S**t people say videos - Fitness Style!

I woke up this morning to this great video, posted on the Keeping the Pounds Off Blog by Jane: http://www.keepingthepoundsoff.com

Stuff Dieters Say

Because we all love to waste our time on youtube, I also found the following video, which really is amusing:

S**t Women Say to Personal Trainers

The thing about these two videos is that they relate more closely to people who have short term goals. These are the people who want to be on a diet to fit into an old pair of jeans. Or they are going to a personal trainer to get in-shape for their wedding. Of course people with short term goals want to succeed in achieving their goals - that's why they are taking action like dieting or exercise. But, I tend to see the complaints that you see in those youtube videos coming from people with short term goals, not a life-long goal of a healthy lifestyle. I'm not saying that health-nuts never complain (and in fact, some of them do a lot!), it's just that I've seen most complaints coming from people who just want to see results then move on with their lives.

It's like taking a class in college. If you're taking a class that doesn't pertain to your degree at all, then you're much more likely to complain, put off doing homework and studying, and not put in that much effort since all you want is a passing grade. Once you pass the class, then it doesn't matter anymore. You gladly forget everything you learned, knowing that if you really want to, you could just look up what you need on the internet in the future. But when you take a class in something that interests you, you're fully invested. You show up to class everyday, you read related articles in addition to the assigned readings from the textbook, and even join a study group. You want to succeed and retain the knowledge that you learned, not simply regurgitate it for a final exam then never visit it again.

I hope that more and more people exercise and eat right because they are passionate about being healthy - not simply hoping for a quick fix before swimsuit season begins. Regardless of why you're currently on this journey, go ahead and enjoy this one last youtube video for the day before going to the gym:

S**t Personal Trainers DON'T Say

Resisting temptation

Remember how I mentioned a couple posts ago that I had given up my dearly beloved queso for lent?  Well, today was my first major temptation, and I'm proud to say that I passed!  My co-workers that sit in the desks next to mine came back after lunch with a large cup of queso and chips EACH.  They politely told me that they didn't invite me since they knew I gave it up, then started popping cheesy nacho style chips into their mouths!  I was devastated!  I knew I could resist the urge to actually go and buy some myself, but to be literally surrounded by melted cheese was almost too much to take! 

 

But then I thought about this situation.  I was able to view someone eating queso from an outside point of view.  For example, one of the girls who was chowing down claims to currently be on a Slim Fast diet - which means she is supposed to drink a Slim Fast shake for two of her meals each day.  It's not that I'm judging her, but I realized how hypocritical it was of me to talk about my motivations to become healthy and fit, yet give in and enjoy something so fattening.  I definitely wasn't credible when I did that, and more importantly I wasn't a motivation for others to be healthy either!  Listening to the crunching of the chips was something of an eye opener for me.  I have to practice what I preach in order to make a difference not only in my life, but in other lives as well.

 

After about 30 minutes and an empty bowl of queso, the Slim Fast girl turned to me and said, "If it makes you feel better, I can feel the cellulite expanding on my legs after eating that!"  Well, even though that was TMI, I do hope that she feels a tinge of regret so that she doesn't indulge in a LARGE (that's at least 12 ounces, people) queso bowl again...and I'm thankful that I witnessed something that woke me up to my own bad habits.

See what a large bowl of queso can do to you?

Color+Running=Fun

Well, now I have no choice - I have to actually start running outdoors, or man-up and give that treadmill a try.  Why?  Because I just registered for my first ever 5K* and I've got to get my butt in shape!  I can go a mile in my neighborhood, but with a few 'walks' during it.  That ain't gonna cut it.  I signed up with a few of my co-workers, and since they're all in much better shape than me, I'm the most likely to be lagging behind!  That's not gonna happen on my watch!

I'm actually more excited than I thought I would be at the prospect of running a race.  This is the Color Run, and it looks like the kind of race my parents would have signed up for back in the 60's!  Check out this video and you'll see what I mean:

Yep, words can't describe the colorific awesomeness of this race!  THIS is motivation to start running!  It's not till May, but I'm going to start pushing myself starting this week so that I'll be ready for the color craziness!  I'll let you know how I progress throughout these next few weeks...

*I did participate  in a Race for the Cure back in 2006, but that was all walking...so it didn't count as a 'race' in my book!

The Treadmill of Doom

I hate treadmills.   Always have.   Now, I know what you're assuming - that I don't like them because I'm overweight and don't want to exert the energy to actually run. Nope, that's actually not the reason. I wish that I could run on them. I could watch a TV show, read a magazine, or simply stay inside during a Colorado blizzard - AND get some good cardio and fat burning action at the same time! No, the reason I hate treadmills is because I have some unknown irrational fear that rises to the surface each time I step on them.

 

 

I don't have many fears. There is my fear of spiders, which I deal with by screeching unintelligible syllables and running out of the room, refusing to go back in until someone removes it from my sight. And there is also my fear of heights, which is not as easy to deal with. When that fear comes on, I literally freeze up. My insides turn to stone, with the exception of my heart and lungs, who each seem to be competing to see who can go the fastest - my heart rate or my breathing. Nausea comes on, and because of the stone limbs, I'm unable to remove myself from the offending position. I'm stuck in horror until someone can talk me into moving again.

Congrats - you've expanded your vocabulary today!

 

 

While it'd be so amusing to say that I run away screaming when I see a treadmill, I instead get the same feeling as my acrophobia when I step on one, even if I'm going at the lowest grandma speed possible. I start to freak out and immediately step off, fighting back that fear rising up. Yes, I attach that little safety shut-off clip on a string. And no, I've never actually fallen off or been injured by one in the past. So I don't have any reason to fear something that will help me get healthier. I guess I've just seen too many 'people falling off' videos:

Ok, some of these people are being idiots - but it proves that it DOES happen people!

So for now, I'll stick with the safety of the elliptical. Maybe one day I'll be able to conquer the treadmill...but I think I need some therapy first!

Lent is for non-believers too!

Today marks the first day of Lent.  Growing up Catholic, I always had to give up something, such as Skittles, my favorite video game, or a second dessert right before bed.  Because my parents instilled a fear of the church in me, I didn't cheat at all.  I went the full 40 days not even licking a skittle.  But then on Easter Morning, those 1 pound bags of rainbowy goodness were mine!

 

Uh, yeah, I didn't go that far...

While I'm no longer religious in that sense anymore, I think I'll give up something for Lent for the first time in over a decade.  I'm giving up Queso, the cheesy salsa dip for nacho chips.  The reason I'm picking queso is because that seems to be the one thing that I cannot resist.  At least once a week I cannot stop the cravings and I'll go down to a Mexican food chain and order a large.  There are days that I felt guilty in such an indulgence, and other days I justified it thinking that I 'earned' this 900+ calorie treat.  I literally crave it daily, and counting out 10 almonds to eat does not satisfy it.

I want you, I need you!

 

There's apparently scientific studies about this craving phenomenon.  The same part of your brain that responds to drug addictions also responds to food addictions in some extreme cases.  So there's a reason why you not only crave something like chocolate ice cream, but when you finally get your hands on it, you can't stop eating until you're stuffed.  While I'm not sure if I'm at that extreme end of food addiction, I did find a few articles interesting, like this one on CNN.

 

I know that this queso obsession of mine needs to stop if I'm to make any real progress.  I had my last large chips and queso yesterday towards the end of my workday.  My hope is that after being denied this treat for 40 days, my body will no longer crave it.  That would be a truly successful Lent, if it helps you give up a vice once and for all!  I'll let you know on Easter Morning whether this worked or not.

My First Group Fitness Class - Sweat Included

Thanks to living in a country that celebrates past leaders, I had today, President's Day, off of work.  Since I normally work about 8-6 M-F, I was excited to actually be able to try one of the free classes that my gym offers!  Yes, there are some spinning classes that start at 6am, but it's taking all the motivation I can muster to go to the gym at all.  If I forced myself to wake up early as well, I would run, but not to the gym.
   

Run Away!!!

So I chose the 9am CardioFlex class.  I walked in with only my water bottle by my side, and looked at the other gym rats who were determined to be in shape. It was a good mix - I was by far the youngest, but felt like I was in the middle in terms of how out-of-shape I am.  That meant that I'd have others to look to for motivation to keep going, as well as those who would be struggling along with me.  I took the lead of those around me, and grabbed a small set of weights (3 pounds...just in case!), a weight lifting bar with no added weight on the end, a yoga mat and a thing that you step up on.  


The instructor started the music, and it was a non-stop sweat fest for the next HOUR.  Yes, an HOUR with no breaks!  There was nothing traditional about this workout.  Never once did we do a push up or sit up.  Every part of us was moving.  We had to squat while doing curls (Lower, Deeper!). We had to hold a plank position with our hands on the ground, and have our legs perform a running motion (Faster, Harder!).  Even while doing crunches, our legs were in on the action as well (Don't drop those legs!).  Whew!

Dump about 14 gallons of sweat onto this picture, 

and you get the idea of what I looked like

There were times that I truly hated the workout and the instructor.  I'm not up to this level of fitness yet!  Shouldn't she be concerned that we're all going to drop dead of a heart attack and let up a little?  I wanted to quit - but I didn't.  I kept pushing through, if for no other reason than "I'm never doing this crap again!" 


But then the end of the class came, and the stretching allowed my breathing to slow and my mind to clear.  I realized that I worked every muscle in my body.  I think even the few muscles in my ears were sore!  And that felt good.  I felt satisfied.  Part of me was still screaming that I would never willingly return to this form of torture again, but I still thanked the demon, ahem, lovely instructor for such a good work out. Too bad I can only take a class like this on a holiday!  It'll be back to the elliptical and weight machines tomorrow..

Fruit Ninja Saved My Life

It's been over a month since I've started eating healthy and exercising.  My husband and I had a few serious conversations in January about changing our lifestyle to include healthy food, less drinking and daily exercise, and we jumped right into the routine!  I have had plenty of mistakes and daily cravings, but we're on the right path and haven't looked back! 

Because I haven't looked back, I never thought about the exact moment in time that we made the decision to change our lives.  In fact, I didn't think that there was an exact event that triggered this.  I knew it wasn't a New Years Resolution (because those are meant to be broken).  I thought we just started talking and went for it!  But today my husband reminded me exactly how our journey started.

It was a Friday night.  We had just gotten home from work and were already into our second or third beers when we decided to turn on the Xbox Kinect that we got for Christmas.  We were looking through the free games to play, and decided on Fruit Ninja.  For those of you who are not familiar with the game, let me sum it up for you.  Pieces of fruit are thrown up into the air, and you have to cut them in half.  You do this by acting like your arm is an extended sword, Mortal Kombat style, and quickly making a slicing motion through the air.  If you are too slow, nothing happens.

Yep, this is what we look like, just not as badass.  

So there we were, throwing our arms in all different directions, trying to chop as many pieces of fruit as possible!  Being a little tipsy, we were giggling through the first couple rounds.  Then we were heavily breathing.  Sweat started to form on our foreheads. My arms started to burn.  A wheezing sound was echoing through the room.  Finally, we both plopped down on the couch after less than 10 minutes - worn out, sweaty, and in pain.  This video game had officially beaten us.

A game without an enemy or boss had beaten my butt.

Who would have though fruit could be so fatal?

We looked at each other, confused.  Were we really that out of shape? I knew I was about 35 pounds over-weight, but compared to what I see on TV, I thought I was still doing okay since I was well under 200lbs.  My husband, who has always been the scrawny kid, looked just as surprised as me!  He wasn't gaining weight like I was, yet he couldn't do a physical activity that included only his arms for longer than 10 minutes?

That's when it happened.  We realized what the road that we were on would lead to (health issues, obesity, and even an early death), and that it needed to change.  We didn't drink anymore that night, and the serious conversations started the next day.  So when asked what was my first sign that I needed to lose weight, my first motivation to start eating healthy - I have to find a way to say it with a straight face.  Fruit Ninja.

The GAME  Fruit Ninja, not the real life one.

Although this guy could motivate me to lose weight as well...

I want a women's FITNESS magazine, not FASHION!

When you're obsessed with something, it's hard to get it out of your mind.  I've found myself thinking about fitness while at work or doing chores.  When I have free time, I'm reading blogs and online articles about health!  I can't get enough - I want to hear about scientific studies, new recipes, the best workout routines, success stories - you name it, I wanna read about it!  So I browsed through the magazine section last time I went grocery shopping, eager to find one that I could read cover to cover and subscribe to.

Side-note and props to Fitness - your cover model actually looks healthy and beautiful!

Now, I'm going to save you the rant, but believe me, there's one that's boiling deep down inside.  Every magazine that I flipped through inevitably reminded me of Cosmo.  There were tips on applying make-up, getting more shine in your hair, or the hottest fashions - and I'm talking about night-on-the-town fashions, not work-out clothing or running shoes!  I ended up picking Fitness Magazine, solely based on the fact that it was the cheapest.  I also grabbed a Men's Health for the hubby.

 

I did enjoy some of the articles and advice within Fitness Magazine, but started to get frustrated as I neared the end within an hour of reading it.  I threw it across the room and picked up the Men's Fitness instead.  It was like night and day!  Here were the tips and advice I was looking for!  OK, I admit I did skip through some pages (I do not want to sculpt my body like Spartacus), but everything seemed more relevant and had more depth.

Ignore the creepy seal-man on the cover...

 

I'm stopping there because I'm not turning this post into a review, just like I didn't want it to be a rant.  It's more of a personal preference and observation that I made.  Obviously the majority of women out there need help matching their eyeliner to their nail-polish - otherwise these magazines wouldn't sell - but I'm not one of them. 

 

Do you have any recommendations for this average girl who doesn't wear heels but wants to know how to use a Bosu Ball?  

Let me know!

Have you noticed my baggy jeans?

Today, for the first time, someone noticed that I was losing weight! 

I stood staring at my co-worker after her observation of "Wow, it looks like you've lost weight!" stunned me into silence while we were chatting at the printer (we don't have a water-cooler, so we improvise). She must have took my gaping mouth for complete confusion when she followed up with "What, you mean you aren't working out or something?  Your pants are baggier."  The baggy pants statement shook me out of that deer-in-the-headlights feeling.  Yes, I am working out and eating healthy, thanks for noticing.  And no, these are not my baggy pants from 1997 - those are long gone, Missy!

 

Having someone other than the hubby comment on my weight loss made my day!  Especially since the scale has only shown about 5-7 pounds of loss, depending on the day. Even though I've already tightened my belt 1 notch for good, and my boot-cut jeans ARE getting a little baggy, to have someone notice gave me such a boost in self-esteem that I'm walkin' on sunshine!  It's finally paying off!  Bring It On!

 

No - this is not a picture of me because:

A. I'm no where near that thin yet, and B. I know how a tape measure works.

An Unfaithful Valentines Day

I think I need to start treating my healthy lifestyle like a relationship.  I never have and never will cheat on my husband, so why do I keep cheating on my diet?  Remember how I swore I wouldn't have a little fling with smothered burritos?  Well, I've stuck to that promise, but resorted to a one-night-stand with a large bowl of queso (cheese and salsa) dip and chips.  It was a tough day at work, I only had a small lunch and was still hungry, and queso has always been my comfort food, my de-stresser.  So, I went out to a local Mexican restaurant and got the large chips and queso to-go.  I ate the full amount back at my desk, enjoying every cheesey bite.  And then that full feeling set in.  Like when you realize you ate a whole gallon of ice cream while watching a movie - that feeling.  It was towards the end of my day as well, so I knew that within a few hours I would be working out.  Great, how will I be able to work out without puking feeling like a hippo?

 

My Casanova

 

I came home, and my husband greeted me with a glass of fresh pineapple, orange, coconut and apple juice from our juicer and a hard boiled egg for our snack before going to the gym.  I broke out in tears.  (Ladies, you understand how a random act of kindness can provoke tears! Gentlemen, you know women are crazy, so don't judge!)  I told him what I ate and how bad my stomach hurts and how I just want to curl up in a ball and wallow in my misery.  We sat down and had a long talk about sticking to our plan, creating habits, and admitting that mistakes happen.  I didn't want to go work out - BUT I knew that if I didn't go, subconsciously I would know that in the future, if I eat something bad, then I had an excuse to skip the gym.  That would just equal more 'mistakes' in the future!  So, after taking some medicine, I drank my juice and went to the gym....and worked my ass off!

 

I went up another level on the elliptical and kept my speed above 7 (usually I struggle to keep it above 5).  I did an extra set of reps on each weight machine (I usually do 3 sets of 5-10, depending on the weight).  AND I went back to the elliptical two extra times!  I was dripping sweat by the end, but my stomach ache was gone and I felt pretty proud of myself that I didn't let my mistake get in the way of being healthy!

 

It's tough to change your cravings and habits.  I'm always craving cheese, and I still don't think I'm at the point that I could turn down a greasy slab of pizza if it was offered.  But I'm getting there - one push up at a time!

Oh - and Happy Valentines Day my Bloggin' Buddies!

There'd better be a giftcard to Qdoba in that box mister!

(photo courtesy of Markuso)

MyFitnessPal = MyBestFriend

One of the biggest eye openers as I started this journey to being healthy is how many calories I normally consume in a day!  I think I fell asleep in my high school health class on the nutrition day.  I had a very skewed view about how many calories I should eat in one day.  I understood that by looking at a nutrition label that 2000 calories are recommended per day.  Well, I figured that must be the low end.  The number you have to hit if you're trying to be uber-healthy!  So if I saw an 800 calorie serving, I shrugged and ate it anyways, figuring that it was only 800 calories.  A few of those a day won't kill me!

 

And then I saw the results of a couple fitness calculators online.  Based on my 50 hours-a-week desk job, in order to start losing weight I need to be under 1350 calories a day!  1350!  I easily consumed more than that within a couple hours at a Friday night party with beer, chips and pizza!  No wonder I've been steadily gaining weight! 

 

I went on a mini-researching spree online, looking at how many calories some of my favorite meals and snacks were.  Are you ready?

 

1 bag of Smartfood Popcorn - 160

1 serving Easy Mac - 230

12-count chicken nuggets with Ranch dressing from Chick-fil-a - 550

1 full Tortinos Pizza - 728

6 oz Baskin Robin's Mint Chocolate Chip Ice cream Milkshake - 760

Qdoba 3-cheese nachos with chicken - 1125

Whiskey River Burger from Red Robin (just the burger, no sides!) - 1129

 

And those were just the calories!  I won't add to my embarrassment by including the fat and sodium levels!  By looking at how much I was eating, I knew I had to start tracking my calories STAT!

 

I downloaded an app on my smartphone called My Fitness Pal, which is one of the highest rated and downloaded apps currently, besides Calorie Tracker.  (My husband downloaded Calorie Tracker so we could compare, and they both are equally useful - so no need for a comparison!).  Throughout the day I can either search for the food I'm eating, or actually scan the barcode to easily locate the nutritional value.  There are also areas within the app for me to record my weight and measurements, or to add notes about the day.

 

Not my screen - but a good example of how it works!

 

This calorie tracker app is essentially a food journal, and that's how programs like Weight Watchers work so well.  Instead of assigning points, I just check out how many calories I've consumed so far, and how many calories are left.  If I work out and add that activity to the journal, my calorie 'allowance' for the day goes up.  I understand now why programs that make you keep a journal have such a high success rate.  I can see what I'm putting in my body and see the mistakes I make.  If I eat a spinach and cucumber salad with light raspberry vinaigrette, (like I did for lunch today), I can see that I consumed UNDER 200 calories for that meal, which leaves room for more options at dinner.  And if I decide to eat a smothered burrito for lunch instead like I did last week, I see that number staring up at me, and I hate to say it, but the guilt trip works!  I know that I've failed for the day.  But in that failure, I can learn and not make the same mistake again!  At least not with the same burrito...

 

Tracking your calories may not be what works for you, but I recommend it for anyone who considered a whole box of Kraft Mac and Cheese okay to eat as a snack. Not the single serving Easy Mac packets that I mentioned above, but a full prepared box, mind you.  Give it a try and let me know what you think!

 

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

 

Juicer for V-Day

I've always been bad at keeping presents a secret...so the moment one of my Valentines Day presents came in the mail that I bought for the hubby, I knew I had to gift it immediately or spoil the surprise!

I bought him a Juicer!  We've never had one before, and in fact do not currently own a blender.  With our recent obsession with healthy living, which has included a few Jamba Juice trips, a juicer is not only a financially smart investment, but something we could have fun with. The hubby ran out to the store right away and brought back:

Carrots
Pineapples
Mixed Berries (prepackaged)
Apples
Oranges
Bananas

And then he threw a little bit of everything into the juicer!  And Viola - our first cup of frothy yumminess:

So far we're loving it - everything we try is delicious! Stay tuned for recipe reviews and a peak into the juicing book I bought the hubby.

Nachos made me cheat

I have a fear with this healthy lifestyle I'm trying to live.  That I won't be able to actually practice what I preach.  I am struggling with eating healthy all day long.  A healthy breakfast?  Sure!  A salad for lunch?  Yummy!  But give me the option to purchase a smothered burrito with chile con queso to dip some chips in, and I haven't found a way to turn it down!  This week I gave in to that burrito on Tuesday when I went out for a friends birthday.  And last night I munched on some nachos at the bar during Trivia Night.  The culprit is the cheese.  And I can't figure out how to banish it from my life!

 

"Just Say No" does not apply to a Coloradan

The most confounding thing about my cheese weakness is that I do NOT feel good afterwards.  I feel my shoulders slump, my stomach pooches out a bit, and I'm tired.  I know that if I ate a fully balanced meal instead, I would be energized, working out the next day would be easier and I would be closer to my weight-loss goal! I know this in my mind, but in practice I revert back to the old couch potato in seconds.  How do I overcome this?  I might have to try a new goal for myself.  To spend one whole week only eating healthy. No allowances, no "cheat days." 

 

Cheat Days.  What a horrible device!  Each time I ate 'unhealthy' I would excuse it as being part of my Cheat Day - even though the hubby and I decided that Friday nights would be our Cheat Night.  It allows me this mentality of "oh, if I claim this is a Cheat Day Meal, then it's okay to eat a 900 calorie lunch!  I'll just be better tomorrow!"  And that is the failure of many diets.  And the reason why I continued to gain weight.  I thought that there's always a tomorrow, so I'll inhale that burger today!  What I never realized is that there's no time like the present, and my decisions today will effect my actions tomorrow.  So, to get into a healthy habit, let's give this a try.  1 week.  No Cheat Days.  Let's see if this works.... 

 

Um, I didn't say when I would start that 1 week....it's fully okay to wait until after our Cheat Night Dinner tomorrow night, right?  Don't judge me...didn't I start this post out saying that I don't think I'll be able to practice what I preach?

To Train or not to Train - Are Personal Trainers Worth the Money? Part 1

As I mentioned, we received one free personal training session through our gym, and put us through a workout that a drill instructor would be jealous of.  But it will cost us some serious dough to continue to have sessions, so the question arose: Is a personal trainer worth it?

 

Oh, oh yes. YOU are worth it, sir.

(photo courtesy of photostock)

 

Well, let's examine what a personal trainer actually does:

 

1. Motivates and pushes you.  This is probably the biggest reason most people would give when asked why they throw hundreds of dollars for a trainer.  It takes a firm resolve to actually drive to the gym, and once you get there, even a greater resolve to push your self to your limits.  Which is why most people will do a few weights, spend some time on the treadmill, and go home.  A personal trainer will not let you off so easily, as I experienced with my 'buckets of puke' post!

 

2. Sets achievable short and long term goals and tracks your progress towards those goals.  Sure, I want to lose weight - I mean have you seen me in a tank top lately - and I think I set a pretty achievable goal for the end of summer to hike and camp on that trail with the hubby.  But just like you don't go from a first date to marriage (this ain't Las Vegas, baby), you cannot go from being a couch potato to hiking a fourteener.  You need those steps in the middle.  A trainer has experience and knows how to set that road map out for you!

 

3. Tells you what to eat and what to stay away from.  I know that the first things to be cut out of my everyday munchies include fast food and soda, but a trainer will point me in the right direction with supplements, portion sizes and other need-to-knows with nutrition.

 

The issue with every one of those points is that I could technically do all those myself.  My husband and I are tackling this gym and healthy lifestyle road together, so he's great at providing me the motivation.  Thanks to various apps I can track my weight loss, calorie intake and other goals. And there are numerous websites with nutritious and low-calorie recipes that I can look up on my own.  It's like paying someone to walk with you to work each day, pointing out when you should cross the street and reminding you to lock your car - it's not necessary! 

 

But, maybe it is necessary in this instance.  I mean, I never work myself to the point of passing out like the trainer did.  And looking at rows of protein powders and making a random pick based on a blog you read is nothing compared to your trainer saying that she uses a particular brand - and seeing the results right in front of you!  That's the thing - this trainer is a mother of two, a couple years older than me, and looks fantastic!  I want her body after I have kids!  She must be doing something right to look so good.  That's why I think I'll spend the money for her expertise - how hard she works me and the motivation she gives me by keeping her own body and spirit in shape!  Because hell, if I can look like her one day, I'll have it MADE!

 Welcome to the gun show, bitches!

(photo courtesy of photostock)

Clothes that Mock You

I'm not a fanatic when it comes to clothes.  I don't have to wear the latest fashion (sorry, I think skinny jeans are hideous on women and traumatizing on men), nor carry a Coach bag when I go out.  In fact, my favorite shopping sprees are at thrift stores, where I can get a dozen shirts for under $50!  I've done quite a few of those shopping sprees over the years and have amassed a wardrobe that could rival professional Hoarders.  This is because I'm still holding on to shirts from middle school!  Yes, I've had the same clothes hanging in my closet for over half my life.  I don't wear them, but I still have them in hopes that one day I'll be able to fit into them again.

Stripes and Polka Dots?  So last season!

(photo courtesy of photostock)

 

I'm sure that there are other women out there just like me, that I'm not alone!  There are shirts in that vintage collection of mine that looked absolutely amazing on me at the time, and I'm sure that if I could just get my arm through the sleeve that they would look just as stunning now!  But I had to come to a realization to the following realizations:

 

1.  Those clothes have not been benefiting anyone for these past 15 years.  They're not being worn by me and not being worn by someone who needs them.  I'm selfishly keeping these clothes hidden away for no immediate reason at all.

2.  If I donated those clothes, someone could benefit from them right now, and I would free up much needed space in my closet.

3.  Those clothes are the opposite of motivating.  I would see them hanging in my closet everyday and realize how much weight I've gained and start to beat myself up over it.  After criticizing myself to the point of depression, instead of doing something about it - I would grab some popcorn and plop down on the couch to get my mind off my misery.  Yeah.  That's not going to work with my new lifestyle.

4. If I get rid of those smaller clothes and actually meet my weight-loss goal, I can fill my wardrobe with new clothes instead of wearing the ones I've already worn in my 7th grade Skate City picture!  What a great reward idea!  That will make me push myself to do just 10 more reps on a machine each time!

 

Ok - it's decided!  It's time for a trip to Goodwill and a wave goodbye to any clothes that do not A) fit me currently and B) I haven't worn in the past 6 months. There's my good deed for the day.

And when I look as hot as this, I'll go shopping and make friends with other hot girls!

(photo courtesy of Photostock)

 

 

 

A new kind of breakfast

One thing that I've heard again and again is that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  The last time I heard it was yesterday from my personal trainer, mainly when she was scolding my hubby for always skipping breakfast.  Every site I can find says to make breakfast your main meal of the day even WebMD stresses the importance.  So this morning - we decided to have some fun!

A breakfast that the hubby used to eat a lot growing up was rice and raisins...in...milk.  Wait, what?  First off, rice goes with beans, or stir-fry, or rolled in sushi!  Second off, even if you did mix it with raisins, why on earth would you drown it in milk!?  Rolling my eyes at such a strange suggestion, I let my hubby go to work in the kitchen while I vacuumed.  After a relatively short amount of time, he presented my bowl of breakfast to me:

And it looked pretty damn good! 

He added the raisins with the instant rice from the get-go and let them cook together.  When it was finished on the stove top, he poured some into a bowl and added coconut milk.  On top of that was freshly cut apples and bananas - and for my sweet tooth he included a sprinkle of brown sugar.  I'm now sitting here with an empty bowl feeling very full, but knowing this fruity breakfast will help in my workout in a couple hours!  I guess the moral of this blog post is: don't knock it till you've tried it!  YUM!

A personal trainer and a bucket of puke

The hubby and I have been working out and eating healthy for four weeks now.  Part of that includes going to a gym.  With this gym that we joined, we received one personal trainer session - so of course we signed up.

The woman who we picked is almost thirty, has two young boys, and has a body right off the cover of Maxim! Add a cheerful personality with a smile, and my husband and I were looking forward to the workout.  Neither of us have ever even thought of utilizing a personal trainer before, so we didn't know what to expect.  Maybe a clipboard while we're at various machines?  Make us do an ungodly amount of crunches while shouting at us to not stop?  OH IF ONLY!

After starting with a 5 minute warm-up on an elliptical, we started what she called a 'circuit,' and I can't even explain how much pain I was in while performing these seemingly easy moves!  Some my husband and I did together, like facing each other in the push up position, then clapping opposite hands again, and again, and again till we both fell down! And then came the murder move. The trainer had me squatting while holding an exercise ball above my head.  Easy right?  For thirty seconds that should be a cinch!  Nope!  At about the 15 second mark, my vision started to blur and my stomach started protesting...and then nausea swept over me like a bad hangover!  I put down that cursed ball and retreated to the bathroom where I thought I'd be worshiping the porcelain goddess like in my college years - but luckily after sitting on the floor for a little bit, I was able to slow my breathing and get back out there to keep going.

They look so happy because they are SITTING!  I was SQUATTING!

(photo courtesy of Photostock)

Let me sum up what I just wrote - I allowed a woman to push my body so hard that I almost puked!  Not to mention that a tomato red sweaty face is not the hottest thing in the world, and I don't even want to think about the sweat stains under my arms...  But here's the thing - after I was done, and we sat down to talk about nutrition - I felt good.  Really good.  Wide awake, standing straighter and pretty confident in myself.  I'm sitting here writing sore as hell, but I still feel good!  And I'm eager to spend a chunk of my paycheck to do it all over again!

These past few weeks when I've gone to the gym to work out, I jump on the elliptical for about 20 minutes, do some crunches, try a few weight machines, stretch and call it quits.  I work up a sweat, I feel good going home, but I never push myself to the limit.  I just don't know how.  And this new trainer did that - she pushed me, and I gave it my all.  Even to the point of almost puking.  The best thing though, is knowing that in a couple weeks or months I'll do that same routine and NOT feel like puking.  I'll see the improvement, and by that time I know I'll see it in my body as well!  That's motivation.

Not seen: buckets of puke that the balls are about to hit...

(photo courtesy of photostock)

Not obese, not chubby - just out of shape

The Wii Fit called me overweight.  Not much, but enough to make me sell the little criticizing bastard.  When I step on the board and it notices that I've gained a pound since the last time I logged on, it asks me why I think it is.  Um, I don't know!  I've been eating the same junk food for years, so it's not like I suddenly gorged myself on a bag of oreos when I've only eaten veggies for the past month.  But it doesn't let me say 'I don't know' - I have to find an excuse and lie to it just so I can swing my hips to a hula hoop for a few minutes!  Because I have morals and cannot handle lying to a machine, we sold it and looked for a different method of weight loss.

Swing those hips, Chubby McChubster!

(photo courtesy of Nintendo)

 

This is why I'm choosing to lose weight now though, instead of when I really am chubby, or even worse....obese!  I've noticed that I've put on about 10 pounds per year for the past few years, and that's not good!  I have no idea where this extra weight is going, because my clothes still mainly fit well, but it's adding up.  It's so easy to say "well, it's not like I'm buying anything in XL yet, so I can put off that crazy diet till later on in life." then go and make a batch of brownie batter and eat it all out of the bowl by myself.  Mmmm!  But even though that's the easy option - it's not going to help me down the road.  By choosing that bowl of brownie batter instead of some hummus and crackers, I've sentenced myself to huffing and puffing my way up the stairs in my company's parking garage.  I now have to wear a tankini instead of a dreaded bikini to hide the fact that my stomach reflects that batter instead of being flat.  It's choices that I thought was worth it in the past, but really, it's not.  What happens when I can't even make it up to my car and have to ask for a ride to the fourth level?  Or when even a tankini can't hide the roll of fat that will be peeking through the bottom?  Ugh - if I got to that point, it would be ten times harder to lose the weight and get back in shape!  

 

So the time is now, today, this minute.  I'm not wasting any more days of my life thinking that slightly chubby will be an ok-lifestyle!  It's not a hard decision. It's the execution and commitment that's the hard part.  So make that decision today and start that journey!  There will be times that mistakes will happen, or when the baked mac and cheese is just too tempting to ignore on a menu, but we're human - we make mistakes!  I'm allowing myself a couple mistakes - but not allowing myself off this path of becoming fit and healthy! Willpower!

Pick your Goal from the Menu

Life is all about setting goals for yourself.  Even something as small as rolling out of bed at 6:40 to get to work on time is a goal.  So if I'm going to take the time and energy to work out, plan healthy meals and say no to pizzas, I must have a goal in mind, right?  Right!  My goal is to lose weight and be healthy!  However many theories state that specific and harder-to-obtain goals are easier to stick to than something vague like mine.  I mean, I've already lost about 2 pounds over the past month, so technically I've lost weight and can stop trying to be healthy.  But that won't help me down the road, and I'll be right back in the same position I was in after eating Thanksgiving dinner last year.

 

So - what are my goals?  Personally, I want to loose 25-30 pounds by mid-summer.  Yes, I believe that's obtainable, since that's about 1 pound per week overall.  But it will be difficult because I have to steer clear of the candy isle when I go grocery shopping, and actually work out. I came up with this number because that is about 5 pounds more than I weighed at the beginning of college.  I think that's much more realistic that losing 40-45 pounds to get to where I was in high school!  I also have a goal to fit into the same jeans I wore 3 years ago before summer begins.  Also a realistic goal! 

 

Next Goal - be able to button said jeans from 3 years ago

(photo courtesy of Michelle Meiklejohn)

My husband (who will be making some guest appearances in this blog with a few posts) has a taken a different direction with his goals.  He's going through this healthy lifestyle change with me.  He's scrawny though, so he actually wants to gain some muscle mass instead of losing weight like I am.  His goals revolve around an active lifestyle.  We live in Colorado and spend our free time indoors instead of enjoying the beauty that is waiting right outside the door!  Not that I'll give up my video games (come on, giving up a nightly binge of pizza and beer is bad enough) but we want to get out hiking and biking during the summer, skiing and snowboarding in the winter, and sprinkle in some camping on top of everything!  When you ask him about his goals, he spouts off about climbing a fourteener and other crazy achievements!  So we slimmed that down a bit:

 

On the day of our one year wedding anniversary last September, we drove up to Idaho Springs to go for a hike and have a few beers and dinner at Tommy Knocker Brewery.  We wandered around town a bit then drove to the trail head.  It wasn't a tough trail, and only eight miles long.  It's not like we were running it, and I didn't even have on a backpack!  Well....I doubt we even made it the first quarter mile before we took a break to rest, out of breath.  Talk about being out of shape!  We are Coloradans and we can't even make it a mile into a trail before turning back to seek out the comfort of a bar?  How lame! 

 

So that is our goal - to be able to hike that 8 mile trail in September for our anniversary, camp for the night, then hike back down the next morning.  Definitely do-able. Definitely challenging. Definitely means that I can't have donuts for breakfast tomorrow morning...

 

But they're so pretty!

(photo courtesy of Witthaya Phonsawat)

 

I feel that if we meet and achieve that goal, we will have been living a healthy lifestyle for a good nine months straight, which means it will be a habit!  I'm hoping that when we hike that trail, we'll feel so proud of our achievement and want to set another, harder goal for ourselves, that there is no way that we'll leave this fit and healthy path that we've been traveling!  In fact, I'm hoping we're so far down that path that I won't even be able to see the path that contains downing a family-sized bag of cheese puffs while watching a sy-fy marathon!

 

There's always a light at the end of the tunnel while traveling in warp-speed!

(photo courtesy of Tungphoto)