My newest craze...boxing!
The bf and I are taking boxing classes together now. I am going 3-4 times/week, and so far every class has been really fun and really hard. There are several different instructors, and each instructor has his own format for the class (they are all somewhat similar) and a favorite method of torture ;)
A few of the new things that I have been doing are below:
The burpee- this seems easy the first couple you do, but they quickly become very tiring
http://www.rosstraining.com/articles/burpeeclip.htm
The two-person medicine ball sit-up-this isn't too bad, but I don't use a crazy heavy medicine ball
http://www.ehow.com/how_4617126_person-medicine-ball-sit-up.html
The next thing, I don't know what it's called, but imagine you are in a downward dog, then you sort of swoop down into a very short plank (just a few inches off the ground, so your elbows are bent, and your arms are tucked in very close to your body), then swoop back up into the downward dog. We do 50 of those, as fast as we can. Well, shit.
Sorry, no link for that one, although if I do find one, I will definitely post it. My first class the instructor demonstrated and then said, ok everyone do 50 of those as fast as you can. I have to fake them b/c I can't do them, and I just do my fake version as many times as I can until everyone else finishes theres, I think last time I did about 35, so I was pretty happy with that.
Push-ups...yep, I do those all the dang time now! I do the girly ones, where you are on your knees, but guess what, they still count and are challenging for me, especially when the instructions are to do as many as possible for 1 minute (that's a LONG ass time, believe me!).
Mountain Climbers-I have done these before, so I guess they aren't new, but still something you might like to see
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSTK0XzbFN0
I highly reccommend boxing to anyone who wants to try something new! It is fun, hard, and a workout unlike any other.
I am thinking (maybe) of getting into sparring, but if I did want to do something like that, I won't even start the private lessons until after the new year...but I'll keep you posted!
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 18, 2009
Half Marathons, Triathalons, Boxing, Oh my!
The summer is over, and so is all the craziness.
The bottom line as far as weight loss goes for the past 2 months...NO CHANGE :(
However, my % body fat did go down a little over 2%...so that means that (not to get specific) 'several' pounds that were fat are now muscle! Yeah!
Am I disappointed...no. Should I be...who knows. I will say, that this summer is ranking high on the list of busiest summers EVER! This summer I went on 3 personal trips (2 to Seattle, 1 to Philly) and 3 work trips (1 to Anaheim, 1 to San Jose and 1 to Albuquerque). This has meant that almost every other week involved some sort of travel. I missed tons of WW meetings, and had to cancel many sessions with Alyssa, ate out tons, and often didn't have the opportunity for PA. But, the summer is ending on a high note, I did go to WW last week and I lost 1 lb! Yeah!
To recap the last couple of weeks...
Disneyland Half Marathon: The Happiest Race on Earth
That's their slogan, and if it's true, then I'm definitely never doing another! The race started at 6am on 9/6. N and I attempted to carbo load the night before, although we had a hard time finding a restaurant with any pasta dishes that sounded good. We ended up at McCormick & Schmicks to get a seafood fettuccine Alfredo thing...not bad. Oh, and of course bread! Also, you are so supposed to drink for the race the day before, so I attempted to drink a gallon of water...not sure if that happened or not.
We had to catch the bus to the start line at 4:30am, so we tried to go to sleep early, but neither of us could really sleep. Nerves. The alarm went off way too early, but we did manage to catch the bus on time.
The race started in waves, and we were in the 3rd wave. Racers are required to finish the race in 3.5 hours from the time the LAST person passes the start line. So, as long as you are not the last person, you have a buffer of sorts. The pace to complete the race in this time is a 16 minute mile. Actually, there is a slow bus that will pick you up if you can't keep the pace. For you runners reading this, you might think this is no problem. I run/walk a 15 minute mile...but I had never actually done the whole 13.1 before so I was pretty nervous.
But, we started out strong doing a 12 minute mile to start. The course starts out going around the outside of Disneyland, then going into the park through the old main entrance (which takes you into CA Adventures now), run through there, run through the Esplanade, through Disneyland entrance, around D-land (through Cinderella's castle!), then out of the park...that's about 4 miles. We were doing good and easily meeting the 16 minute mile requirement. The next 4 miles are running through Anaheim...kind of boring, but they have stuff set up all along the route (ie: cheerleaders, hula dancers)...so far doing good but starting to feel tired and legs getting sort of tired. Mile 9 we ran through the Angels Stadium and got to be on the big screen! That was pretty cool, but I was really starting to feel TIRED at this point.
OK, well then things got really tough. Pretty much mile 10 to mile 13 were HELL! My feet gave out. I heard (after the fact, of course) that it is common for your feet to swell some when doing distance running. So, what I think happened is that my feet swelled so that my shoes were too tight and circulation to the bottom of my feet was significantly slowed/stopped. The result of this is that the bottom of my feet HURT SO MUCH! Each step was agony. I shed a few tears and was definitely (secretly) hoping the slow bus would catch me, but I didn't see it. I literally do not know how I completed those last couple miles. When we finally saw the finish line we started running again, and the next hour is truly a blur, we got our medals, a bagel, sat down for a while, and then hobbled back to the bus to get to the hotel, took showers, packed up and headed back to SD. Oh, and when we did get back to the hotel I finally got to look at my feet to try and see what was wrong...they didn't look injured (no blisters, etc) but they were totally gray, like the color of a dead person, so this further confirmed my hypothesis that somehow the bottom of my feet weren't getting blood.
During the car ride down all the acid settled into our muscles. I still shudder at the memory of walking up to the apartment. I burst into tears when I walked into the apt because every, yes EVERY muscle in my entire body below my shoulders was SCREAMING IN AGONY. I can't even describe. I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe, it was terrible! The next day was similar, but I started feeling pretty normal within a couple days.
Next events: November 22, Mud Run (5K), May 16 Triathlon (750 m swim, 20K bike, 5K run)
And, the final bit of info (I will write more about this later) is boxing!!! Yes, I started taking boxing classes and they are an awesome, FUN workout! I'm kind of wanting to fight someone now!
adios!
The bottom line as far as weight loss goes for the past 2 months...NO CHANGE :(
However, my % body fat did go down a little over 2%...so that means that (not to get specific) 'several' pounds that were fat are now muscle! Yeah!
Am I disappointed...no. Should I be...who knows. I will say, that this summer is ranking high on the list of busiest summers EVER! This summer I went on 3 personal trips (2 to Seattle, 1 to Philly) and 3 work trips (1 to Anaheim, 1 to San Jose and 1 to Albuquerque). This has meant that almost every other week involved some sort of travel. I missed tons of WW meetings, and had to cancel many sessions with Alyssa, ate out tons, and often didn't have the opportunity for PA. But, the summer is ending on a high note, I did go to WW last week and I lost 1 lb! Yeah!
To recap the last couple of weeks...
Disneyland Half Marathon: The Happiest Race on Earth
That's their slogan, and if it's true, then I'm definitely never doing another! The race started at 6am on 9/6. N and I attempted to carbo load the night before, although we had a hard time finding a restaurant with any pasta dishes that sounded good. We ended up at McCormick & Schmicks to get a seafood fettuccine Alfredo thing...not bad. Oh, and of course bread! Also, you are so supposed to drink for the race the day before, so I attempted to drink a gallon of water...not sure if that happened or not.
We had to catch the bus to the start line at 4:30am, so we tried to go to sleep early, but neither of us could really sleep. Nerves. The alarm went off way too early, but we did manage to catch the bus on time.
The race started in waves, and we were in the 3rd wave. Racers are required to finish the race in 3.5 hours from the time the LAST person passes the start line. So, as long as you are not the last person, you have a buffer of sorts. The pace to complete the race in this time is a 16 minute mile. Actually, there is a slow bus that will pick you up if you can't keep the pace. For you runners reading this, you might think this is no problem. I run/walk a 15 minute mile...but I had never actually done the whole 13.1 before so I was pretty nervous.
But, we started out strong doing a 12 minute mile to start. The course starts out going around the outside of Disneyland, then going into the park through the old main entrance (which takes you into CA Adventures now), run through there, run through the Esplanade, through Disneyland entrance, around D-land (through Cinderella's castle!), then out of the park...that's about 4 miles. We were doing good and easily meeting the 16 minute mile requirement. The next 4 miles are running through Anaheim...kind of boring, but they have stuff set up all along the route (ie: cheerleaders, hula dancers)...so far doing good but starting to feel tired and legs getting sort of tired. Mile 9 we ran through the Angels Stadium and got to be on the big screen! That was pretty cool, but I was really starting to feel TIRED at this point.
OK, well then things got really tough. Pretty much mile 10 to mile 13 were HELL! My feet gave out. I heard (after the fact, of course) that it is common for your feet to swell some when doing distance running. So, what I think happened is that my feet swelled so that my shoes were too tight and circulation to the bottom of my feet was significantly slowed/stopped. The result of this is that the bottom of my feet HURT SO MUCH! Each step was agony. I shed a few tears and was definitely (secretly) hoping the slow bus would catch me, but I didn't see it. I literally do not know how I completed those last couple miles. When we finally saw the finish line we started running again, and the next hour is truly a blur, we got our medals, a bagel, sat down for a while, and then hobbled back to the bus to get to the hotel, took showers, packed up and headed back to SD. Oh, and when we did get back to the hotel I finally got to look at my feet to try and see what was wrong...they didn't look injured (no blisters, etc) but they were totally gray, like the color of a dead person, so this further confirmed my hypothesis that somehow the bottom of my feet weren't getting blood.
During the car ride down all the acid settled into our muscles. I still shudder at the memory of walking up to the apartment. I burst into tears when I walked into the apt because every, yes EVERY muscle in my entire body below my shoulders was SCREAMING IN AGONY. I can't even describe. I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe, it was terrible! The next day was similar, but I started feeling pretty normal within a couple days.
Next events: November 22, Mud Run (5K), May 16 Triathlon (750 m swim, 20K bike, 5K run)
And, the final bit of info (I will write more about this later) is boxing!!! Yes, I started taking boxing classes and they are an awesome, FUN workout! I'm kind of wanting to fight someone now!
adios!
Friday, August 28, 2009
Emotional Eating and Triggers
It's been a while since I posted and also a while since I weighed in. Since my last post I have been to Albuquerque, Feasterville, and now back in SD. I have nothing to report on the weight loss front. While I was in Alb I was able to work in some cardio and weight lifting, but my activity level was definitely much lower than a "normal" week. Haha, it seems that lately a normal week has been a week where things were off, instead of on, as they were last month. Oh well, this is a long process so there will be ups and downs. In Feasterville I basically drank and ate a lot, although I did dance for several hours at the reception and later at the bar, so I can probably count that as some cardio :)
At my last weight watchers meeting we talked about emotional eating. I had a thought during this lesson that attempting to lose weight can easily add stress and increase the emotional eating. I know that the week following a gain it can be hard to move forward. Of course, in someways a gain can be a motivator to get back on track, but on the flip side, it can be very upsetting and depressing. Yes, I have definitely shed a few tears after getting on the scale and seeing a gain. I practically started laughing in the meeting when I was thinking this through, I mean what an awful catch-22! If you are not successful at losing weight one week (which as we all know is def possible b/c weight loss can be incredibly difficult) that only sabotages us from losing further weight as we try to rebound from the blow. This sucks!
I met with Jackie this week. Our last couple sessions have been a little...boring? That might now be the right word, but we (I) have struggled to find things to say for a whole 5o mins. Well, not the case this week! Jackie and I talked through a trigger that we discovered in this session...social situations. Hello, this is definitely not something that is unique to me, or even something that I have not considered before, but I have never sat and thought/talked about it with someone for an hour before, so many new ideas surfaced.
Social situations are not just a trigger for eating too much (for me). Typically in these situations I am at %110 for everything. I talk louder, faster, and more, I laugh louder and more, I get warmer, I eat more, I drink more, I am much more likely to partake in things that I would not normally take on in other situations. And, I usually don't consider the ramifications of things in the same way (particularly eating and drinking). Honostly, I didn't really like discovering these things. I have always enjoyed, perhaps over-enjoyed being in large social situaions, I often think of myself as the life of the party, but why do I have to overdo everything? Why do I have to be the center of attention, and the loudest (lol, unless Summer is there!), and eat the most and drink the most? What's funny, too, is that it's not that anyone else encourages this behavior. It's all me. I need to learn to S L O W D O W N in these situaions and remain in total control of my actions and behaviors. Think before I put the 20th fry in my mouth, reconsider ordering a 3rd beer, not feel the need to be the most gregarious person in the room. Maybe it is a self-defense thing...if I am the most fun person in the room then no one will notice/care that I'm fat.
This week I have been tracking all my points, and I will go to Weight Watchers on Sat before my flight. I have struggling to get back on track with eating the correct # of points, but that's ok. Each day has been better than the one before.
PA so far this week:
M: 50 mins w/ alyssa (cardio and weight training)
T: 50 mins walk/run
W: 50 mins w/ alyssa (cardio and weight training)
Th: 50 mins w/ alyssa (cardio and weight training)
Only 9 days til the 1/2 Marathon!
At my last weight watchers meeting we talked about emotional eating. I had a thought during this lesson that attempting to lose weight can easily add stress and increase the emotional eating. I know that the week following a gain it can be hard to move forward. Of course, in someways a gain can be a motivator to get back on track, but on the flip side, it can be very upsetting and depressing. Yes, I have definitely shed a few tears after getting on the scale and seeing a gain. I practically started laughing in the meeting when I was thinking this through, I mean what an awful catch-22! If you are not successful at losing weight one week (which as we all know is def possible b/c weight loss can be incredibly difficult) that only sabotages us from losing further weight as we try to rebound from the blow. This sucks!
I met with Jackie this week. Our last couple sessions have been a little...boring? That might now be the right word, but we (I) have struggled to find things to say for a whole 5o mins. Well, not the case this week! Jackie and I talked through a trigger that we discovered in this session...social situations. Hello, this is definitely not something that is unique to me, or even something that I have not considered before, but I have never sat and thought/talked about it with someone for an hour before, so many new ideas surfaced.
Social situations are not just a trigger for eating too much (for me). Typically in these situations I am at %110 for everything. I talk louder, faster, and more, I laugh louder and more, I get warmer, I eat more, I drink more, I am much more likely to partake in things that I would not normally take on in other situations. And, I usually don't consider the ramifications of things in the same way (particularly eating and drinking). Honostly, I didn't really like discovering these things. I have always enjoyed, perhaps over-enjoyed being in large social situaions, I often think of myself as the life of the party, but why do I have to overdo everything? Why do I have to be the center of attention, and the loudest (lol, unless Summer is there!), and eat the most and drink the most? What's funny, too, is that it's not that anyone else encourages this behavior. It's all me. I need to learn to S L O W D O W N in these situaions and remain in total control of my actions and behaviors. Think before I put the 20th fry in my mouth, reconsider ordering a 3rd beer, not feel the need to be the most gregarious person in the room. Maybe it is a self-defense thing...if I am the most fun person in the room then no one will notice/care that I'm fat.
This week I have been tracking all my points, and I will go to Weight Watchers on Sat before my flight. I have struggling to get back on track with eating the correct # of points, but that's ok. Each day has been better than the one before.
PA so far this week:
M: 50 mins w/ alyssa (cardio and weight training)
T: 50 mins walk/run
W: 50 mins w/ alyssa (cardio and weight training)
Th: 50 mins w/ alyssa (cardio and weight training)
Only 9 days til the 1/2 Marathon!
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Staying on track when sick
Oh my gosh! I am so bummed. I was on such a high after crossing the 10 lb mark...and then I got sick. This is the second time I have gotten sick since I joined WW, and it really puts a strain on trying to eat right and exercise regularly. So...what do you do? So far, I have just basically let myself go when I get sick, and try not to feel too bad about it. This week I have continued to track my points, despite knowing that I am not going to like what I see since I definitely overeat when I get sick (unless it's a stomach bug obviously). I'm not sure, but I think this is mainly due to a combo of staying at home (aka boredom eating) and not having the motivation to stay on track. I have searched online a bit trying to see if anyone else had better luck, but it seems that everyone has troubles when they are sick. Most people think that the best approach is to just take a few days and take care of yourself. I like this, although I don't want to give myself too many free passes. After my post about forgiveness, and this post, don't start thinking that I left myself off the hook with my goals!
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Week 10
Total Weight Change Thus Far...10.8 lbs!!!
That's right people, I have crossed the 10 lb mark! I worked my butt off this week and I am so glad I was able to see that work correspond to a loss on the scale. Sometimes it doesn't work out that way, and it can be very discouraging, and believe me, I needed to see something good this week.
So, what did I do this week to help me lose over 2 lbs...
PA this week:
Sat: run/walk 5 miles
Sun: 50 mins w/ Alyssa
Mon: 3/4 mile run (no walking) 3/4 mile walk
Tue: 2 mile run/walk
Wed: 50 mins w/ Alyssa
Th: nada
F: 10 minute run, 5 min walk, 60 mins weight training
Sat/Sun: sailing... (def doesn't count, I only sweat b/c I was so hot!)
I tracked everything I ate this week and worked hard to stay w/in my points. This week was also aided by re-discovering my love of cooking. I cooked 5 times this week, and brought my left overs for lunch several days, so I didn't eat out nearly as much as normal. Plus, when I cook, that means that I have planned out a meal. When I plan my meals in advance I can make good decisions rather than trying to decide what to eat when I am already hungry and the cupboards are empty.
My success this week has helped keep me motivated. Now that I have passed the 10 lb mark, my next goal (15 lbs) seem so close. 15 lbs is a lot! And then I will get to 20...! Yeah! I will be down to my pre-grad school weight in a few months, and then who knows from there.
Summer-I am going to try and keep with your gains!
That's right people, I have crossed the 10 lb mark! I worked my butt off this week and I am so glad I was able to see that work correspond to a loss on the scale. Sometimes it doesn't work out that way, and it can be very discouraging, and believe me, I needed to see something good this week.
So, what did I do this week to help me lose over 2 lbs...
PA this week:
Sat: run/walk 5 miles
Sun: 50 mins w/ Alyssa
Mon: 3/4 mile run (no walking) 3/4 mile walk
Tue: 2 mile run/walk
Wed: 50 mins w/ Alyssa
Th: nada
F: 10 minute run, 5 min walk, 60 mins weight training
Sat/Sun: sailing... (def doesn't count, I only sweat b/c I was so hot!)
I tracked everything I ate this week and worked hard to stay w/in my points. This week was also aided by re-discovering my love of cooking. I cooked 5 times this week, and brought my left overs for lunch several days, so I didn't eat out nearly as much as normal. Plus, when I cook, that means that I have planned out a meal. When I plan my meals in advance I can make good decisions rather than trying to decide what to eat when I am already hungry and the cupboards are empty.
My success this week has helped keep me motivated. Now that I have passed the 10 lb mark, my next goal (15 lbs) seem so close. 15 lbs is a lot! And then I will get to 20...! Yeah! I will be down to my pre-grad school weight in a few months, and then who knows from there.
Summer-I am going to try and keep with your gains!
Monday, August 3, 2009
A note on forgiveness
I've been thinking a lot this week about forgiveness. I think this was spurred from the fact that I was "off the wagon" the past couple of weeks d/t travel and then being kind of sick for a week. I have been trying to reconcile with myself how to recover from this fall, when I had my epiphany. Forgiveness. It's very funny, forgiveness or the ability to forgive is one of the hallmarks of a strong relationship, yet it seems that the hardest person to forgive is yourself. And, I would argue, that the relationship you have with yourself is the most important you will ever have. So, with this in mind, I have forgiven myself for an off couple of weeks and am recommitting to stick to the weight watchers and Alyssa plan. I will never be able to move forward if I am constantly looking backwards at what I should have, could have done differently. Instead I am learning from these past 2 weeks, taking away what I can so I can avoid similar pitfalls in the future.
I am very excited for the next few weeks b/c I am going to work so hard!
I am very excited for the next few weeks b/c I am going to work so hard!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Week...I'm not sure, maybe 8 or 9??
Total Weight Change -8.5lbs
I'm almost to the 10 lb mark! I can't wait to get there! Losing weight in the summer...I'm still trying to decide if it is the best time or the worst time to start. On one hand, it's summer, so it's nice outside, there are lots of outdoor activities to participate in, not to mention all the girls running around in mini skirts and bikinis to help motivate! But, on the flip side, the summer is a time for traveling/vacationing, weddings, happy hours, BBQs...a lot of fun, food centered activities. I suppose it doesn't really matter, there is no time like the present, as 'they' say, so here I am working my butt of when I can, but allowing myself some indulgences when the fun stuff comes up.
The past few weeks have been a crazy whirlwind of events, so I apologize (to my 2 readers!) for not keeping the blog updated! Sadly (for my food/PA goals), the events that I speak of have definitely involved traveling (aka eating out, and not having access to a gym) and partying (food, drinks, but also some cardio on the dance floor!). I feel like I have been out of town for most of July! However, my weigh-ins at WW have continued to show me losing weight, although it has slowed a little.
I saw Alyssa for the first time in 2 weeks on Wed and got my ass kicked. Seriously. I have been limping around the last 2 days, my whole body is sore! Of course, it's a good sore, I'm happy to hurt for my cause!
So, my PA plan for this week:
M: nada
T: nada
W: weight training w/ Alyssa
Th: run/walk 30 minutes
F: weight training, cardio
Sat: run/walk 8 miles
Sun: weight training w/ Alyssa
Have I mentioned my 1/2 Marathon yet? I can't remember...well, I had a CRAZY idea, yes I temporarily lost my mind, to do a 1/2 Marathon a couple months ago. So, what did I do??? I just hopped on line and signed up for one, just like that (after paying $200 of course). The race is on 9/6, so a little over a month away. It's the Disney 1/2 Marathon, and is supposedly really fun. Of course, I have my doubts, since the people I know who have done it are also the sort of people who like to run 7 miles a few times a week, where as I have been training for 2 months to get up to 8 miles, and each new mile I do is only completed by some miracle from above. I coerced one of my coworkers into joining me on this run, so now I am trapped, which is a good thing, I suppose. If she weren't doing it with me, I think I would definitely have backed out by now, since the training has been really hard (really, really, really).
My counselor has been out of town for the entire month of July (as have I it seems) so I don't have any new nuggets of insight to put forth, but I will say that I have been feeling really good. I don't know how much longer I will continue to see her b/c honostly I feel like a different person that I did 6 months ago. I still struggle somtimes with my body image, and how my perception of my weight has such an influence on my emotions, but I feel a lot happier and more in control. Of course, I'm still waiting for the BF to start appreciating my new found confidence and happiness.
My goal for the rest of this week is to follow through with the PA I have planned for today, tomorrow and Sunday. My goal for next week is get back on track with WW, since I haven't been tracking my points for the last 1.5 weeks. I get weighed on Saturday, so keep your fingers crossed that I will keep the downward trend going!
I'm almost to the 10 lb mark! I can't wait to get there! Losing weight in the summer...I'm still trying to decide if it is the best time or the worst time to start. On one hand, it's summer, so it's nice outside, there are lots of outdoor activities to participate in, not to mention all the girls running around in mini skirts and bikinis to help motivate! But, on the flip side, the summer is a time for traveling/vacationing, weddings, happy hours, BBQs...a lot of fun, food centered activities. I suppose it doesn't really matter, there is no time like the present, as 'they' say, so here I am working my butt of when I can, but allowing myself some indulgences when the fun stuff comes up.
The past few weeks have been a crazy whirlwind of events, so I apologize (to my 2 readers!) for not keeping the blog updated! Sadly (for my food/PA goals), the events that I speak of have definitely involved traveling (aka eating out, and not having access to a gym) and partying (food, drinks, but also some cardio on the dance floor!). I feel like I have been out of town for most of July! However, my weigh-ins at WW have continued to show me losing weight, although it has slowed a little.
I saw Alyssa for the first time in 2 weeks on Wed and got my ass kicked. Seriously. I have been limping around the last 2 days, my whole body is sore! Of course, it's a good sore, I'm happy to hurt for my cause!
So, my PA plan for this week:
M: nada
T: nada
W: weight training w/ Alyssa
Th: run/walk 30 minutes
F: weight training, cardio
Sat: run/walk 8 miles
Sun: weight training w/ Alyssa
Have I mentioned my 1/2 Marathon yet? I can't remember...well, I had a CRAZY idea, yes I temporarily lost my mind, to do a 1/2 Marathon a couple months ago. So, what did I do??? I just hopped on line and signed up for one, just like that (after paying $200 of course). The race is on 9/6, so a little over a month away. It's the Disney 1/2 Marathon, and is supposedly really fun. Of course, I have my doubts, since the people I know who have done it are also the sort of people who like to run 7 miles a few times a week, where as I have been training for 2 months to get up to 8 miles, and each new mile I do is only completed by some miracle from above. I coerced one of my coworkers into joining me on this run, so now I am trapped, which is a good thing, I suppose. If she weren't doing it with me, I think I would definitely have backed out by now, since the training has been really hard (really, really, really).
My counselor has been out of town for the entire month of July (as have I it seems) so I don't have any new nuggets of insight to put forth, but I will say that I have been feeling really good. I don't know how much longer I will continue to see her b/c honostly I feel like a different person that I did 6 months ago. I still struggle somtimes with my body image, and how my perception of my weight has such an influence on my emotions, but I feel a lot happier and more in control. Of course, I'm still waiting for the BF to start appreciating my new found confidence and happiness.
My goal for the rest of this week is to follow through with the PA I have planned for today, tomorrow and Sunday. My goal for next week is get back on track with WW, since I haven't been tracking my points for the last 1.5 weeks. I get weighed on Saturday, so keep your fingers crossed that I will keep the downward trend going!
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Week 5, 6
Week 5/6
Weight Change: +.2
Well, admittedly, I always hope to see a negative on the scale, so I do wish the number was different but I'm not too upset this week. Basically my weight didn't change, even though I went to a conference and ate out every meal for 3 days right before weighing in. I tried to be good and avoid the sweet snacks, and I shared meals w/ people for dinner, so that helped, and I worked out at the hotel gym.
I have been struggling w/ portion control lately, and motivation. I try to take it one day at a time, and one week at a time, but sometimes I forget and let my mind wander, and then I get bogged down by the incredible amount of weight I need to lose. I mean, how am I ever going to lose 80-100 pounds?! It's going to be so hard...and the evil cycle of doubt, self-loathing, and quitting (at least in the past) ensues...ugh.
I haven't given up though, and I am looking forward to weight watchers this week, even though I have no idea if I will lose, since I have been sick w/ swine flu for a week and not keeping track of my points or exercising, but I am looking forward to it b/c hopefully going to a meeting will help me back into the right frame of mind.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Week 4
Week 4:
Weight Change: -3.4
Total Weight Change: -6.8
Well this week was a success! I struggled with my food, and ate 2 of fairly high point meals, on on Sat night and one on Tues night, however I stuck to my PA and ate well the rest of the week. I especially made a point to have several very low point dinner to counter my high point dinners. I do think that some of this weight loss may also actually reflect weight that I lost last week, but because of where I was in my cycle, could not tell last week.
Some food that helped me this week:
berries! cherries, blueberries and raspberries
salads
dungoness crab
hunter chicken (weight watchers recipe)
weight watchers ice cream bar
PA this week:
Sa: 1 hr cardio hip hop
Su: 1 hr weight training w/ Alyssa
M: nothing
T: 30 minutes run/walk
W: 1 hr weight training w/ Alyssa
Th: nothing
F: 30 minutes run/walk and 45 minutes weight training
Counseling Corner:
Keep my eye on the long term goal, don't stress so much about each week but remember that there will always be ups and downs.
Yeah! My short term goal was to lose 10 lbs by Sarah's wedding. The wedding is in a month, and I only have 3.5 pounds to go, so it should be an attainable goal.
Weight Change: -3.4
Total Weight Change: -6.8
Well this week was a success! I struggled with my food, and ate 2 of fairly high point meals, on on Sat night and one on Tues night, however I stuck to my PA and ate well the rest of the week. I especially made a point to have several very low point dinner to counter my high point dinners. I do think that some of this weight loss may also actually reflect weight that I lost last week, but because of where I was in my cycle, could not tell last week.
Some food that helped me this week:
berries! cherries, blueberries and raspberries
salads
dungoness crab
hunter chicken (weight watchers recipe)
weight watchers ice cream bar
PA this week:
Sa: 1 hr cardio hip hop
Su: 1 hr weight training w/ Alyssa
M: nothing
T: 30 minutes run/walk
W: 1 hr weight training w/ Alyssa
Th: nothing
F: 30 minutes run/walk and 45 minutes weight training
Counseling Corner:
Keep my eye on the long term goal, don't stress so much about each week but remember that there will always be ups and downs.
Yeah! My short term goal was to lose 10 lbs by Sarah's wedding. The wedding is in a month, and I only have 3.5 pounds to go, so it should be an attainable goal.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Week 3
Week 3:
Weight Change: +.8 lbs
Wow, I gained this week. I'm pretty pissed. I worked out even harder than last week, and did very well on keeping tract of all my food. I have talked to a couple of people about this and there are a few ideas:
1. I'm just starting my period
2. I've been a little swollen w/ the extra working out
3. I was a little constipated
4. I didn't work out on Friday night (this is my idea, no one else thought this was the problem)
5. I didn't keep track properly and I really should have gained the weight
6. muscle
So, after a small inital meltdown (yes, sobbing in the car), and a minor food binge on Sat night, I am still on track. Even with the extra food on Sat, I have been doing well and working out and keeping track of all my food. I am definitely nervous now for my next weigh in, which is unfortunate since last week I was practically looking forward to getting on the scale. My counselor reminded me that this is a long term committment, and there will be weeks that I don't lose and I have to be able to move past them and not dwell or "fall off the wagon". So, I'm trying hard not to freak out.
This is a short post, but I didn't have a chance to write earlier, and it wasn't a great week, so I'm not feeling too motivated to write.
Wish me luck next week.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Week 2
Week 2:
Weight Change: -4.2 lbs
This has been a good week! A great way to start WW off with a bang. BF joined this week, so that will be good, I think. I'm not too sure actually. Yesterday he bought a bunch of churros (yes, those deep fried peices of dough coated in cinnamon and sugar) and a big cookie. Of course he can still be on WW and eat those, but it's not neccesarily the best way to start, and it's one thing to buy ONE churro, but a whole bag?! Anyway, the whole thing made me a little nervous. He wants to lose 10-20 pounds, while I need to lose about 100 lbs so I'm starting to feel a little stressed out about what his committment will be. It would be very upsetting to have joined WW w/ him, only be have him be an enabler later on when I will need someone to tell me to drop that bag of cheetos! OK, this is not a very happy post, even though this has been a great week, so I'll move on.
My trainer was out of town this week, so I was not able to see her 2x as I normally do. However, that didn't seem to be a problem! My exercise this week:
Sat: nada
Sun: 1 hr weight training w/ trainer (13 pts)
Mon: 30 minute run/walk interval, plus 30 minute walk (10 pts)
Tue: 1 hr walk on the sand (4 pts)
Wed: 1 hr weight training (13 pts)
Thu: nada
Fri: 1 hr weight trainging (13 points)
Sat: 1 hr cardio hip hop class (13 pts)
Awesome! A typical PA week for me is 2-3x weights 1-2x cardio, so this was a step up from normal! Of course, now that I am out of school, I have more time, so that has helped. And, as you can tell from this blog, I am so TIRED of feeling bad about my self, so I am really trying to turn this around.
My food this week was also good. I did not go over my points and wrote down literally everything. The day I started (last Sat) I went out to mexican w/ my friend. Not the best way to start, and I got full off chips and salsa before the food even came. I went and had Mexican last nigh w/ BF and we shared a plate of fajitas (no tortillas for me) and I ate 12 chips (3 pts) then pushed the basket to the other side of the table. I definitely do not have the self control to have the chips in front of me and not eat them, but I do have the self control to move them out of my reach. I ate a lot of salads this week, but they were good salads. I have never been very good about making good salads, but that may have changed. The salads I have been making had either chicken, baked tofu, or crab in them, with an herb salad mix, baby carrots, garbonzo beans, olives, tomatos, avocado and this honey mustard dressing made from yogurt, so it is only 45 calories but has 100% of the thickness and flavor!
Food Highlights (food that made my life easier last week):
- salads
- skinny cow ice cream bars
- cherries
Counseling Corner
Jacki and I met on Monday. One of her suggestions to me was to stop talking and thinking so much about how to change my weight. Instead she wants me to focus on my eating behavior and my activity behavior. These things, when I think about them, and talk about them, are not so closely linked to my 'self' but are behaviors, than can be changed. I liked this idea. Because I have been overweight for so long, and it has become something that defines me (in my own head), to change my weight is scary, it means i have to change myself. But, to change my eating behavior, well, that seems much less scary.
Yeah for a great first week!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Baseline
Week 1:
Weight Change: 0 lbs (baseline)
I just received my masters degree from SDSU. I was scared when I first moved to SD two years ago because I thought I would be the only fat person here. Obviously, a pretty irrational thought, but I honestly believed it. Now I know that there are lots of fat people here, but I was one of the only (literally, there were 2 of us) overweight people in my graduating class. Some people may have been able to use this fact as motivation, but I managed to gain 20 lbs over the past 2 years. Actually, the majority of the weight was put on during the last year.
A brief history of my weight loss attempts:
Weight Watchers: 1998, 2002, 2004, 2008, current
Jenny Craig: 2004
starvation: high school
acupuncture: 2007
counseling: 2007, current
personnel training: 2005, current
Tiajuana Lap Band: Aug 2005
diet pills: college
"dieting": my entire life
I have tried basically everything, from surgery in TJ to acupuncture and counseling. Most of the things I have tried have worked...at first. My M.O. is to lose 10 lbs, then quit and gain 25 back. I actually did pretty well with the lap band at first, I lost 40 lbs, but then I had it tightened too much, and ended up in the ER. Ever since then, the lap band has been a failure, and something I regret doing everyday. But, I guess my title is true, I was desperate to lose.
Last October I started working out with my personnel trainer, Alyssa. She is awesome. We have been working out together 2-3 times/week for almost 8 months now. It has been an amazing transformation. I went from working out 1-2 times/week on a GOOD week, to now feeling bad if I don't seriously sweat at least 4 times per week. Despite the dramatic change in my physical activity (PA) level, my weight has not changed at all. As a matter of fact, I have gained weight. Alyssa had me keeping a food journal also. She is definitely an advocate of the high protein, low carb lifestyle and so my diet has also changed. I started working with a counselor about 2 months ago, although I have only seen her a couple time b/c she is so busy. I had an epiphany recently that I am an emotional eater. It probably isn't much of a suprise to anyone, but it was too me. I also started Weight Watchers again yesterday. My boyfriend (BF) is going to do it with me, even though he is very fit. He has been trying to get a six pack for over 2 years now, so despite having a very muscular body, he has a layer of fat over his abs that exercising just cannot seem to get rid of. Hopefully learning to eat better will change that for him. And, hopefully having someone to join me on my newest weight loss endeavor will help me succeed. So, currently I have a personnel trainer, a counselor and I am doing Weight Watchers. Seems like a recipe for success!
OK, that's enough for today. I'm going to continue this blog, updating each week with news of my weight loss (or gain, as it may be) so stay tuned!
Weight Change: 0 lbs (baseline)
I just received my masters degree from SDSU. I was scared when I first moved to SD two years ago because I thought I would be the only fat person here. Obviously, a pretty irrational thought, but I honestly believed it. Now I know that there are lots of fat people here, but I was one of the only (literally, there were 2 of us) overweight people in my graduating class. Some people may have been able to use this fact as motivation, but I managed to gain 20 lbs over the past 2 years. Actually, the majority of the weight was put on during the last year.
A brief history of my weight loss attempts:
Weight Watchers: 1998, 2002, 2004, 2008, current
Jenny Craig: 2004
starvation: high school
acupuncture: 2007
counseling: 2007, current
personnel training: 2005, current
Tiajuana Lap Band: Aug 2005
diet pills: college
"dieting": my entire life
I have tried basically everything, from surgery in TJ to acupuncture and counseling. Most of the things I have tried have worked...at first. My M.O. is to lose 10 lbs, then quit and gain 25 back. I actually did pretty well with the lap band at first, I lost 40 lbs, but then I had it tightened too much, and ended up in the ER. Ever since then, the lap band has been a failure, and something I regret doing everyday. But, I guess my title is true, I was desperate to lose.
Last October I started working out with my personnel trainer, Alyssa. She is awesome. We have been working out together 2-3 times/week for almost 8 months now. It has been an amazing transformation. I went from working out 1-2 times/week on a GOOD week, to now feeling bad if I don't seriously sweat at least 4 times per week. Despite the dramatic change in my physical activity (PA) level, my weight has not changed at all. As a matter of fact, I have gained weight. Alyssa had me keeping a food journal also. She is definitely an advocate of the high protein, low carb lifestyle and so my diet has also changed. I started working with a counselor about 2 months ago, although I have only seen her a couple time b/c she is so busy. I had an epiphany recently that I am an emotional eater. It probably isn't much of a suprise to anyone, but it was too me. I also started Weight Watchers again yesterday. My boyfriend (BF) is going to do it with me, even though he is very fit. He has been trying to get a six pack for over 2 years now, so despite having a very muscular body, he has a layer of fat over his abs that exercising just cannot seem to get rid of. Hopefully learning to eat better will change that for him. And, hopefully having someone to join me on my newest weight loss endeavor will help me succeed. So, currently I have a personnel trainer, a counselor and I am doing Weight Watchers. Seems like a recipe for success!
OK, that's enough for today. I'm going to continue this blog, updating each week with news of my weight loss (or gain, as it may be) so stay tuned!
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