Week 11

Sorry 9 +10. You were busy. Or rather, I was. Update fail.

So, what's up for week 11? Victory!! Victory is up.

Saturday I finished my 5 mile run at a 12.5 minute mile pace. Mind = blown. My normal trot is maybe 16 minute miles on a good day. Adrenaline certainly did me some good. Walked away not too sore - some pain on my left knee the following day was quickly banished with epsom, arnica, rest, and ice. Voila!

I won't make my goal of 50 pounds by June, and that's ok - I'm still at 20 pounds right now, and will continue past the 18 weeks anyhow. I'm excited to get back into routines this week after several long stretches of distraction. I leave for Vegas one month from today. Hot damn! Bathing suit and stripper dance class, here I come!

Still here, still trudging. So healthy you just wouldn't believe it - with the notable exception of the day my 'nephew' was born. Then, there was cupcakes and pizza... but it was a birthday! I'm back to supplements by the handful and daily cleanses. How are YOU? I miss you. Tell me everything.

xo

Week 8, a little late

I pondered updating on Tuesday saying only:

"There are banana splits at the Triple Door made from local gelato."

Which would've been quite telling.

Luckily, it's not the whole story. Even with little indulgences and a RIDICULOUSLY busy schedule lately, I seem to be losing weight. To keep from resting on my laurels, I'm getting my butt to the gym tonight.

I'm proud to say I ran around comfortably in my underwear again at this year's panty party. I'm not perfect, but I already feel so much better in my own skin.

My scale isn't actually calibrated, but it said 168 the other night. Let's pretend that's correct + keep on going!

How are YOU?

what? is this really week 7???

Okay. So those first seven weeks were prep, okay? Let's not count them. Or, no, we should count them. Fine we will count them!

ANYWAYS. Since recommitting myself to portion control via ww, I have had a couple bad weeks and one good week, leading to a 2 lb gain and then a 7 lb loss, netting myself rid of the 5 lbs that pushed me over the edge back into the beloved structure of points in the first place. I'm still doing well-but-not-awesome on exercise, averaging 3-4 times a week instead of the goal of 6x a week. I'm talking 30 minute workout sessions here ladies, so it should be doable. So here's what's coming up for me goalwise:

1. Exercise - I want to start wearing the fantastic pedometer my mom got me for Christmas, and once I've got some idea what my average is for steps per day is, start working to increase it. I have also been neglecting stretching and arm workouts for the higher calorie burning abs, buns, and thighs workouts, so I'd like to add these in, maybe in the evenings before bed since they're not too sweaty.

2. Food: Don't hate me, ladies, but I've resorted to frozen portion controlled meals for lunch and dinner. I know it's not very natural but this is temporary. I have come to the realization that I can't control my own portions right now - tracking my normal food consumption for a couple weeks made this abundantly clear- so for the next few weeks no eating out, and we'll either be cooking straight from the ww website or using frozen food.

So here's what a typical day is for me right now, and it seems to be working.

Get up, drink glass of warm water.
30 min workout(-2 points)
Breakfast
1 glass Green Lemonade (1 point)
Snack
Banana(2 points)
coffee w/2 sugar packets and 2 tblsp cream (2 points)
Lunch
5-7 point frozen meal
Dinner
5-7 point frozen meal OR homemade ww recipe
fresh salad (1-2 points)
3-4 point dessert (pre-assembled ww, or 1 cup fat free frozen yogurt.)

It all adds up to a 21-22 point day, and my ww target is 21 points not counting exercise. Plus with the banana, salad, and Green Lemonade I'm getting more than 5 servings of fruit/veggies per day. I'm also drinking 4-6 cups of red tea, which has the double benefit of hydrating, appetite curbing, and flooding my body with anti-oxidants.

I've done this successfully for four days. But I think it's something I can keep up.

Week 7 Check In

Buzzzzzzzing today. Did a liver cleanse this morning that sounded less horrific than some of the others [A, I believe you did the 1/2c. olive oil one?] but was still an unusual way to start the day. The drink was:

1/2c. tomato juice
2T olive oil
1 clove fresh garlic
1t turmeric

Blended and taken down. I waited 15 minutes + repeated. I did not vomit, though the mind REELS at the 500 calorie intake. Do I count this as a supplement? A normal 'meal'? After the two drinks you're supposed to wait 90 minutes before eating or drinking, so I did my Biggest Loser Weight Loss Yoga DVD [nerd] and [it's about to get personal] a coffee enema. Sounds ridiculous, I know, especially for someone who has quit drinking coffee. However, the coffee stimulates something in bile production and/or bile ducts [too lazy to Google it right now] and helps push out what you're clearing with the liver cleansing tomato juice. I figure if I have to drink that stuff, I want to hedge my bets that it will be effective and do EVERYTHING I can.

Also doing well with the smoothies, my kidney cleanse caps, hydration, etc. Other than Friday night's diet killing party at JR's [cake, pudding, oreos, cheese sticks, oh my] I've been really happy with my food intake.

My workouts, however, have been a disaster. Going out two nights last week on top of a busy work + home schedule was murder. Monday I had a lame workout, Tuesday I had a lame workout, DIDN'T WORK OUT WEDNESDAY. OR THURSDAY. Did some bits on Friday, NOTHING SATURDAY. Had high hopes for Sunday, but DROPPED A 100 POUND BOX ON MY ANKLE. That ruined not only Sunday but MONDAY while I watched bruises form, applying arnica and elevating with ice.

Tonight my workout lull comes to an end. I have a 3 hour date with 24 hour fitness, and I will win out over my inertia. My happy liver and I may even get on the scale.

Goodness

I thought this would be especially interesting to A since she's also a raw fooder, and possibly to J since she's seen Kate as well. I've been doing truly magical smoothies for breakfast + my ph has been climbing all week. [Less acidic and closer to the ideal 7.0-7.4]

Note that these are NOT low calorie by any stretch of the imagination. But I'm able to stay at 1200 calories/day even with this inclusion, IF I pay close attention at the end of the day.

A usual smoothie:
Organic frozen fruit, no more than 1/2 c.
Vanilla stevia
Unsweetened almond milk [would love to start making my own]
Vitamin D drops
Maca
Raw cacao
Quantum Greens [from Kate P. - they're DELICIOUS]
Coconut oil, roughly 1T
Soaked goji berries + soak water

Sometimes I add a little almond butter, or acai, or spinach - whatever I can get my hands on. I know I've mentioned my smoothie love before, but they're really so energizing + good for digestion. And the quantum greens is taking it to the next level for me.

THE &#$*&! scale has yet to budge, but my belt needs a new hole, or I need a new belt. Seems like excellent progress. And though saying goodbye to coffee feels like the end of the world + killed my workout motivation this week, I finally pulled out a decent 40 minutes this morning. Combined a circuits of my 3 minute snail pace then sprinting a 10 minute mile [well, sprinting for ME] for at least a minute. I've had a huge mental block against going more than a mile all week, so this felt like a GIANT victory. Take that, coffee! You can't ruin my kidney cleanse!

What else is everyone doing? R? A? J? C? Other J? Other R, who I imagine has never actually read this? Our little lurkers, E + L?

xo

Week 6 // Check in

Just telling everyone/myself, I'm still here. Had a really craptastic workout tonight... I just couldn't get it up, so to speak. There are other workouts though. It IS day two without coffee, so anything short of homicide feels like victory.

I had an AMAZING session with Kate yesterday. Really excited about some things I'm taking now, especially quantum greens which are jammin' in a smoothie. Many more sessions to come, but it feels like a good direction to be in. Adding more coconut oil, too + a kidney cleanse, to be followed by a liver cleanse. Hence the lack of coffee. Oh, my.

6 weeks! That's a third of the way to our [first] goal! Needless to say, the end of this 18 weeks will not be the end of my new good +healthy habits. But it WILL be interesting to see what size my bridesmaid's dress is.

I still don't know what I weigh. But I put my pants in the dryer [which I never do] and they still fit today. Good sign.

a video to share

I've been struggling with many things lately, weight is just one of them, but I watched this video and somehow it made me feel less frustrated. I thought I would share it with you:

http://www.thinkandgetslim.com/Abe_Natural_Weight_.html

Week 5 Check In

This week's theme: I have no idea how much I weigh. But at the moment, I think that's a good thing. Obviously my metabolism is taking its sweet damn time realizing I AM ACTUALLY WORKING OUT, and I refuse to be tied to the scale in the meantime. I do trust that I will see results eventually, and in the meantime I know I'm doing EVERYTHING I can. And then some, some days.

How else can I measure my success? For one, I've given up on fitday.com and implemented the Lose It! app on my iPhone. It budgets my calories for me as I go, and without internet at home this makes sure I don't go over with my last meal of the day + bad math skills. The week at a glace + goal tracking are also MUCH easier to look at. Now if they could just make a great pedometer for the phone, I'd be set!

Another thing I'm loving is that I know I'm in better shape. On January 11th I couldn't jog more than a block or so - literally. When I started jogging towards the start of February, I could do one mile at maybe 18 minutes. Maybe a little more? Yesterday, perhaps fueled by family drama, perhaps not, I knocked out 3 miles in 42:44. It was nice to de-stress on the treadmill, but I feel pretty confident I can stay at 15 minute miles even without extra motivation.

My small jeans don't fit over my butt yet - BUT THEY WILL. [For the record, Ro, these are the jeans you tried to make me get rid of because they were giant on me. Ah, smoking + redbull. You were great for weigh loss.]

5 weeks until my 5 mile Tulip Run!!

xo

breaking down

Okay, that title is a little dramatic. But - for the past 2-3 weeks I've been better at working out than I've ever been, and still no real weight loss. It's frustrating. So I broke down and re-signed up for weight watchers online. I know it's about the food, and really being able to track it. I hate that it's about that for me, and the problem is (or was, last time I tried WW) that it's too easy to focus on the food and then rationalize away the excercise. I'll just stay under my points and then I don't have to work out turns into not staying under my points AND not working out and...well you see. Plus it's hard to figure out points for juice, which is how I start every day.

In my heart I know that I can't have it just one way, though. I am going to need to watch food AND keep my activity up. WW is a very convienient way to make that happen for me, so here we go.

[4 weeks is 1 month, OH MY] check in

AKA, for the love of Bob.

Last night I made my way through all levels of the boot camp DVD - a sweet gift from my dear husband-valentine! I know that 4 weeks ago I couldn't have done it, and it was a nice milestone to complete it.

I weighed in this morning at 176 pounds - 5 pounds of weight loss total. While this is nowhere near my goal, or my goal pace, I have to admit that a pound a week ain't shabby. I feel better, I feel strong, I sleep better, I have more energy... what's not to love?

In two weeks I have a biofeeback appointment with Kate Poole, just like the one JR did. Excited to have Kate's input, she's incredibly knowledgeable about all around well being. I know she'll call me out on the fact that I've been eating non-organic foods, for one, including non organic meats and cheese. I don't want to sacrifice my attention to healthy foods in favor of what will make me simply lose weight faster.

I only have 5 more weeks to train for the Tulip Run, which continues to be my focal point for my workouts. I also meet with a personal trainer tomorrow for my first appointment. I've been setting rewards for myself - like after the 8k, I'll treat myself to a Jillian Michaels book + a week of hot yoga.

Ok guys, eagerly waiting to hear from everyone... love you all. xo

Life happens

Thursday night at 9 pm, my husband had to go to the emergency room. He's just fine now, but at the time we didn't know what was happening, even if it might be a stroke. I had to stay home with my stepson, not let on to what was happening, put him to sleep like it was a normal night, and wait at home rather than being on hand to help.

The first thing I wanted was a cigarette. Since I had none, I had CHOCOLATE. Thanks, PMS. Only an extra 250 calories, but still. He didn't get home from the ER until 6 in the morning, so needless to say everyone's sleep was a bit off. I was so exhausted all day that I skipped the gym and went to bed at 7:30 last night.

Basically those 48 hours are a wash. I'm optimistic I didn't do too much damage, but there was certainly no forward progress. I'm NOT going to let it get me down, even if I did have to miss my weekly Cappy's this morning. Rather than throwing in the towel, I'm going to try to double up.

Next time a crisis hits, I'd rather see myself pop in a workout dvd rather than bust out the truffles.

There's only 83 days left until I go to Vegas. Time to get things done.

More of what's good, less of what isn't

Last sad post + J's asskicking aside, I thought it might be nice to mention a few less bummer items.

Like... my breakfast this morning! Raw, nutritious, good for fast oxidizers.

6 oz almond milk
1T amazon bliss
2oz raw spinach
1oz frozen mixed berries
2-5 drops vanilla stevia to taste - Whole Foods brand is the best

Or... my workout last night! I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, and sweated my *** off. Then some upper body weights and experimenting with the ab machines, putting pride aside in favor of learning how on earth they worked. A long sit in the sauna for detox + stretching [tight muscles around my knees respond well to this] and I felt great by the time I left.

Stupid scale can't get me down.

Week 3 check in

Scale disaster! Brownies! Knees! It has not been a glorious week for round three.

If the scale is correct, I actually haven't lost any weight since I started. Whatever my estimates were previously, it says I weigh in at 181. Before anyone tries to say I gained muscle, that's likely b.s. - there's no WAY I do enough lifting to gain 8 lbs of muscle. I have worked out at least once a day, every day, for three weeks, mostly cardio. I have eaten an average of 1,300 calories a day.

What. The. Eff.

I must admit that yesterday I gave in and baked brownies, which thank goodness were awful - not tempting. But I did have one, and I did NOT work out thanks to a combo of despair and soreness in my knees.

I know enough not to let the scale set you back, but really? This is frustrating. Hopefully everyone will share tales of accomplishment and shedding pounds to encourage me forward.

I fell off the wagon and rolled down the hill.

...and hit every delicious, fattening thing on my way down. Almond croissant, tasty quesadilla, cherry coke, HOT PASTRAMI SANDWICH. "I'm on vacation!" I told myself, but really it was just Portland and I'm home now, so what's my excuse for the ice cream I'm about to tuck into? PRESIDENTS DAY? Frick! And you know I haven't exercised (besides a 3 mile walk on Saturday, but that was to FOOD). Someone tell me something to get me back on track. I already feel the "snowpants" effect creeping back to my thighs. Help me please.

PLEASE!

2 new favorite things

Favorite workout song: "Poker Face" by Lady Gaga

Favorite healthy dinner: Quinoa pasta with broiled salmon + asparagus, fresh cherry tomatoes, homemade pesto [light on the extra virgin olive oil, heavy on the lemon juice] - DELICIOUS

Ran 3 miles today. Ready, go.

delayed weight loss?

So either my scale is wacky or I lost 4 more lbs in the last two days?? Argh. I need to get a really good scale or head to the IMA and see if they have a scale that is accurate. At this point, I have lost somewhere between 8 lbs and 4 in the last 3 weeks. If it is only 4 then this weight is coming off slower then I wanted and I need to up my exercising days. Right now I'm still doing 2 days (an hour each) during the week at boot camp and one hour at the IMA or Greenlake walking or jogging on the weekend. Maybe I need to add more running days? I will try to run both Sat and Sun if I can and see if that helps. My appetite during this cold I've had the last week is very low, so maybe I did lose 4lbs in the last day. Yay for the flu/cold! Hahaha. Ok, S and I need more inspiration, is anyone else have good weight loss, and if so tell us what you are doing so we can mimick it. :) Thanks!
p.s. go see Coraline. It was really really good, if you are into Burton films.

Week 2 Check In!

Last week I lost 5 pounds, bringing the total weight loss to 8 pounds. Woohoo! Now here's hoping that all of that weight was fat, or at least as much as possible - not muscle loss. With the intensity of my workouts, it seems hard to believe I could be losing any muscle.

Yesterday was started week 1 of my 8 weeks to train for a 5 mile run on April 11th. I'm trying not to overtrain + injure myself, so I did my 2 miles yesterday plus another mile of walking, and today will be a 'resting' day of yoga and 30 day shred.

Calories have stayed right at around 1200, never below + only slightly bumping over that amount. It's tough, but so far it's worth it! I've also upped my protein intake and reduced even some of my "good" carbs. Tuesdays are the exception, as they remain my juicing day, but I try to balance the sugar with fiber intake + primarily veggie juices.

Excited and motivated, still. What about y'alls?

Cappy's, round one

My take on the first trip to Cappy's - R's quips on my post in italics

**************

Saturday morning, I took a boxing fitness class. Basically everyone I told this to raised an eyebrow. Even if we were speaking on the phone, I could still hear the skeptical lift. I can't say that I know just what a "boxing" type is; I just know that I'm not it. Current workout resurgence aside, I'm not of the "hit the gym" varitey. MAYBE a stroll around Greenlake, if I'm feeling frisky. But boxing? Ha! But the way that fellow 18-week-challenger R talked about the class, I couldn't resist. I wanted a REAL workout.

When I'm feeling frisky I like to dress in knee socks and play "exchange student" with my boyfriend. Just kidding. I love the instant toughness that this class gives you. It's always given me a little momentum: I'm going to Cappy's.


I arrived an anxious 20 minutes early last Saturday. It was cold outside, but I still waited out front, suffering a chill to postpone the embarrassment of walking in the door and being the new guy. Once the instructor spotted me hovering, she called me in. "First time?" she asked. Hmmm, what gave me away? I filled out the requisite forms and had her wrap my hands for me after handing over the $5 for an introductory class.

In my experience a look of panic and fear of pain typically gives first-timers away. That and the death grip on the cup of coffee.


My buddy + partner joined me as the room began to fill up with people in EXTREMELY good shape. I grabbed a jump rope with a sigh, wondering if I even could jump rope any more. As we got started, the answer became clear: I can sorta jump rope. The first cycle of cardio is kind of a blur, but it was something like jump roping, scary squat jump things, jump roping, scary squat jumps, jump roping, pushups [or, if you are me, trying to hold a plank pose] ad infinitum.

I like how I'm not included in the segment of people in extremely good shape here. You're cruisin for a KO, lady. Kidding again- as I warned you before the class, I have the endurance and agility of a baby hamster with a muscular deficiency. That cardio cycle hurts me every time. It feels soooo good once you've made it through it, though!


At some point, just to add to the fun, my pants started falling down while jump roping. Not OFF, thank goodness, but I was the awkward one pausing to hike them up. Oy.

I still say go no pants next time. Just socks!


Next we worked with a medicine ball, at one point throwing it back and forth while skipping sideways. This didn't kick my ass quite as much as I suspected it would. I think next time we should use a real medicine ball, not a 'pastel colored' one.

Our ball was special and so are we.


After all of that business was circuits. Only, in my confusion, I didn't really understand we were doing circuits. This is my only explanation for how we ended up in what R has termed the "accidental superman." When the buzzer went off, I wasn't sure what we were supposed to be doing, so I looked to see what two other super fit partners were up to. They were doing supermans, laying on their stomachs with arms + legs extended + lifted. Our dear instructor, so helpful and patient, couldn't help but sound a little disappointed in us when she came to ask what on earth we were doing. Ah, learning curve.

Ah the accidental superman. I had a feeling that wasn't our next move, but I didn't want to come across as a know-it-all. Whatever. The hilarious image of us just dropping to the floor and extending our arms and legs to the sky for no reason will stay with me forever.


The rest of it was awesome, save the speedbag. That contraption continues to be beyond me. Oh, and the side plank things. That didn't happen, but R and I did get a chance to catch up while I sat there and chatted with her instead. Ooops! Most of it was gratifying and tough work. Turns out, I LOVE to throw a left hook. And by the time we did 3 minutes of jump rope at the end, I wanted MORE.

You are going to kill it this week! Awesome.

More is just what I'll get when we go back this Saturday. Proof that the workout is worth any sheepish feelings you have to overcome when walking in the door the first time.

Well put. See you back in the ring.

Get it

Good things come from working out. Duh! But here's some of the unexpected results:

1. I quit smoking! Well, I've had 4 cigarettes since we started, but normally I would've had 80 or more in that same time period. Tuesday morning I woke up and I could feel the smoke from the night before - painful tight coughs that convinced me I didn't ever need to do that again. I'm a little worried about what this will do my metabolism, but hopefully the workouts will compensate.

2. I'm in a great mood! I'm bordering on perky. I talk to people allllllll day long at work, and I've noticed myself smiling more, engaging in conversations, having fun. Thanks, endorphins.

3. I cleaned my house! I have extra energy and less interest in just sitting on my butt. I got more done in 15 minutes last night than I usually do all week.

In addition, I've been getting other awesome gifts from others + for myself.

1. I'm running an 8k in April! A sweet birthday gift from my friend L, who will be running with me. Just enough time to train, eeek.

2. I joined 24 hour fitness! I can't depend on the Seattle weather enough, or know that I will get good workouts in on rainy days. I'm hesitant to join any of their classes just yet, but hope to at a later date.

3. I'm going back to Cappy's with R! [More on Cappy's soon!] I love birthdays, presents rule.

Just to make sure I get the maximum number of exclamations in this post, I will add that I started doing my "30 Day Shred" video! I did it last night + this morning, and I am SORE. It is only 20 minutes, so it would be great to use in conjunction with some additional walking or jogging, or as one half of more 2-a-days.

AWESOME!!!!

Update

My 18 weeks started a few weeks ago so I don't have a week one update, but here's what's been happening:

-With the exception of one Domino's thin crust pizza (I blame Extreme Home Makeover) and one scone (re-org at work), I've cut down on carbs drastically. Starches, too. Still eating a banana in the morning, though.

-Went to boxing fitness class at Cappy's for the first time in months.

-Instead of taking a bus home in the afternoon, I've been walking the 1.25 mile uphill route FAST. Takes about 25 minutes. I do that at least twice a week and have gotten to know Jackson street really well.

-I jogged a mile. I can't even remember the last time I did that.

-My muffin top is totally shrinking. Just yesterday I realized that I have my waist back. It was a great feeling.

-I weigh 9lbs less than I did when I started.

-I made this:
(Raw zucchini ribbons, raw tomato sauce. Not bad!)

My goal, almost as much as losing weight (I have 11 pounds to go), is to BE IN SHAPE. All caps because I mean it. Build up endurance, get some definition, have an ass to be proud of. I don't care how that sounds, that's what I want. Don't we all?? I think for me that means sweating for at least 30 minutes 4 times a week with some strength building. We'll see how it goes.

These are what I see as my main challenges:

-My boyfriend. He's great but he loves to go out to eat, eat late at night, use a lot of olive oil and butter in everything. He's out of town right now and I attribute my success so far in large part to that. I'm nervous that when he gets back that I'll lose a lot of ground.

-Time. I have a full-time job, a side gig, two volunteer commitments, and a few TV shows that I can't miss (hello, Blair Waldorf). It's not easy to fit exercise in and I get pretty tired. Hoping exercise videos will do the trick.

So, nothing too unique or extreme. I think I just need to find a good balance; can't wait to see how I feel when I do.