c of the children being sick. Such is life!

Couple of Sickos

There is no working out here today. I am so exhausted from taking care of my two sick children. I was up all night w/ one or the other. Baby Jack was up at 11 pm and 1 am. Lisa was up at 3 am and 5 am. It was a long night. I got dressed to run twice today. It just didn't happen. I did get the children to their pediatrician though. (Who I see so often, he is really just a good friend who happens to have an M.D.) Each child has 2 different infections. That is 4 infections.... none of which are the same. How is this even possible? Needless to say, I will not be making my Boot Camp class tomorrow b/c the children can't go to the nursery. So I will have to run while they nap.

I did have a Non-Scale Victory today at the doctor's office though. After he checked out both of the kids he said, "Um. I hope you don't mind if I say anything but.... ummm... You look wonderful. You have really lost a lot of weight haven't you?" I could tell he didn't want to be inappropriate but still wanted to give a compliment. I thought it was so nice of him to say something and it made my day.

Now, I am going to watch "The Biggest Loser" and doze. Ni-night.

4 Miles Y'all

Wow! What a great day. I ran over 4 miles today. It felt really good. I decided to up my mileage on my long run. And I definitely needed to. The kids were both napping and I just listened to my ipod and watched reruns of.... "America's Next Top Model" (of course). It was really therapeutic. My goal when I started running was to up it to 3.5 miles. But when I got there, I just didn't feel finished. I felt really good afterwards. I also lifted weights tonight for about 45 minutes. I have a lot of questions for my trainer. I forget the correct position on some of the sets. I am sure I look funny trying to figure it out. I am excited for my upcoming week of working out and sticking w/ Jenny Craig. I am really hoping for some great results again this week! Peace out!

Wonderful Weigh In

(Isn't this picture so cute?) Well, my hard work is paying off. My weigh in went fabulous today. I am down 2.6 pounds for the week!!! Yay!!! This makes for a total of 50.4 pounds so far! I am so happy. I was extremely nervous about my weigh in. (As usual.) But my consultant always helps me to chill out. She was super-happy to see my numbers today as well. Maybe I am out of my slump? I sure hope so. My consultant asked what my plans were for this upcoming week. I told her I thought I would take today off cardio but still do weights and then proceed w/ the remainder of the week just like last week. She thought I should take today off everything. So I think I just might. The interesting thing about this week is that I had to eat more than 1500 calories on 5 days. I was just so famished and had no energy. Each of those days I probably added 100 to 200 calories. It is just so amazing to me how I can eat more and lose weight. Yay! I have 20 pounds left to reach my goal. I can so do this!

Exhausted!

I am so tired. This week I have ran Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. I have gone to boot camp (which includes cardio and weights) Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I have also lifted on Tuesday and Thursday. I am so exhausted. People who I've talked to today have asked, "Are you okay?" I am okay. Just very tired and very sore. Hopefully I my body will adjust soon. I am watching reruns of "America's Next Top Model" and dozing as I type this. I better go to bed! Peace.

Hungry pup!

I am so hungry today.

A little one on one

My first meeting w/ my trainer went REALLY well. It was so good to work w/ someone one on one. But I guess that is the idea. Whenever I've been in a class I don't ask all the questions I have b/c I don't want the instructor to have to focus too much on me. Today I asked all the questions I wanted to. The focus was on me and that was okay. My trainer thinks I should have been using heavier weights in my all strength class I was taking previously. She says I would have got more out of the class and that makes sense to me after working out w/ her today. Now she has me using 8 pound weights and 5 pound weights. This made a huge difference in my workout. I bet I will be sore tomorrow. I was also able to get a run in today. This morning, at about 8:30 am, I ran a medium-paced 2 miles outside. It was pretty nice out.... about 55 degrees and really windy. I was happy to get outside and run. I would classify today as an excellent workout day. I love days like this.

Boot Camp- Day 1

Today was my first day of boot camp and I think it is going to be great. The instructor really keeps us moving the whole time. I can tell I got a good workout and burned a lot of calories. The girls in my class all seem really nice. The YMCA was packed. I had to look for a parking spot. I can usually get one in the first row. Not today. There were so many people I had never seen before. Not the same crowd I have gotten used to in the last 5 months. I kept looking around saying to myself, "Who are all these people? Why is this place such a madhouse?" Then I realized that this is the "New Years Resolution" crowd. It was neat to see so many people really excited about losing weight and getting healthy. There was tons of baby fat, overeating, getting-empowered, time-for-a-change, diet, exercise talk and I get into that. I think I am going to really like this boot camp class. Tomorrow is my first workout w/ my personal trainer.... I can't wait. I hope it goes well. Night-night.

Change is good!

Tomorrow begins a new session at the YMCA and my newest workout routine. I am so excited about it. I am taking a class called "Boot Camp". It sounds so intense. It is a class that consists of 3 1/2 minutes of cardio and 1 1/2 minutes of strength training in intervals for an hour. I am so excited about it. It should really help to accelerate my weight loss. I plan to continue my running 4 days a week as well. Also, I've decided to start working w/ personal trainer. I can go through the YMCA to do this. I met w/ her a few weeks ago to discuss my needs. 1. I want to strengthen and tone my core. 2. I want to run as fast as I possibly can. She said she can help me do this and I am so pumped. I have my first workout w/ her on Tuesday. I can't wait. I will for sure be blogging about how it goes. Good night. I have to go get to bed so I can keep up during boot camp tomorrow!

Goals

I went to my weigh in today. For the first time I gained weight. I gained .6 of a pound this week. And, you know what, I'm okay. I mean... of course I would have rather lost weight or just maintained. But, I figure w/ all of my shenanigans in Chicago this was bound to happen. If .6 of a pound is my price to pay for time w/ my best friends then I'll take it. I am moving on from this. It won't be happening again.

In more important news. I simulated a 5K today on my treadmill. My goal was to finish in under 30 minutes. I did it in 29:16 (see below). It was a little hard b/c Lisa was sitting on my bed during the whole run. She was tired and was a little restless reading books. So I flipped on Animal Planet to hold her attention so I could run. (Nothing else is on at 7 pm.) For the entire run she had questions about the show. I always tell her I can't have a conversation while I am running. But I felt bad for her b/c she was still up and so tired, but being good. So I agreed to give short answers while I ran. Geesh! There was a question about every animal. "Mom, what is that?" So, I answered her through gritted teeth. "Badger." "Skunk." "Fox." "Prairie Dog." We even saw a hawk kill and eat a bunny. Looking back on this now, our conversation was probably very amusing. I am just so happy about my time. If you are a runner you know this time is not going to win any medals. Being under 30 minutes is a personal victory. This was my first of several running goals. Yay me!

Wonder where these calories are...

Like normal, I am nervous about my weigh in tomorrow. Unlike normal, I drank a lot of alcohol this week. A lot. 2 glasses of White Zinfandel, a shot of something, 2 Vanilla Vodka and Diet Cokes, 2 buckets of sex on the beach (which were shared w/ others), a glass of Pinot Grigio, and 5 or 6 Vodka Cranberries. I have to assume that some of those calories are still on my body somewhere. I guess I'll find out in the morning. Peace out and bottoms up.

Back on Target

I have been 100% on program today. It is hard.... but getting back to a diet is always hard after a few days of fun food. I also ran today which was fun. I was getting cranky after taking 2 days off. Hopefully, my weigh on Saturday won't be crazy b/c of my trip. I plan to run tomorrow too. So we shall see. I am excited for next week. My new schedule starts up at the YMCA. I am trying out some new stuff. But I'll save all that talk for another day. I am still tired from my trip. Nighty-night.

Good bye Windy City!

Well, I am back. I was out of town for a brief vacation and it was wonderful! I was dressed cool- thanks to my stylish sister, Grace. Chicago was awesome. My friends and I had so much fun. We talked, laughed, cried, etc. for 4 days. It was very needed. While I was gone I wasn't able to stay on my Jenny Craig food. I logged what I ate and tried to make smart choices. But I let myself have a few treats too. Treats included a slice of cheese cake at The Cheesecake Factory, 2 slices of deep dish pizza, and alcoholic beverages. Other than that I ate salads, grilled chicken, soups, apples and Anytime bars. I managed to get in my gallon of water each day.... thank goodness. And I got up and ran 3 out of the 4 mornings. (The 4th morning I had an early plane to catch.) Now that I am home I am having a difficult time getting back onto Jenny Craig food. I have been snacking and eating my husband's junk food today. This is just not like me. And I think it is b/c I have been having such fun food the past few days. Tomorrow I am going to be making a concentrated effort to stay on program. I am happy to be home but it sure hard to get back into the groove of dieting. Jack is going to help me be disciplined tomorrow. Time to get back on track!