Zumba Challenge

The first time I did Zumba (back in October), I looked at my cousin Devon and said, "How in the world did we used to go out and dance all night in college?  I'm about to die and it's been thirty minutes!"  It's gotten better since then, but an hour of Zumba is still intense. 

Today I went to my first Zumba dance party with my friend and teammate, Lakshmi.  I didn't know if I could make it the full two hours, but I was interested to see how long I could last.  It was held in the reception hall of the Cameron Art Museum and the party atmosphere was already in affect when we arrived.  Around seventy people crowded into the room that had the lights off and the disco ball going.

The instructors were on fire and quickly whipped the crowd into a dancing, hollering frenzy.  It was contagious, and soon I'd forgotten that I was working out. Mentally I was back at the club in college, dancing all night with my friends.  The first hour passed quickly, and so did my energy.  I stepped out to take a water break around an hour and fifteen minutes in and noticed that my body had started to protest.  My knees hurt, my feet hurt, and I was drenched and tired.   But then Lakshmi looked at me with a grin and said, "So are we going to do this?  You never say give up."

I took a deep breathe and a swig of my water and watched as one by one, half of the class dropped out. Fitter people than me were throwing in the towel. Could I really do this?  Just then Pitbull came over the speakers and I felt my energy come back.  It was tough, and for the rest of the time I had to put myself in a different place mentally, but I made it!  Two full hours of cardio.

Laks and I after 2 hours of Zumba.

Another cool thing: my mom, a talented artist, had a painting on display at the Cameron, just around the corner from where we were doing Zumba.

"Moonlight on Topsail" by Theresa Elias

It was an awesome day.   Granted, I limped out of there a sweaty, hurting mess, but I did it!

The Stages of Transformation

This evening I found myself alone in the gym, chugging away through the bike interval workout I did on Monday with Millie and Sylvia.  It was the end of a long day and I had lost interest in my music and couldn't concentrate on the televisions or magazines.  My mind started to wander, and due to my location and upcoming completion of our year long Transformation program, it wandered backwards through the months of this journey. The program was divided into four phases, named Phase 1, Phase 2, etc., but as I pushed myself through what Marisa calls "guerilla cardio," new names began to take form in my mind.

I decided to call the first phase Rebirth.  In the beginning, we started out relatively new to the world of exercise and being healthy.  Like birth is for the mother and the baby, it was painful.  Muscles that hadn't been used were stiff and sore, easy to fatigue.  Lungs that weren't used to exercise were quick to become winded. We had to learn how to eat, how to move, how to readjust our schedules. We felt unsure in our new surroundings, self conscious at times as beginners. We didn't know what we were doing.  We tried new things, learned new things, failed at times and learned lessons.  In my case, I started out only being able to do the most basic of things like standing up and sitting down over and over, and following Jeff as we walked lap after lap around the gym. In those simple exercises, my rebirth was formed.

The next phase I decided to call Credibility. In this phase, we gained self confidence and started to see results.  People began to take notice.  Gym regulars began to realize that we were now locked into the program and that our commitment wasn't just a flash in the pan desire that starts out strong and then peters out in a couple of weeks.  We began to test the waters of new exercise, like that first Step class or Zumba class attended, and started to form close relationships with each other. Folks that had seen us maybe start and stop good habits multiple times began to realize that this time was different, this time was for real. We started to invest in our commitment with Ipods for the gym, gait assessments for the right shoes, sports equipment like boxing gloves, and new gym bags.  The numbers on the scale came down and down.  Little victories were frequent and we rode high on our successes.

Then comes the next phase, one that I've decided to call The Trial.  In watching any long term weight loss show and in what I've experienced, this phase is usually inevitable. We were now gym regulars.   We were in there every day working out, but at this point you reach a stage where you become too comfortable in your successes.  You figure you can have a little of this former forbidden food, or a little of that treat that you wouldn't have touched before.  You are faithful to the gym, but your portion size becomes distorted.  You think you're doing well all week, but when the scale doesn't move (or moves the wrong way) you look back at the week and realize all of the places you've faltered.  You become frustrated with yourself. Your trainers look at you and ask what happened and you don't know what to say.  You start thinking that you're never going to lose weight again.  What was once joyous and uplifting now flips around on you and forces you to look at your most base of flaws. I called this The Trial because this is where most people get off the ride.

If you can make it through the previous phase, you come upon where I'm at now, The Resurface.  I can't describe how it happens, but if you make it through your trial, you eventually resurface into your confidence.  You look back on what made you successful in the beginning and you get back on your game.  The muscles that you've been conditioning all of this time begin to take you to a whole new level.  You push yourself harder, taking yourself out of the comfort zone so that the workouts are just as hard as they were in the beginning and you're a sweaty, quivering mess every day.  A sweating quivering mess with a smile on your face and that same old joy back.  You know now in your heart that without a doubt, you're going to reach your goals and the scale starts to be your friend again.

These are my stages of Transformation.  My physical transformation is not complete yet, but I know now that it's just a matter of time and persistence. 

Dana Comes to Step

Today was Marisa's turn to slaughter me in Step class.  And a slaughtering it was!  Marisa was on fire today and the energy of the crowd was right there with her.  Brave Dana responded to the pressure that Millie and I put on him to come to class.  I guess we convinced he and Clint that it was a great workout and not just for girls.  Indeed there were more guys there than usual.  All the steps were used up and you probably couldn't have squeezed another one in there had there been one available.

As we walked out of the gym, Dana was shaking his head at how hard the class was and said, "At one point I had to lean against the wall, hands up like I was getting arrested."  Millie and I almost died laughing.

It has been one tough workout week so far, one that has left me literally drenched with sweat each day, and I love it! Jeff told me to eat clean this week (nothing processed) so that will be an added challenge, but so far, so good.  And, if you need any convincing that exercise and eating right works, I offer some comparison pics:

Me Before

Me tonight with my husband, Eric.

My Own Personal Gauntlet

My transformation team has a checklist that we're supposed to complete daily and turn into our trainers every Tuesday at weigh in.  It details our exercise, food, water intake, and sleep.  Normally I'm an A plus student who wants to get a gold star, so I always remember my sheet.  Today however, I was rushed getting to the gym and realized as soon as I walked in the door that my checklist was upstairs on my desk.    Not wanting to hold up the group, I figured I'd just email it to Jeff after the workout.   Turns out Millie had forgotten hers too.

We were warming up on the bikes when Jeff and Marisa came to collect us.  Upon finding out we'd forgotten our sheets, they insisted that we run upstairs and get them before weigh in. Dressed in our gym clothes, Millie and I self consciously dashed up the gym stairs, across the first floor to the elevator bank and traveled up to our desks to grab our sheets and dash back down again. I know we looked crazy; it was a different kind of warm up!

After weigh in, we got down to business.  I was the only one of Jeff's crew who was able to make it today, so it was time for some some one-on-one torture, I mean training.  My own personal gauntlet, starting out with hitting the heavy bag and going directly into squats.  A couple of rounds of that and we moved on to curl press/squats with weights/squat curl press circuits that increased in time each round.  Feel the burn!   The sweat was rolling down my back...and then he made me get on elliptical.

Jeff put his finger on the level button and I watched as the numbers gradually increased to the last setting: 25.  Ow! I felt like I was climbing through quick sand.  Then he issued the challenge: I had to keep it at a speed of 100 for over for a solid minute, then I was done.   I gave it all I had, but somehow every time, the speed would drop to 98 and I'd have to start over.   I was covered in sweat, but I hate to fail at anything.  I can't remember how many times I attempted it, somewhere between five and seven, but I kept slipping down to 98.  I was disappointed but Jeff pointed out that I still got in some really good cardio.

We moved onto doing some exercises on the bands and then he made me run sprints.  Lord have mercy. I was the equivalent of overdone pasta at this point.  Across the room, Marisa had her crew taking turns on the rowing machine, seeing how quickly they could row to 200 meters.  Jeff asked me if I had it in me to join them.  I was exhausted and shaky, but I also hate not to rise to a challenge, so off we went.  When it was my turn, Jeff, Marisa, and my wonderful Transformation team mates surrounded me and cheered me on to those 200 meters twice.  My best time was 59 seconds, and it was all hard fought. 

I staggered into the locker room and collapsed on the bench.  At this point I had a ring of sweat on my shirt that went almost half way down and I was as pink as a flamingo.  Some friends, who had been working out in the exercise room, came in at that point and exclaimed, "What happened to you?!"  A great workout that's what.   My own personal gauntlet.

It's Not Personal

I checked my sanity at the door today and did two intense workouts.  I knew I was working out with John after work, but I still couldn't miss time burning calories with my girls in our gym.  Sylvia, Millie, and I decided to do this intense bike interval workout that we'd done before, only do it exactly how Marisa had given it to us (we'd only worked our way up to half the interval time laid out by the workout).

After warming up you set the bike to level three and keep the speed at over 85 for two minutes.  Then you take yourself down to a level one for thirty seconds and then back to the hard interval for another two minutes.  Can't remember how many times we did that (Millie was in charge of the sheet and the stopwatch) but for the next round you take your level up to eight for two minutes and take your speed down to 60.  Then you have a 30 second break at level two. We completed this round and all total it was a 45 minute hard core cardio session.   All of our shirts were soaked and during the two minute intervals, we couldn't chat at all.  We also learned that the bike seats aren't the most comfortable in the world after a while, and that's why we unanimously agreed to do our cool down on the treadmill.

After work I hurried over to John's gym.  We did kettle bells, squat jumps, the treadmill at a 10 incline holding a 20 pound kettle bell and switching it back and forth from arm to arm, all three times around...then we headed outside.   He had me do push ups and bench dips on the tire, hit the tire 15 times an arm with the sledgehammer, an exercise with the medicine ball, then drag him back and forth across the parking lot with bands around my waist and him alternating the resistance.  And we did that three times.   Once again I was shaking and soaked, but felt amazing! 

Needless to say, it is nice to be relaxing in my favorite chair in the air conditioning with my jammies on.  Tomorrow we train with Jeff and I'm sure he'll be out for blood after the white bread incident.  I am so blessed to work with such amazing trainers.  I may cut my eyes and huff during the workout, but as John said tonight, "It's not personal, it's just fitness."

Wing Fix

We had a great day today swimming at our friends' pool.  My perfect kind of day.  I swam laps and did handstands and flips like I used to back in the day at the lake with my cousins.  It felt great and hopefully I burned up a bunch of calories.

Before we left the house, I started my crockpot and tried a new recipe that helped fill my chicken wing craving.  While it's not as good as some crispy hot wings dunked in blue cheese, it definitely was a nice work around.

Slow Cooker Buffalo Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 bottle of Buffalo sauce
1 packet of dry ranch dressing mix
1 tablespoon of butter

Place the chicken breasts into the slow cooker and pour in wing sauce, ranch dressing, and butter. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours.  When it's done, shred the chicken and cook for 10-20 minutes to let the sauce soak in.
6  servings, 140.7 calories, 2.5 g fat, 2.5 g of carbs, and 11 g of protein. 

Lifestyle Change

We had an awesome, if windy, day at the beach.  A family friend from Charlotte, who I haven't seen since last summer, was down for a visit.  It was nice to hear her remark about the difference in me.  That kind of thing keeps me going when it gets tough or I feel I'm not getting anywhere.

 After relaxing on the beach, the whole group got cleaned up and went out to dinner at a local restaurant that has a little of everything, but also really good pizza.   Pizza is off my menu for sure, so I ordered a Greek salad with grilled chicken, but the rest of the crowd agreed on pizza.  I've been at this game for almost a year now, and have encountered all kinds of food challenges including holidays, office parties, birthday parties, and random Tuesdays passing my favorite Chinese place.  In the beginning, I had to avoid certain situations altogether because my resolve was in the fledgling stages.  However, there comes a point in time when you have to be able to adapt yourself to any situation and not enforce your dietary constrictions on others.  At this point in time, you have to be accountable and most importantly, in control.  You're not a newbie, you know what to do...you're a seasoned diet war vet who can't hide from challenging situations or live inside a carb-free bubble. That is how you change your lifestyle.

All that being said, it was still hard to watch everyone else eat my favorite food and consign myself to my salad.   As we walked out to the car, everyone was saying how full they were, while my stomach still felt empty.  I was still hungry.   Luckily, I remembered that I'd bought a pack of sugar-free key lime flavored gum.  It wasn't a lovely, cheesy, garlicky slice of heaven, but it took the edge off and eventually, I realized I wasn't hungry anymore.  

Must be the Endorphins

Millie and Sylvia did kickboxing with Florence and I for the first time today.  I could tell they were a little skeptical in the beginning (who isn't wondering what's going to happen when starting a new class) but once we got into it, they were fans.

As always, that class pumped me up.  The punch-cross, upper-hook, turn kick, turn kick combos were my favorite.  I was in all body muscle pain (the good kind) and my sore parts wanted to stiffen and lock up shortly into class but I love kickboxing so much that I was able to work through it.  So much of exercise and endurance is mental.   I envisioned the scene from Kill Bill 2 where Uma Thurman travels to Japan to study kung fu from a master.  How cool would that be?  I was feeling feisty when I left and so were Millie and Sylvia because when walked out of the group exercise room into the gym and saw Dana on the treadmill, we descended upon him, heckling him for not joining us in class.  All in good fun.  I find exercise has increased my "junk talking".  Must be the endorphins.

On the way home from work I stopped off to see my cousin Devon and we decided to do the Couch to 5K training in the fall to prepare for the 5K that my work always sponsors in December.  Crossing a finish line in a race has been a recent dream of mine, even if I walk most of it.  A year ago, I wouldn't have even considered it to be a possibility.  It's amazing what the body can do once you take the mental blocks away.

Slim Jenn and White Bread

Usually for breakfast I make a chicken sandwich with a smart bagel and it ends up being under 200 calories and keeps me from being hungry until lunch time.  This morning I realized i was out of those and so had to grab two slices of white bread instead.   No worries, it still ends up being around the same amount of calories.  Since the only toasters are in the first floor break room, I went downstairs to toast up the bread.   It had just popped up and I'd wrapped it up in a paper towel when who should come around the corner but Jeff.  When he saw I had white bread in my hand, he said, "Minter! I'm shocked!" Sheepishly I countered with, "But Jeff, it's only 100 calories!" He then reminded me that even though the calories might be right, white bread is high on the glycemic index and therefore I would be hungrier faster.  Like a bad dog, I tucked my tail under and went back to my desk with my evil white bread.

Later on in the day I was on my way to the gym when I ran into my cute friend Lisa.   She said, "You are looking good" and told me that she'd recently seen a Slim Jim commercial and decided then that she should call me Slim Jenn.  I loved it. I'm not slim yet, but Lisa, I take that as inspiration!

I continued down to the gym and met up with my gym family to work out.  Since every one of my muscles was sore (a pride I wore like a badge, thank you Jeff and John!) I decided to lay off the weights and just do cardio.   I'd made it through the treadmill, bike, elliptical, and crunches and was stretching out when around the corner came Jeff.  "Hey White Bread!" he said.  We then had a good conversation about what I should be eating and I realize now that I have to plan my food better. 

One thing I did plan ahead on was tonight's dinner, Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken.  It was tasty:

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup salsa
1 package reduced sodium taco seasoning
1 can of reduced fat cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream
***I added black beans too.

Add chicken to slow cooker.  Sprinkle taco seasoning on chicken (can use 1/2 a pack for less sodium).  Pour salsa and soup over chicken.  Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.  Remove from heat and stir in sour cream.  Serve with rice (I didn't eat the rice and it was good because I added the beans).
157.2 calories,3.3 g of fat, 6.7 g of carbs, 24.3 g of protein.

So, I have two new nicknames: Slim Jenn and White Bread.  Add those to Minty Fresh, 50 Mint, and the like.  Hey, I'll answer to anything. :) 

Sledgehammers And a Recipe

I've always watched the trainers on the Biggest Loser take the contestants outside and have them beat a tire with a hammer and thought, "I want to do that!"  I also would watch them swing those heavy ropes up and down and thought, "That would be cool!"  Today I got a chance to do both.

I had a great workout with John where we did bench presses, kettle bells, lunges, squats, push ups, bench curl presses, the cable machine, and my favorite - boxing. Each exercise lasted a minute and if you think that's not a long time try it sometime. Then we went through all of those things again, and that is before we headed outside.

John had me swinging a sledgehammer onto a big 18 wheeler tire and it is harder than it looks!  So are those ropes. You think, that looks pretty easy.  Heck to the no.  Those ropes are heavy as lead and you have to swing them like a furious stage coach driver.  If I could have talked at the time, I would have been tempted to say, "Ya! Git along little doggies!"  Whew!  Crazy hard workout but I enjoyed the heck out of it and felt so accomplished at the end, even though all my muscles were shaking. 

I arrived home hungry like a wolf and was so happy that my supper was ready in my BFF, the crockpot. The recipe, from sparkpeople.com:

Easy Slow Cooker Beef and Mushrooms
1 pound lean beef stew meat (in pieces)
1 can low-fat cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup of water
1 packet dry onion soup mix
8 oz fresh mushrooms (whole or sliced)
Brown meat in skillet (or you can skip this step, I did). Place meat in crockpot. Place mushrooms on top of beef. Combine soup, water, and soup mix and pour over mushrooms and beef.  Cook on low 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Number of servings: 4


It was 214 calories per serving, 6 grams of fat, 12.4 grams of carbs, and 26.9 grams of protein.   We ate it over one cup of brown rice and had brussel sprouts on the side.   So tasty and hit the spot after quite a workout!
 

Crockpots and Noodle Arms

I'm fortunate to have my wonderful little brother work at the same place I do. Although we're both so busy that we don't get to say more than "hey how ya doin'?" some days, it's still nice to know he's around somewhere. Today shortly after I got back to my desk from the gym, Charles happened to swing by on his way to somewhere else on my floor.  When he asked how I was doing, I thrust my arms out and said, "I have noodle arms!"

I saw his eyes get big and he said, "Dang Jenn!  You're arms are really getting defined! I bet you're stronger than a lot of guys now!"

I must say that I'm proud of my arms.  I'm not all gorilla-ed out and don't want to be, but it's nice to see definition.  I think most people have a favorite muscle group to workout, whether it be their arms, legs, or abs and I must say that arms are mine.  That being said, I thought I was going to cry today during Jeff's killer arm routine.  

After work I hit the grocery store armed with a handful of low cal crock pot recipes I pulled off of www.sparkpeople.com.  If you've never been there, check it out.  It has calorie trackers, workout trackers, exercise and nutrition advice, forums, and recipes. It's a good free tool.There's even a free recipe calculator located here: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calculator.asp so you can see how your favorite recipes stack up calorie wise. I'm really trying to focus harder on the food than I have been because no matter how hard you work out, you still have to watch what you put in your mouth. A wise person once told me that (right D?). 

A New Solution

The hardest thing about the losing weight game is by far the food.  What to eat, when to eat it, what's good, what's bad, how to eat healthy on the go...there are challenges around every corner.   This challenge is then compounded when you work full time and have a commute.  Add to this limited restaurant choices due to living in a small down, and thus my daily dilemma.  Between more often than not leaving work late, an hour drive home, and the daily errands of a normal life, and usually I find myself too tired and without the time or inclination to cook dinner.  And friends, there are only so many days a week you can eat Subway. This has been a huge challenge for me...until now.

I have found my new BFF, the slow-cooker liner.  They're made in the same manner as oven bags and fit right onto your crockpot so that when you're finished eating, you just toss them and go...no dishes to wash.  Last week I put a roast into the crockpot and threw in some frozen veggies that were already washed and prepped, added some seasoning and cut that bad boy on low before walking out the door in the morning,  and in five minutes you have dinner ready when you walk in the door.   It's so nice to have that hurdle jumped and to walk into the house to the lovely aroma of a healthy, home cooked dinner all ready and waiting.  And no dishes to wash! 

This morning I put a pork tenderloin with marinade on before I left for work.   The smell of garlic and herbs welcomed us home.   I threw one of those steamable frozen veggie packs into the microwave, sliced up a fresh tomato and seasoned it with herbs, and voila: a healthy and delicious dinner!   The pork was falling apart and juicy.   And the meal was under ten dollars.  Considering I paid twelve dollars for some Subway the other day that was not nearly as satisfying, not so bad all around. Ten dollars and ten minutes and we had dinner.

So much of losing weight, whether its in what you eat or the exercise that you do, is thinking outside of the box and constantly re-inventing the wheel.   Now I need to do some more research into low cal, easy, low carb recipes, but it's nice to have a new solution!

Savor the Little Things (and I don't Mean M & M's)

There is so much that being overweight and unhealthy does to take over and enslave your life.   You never really realize the full gravity of it until you start bringing yourself out of it.   There are many things that I'm discovering as I go along this journey, things that the average person just goes about their daily life doing without thinking about it too much. When you bind your body up with so much weight, it affects absolutely everything you do. 

For instance, last summer some good friends of ours were moving and my husband and I went over to help them out.  Well, Eric helped them out...I just was moral support because at that point in my life (close to the time the picture of me at the Fourth of July in a prior post) I felt so overburdened that even walking minute distances was unbearable and I couldn't stand for very long.   If I tried to pick up anything much, my lower back would feel like it was about to give way.  I was already carrying so much weight with my body, how could I add even a pound more to that?   So, while Eric and the others spent hours moving things out, I sat on the couch and made boxes.  I love helping people and I felt utterly lazy and useless.

Fast forward to almost a year later; I called our friend Pam to tell her we'd be able to pitch in a help her move this afternoon.   She said she'd love to have Eric come help and I quickly volunteered myself as well.  "Shug, it's going to be some heavy stuff to move. I don't think you'll be able to lift it."  I laughed and said, "Woman!  You won't believe what I can do these days."

After work a party of about eight of us assembled at Pam's old house to help her move.  No one likes the process of moving, but with our friends it was fun!  There were plenty of laughs and a lot of smack talking and good natured jabs going on.  And, I showed Pam what I could do!  It felt so good to be "normal" like everyone else, able to pitch in and help a friend out and not feel so useless.  My cousin Devon, one of my most awesome supporters, looked at me and said, "I know you feel good if you've volunteered to help with this move."  It was nice that she knew what it meant to me too.

We got Pam loaded, made a caravan of vehicles to her new place, and unloaded everything again. After the last load was carried in, we were all standing around hanging out, passing out water and beer and enjoying being outside on a nice Friday evening.  I decided to experiment and see if I could hoist myself up onto the tailgate of my husband's truck. Yep, got up there with ease and crossed my legs Indian style.  Again, an action that most people wouldn't think about or even consider a victory, but I don't take any of these changes in myself for granted.  I savor each one along the way and carry that good feeling in my heart as armor against the bad temptations.   I inhaled the fresh air of a rare summer evening without heat or humidity, looked around at my awesome friends, and just basked in the feeling of normalcy and the good "hurt" of my muscles after today's workout and tonight's move.   And it just felt right.  :)

Alone in the Gym

Most of us don't have the luxury of living on a ranch, isolated with trainers and personal chefs, and hours at our disposal to workout.  Most of us have a full-time jobs that are something other than working on our weight loss.  I've heard from so many people that their biggest challenge is not the willpower, but finding the time to get to the gym.  We're so fortunate at my work to have a full-size gym right downstairs for us to use.  It eliminates a lot of factors that would normally give us an an excuse not to work out.  I remember back in the bad old days when I worked elsewhere and held a membership at Golds.  I would drive past the parking lot, and think, "Whoops, no parking spots, guess I'm not working out today," and be about my merry unhealthy way.  "Whoops, it's raining, guess I can't work out."  Or, "oh man, it's Tuesday.  Guess I'm not working out."

These days I don't let anything get in my way.  That being said, finding time to get to the gym today was tough.  It was only nine floors down, but it might have been two miles down the street for the amount of work I had to get accomplished.  I found myself working though lunch and not shutting my computer down until 6:30.  I live about an hour away from work, so I was itching to get on the road.  I always exercise in the middle of the day instead of taking lunch because I know my motivation to do it after work is next to none.

But, I knew that I needed to get it done, so I drug myself down there despite having minimal desire to do so.   I even almost turned around when I got halfway to the locker room.   It would have been easy.   None of my gym buddies were there or my trainers.  There were probably four people in the gym, including myself. The locker room - usually a hive of hairspray, girl talk, and laughter - was quiet as a tomb.  Boo.

Deciding to get on with things, I changed clothes, cranked up my music and got my workout done. Someone had left behind a Glamour magazine with some interesting articles, and that helped too.  I must have been in my own little world, because when I got off of the bike, I looked around and for the first time in my life I found myself totally alone in the gym.

Weird.   I wasn't sure I liked it.  Then I realized, I am totally alone in this gym, I can do anything I want. It turned out to be awesome.  No waiting for equipment. No worries about looking ridiculous when trying new exercises like the Perfect Push-up paddles I see the guys using - yep, I can do them.  No feeling self-conscious about how silly I feel when I run, which if you're a fan of the show "Friends" looks a lot like Phoebe in the episode "The One Where Phoebe Runs."  And I could sing along to my music as loud as I wanted.  All in all, not a bad time.  I still prefer to have my buddies with me, but tonight I proved to myself that I have the motivation to get things done, even when everything told me to forget it and go home.

The Gauntlet Part Dos

If you read my blog you may recall a post entitled "The Gauntlet."   If you don't remember it, here's a link: The Gauntlet.  Today was my first workout back with Jeff and with the new team.  Before we split off into two teams, Jeff and Marisa gathered all of us together for a meeting to get everyone on board for the last sixty days of our program.  They asked us, besides the obvious benefit of losing pounds, what was better in our lives because of this program?

"Being able to move" was a popular answer around the room as well as "getting strong. " Also was "the knowledge of what is healthy and what is not when it comes to food."  "The ability to resist the chips." Roy said.  When it was my turn, I felt like I could go on and on but in summary I said, "There is not one aspect of my life that is not better because of this."  Frank also summed it up with, "I just feel better!"

After our meeting we split up into two groups and Jeff led us over to the ellipticals.  I knew he was going to get us good today.  I fully expected a hard workout.   I was prepared to go the distance.  What I wasn't prepared for was...the gauntlet part two.  

Do you ever watch horror movies where the carefree teenage babysitter has just put the kids to bed and has gotten on the phone with her friends, chatting and laughing away, totally unaware that Jason or Michael Meyers or that hooded guy from Scream is just outside, lurking in the bushes, preparing to bust in the windows and rip her to shreds?  Follow that analogy on into the gym today.   There I was, gliding along on the elliptical, chatting and laughing away with Sylvia on one side and Dana on the other, when here comes Jeff, armed with his gauntlet workout, preparing to rip me to shreds.  Well at least my muscles that is. 

Oh it was on today! Its only been several hours ago, but I can't even remember the sequence of speeds, times, and levels he put us through, all I know is that he would call out a speed and a resistance level and we would do it for however long he told us. It was probably one of the toughest cardio workouts I've ever done.  I simultaneously wanted to throw up, call for Jesus, and cry, but I made it through it. The funniest thing of the day happened at one point; Dana started singing that old song from the tournament scene of Karate Kid, "You're the best around, nothings gonna ever keep you down...."  I almost fell off of my machine, for several reasons.

Yes, Jeff channeled his inner Cobra Kai, because we weren't done yet.  Again, can't remember how many rotations or how long each rotation was, but we had to hold ourselves in plank position until I felt like my arms were going to break, then stand up and hold a static squat until my legs felt like they were going to collapse underneath me.  And then go right back into plank, then right back into static squats, and then again and maybe even again.   Can't remember, it's all a blur of ragged breathes and quivering muscles and sweat that dripped off of me to puddle on the floor. 

All in all: one awesome workout.  I survived the gauntlet again...and went on to do 30 more minutes of cardio with Sylvia afterward.

We Go Girls!

The results of the battle of the sexes are in and....Team Reesy (the girls) won the challenge!!!  It was by a three pound margin, but we still emerged the victors!  Thank you so much to all the wonderful ladies on the team and to our fearless leader, Marisa. I know that we have developed friendships for life.  You have all given me so much encouragement and drive.   We've laughed together, sweated together, and cried together.   We've cheered each other on and helped each other up. When I didn't think I could go on, you all stood around me in a circle and told me I could.  You helped me dig down deep and find the strength I needed to persevere. You allowed me to bare my soul and my deepest fears in front of you with no shame. We all come from different demographics and walks of life, but together in this, we are sisters. 

For this next and last phase of our transformation year, Jeff and Marisa put all the names (guys and girls) into a hat a drew for teams.  I'm on Team Jeff along with Dana, Roy, Sylvia, Laks, and George.  It's a fun group and I'm looking forward to the next three months.   I had a long talk with Jeff to determine goals and our mission for this phase.   We are basically going to go all out, push harder than we have before.  I'm ready.  I've been coasting on this plateau for the past two months (but hey, maintaining "ain't" gaining) and it's time to kick it into high gear, and I now have the self confidence to know that I can do it. 

No Ma'am.

I was raised in the South and taught always to have nice manners and to be polite.    Southern girls don't say something untoward without blessing someone's heart first.   Southern girls say "please" and "thank you" and always "yes ma'am" and "no ma'am."   I'm down with all of that but what happens when you've said "no thank you, but I appreciate it" to the bearer of homemade lemon pie, but the baker is persistent? 

As Southerners, we always want to be hospitable to our guests and offer them refreshments.  As proud cooks, we always want to have our cullinary masterpieces appreciated and complimented.   So what happens when you're trying so hard to get off of a plateau, your resolve is weak, and you're in a polite face-off with a  hostess who just insists that you try a piece of their mouth watering lemon pie that is famous in three counties?  You politely decline saying, "I'm sure it is so good, but I have to get on the scale on Thursday. I know I'm missing out!"  Then she says, "Oh, but you have to have some! I'll get you a small slice!"  And then she returns with a big whoppin' slice that's falling all over the plate, probably is around 600 calories, and if eaten, means you'll have to skip dinner and possibly breakfast and lunch the next day too.What does one do in this situation?

I'm sure this happens everywhere, not just in the South.   I don't understand why folks who know you're dieting insist on forcing high calorie treats on you. Don't they understand what a thin ledge you're teetering on anyway?  Do they not know about that false theory we subscribe to from time to time that tells us, "well I've eaten this slice of pie so I might as well have pizza for dinner, since I've screwed up this much"?  It might just be a piece of pie to them, but it could mean the beginning of the bad food spiral for you. 

These folks don't have mean intentions, they just don't understand how when you're on a journey such as mine, you have to stay strong.   You can't decide to give yourself a treat every time the opportunity presents itself.  You can't approach each meal like it's the last time you might have a chance to have pie or a side of fries.  That's how many of us get where we are.   So, you have to learn to politely stand up for yourself and eventually folks will get the picture.  Just make sure to add a "ma'am" to your "no thank you."  : )

Do What You Like

If you are into working out regularly, you know the feeling that a great workout gives you.  You feel revved up, exhilarated, giddy, and confident.   On the flip side, if you feel like you didn't do your best, or your workout was just so so, you feel let down and unsettled.  Today was the good kind for me.  We had an awesome kick boxing class that is still making me feel great hours later.

I can keep up in pretty much any exercise class these days, but am by no means the best in the class.  In step, I'm on the lowest riser.   In Zumba I'm doing most of the moves, but my salsa step is very lacking.  But in kick boxing, I feel right at home.   Today Pam led us in some turning kick, jab-cross combos set to a fast paced play list that included the old school Mortal Kombat theme.   I never missed a beat. I'd slurped down two iced coffees prior to class and I was amped and ready to go!  My fists were flying, my feet were kicking, the bass was thumping, and I thought to myself, "I kick a&*! I have the eye of the tiger. I am a ninja." 

In all seriousness, I'm no Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan, but after class as I stretched out my muscles on a mat and slowed my heart rate down, I realized that when we find something we're good at, we like it, and when we like it, and get into it, we push ourselves harder and get better results.   I don't know what it says about me that I love to fight so much, or that I've been excited ever since Millie's husband (a former dojo master) told me he could teach me to break a board with my hand, or that I have worn through my first set of pink Everlast gloves on the heavy bag at the gym, but whatever puts the fire in you, you should go with it.  For Millie and Mary, learning to run and find their stride has done it for them.   Sylvia excels at Step class.  Lakshmi quickly found a love for Zumba.  My thing is fighting I guess.  Whatever it is that gets your blood pumping, like Nike says, "just do it."

Pad Thai or Toned Thigh?

I've really been into the show Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition because it focuses on a year-long transformation, like my own weight loss program.  I really study it closely and pay attention to the psychology behind everything because I've heard over and over, whether pertaining to running a marathon or breaking a board karate style, the body gives out long before the mind and the heart, and the majority of working out and dieting is mental. 

It's interesting to me because they break the year up into four three month phases, and every one of the folks on the show has had a stumble around Phase Three, which is where myself and my team mates are currently.  We've all had a bit of a stumble currently; some have plateaued and some have gained a little back. It made me feel less anxious about my plateau to see that show and know that it is very common.

Sylvia and I had a discussion today about pressing the "re-set" button and getting back down to business.  We decided we're going to switch our food around, get strict, and go at this full force for Phase Four.  Today together we did the treadmill, bike, elliptical, hit the punching bag, did squats, hammer curls and squat curl presses, and threw some leg presses in there for good measure. It really does bring home the transformation aspect into play when I realized how much knowledge we've gained from our trainers and the different mindset we have now than the two girls we used to be.  A year ago our favorite thing to do together was to hit up the Thai restaurant near work for some chicken pad thai.   Now our favorite thing to do is exchange some sweat and gossip every day down in the gym. Giving up pad thai for toned thigh,  I'd definitely call that transformation!

Independence

We had a great weekend at the beach, celebrating the Fourth of July with family and friends.  A friend from Atlanta, who I only see this time of year at the beach, is a photographer.  As soon as he saw me this weekend, he handed me a picture that he took this time last year of me and said, "See how far you've come."  As hard as it is to look at that picture and share it on my blog, I feel like I should, so here goes:

Last July the Fourth, 2010

This Fourth of July, 2011

I am by no means finished with this journey.   I have a long ways to go. This is the time when I need to not rest on how good I feel, but dig down deeper and push harder.   On Independence Day I am declaring my freedom from old bad behaviors and the ways that created the person in that first picture.  I am going to visualize these bad behaviors as chains that bound me up in an unhealthy body and held me back last year from the freedom to enjoy my life the way I do now, and the way I will even more so in the future.

It was cool to see how far I've come and made it a lot easier to resist that homemade chocolate cheesecake!

Sangria, Sand and Sunset

The fourth of July always means one thing in our family: Topsail Island.   Every Independence Day of my whole life has been spent on this little slice of Heaven.   Today, the second of July, is my brother Charles's birthday.   Last weekend we celebrated my husband's the same way, a birthday party at the beach and a homemade chocolate cheesecake.   Ditto today.  

Hard to resist Momma's chocolate cheesecake!

Once again I resisted. It was hard too because of the collective ooo's and ahhh's and "man this is delicous"s from everyone else.  I ate watermelon for my dessert and stared longingly at the rich, creamy cake my family was indulging in.  The thing about food is this: it tastes wonderful and satisfying for about five seconds in your mouth, then the pleasure is gone and you have to eat more to get it back.  Then it's another five seconds and the feeling is gone again.  Ah, but the pounds on the scale and the inches around your thighs are here to stay!

Happy Birthday Charles!  Love you brother!

I saved my calories for some peach sangria Momma had whipped up from a South Carolina recipe.  Woo those peach slices were potent.  We all took our drinks outside for sangria at sunset by the ocean.  Can't get better than that!

Old Glory flying in the Topsail breeze.

Kicked back, relaxed on his birthday.

Sangria with the Sister

Post-sangria smile (and I look like I'm about to leap frog over her head)