Happy Halloween!

Today was our annual fall event for the Long Leaf Arts and Crafts guild at our town's restored train depot and the theme was "The Arts are Brewing."   We had a costume contest, music, dancing, face painting, local art and fortune telling by yours truly.   It was at this endeavor that I found myself alone in my fortune telling tent with a jack o lantern that someone had stocked to the brim with chocolate Halloween candy.  It took all my willpower not to cheat and have some (no one would know) but I can proudly say that I didn't touch it.  Chewing bubble gum helped.   Then came the girl scouts with home made sugar cookies decorated with icing and more candy.   I said no again, and it's hard to say no to cute little fundraising kids! Because, no matter how good that cookie tastes, being healthy feels better.  And I turned my mindset from an event being about food (as all events are centered around, at least here in the South) to the activities, and had a good time!

Me in my fabulous faux fur witch hat

Me with Grandma (Charlie), the Wolf (Devon) and Little Red Riding Hood (Skylar)

Oh the irony!

So on the way to work yesterday I had a scary moment.  A Doritos truck came close to taking me out! Not one of those van type things that the snack machine man drives, but a full on, 18 wheelin' Doritos truck.  Luckily it merged into the correct lane, but for a minute there it looked dicey!  I was like, seriously?   All these years Doritos have been trying to take me out (Cool Ranch ones are like my personal kryptonite) and now I get "clean" and the Doritos truck is after me.  Oh the irony!  

Top Ten Things Never to Say to a Trainer

Since I'm a newbie at this, I had to learn the hard way what not to say to your trainer.  A la David Letterman, I now present for your education:

Top Ten Things Not To Say To Your Trainer
10.  Please don't kill me today. (This was the verbal equivalent of throwing the gauntlet down in front of the zumba instructor)
9. I'm sleepy. (Nothing like 60 squats to wake you up)
8. It's chilly in the gym today. (Sprint back and forth and touch the walls, that will raise your temperature)
7. Zumba burned 865 calories Saturday. (Direct quote from Jeff, "I'm coming for you Zumba!")
6. That was pretty easy. (Duh.)
5. I feel the burn! (They get this maniacal gleam in their eyes followed by, "Goooood.")
4. I'm scared of stairs. (Guess what you'll be doing next work out?)
3. I hate the treadmill/elliptical/stairmaster/insert your favorite torture device. (See comment above).
2. This is getting easier. (Oh but it will be getting harder my friend, trust me)
And #1: No, I'm not sore today.  (Again you're just asking for it.).

All kidding aside, I am very blessed to be working with two incredible trainers, Jeff and Marisa.   They are scary smart about what is best for each of their clients and highly intuitive as to what you need.  They are motivating, supportive, tough when they need to be and fun to be around. Thanks y'all!

Results

Wow!  I'm starting to see some results and people are starting to notice!   It is such an overwhelming feeling of joy.    It really makes it all worth it.   Every lunge, every squat, every pulled muscle, every drop of sweat, every time my knee hurt, every time I looked longingly at a french fry and had an apple instead, every Saturday morning I could have slept in, every step recorded, every lunch at my desk so that I can use my hour to exercise, every slug of water from my water bottle, every dessert refused, every dollar spent on healthier food,  every every every thing I have done (or not done as the case may be) to work towards my goal is worth it.  It's little mile stones like this that make up my motivation.  I have also been blessed by wonderful family, friends and coworkers who have encouraged me along the way.  You keep me moving.   Thank you.


I saw this today on yourdailymotivation.com, "There is no success at bargain basement prices.  You'll find that the highway to success is a toll road.."

Zumba Part Dos

My sister, cousin and I sweated it out in Zumba again this morning! The hardest part is to get up early on a Saturday morning.  Everything after that is a piece of cake.  I've found that even if I'm dreading a workout, if I just put one foot in front of the other and get to the gym, I'm happy to be there and ready to work out.  I don't have all the moves down and I probably look half crazy, but in the words of the immortal Lady GaGa, "just dance...it'll be okay."  And the best part: 895 calories burned!!!!

The Pain and The Crane

This past month 

Has been pretty sweet

I've lost 5 inches

By moving my feet

From Zumba to barbells

I've felt the pain

Why just today

I did the Crane 

I switched to Kashi

And ditched the rice

Because it's a white carb

And they aren't nice

I can't believe

How good I feel

Inches are gone 

Which makes it real

I'm getting better 

With every rep

As a journey of a thousand miles

Has begun with one first step.

Sorry y'all, losing inches has made me so giddy I'm rhyming!!!!  And for those of you who don't remember the Crane, go rent "Karate Kid".  : )

Zumba Y'all

I took my first Zumba class on Saturday with my cousin and two of my favorite friends and WOW what a workout!  Walked into the gym and told the teacher not to kill me.  She kind of chuckled under her breathe and said, "We'll see...."   Feelings of doom descended as I staked out my place on the floor near my friends and I figured that at least the hospital was only two blocks over just in case I fell out.  

But then the music started and we were dancing and believe it or not, it was FUN!  I didn't get all the moves right by no means but I did do better than the old lady in front of me who had two knee braces and would periodically clutch at her hip like it was going to pop out, so that's something.   The main goal I set for myself was to keep moving and make it through the hour and what a reward!  831 calories burned:

Above is the read out from my Go Wear Fit band.  Not a bad way to spend a Saturday morning!   

Scary

It's that time of year again, Halloween....when ghosts and goblins, vampires, black cats and sinister bats are the decoration of the day and we all enjoy a good scare.  Personally I love Halloween, bring on the costumes and scary movies.    Jason, Freddie, Michael Meyers, even the freaky little kid from the Grudge:  not scary.  But my friends, let me tell you the two words that will strike fear into the heart and chills down your spine: lactic burn.  I arrived in the gym today to hear those two dreaded words as the goal of the workout.  Yikes!!!!!!!!  But, I pushed harder than I have before today.  I'm kind of feeling like a spider that someone squashed right now, but when I looked at the calories I burned via my Go Wear Fit band (568) it was worth it! 

Don't Quit!

I didn't lose any this week like I did last week and it's frustrating because I know how hard I worked and because I'm a classic type A personality who hates not to be successful every time.  Then I remembered this poem that I'd seen once about not quitting.  It helped me and I'm posting it here case it can help anyone who is trying to achieve a goal through a battle of endurance:


Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
- Author unknown

My Own Worst Enemy

Are you your own worst enemy?  I must admit that that definitely described me in the very recent past.  Every time I would get going on a good kick of working out and eating right, inevitably I would get sick or injured and never get back on the horse again.  Call it the devil, call it Murphy's law, or my own personal jinx, it happened every time.   For over a week now I have been fighting a nasty virus  and not only do I sound like Darth Vadar, I am still not 100% back to feeling good.   And, as I sat at my desk today as my workout time drew near, I just about had myself talked out of going down to the gym.   

But, I am happy to say that I sucked it up and worked out and now I feel so much better than I did before both physically and mentally in the fact that today I have cleared a major personal obstacle and have not let myself defeat myself!   So here it is, my pledge to me: if I don't feel good, I'm still going down there and doing something; if I break my leg, I'll work my arms out; if I break an arm, I'll do legs; if aliens take over the world, I'll do jumping jacks in my cage.... I'm not going to be stopped! 

To Taze or Not to Taze

Yesterday was my first full day of wearing my new Go Wear Fit band (on the Biggest Loser they use the Body Bug) and it was cool to pull up my stats this morning and see how many calories I burned, how many I ate, how many steps I took, how long I slept at night, where the calories that I eat are coming from, etc.   I suggest them to everyone who wants to lose weight!!!  

It's such an amazing little device....I almost wonder if there is a GPS in it to tell Jeff, my trainer, when I get too close to a Pizza Hut or the Ben and Jerry's section of the grocery store.  Then perhaps it works like a dog shock collar and I'll get a nice tazering to change my direction!  No, I seriously don't think that.  But it does make me think: would the calories burned by the involuntary muscle spasms of a good tazering be enough to eat some Cookie Dough or a slice of Pepperoni Lovers?  

Folks Who Inspire Me Part One

I've decided to have a running series of posts of the people I know who've inspired me with the success of their own healthy journey! First up: my inspiring friend Vera!  Here's Vera before:

She started her weight loss journey July 25, 2009 by just watching calories.  She didn't add exercise until October 13, 2009, when she started a run/walk program.  Not long after, she ran her first 5K in March 2010, and today, October 7, she has lost a total of 60.4 pounds!! She now runs 6-7 days per week at least 3 miles, and usually one long run of 5 miles on the weekend. She's just recently added Body Pump class three days per week, zumba and yoga one day a week.  Her goal is to to lose 19.4 more pounds for a total of 80 pounds. She's also lost a total of  27 total body inches. 

Vera runs her own program and tracks her calories on www.caloriecount.com. This working Mom of two also says, "I plan my menu out every week, shop for the week, and cook 4-5 nights a week as opposed to going out a lot. This saves money and helps me control the calories of foods I eat." 

Here's Vera Today:

Vera is a great example of how to adapt a healthy lifestyle into the busiest of situations!  Her current goal is to run another half marathon and I have no doubt that she will!   

Thanks V for letting me share your success!

 

The Goal

While we obviously can't turn back time and be 19 again, my goal is to get back to the weight and size I was at that age.  I'm never going to be a stick figure, but I am perfectly alright with that.  I just want to be the best me I can be! 

My cousin Devon and I, age 19, during the NCSU days

Let's call this a before...

On a recent Myrtle Beach trip with my cousins Devon and Charlie and my awesome hubby Eric.

The Journey Begins

So they say that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.  I took that step around three weeks ago with a group of eleven other people at work who are determined to make a 12 month transformation to being healthier.  Our blood was drawn, our weight taken and measurements measured....we were armed for our battle with a state of the art 10,000 square foot gym, a Go Wear Fit band to give us all our vital stats, our own personal "Bob and Jillian" (only much nicer) and the most unbelievable support system.  

This is a journey that has been coming and one I've started and turned back on a thousand times before.   I can't tell you what makes this time around different other than the desire in my heart. That first workout kicked my fanny, but felt so good to me that I never want to stop.   It was like an instant happy pill and when I started eating like I should, it was almost like a purification of mind, body and spirit.   

I know that this is an endurance trial rather than speedy race and my journey will more than likely last longer than 12 months, but that's okay.  From that first workout, things have been getting better and better with each small milestone.

Thank you to all my wonderful family, friends and co workers who have been so supportive!  Your support means more than you know and has helped me lose 16.5 in 3 weeks!   Can't wait to see what happens next!