Friday, January 30, 2009

Embracing the Hurt that comes from Embracing the Hard!

Oy, I'm sore today. Yesterday was a run day, and girlfriends called to see if I wanted to go to Starbucks. So, I drove to the Club, and then ran from Club to Starbucks. And then ran back after coffee. Nice easy 3.5k there, but holy f*ck - hard 3.5k back - 200m elevation back up to Club. I was muttering "I embrace f*cking hard" all the way up the hill. My thighs are tender today!

Belly dance last night was fun. All 3 other girls showed up - we went over the half of the dance I learned last week and I think all of them are going to perform in the show at the end of March!

Got a call from my mom while at coffee. Her husband is in hospital awaiting emergency surgery. I guess his double hernia operation 20 years ago gave away and his bladder has become intertwined with his intestines!! I get dizzy just thinking about it. Of course, we went to hospital after my class and husband's curling to visit and get my mom and their vehicle home (mom doesn't drive). Just waiting this morning to hear if operation happened last night or not. He was "on the list".

Manicotti turned out great! It was VERY yummy and filling. I ate too close to belly dance though - I was surprised to get through the class without tossing my cookies!

Today I meet husband at Club to do the weights (after he is done work) that were supposed to be done Monday. Then we will have dinner at the Club after (daughter will also be up there also since she is coaching synchro tonight). They have the best Sweet Mango Chicken Wrap. MMMMM, my mouth is watering just thinking about it!!

Oh, my Club is running a "Yoga for Couples" for Valentines Day. The gal that teaches our Saturday class is running it. A two hour class. Husband said I could sign us up. Should be fun. And a calorie free way to celebrate a rather ridiculous holiday!

This weekend I have yoga class. I will then run home from our Club - which I think should be around 8k and lots of hills (I'm going to be checking out MapMyRun as soon as I post this). Then Saturday night watch husband curl in a skins bonspiel. Sunday, 18k walk with walking group along our half marathon route. And then, of course, football where I can grumble all afternoon about how we are being screwed out of the pricey American ads.

Have a healthy day bloggers!!

PS: This is the blog entry that so inspired me yesterday!
http://acakeforawife.blogspot.com/2009/01/value-of-hard.html

Thursday, January 29, 2009

I Embrace Hard

Yesterday I read a blog that really spoke to me. The gal had decided to embrace hard. (I wish I remembered which blog it was, I'd put the link in) I wrote those words in my journal immediately. I knew they spoke to me, but didn't know why. Last night, when I was doing my weights I realized on what level this mantra had hit me.

I haven't been embracing hard at all. I've been embracing doing. Lots of us have been. It is evident when you read "I'm working out for hours, but nothing is happening". I'm the poster child. I do weights, I run, I curl, I walk, I do yoga, I belly dance. I do not embrace hard. I do. I stop just a whisper before hard. Hard is uncomfortable. This really hit home last night at the gym.

I did my 12 reps of my first exercise and I thought, eh, that was good. But I realized I could do more. The last rep I had done had just twinged on uncomfortable. Then I looked down at my journal. I had those words written at the top of the page. I embrace hard. This was my ah ha moment. I upped my reps to 15 for all of my exercises and was panting in the next minute! Who would think that 3 extra reps 3 times would make that much of a difference? Well, let me tell you, it does! And I feel like a weight lifting rock star today - I swear my muscles feel HUGE!! ;-)

I'm quite looking forward to my run today. I'm going to embrace hard while I do that too!

The gym was quite quiet last night. I'm really enjoying going to the gym with husband on Wednesday evenings. We don't workout side by side even, he uses machines, I use free weights. But it is nice being able to look up and see him there. Plus, he looks REALLY hot when he's working out. MMMM, he is so yummy!

We had a really stressful day yesterday. 46 people were layed off from husband's company. So awful. Husband was quite upset. We are still reeling from it all.

Manicotti for dinner tonight from that cookbook. Mmm, can't wait. I think it will be goooood. I don't have turkey though - will be using ground beef.

Aside from my run, I have belly dance tonight. We should be learning more of our choreography. Once I learn it all, I may use my daughter's mac to record a video to show you all. I really like the music we are doing it to.

OK, enough computer time. Have a healthy day bloggers!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Biggest Loser (TV) Talk - Spoilers! (Go Team Lean!)

I have to hop in the shower to get ready for a lunch, so I'm doing bullets today.

* I thought I would be sadder that Dan got voted off. I think maybe the reason I wasn't was because I had seen the picture of him on a blogger's page and knew that he went on to lose some weight. I was really disappointed with his friend. I think his problem was that he hadn't been on the ranch, so he wasn't invested in being there.
* I was happier than I thought I would be when Joelle had a good weigh in. Maybe she is getting it, although husband insists that she still sounds very insincere when she speaks.
* I am interested to see how Joelle's partner does - you can't really trash talk weight loss - you kinda just have to do it. I'm excited for next week's show to see how all the at home people have done!
* Has anyone else noticed that the other young kid from the father/son team doesn't get very much tv time at all? What is that about?
* Those chicken skewers looked friggen awesome - and I will check the web for the recipe - but I had never heard of that cook before!
* I did my run yesterday in the 110km/h winds. It was the hardest thing I've ever done. There were some points I could hardly get myself to move forward at all.
* I made the Crunchy Orange Curried Chicken (without curry) last night and husband liked it so much he had 3 helpings. Man, it was so good. Yum, yum and yum some more!
* I totally forgot to work on my trouble spots last night. My routine is out of whack 'cause daughter is off on break. Stop the madness, I need my routine!!
* I have lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant today with former co-workers. I can't wait cause I love both Vietnamese and the former co-workers. Should be quite nice.
* I am still on program after two days.
* Special thanks to HotchPotchery for reminding me to update my Nike+ runs - poor avatar was looking quite sad and bored!
* Last but not least, I have scanned the first week of that cookbook along with the grocery list. I am happy to e-mail it to anyone interested in giving it a try before they buy. The dinners are between 8 and 11 pts each and so far my whole family has loved what I've made. Anyhow - if you are interested, leave a comment. If you're blogger comments don't include an e-mail address, then you will have to leave that also!

Have a healthy day bloggers!

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Windy Tuesday (Go Team Lean!)

Winds expected today up to 110k/h. That should make for an interesting run.

Had a bit of a pitty party yesterday. The winter blues hit me bad. I feel much better today.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I purchased a new cook book called "Cooking for the Rushed - The Healthy Family". It comes with 7 weeks of recipes PLUS grocery lists. What is special about this book is that it is geared for a Canadian grocery store. You can actually find everything on the list and in the right amounts.

Well, I have made a few of the recipes this week. So far my family has tried (and liked) BBQ Chicken Burgers with Veggies & Dip (for this I substituted boneless, skinless chicken thighs for breasts, cause that is what I had) and Meatballs in Applesauce with Rice and Broccoli. Tonight we will be trying Crunchy Orange Curried Chicken with potatoes and Salad (except I will have to leave out the curry, since daughter doesn't like it, and I will double up on the Mrs. Dash).

Biggest Loser tonight! I think I'm enjoying watching the show because Husband will sit and watch with me. It always prompts conversation, both during the show (you know, when the fillers are on, recapping what we just saw before the commercial, or the product placements are on) and after the show.

Have a healty day bloggers!!

Monday, January 26, 2009

Weekend Wrap Up (Go Team Lean!)

Happy Monday!

Weigh in today - up 1.6 - likely due to monthly cycleness.

I read the BLBE page this morning before I sent in my results. I have to be honest - it caused me pause. In one point we were chastised for reporting a gain - lots of people where turned away from the challenge and we aren't taking it seriously and in the next point we were chastised for not reporting our results and should report even if we have a gain. Um, point # 1 is why people are doing point #2. No one likes to get in trouble - and they already know they screwed up.

I know that kind of stuff works for some people....I'm not one of them. Of course, I quite likely wouldn't have been so sensitive to that post had I not gained this week. I know this.

Moving on...

Had a good weekend this weekend. Didn't get my exercise in. Took puppy to vet. What we think happened to the paw is that perhaps it got wet on our walk and then stuck to some ice - ripping off the skin. Poor monkey. I have some cream to put on and he should make a full recovery!

Since my vet appt was during yoga, daughter took my place in class. Her and husband had a competition during class to see who could hold the bridge post the longest. Daughter kicked his butt! Anyhow, I was really glad that she went - great father daughter time AND they both had a great 90 minutes of yoga.

Today is weights up at the club. I am also planning on doing the bike while daughter is at Mui Thai.

Have a healthy day!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

The Secret Upside to Weighing Your Food (Go Team Lynn!)

I found a breakfast that was so tasty that I've had it every day this week. I have been putting some ketchup, Frank's Hot Sauce, green onions & low fat cheddar on a whole wheat pita and then putting it in the microwave. Yummy goodness. This morning I added 1/4 of an avocado. Ooooo. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

ANYHOW, I have been counting my cheese as two servings. A total guestimate. Out of sheer laziness. I make my breakfast right in my kitchen. The scale is right there. This morning, I decided to cut up my two portions and then I weighed it. Guess what folks? I had been over counting by 2 pts!! That is right. Weighing your food doesn't always mean you will have to count more!! I will not be going back in my food journal to correct my counting, but I was pretty excited this morning - basically made up the 2 extra pts I was using for the avocado! Ya BABY!!


This morning the weather has turned ugly again. I'm so sad. I was so enjoying the sun. Want to hear what a rock star I am? I got off my shrinking ass (husband informed me this morning it is getting smaller - what a smooth talker!) and did my run, outside, even though it was -23 with the wind chill. I'm happy to say I was toasty warm, except of course for my face. I run a loop around my neighbourhood that is 5.7k long. It is basically a big oval. How is it possible that the wind was in my face the entire way?? I'm happy to have it done. I checked the hourly forecast, and the temperature was due to drop every hour on the hour, so I thought it best to get it out of the way.


Left on my agenda today are working on my trouble spots and belly dance tonight.


Oh, want to hear about the power of planning your workout? Tuesday I had been lazy and not written out my trouble spots workout (it is a new one, cause I'm starting the intermediate workouts in my book by Kim Lyons) - mostly cause it meant getting out the book and copying them down. ANYHOW, because it wasn't written down, I forgot to do it.


I did take puppy for a 5.7k walk yesterday in the lovely, lovely, sunny warm weather. Poor little muffin began limping 1/2 through. Then he stopped altogether, and wouldn't stop licking his paw. I had to carry him for a bit. Finally I got him walking again. I still had at least 20 minutes before we got home, and he was just too heavy for me to carry the whole way. Husband did a paw inspection this morning and he has a brown spot on one of the pads on his one paw. I'm waiting to see when I can get him into the vet. Poor baby. I just want to be sure there isn't something happening that we can't see. Like a piece of glass or something. Made the walk interesting!!

I did do weights last night with Husband. Gym is already getting a bit more quiet. I enjoyed this circuit. I think I can do some of the exercises with larger weights. It is hard the first time through. You don't really know what you can and can't do.

Well Bloggers, have a healthy day!!

PS: Thanks to Carrie for clearing up Dan mystery!!

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Still on that Runner's High (Go Team Lynn!)

I had a great run yesterday. It was so nice out and I felt like I could run forever. I didn't - I did 5.7k, but I felt like I could have. I exhausted my little pup - he ran the whole way. He was so happy to be out there, he didn't mind. He did though, sleep the entire rest of the afternoon!

Tonight I go to gym with husband to do weights. Should be a hoot. Not. I will take puppy on a 5.7k walk this afternoon. It is still so nice out. I feel like I need the sun.

Some people seemed to get the idea I'm appearing on a show. I'm not, I just appeared in a BOOK. Much less exciting.....

Husband & I watched BL last night. Spoiler alert - if you haven't watched yet, stop reading.

Joelle. Ugh. That girl needs some serious counselling. And lots of it. You could totally see her shut down. Something about the look on her face just makes you want to smack her. And yet....you can't help but feel bad. I'm sure the struggle she is facing is one that is faced by many overweight people. I was sad to see Damien go home, but so happy to see him & Nicole getting ready to start their life out healthy.

One thing that drove me nuts was: where the hell was Dan during the food temptation? WTF?? Why didn't they address the fact that he was missing. Our theory was that his partner ate so much for the competition they didn't want to show it? It doesn't appear that his partner is working too hard at home. It is quite sad actually. In any case, if teams are going to be out of competitions, they should be saying why. How impressive was Tara doing the immunity challenge. That girl is my new hero. I love, love, love her attitude!!! That girl will be a success in life. You can just see it.

I wasn't pleased to see the highlight from next week - they made it look like the two young boys are under the yellow line. Bummer. That will be a gut wrencher.

Oh, ya, and what is with Jillian's team? I don't have issue with how they voted - it is actually good game play, but why take the time to say "well, you respected our choice last week, so we want to do the same". Seriously, why go to the trouble of saying that and then doing the opposite? Ugh. I wouldn't last a week on a game show.

Well, that's about it. Have a healthy day bloggers!

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Hope is Good (Go Team Lynn!)

Today is a day of hope. The US has a new President and at least for today we Canadians are all basking in the glow of hope that a new US President brings. My daughter even sat and watched the swearing in and listened to the speech. I thought his speech was quite good. Mind you - I've enjoyed all of his speeches - his voice is so nice and deep. It was very exciting to be watching history.


Meanwhile, back here in Canada....


Didn't make the gym yesterday. Put my morning workout off to go to the gym when daughter went to class, then daughter didn't go to class...yada, yada....


I did take the dog on a 5.7k walk yesterday. It was so nice out, at one point I worried that I should have put some sun screen on!


Today is a run day. I will make up my missing weights on Saturday.


Not much else going on. The economy here in town is stressing me out - everyday husband comes home with stories of clients getting laid off. This is likely why I'm so happy to have a whole day of hope.


Rock on bloggers!!


PS: I forgot to tell you - I'm in a book about Calgary. It is called Calgary The Glittering Metropolis available at Chapters. To any area readers, if you're in Chapters, take a peak. I'm on page 26. It is a picture of me & my two buddies finishing the 1/2 marathon two years ago (walking) and the caption, on the opposite page reads: "As part of the annual Calgary Marathon (left), nearly 6,000 people participated in various competitions. Look at these ladies. What satisfaction and fulfillment is imprinted on their faces - and they will enjoy their exercise's health benefits too. Run, Calgary, run! Get the runners' high and enjoy it."

(I'm in the middle)

Monday, January 19, 2009

The Most Frustrating Weekend EVER (Go Team Lynn)

I feel completely beat up after my weekend. And the worst of it is that it was generally a good weekend.

First off, I'm down 1.8 for the challenge.

So, Friday curling was cancelled and we got to stay home and watch Battlestar Galactica real time. OMG. It was such a good episode. Is anyone else still reelling from Dualla? I won't say too much, in case anyone still has to watch. We had pvr'd it, since we were supposed to curl, and so we watched it again Saturday morning!

Saturday was yoga. It was a challenging class. I enjoyed the corpse pose at the end though, she had me so relaxed I was in that stage between awake and asleep. It was nice. Saturday was GORGEOUS outside, so off I toodled for my long run....ya, not so long. 5.5k. My stomach was a bit upset and my knees were really sore. At first I was panicked, since that was another long run not done, but then I decided to let it go. The race will go like it goes....

Sunday is when everything kinda went off the rails. Husband has been stewing, it turns out, since Christmas about my reading blogs. Apparently the Internet is going to be the downfall of the world. Anyhow, had he left it at that, I could have moved on, but he took it further, told me I was likely having problems with my teenage daughter because I'm on the computer. On, and on, and on. He ranted for a really long time. Of course, I cried, got mad, turned the computer off. Of course, I had been on the computer at the time, but because he was watching football, which I find boring. Anyhow, I finally just said that I read the blogs because these are people with common interests, and I don't have anyone to talk to. Nothing was resolved. Eventually we just spent the day not talking. That always stresses me out and gives me a head ache.

What was surprising in all of this was that my immediate reaction is to eat. But, I didn't. I just stewed. Still not a good response, but at least there are no calories in stewing.

My husband is a really great guy. He just hates the Internet so much. Obviously I don't. If only it were as easy as agreeing to disagree......clearly it isn't!

So, moving forward. This is the start of week 5 of my fitbook journal. I move to Level 2 in the circuit training I'm doing from the Kim Lyons book. It's gonna hurt!! I'm not going to the gym until this evening, I will do weights while daughter does her Mui Thai. I have to write out my program this morning. I don't like changing programs, cause then I have to remember all the new moves, and I am always embarrassed up at the gym, even though really, no one is even noticing that I'm standing there!!

Not much else on the agenda today. I have to get some groceries in - enough to get us to payday.

Well, enough babble I suppose. Off to read some blogs till my coffee is done......Have a healthy day bloggers!

Friday, January 16, 2009

Curling, Belly Dance, BSG & Go Team Lynn!

Belly Dance last night - one whole other person showed up! We had a great class. Learned a couple of new moves, some variations of some old moves and found out that.....drumroll please.....I will be performing in a show at the end of March!! We start the choreography next week - I can't wait - the song is really cute!

Curling this morning was AWESOME. At first I was mad, because I was the only person from my team to show up, and although we had two spares come, we would still be a person short. I sucked it up and resisted the urge to just turn around and come home and I curled the best game of my life! I think I only missed one shot! I WAS AWESOME!!!

I am vibrating I'm so excited for BSG tonight......My theory is that the Cylons (the last 4) were the ones that nuked Earth. I haven't decided who I think the last Cylon is though. Husband thinks we will find out that they are ALL Cylons. I think that sounds lame, but since I don't have a theory yet......

Well. Plans this weekend are just a long run (16k), yoga and enjoying the nice weather.

Have a healthy day bloggers!!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Oy - My Knees Hurt! (Go Team Lynn!)

I did my run first thing this morning. I was the only one on the treadmills when I got there - by the time I got off they were all full. I got to my last interval, I took my first step to run and MAN did I get a pain in my knee! I kept going, and it took almost a full minute for the pain to stop stabbing. I was glad when the treadmill flashed the "you have met your distance goal" message at me.

Today was a shorter run - 4.8k. Fun times. If it had been longer, I wouldn't have been able to finish. I stretched but good afterwards and then worked on my trouble spots. I felt like I was ready for a nap when I was all done. I may have to go get a coffee this afternoon. I see a.....skinny caramel latte in my future!!

Tonight I have Belly Dance class. I hope the others in my class show up. Daughter will have her 2nd yoga class tonight. Husband will be curling. And I will come home to a night full of tv goodness taped, ready for me to watch tomorrow.

Anyone else out there counting down the the BSG finale???? I'm just about losing my mind I'm so excited that it starts again tomorrow.

I tried calibrating my Nike+ yesterday but it didn't work. I think I'm Nike+ challenged. I will try again this afternoon and take the pup for a 2k walk. I'm picking 2k because that is the longest you can go for the calibration. Puppy is always so happy to be outside. Mind you, he's always so happy no matter what he is doing!

Ok Bloggers - have a healthy day!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Well, I did it (Go Team Lynn)

Husband asked me to go to the gym with him tonight instead of going this morning when I normally go. I'm a morning person and by the time it was time to leave I really didn't feel like going. But I did.

I just had weights to do today. The gym was friggen packed. All kids, late teens & early twenties, there more to hook up than to work out. All slim and beautiful. Sheesh.

My husband has been working out for quite a while now. I'm really happy that he has kept it up. He has always been pretty fit and toned, but he just looks that much better now. Plus, he seems happier when he's working out. I guess that is true for most of us.

I'm on tv overload. All my shows are starting up and I feel like a child that got that one too many presents on Christmas day!

What else.

Can I talk freely about Biggest Loser yet? Has everyone watched it by now?

I thought it was one of the most insightful episodes ever. As frustrating and infuriating as it was to watch Joelle piss away her opportunity this week, she did sort of bring home such an important point. We are often our own worst enemies. She clearly doesn't know how to succeed. I do this to myself often. As soon as I get close to my goal, I sabotage myself. She is obviously an extreme case, since she is sabotaging herself the 2nd week.

Does anyone else wish that they would spend more time on showing us food related clips? These people are obviously getting some nutritional counselling. Why don't they show us that. I guess when they are working out 8 billion hours a day, they just have more exercise clips, but still....

Well, I should boogie. It is late and almost my bed time!

Later gator!

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Biggest Loser (TV) Talk - No Spoilers!

Hands up - who else thinks Bob is EVEN SEXIER when he's yelling?? YUM!!



Meanwhile - I wish they would stop the product placement!!



Oh, and Dan breaks my heart. That boy just makes me cry how hard he tries. He ran 7 miles an hour!!!

Non-Scale Victory of Sorts

Last night daughter was at kick boxing, husband was at curling, puppy was napping, and there was nothing on tv. I was going to pop in Stargate Atlantis....but instead I popped on the Wii and did 41 minutes of boxing and the step. THEN I just sat around and watched tv ;-)

Yesterday my weights workout went well. I change my routine next week. Can't wait...NOT! Changing routines always hurts at first. I guess that's the point!

Oh, speaking of weights, remember I thought my program must really be working because my back muscles were so sore? Well, after I threw my first punch on the Wii last night, I realized it was from the boxing program on the Wii Fit. So, I believe that there is some benefit from that program now more than ever!!

Had a spat last night with husband that oozed over to this morning. We hardly ever fight, it is always over something stupid, and it stresses me out. Ugh. Such a bad way to end the day and start it.

I ran this morning on the treadmill. It was a good run, in that I got that awesome feeling you get in your lungs after a longish run. It was a hard one though, in that I wanted to stop after 10 minutes, after 20 minutes, after 28 minutes. I was ready to give up. I didn't (yay me) and finished my 6.5k as planned. I then stretched, which felt great and then worked on my trouble spots. Feels good to have it out of the way.

Got myself a Venti Skinny Caramel Latte on the way home to reward all my hard work. It is yummy. All I have left to do now is try to talk myself into taking the dog for a walk so he can enjoy this nice weather. Perhaps after lunch......I need to calibrate my Nike+ anyhow - it is showing longer distances than the treadmill....

Well bloggers, have a healthy day!!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Weekend Wrap Up (Go Team Lynn)

I don't know if I've lost or gained!

I'm down 1.2 from last week, yay! However, if we have to report the change from the past 2 weeks, then I'm up 1.5. Sheesh. Oh, well, I've reported all my info to Lynn, I'm sure she is sure what the rules are. In the meantime, I'm pretty happy with my results this week.

This weekend was fun. I did end up curling twice on Friday. Since I had had an active day, I didn't do my lower body exercises. Saturday was a scheduled run (14k), but I missed it because I was running around buying new running shoes! We had my mom over for dinner and I just ran out of time.

Of course, I could have done it Sunday, but we spent the whole day moving furniture around in our house. Daughter needed a new bed, which we don't have the $$ for right now, so we moved our guest bed to her room, moved her futon from her 2nd bedroom to the guest room, brought up an old couch from the basement to her 2nd bedroom and cleaned along the way.

I wanted to run outside, but I have to test out my shoes on the treadmill first. And there was no way I was doing 14k in my old shoes. And by the time we were done all the moving and cleaning, the gym wouldn't have been open long enough for me to run that far. Oh well. I was a bit panicked about it for a few hours, but I've let it go. Overall I stayed with my workout plan AND was active to boot!

Saturday we started yoga class. It was fun to get back at it. We hadn't been to a class since last spring! All the same people were still in the class, so it was nice. And hard. Easy to forget how much strength is required sometimes to hold a pose.

This week my dinners are all going to be from my new cookbook. Cooking for the Rushed - The Healthy Family. Yum. 7 weeks of different meal ideas all laid out for me, no thought required. Can life get any better?

Today I hit the weights after I drop daughter off at school. Fun times.

Have a healthy day bloggers.

Friday, January 09, 2009

Freaking out, belly dance and..oh ya Go Team Lynn!

Is anyone else unnerved reading all the huge losses going on out there in the challenge? Everyone has been doing some spectacular work. It is making me nervous about weighing in. You know that panic you feel, convinced that you won't loose? Oh, well. Nothing to do but stick with my plan.

On to fun stuff.

Belly Dance started last night. I was the only person to show up! That's right folks, I got a private lesson. It was great. We worked on everything from head to toe - just to get me all loosened up after the break. I hope no one shows up next week also! ;-)

OK fellow Weight Watchers - I have a burning question about activity points. To the people who EAT their activity points in the day they are earned: If you earn 7 pts on a run - do you eat them all? Or I guess, WOULD you eat them all? I don't eat all my AP points all the time, but I do eat most. Sometimes I feel like I need them all. Does anyone else do this and still have a successful week at the scale? I thought that I read somewhere in my stuff that you could only eat 4 a day....(also, I don't have any of the momentum plan yet, so this question is related to last year's plan...)

I have to curl this morning and likely tonight. And somewhere in there I have to do my Lower Body workout. Oh, that reminds me. I must have done something very right with my weight training this week - man could I feel my back muscles every time I moved, or breathed!

Not much on the agenda for this weekend. Which is ok. I'm kinda tired. Haven't been sleeping well - I think it is from the full moon. I was supposed to meet some former co-workers on Saturday night, but it got cancelled. I don't have the $$ or pts, so I'm kinda relieved.

It took me hours to get through all the blogs yesterday. I want to be a good challenge mate and be supportive, but sometimes by the time I get to the last blogs I'm commented out. I have been switching up the order I read in, so that I'm not always tired at the same blogs.

Have a good day bloggers!

Thursday, January 08, 2009

I am frustrated! (Go Team Lynn)

Where to start. At the beginning, I suppose.

Daughter informed me this morning that she lost her wallet yesterday on the bus. It had her band new bus pass (used ONE DAY), her bank card, school id and oh, she figures around $200 of her Christmas $$. I am mad that she lost it, mad that she thought it was ok to go to friggen school with that much $$ in her purse (seriously!) and mad that I had only purchased her stupid bus pass the day before. F*CK!! Not to mention that she had her old bus passes that I had asked her to hand in 5 times - so we are out the rebate now also. We so don't have the $$ for this right now.

Program going well. Not out of flex points yet - and to be quite frank - that is pretty good compared to previous weeks.

I did my 6.5k run this morning on the treadmill at the club (4 miles for those not on the metric system). While I was working on my trouble spots, I had trouble hearing my audio book because there were so many people in there chatting. Holy noodle. It was like coffee time at Tim Horton. I just wanted to scream "shut up" - but that could have been left over tantrum-ness from daughter's lost wallet.

Oh, I do have a bit of fun news. My club is running the "I Lost It at the Club" competition again. They have changed it up this year. This year it is about getting steps in every day. We are charged $12 per month for 3 months. We get a ton of free classes for the 3 months, a free pedometer, a free plate sectioned out for veggies, carb & protein, weigh in and measure, weigh out and measure, a binder of information, nutritional seminars, discounts on personal trainers and I think a discount at the fitness store at our club. What a screaming deal, right? I signed up online as soon as I got home. I can't wait to get the plate!

Well, I'm off to get a second Tim's coffee. After my daughter losing so much $$ I really need one. It is that or a bottle of vodka ;-).....mmm, that's not a bad idea....no, no....Tim's....I'm off to get a Tim's. I had a low point lunch (avocado rolls) so that I can afford it (pts wise). I have to take out a mortgage to pay for it now, cause I need to buy more bus tickets.....but I digress!

Have a healthy day bloggers!

Wednesday, January 07, 2009

Team Lynn

Looks like I'm on Team Lynn! Woohoo!!

I've been to the gym already today. Today was a weights day. It went well. One part of my routine today was to do burpees. Oy! They are so hard. I had a break through though. I did 3 sets of 12 of them. Yay! Holy noodle, was I panting after each set. They are such a great exercise. I highly recommend them to anyone looking to add a little zing to their routine.

I did the Wii Fit last night. Did my yoga poses and played on some balance games. I have some serious inabilities when it comes to eye/movement-reaction coordination. I can't hit those soccer balls to save my life! I do, however, seem to have an uncanny ability to get hit in the head with soccer SHOES!!

I will do some Wii Fit today again. It is just so much fun and it is 30 minutes that I'm not sitting on my ass watching tv.

I am making pork roast tonight for supper. Yum. I will serve it with brown rice and fried red & yellow peppers.

Oh, ya, I think I need to buy some new running shoes. I'm going to go through my journals and see how many kilometers I got out of this last pair. It always amazes me how you just wake up one day and you just know that you need new shoes. For me I can tell because my feet hurt when I get out of bed. Of course, it could just be from doing the Palm Pose on the Wii... ;-)

Have a healthy day bloggers!

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Biggest Loser (TV) Talk - No Spoilers!

I just finished watching most of the Biggest Loser.

I wasn't going to watch, because I don't like the couples format, but I do like watching the first week...sort of. Anyhow, I have these thoughts:

1) Did anyone else notice how much Alison and the cast were sweating during the weigh in? You'd think it would be in the budget to spring for a fan or two during taping? And if that wasn't in the budget, could they not have paused to mop the poor girl down? It was seriously gross. At least the contestants were in their workout gear. Poor Alison had sweat running down her chest!

2) I like the twist (which is mentioned in the show description on satellite, so this is not a spoiler), and now may have to watch

3) I saw the preview for next week, and now I'm dying to know who would dare make that cutie patutie Bob angry. If they give his lovely, gorgeous face any mad lines, I'm gonna be kicking one of the Biggest Loser's butt!!!

So, I guess I will watch one more week. It is quite soon to have a new season.....and I didn't even watch any of the last one! I don't know why, but I can't watch that show without a glass of wine. Which I count!!!!

Banging my head against the wall - how many activity pts is that?

Just in case I needed further proof about how important your food intake is.....

This morning I woke up feeling SKINNY. I have been following my fitness plan with both weights and running, playing with the Wii Fit. Of course I feel skinny. I can tell my posture has improved. I think I stand up straighter when I'm following a balanced plan just because I'm proud.

I forgot (yes, actually forgot) to weigh yesterday, so off I toodled first thing this morning, down two level to the scale. Up 2.7. F*ck. F*ck. F*ck. I peruse my handy dandy fitbook. Hmmm, when husband asked if I wanted a beer and clam, I said yes....I then got the munchies.....when I was coming home from the gym after my LSD run I was feeling peckish and so I purchased chips...you get the idea. I wrote down everything I ate. And, oh, what a week I had. The high I got from all the exercise made me think I needed more junk food.

80% diet, 20% exercise. I know this. And yet, I seem to need to reinforce it ONE MORE TIME!!!!!

So, my positive that I am taking from this week is that I did, in fact, stick to my exercise plan. I followed a well balanced fitness plan to the letter. My heart is healthier this week than it was last week. As I mentioned, my posture is already better.

This week I also learned the importance of filling myself with quality foods. Not all points are equal. Journalling is only useful if you go back and look to see where you went wrong. Another lesson learned. Phew! I'm tired from all this learning!! ;-)

I went to the Club right away this a.m. after dropping daughter at the bus. Good time to go for sure. No one was there yet. Most of the other stay at homers seem to come after 9:00. Anyhooo, I had to do a 6.5k run this morning, which went really well (in that I felt good while doing it). Sadly, a really old guy walking on a treadmill 3 or 4 down fell. OMG! I felt so bad for him. He went right off the end and really scrapped up his knees. He is like two years younger than God and wears a head gear hearing aid and he is up there every day working out. He even does weights - it's kinda cute. Anyhow, I felt awful. He had lots of help getting up right away. I'm sure he was embarrassed.

I also worked on my trouble spots today. It was hard to get through the second set - just because I was tired from the run. But I got it done.

Not much on the agenda today. Get some housework done. Puppy is at doggy daycare so it will be easier to vacuum.

Have a healthy day bloggers!

Monday, January 05, 2009

Do-Able vs. Realistic

Everyone is giving a lot of thought to their goals for the challenge, as have I. I've been reading lots of new blogs (new to me) and some old ones and many people are choosing their goal weight loss per week and then saying, that's totally do-able. And they are always right. But is it realistic? We require a 3500 calorie deficit to loose a pound. That is an extraordinary amount. Times that by two, or two and a half. This is a 16 week commitment and we are trying to create new healthy habits that will last us the rest of our lives. I was ready to say 2 lbs a week. (keeping in mid my weight has been steadily going up since before the holidays) Until I read one gal's blog. She somehow chose her goal weight and worked backwards and came up with 0.8lbs a week. And then said that was do-able. Which it is. And it is realistic. Some weeks will be more, some less, but I bet she will make her goal. And so I was inspired. My goal will also be 0.8lb loss per week. I realize this means things will be slow, but I want to create a lifestyle that is going to take me into old age. Not one that will end in 16 weeks. So, to the gal who inspired me - I'm sorry, I forget which new blogger you are (but I did leave a comment) - THANK YOU!!

Of course, I, in no way mean to say that I think anyone choosing a larger goal is unrealistic. We are all coming from different places and have different places we want to go. I'm just saying that, for me, someone who has for months now, been having trouble staying on program for more than ONE day, it would be. I really want to succeed. I, quite honestly, have many changes to make to my food intake. I am overwhelmed almost at how much work I have to do. While I am prepared to give this my all, I have to be realistic. I didn't wake up today a different person. I still have all the bad habits I had yesterday....

All of that to say, my goals for the challenge will be:

1) to lose 0.8lbs per week
2) to follow through on the 12 fitness plan I have painstakingly written and planned out
3) to follow through with my plan to run and finish a half marathon on Feb 15 running 10:1's (note though, if it is colder than -20, I won't be doing the race)
4) to foster new blog relationships and make positive, helpful, supportive comments.

I have been to the gym today already and done my weights. It was a good time to go - not too busy. I will still do the Wii Fit today - yoga and the strength module, since today is a strength day. I think I will do the balance module on run days, since I think it would provide a good balance (pardon the pun). Plus, they are fun, so.....The aerobics module will be done on Lower Body days (Fridays). I just love that hula hoop game! Right now, in my house, I am the reigning champ!

I strongly recommend the Wii Fit, if you're thinking of buying it at all. Or saving for it. I'm not a game person, and I just enjoy it so much, and you really do feel like you've done something good for your body. I wouldn't replace my weight training and running with it, but certainly if you're looking for something to get you going....boy, is this the game for you. Ok, commercial over!

Is anyone else out there hungry just thinking about reigning in the holiday eating???? I ate a quality breakfast today (a boiled egg mixed with ff ranch on one slice of whole wheat bread) and I'm STARVING!!!!! I know this is all in my head, but all of my issues are! HAHA

Well.......I suppose I should go do something housewifey. Dust or clean bathrooms....what to do, what to do.....

Have a healthy day bloggers!!

Sunday, January 04, 2009

LSD Run.....first of my training for the 1/2 marathon

I have started my training for my 1/2 marathon on Feb 15. You might all notice that that is in 6 weeks, and most sane people train for these things in 12 to 15 weeks. Well, I wasn't on the ball. Whatever, can't un-ring the bell.

Yesterday I was scheduled for a 12k run. I went up to the gym last night (it was dead, which was nice, cause I was about to hog the treadmill for an obscene amount of time) and hopped on.

For the first 5k, I was listening to Harry Potter, Book 6 (my fav) and running along like nothing...la, la, la, la.....then I hit 6k, 7k.....the negative self talk started. What did I think I was doing? Why did I think I could hop on the treadmill and do 12k - the smallest of the LSD runs by the way - and walk away? Who decides to run a half marathon because there is a buffet after? Ugh, I'm so tired, my knees hurt, I don't like sweating....on and on.

OMG! By 11k I had talked myself out of even TRYING the half marathon. Seriously. I may need training to run a half marathon, but I could talk an entire marathon of negativity!!!!!

By the time I got off the treadmill to go get the cloth to wipe down the machine, I had reigned in the negativity. By the time I got to the car, I was talking it through with husband, and 1/2 down the road home, I had a renewed sense of excitement at trying this.

New Year's Eve the lady whose party we were at made me pick a time that I wanted to finish in. My goal was to just finish the race, and she kept saying, ya, but what time do you want? Finally I said 2.5 hours (I usually run 10k in around 1:10 ish, so...). But then I freaked myself out. As soon as that time was out there......Plus, add to that the fact that it took me 1:43 to run 13k last night......Anyhow, I'm doing this for me. I want to finish. My plan is to run 10:1's throughout the race, and cross that finish line. However slowly!

I iced my knees as soon as I was done stretching. They felt good last night, but this morning they are very sore. I hope it is warm outside this week so I can run on the paths. I think the treadmill is very hard on my knees.

Not much planned today. I am going to do yoga on the Wii Fit and the body test (I like getting the stamps). But it is a rest day, so that is all I will be doing. I think my body could do with the loving of a little yoga. It always feels so good to stretch it all out.

Well bloggers. I guess I have babbled on long enough! Have a healthy day!

Challenge to all BLS2 participants

For the duration of the challenge, let's take joy in our losses. Every 0.1 of them. What do I mean? I mean, if I lose .3 one week, I will not type "not great, but......". Let's reinforce what we have done right. If we lost, we must have chosen the right foods more days than not, or exercised according to plan, or stayed on point, or had a healthy attitude, or said no to a treat in the work place.

Is anyone up to the challenge? I need it - and it you don't believe how much - wait till you read my post about my LSD run last night! ;-)

Saturday, January 03, 2009

Wii Fit - what a hoot!

Best family fun ever - playing that Wii Fit. I, of course, am a hula hoop superstar!! HAHA!!

Do you know what I like the most about it? Aside from it being a game that all 3 of us like? The yoga portion. You don't have to think about what poses to do, they are right there. I'm going to do them every day. Then I will kick butt in my yoga class for sure!

I joined the Biggest Loser Blog Edition Season 2. We are doing teams this time. I think that will be fun. Also, it is easier to be accountable for someone else (your team mates) than just yourself. Or is it just me that has an easy time letting myself down??

Not much else to report. Curled last night - first time since the holidays and I was awful. Didn't even make one shot. :-(

Ok bloggers. Have a healthy day!!

PS: I have to do a 12k run on the treadmill today......ugh....I was going to try outside - I finally thought of a nice path close to my house, but it is -25 out there, and that is just too cold. Yes, I am that much of a wimp!

Thursday, January 01, 2009

Happy New Year

I had a fun run last night. The weather was indeed great for running. The only hard part was that it was so dark and therefore hard to see the ice. I still managed a good time - 33:58. My last 5k was over 37 minutes, so I'm happy to see a small improvement.

The party we went to was fun. The fellow who hosted set off over $600 worth of fireworks at midnight. It was quite nice. They served a smoked turkey that was tasty, and I had a small glass of red wine at the very beginning of the evening and then drank black coffee & water. Husband was in the hot tub for over 1.5 hours ringing in the New Year and drinking champagne with the other party goers. He had fun.

Today we won't be going to the gym. I have a run scheduled today, but since I ran last night....I have "trouble spot" exercises to do and later this afternoon we will be trying out our new Wii Fit.

Not much else to report today. Have a healthy day!