Step Away From the Cake

Pain is fear leaving the body

2012-02-15T20:16:00.003-10:00

I am really coming around to believe that saying is true. Two weeks ago I started riding my bike to work and pain has been my constant friend. It began with the feet, they hurt a lot. And I couldn't figure it out since I was riding. But they hurt. Also my butt. You can not believe how much my butt hurt the first week. Yikes. Every time I sat on the seat pain shot through my butt bones. It felt like electric currents were running through my butt. Like it was hooked up to pennsylvania electricity company. Thankfully that passed. Then we moved on to the knees. My bad knee hurt and gave out a couple times, it was pretty miserable. Then we moved into the back. Yikes!! Now we are on the shoulder. It hurts a lot. I even considered going to the docs until I thought about the pain I've gone through in the past 2 weeks. Each one hurt so bad I really did think something serious was wrong. But a day or so later I had forgotten about it. So I'm giving the shoulder a day or so. Yesterday was the first day it hurt, and today is better so I'll wait until Friday. If it still hurts on Friday I will call the doc. But truthfully, the mental anguish I've been struggling through is probably a large part of the problem. Every time a pain gets bad I think maybe I can't ride my bike. Ummm hmmmmm, yes, definitely fear leaving the body.

Up and at 'em......

2012-02-12T09:39:00.000-10:00

Since the first of the year it's been a struggle. I've had a lot of things going on at home and at school. I've felt like I've had zero time and my eating and workouts have suffered because of it. But what is that Chinese proverb, fall down 7 times get up 8, so that's what I'm doing.

Last Tuesday I got rid of my car. Since then I have been riding my bike and the bus. This has caused me to get a lot more activity then I normally do. This is good. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy type of thing. One thing starts going well and then it bleeds over into another area...and another area...and so on and so on. That's what's beginning to happen. I started getting more activity because I had no choice. Now I'm becoming pickier and pickier about what I eat. Now I want to journal to make sure I'm eating well. So things are looking up.

Last week at WW I was up like 6 lbs. I knew that wasn't real and had a lot to do with the fact that I started riding my bike. Whenever I start working out seriously, my weight goes up. It's like my body starts building muscle without letting go of the fat. My appetite also grows. I knew that I did not eat 21,000 extra calories last week so I was not concerned with the number on the scale. I knew it would balance out eventually. This week it was down 3 lbs so it's already starting to happen. But now I need to track my food to make sure I'm not overeating with the increase in activity and my appetite.

The best part of this forced activity is that I'm starting to feel really good. My energy is increasing. I'm sleeping better. My attitude is better. Everything is better. At this rate I'm going to need a dashboard scorecard to keep up with all the positive side effects.

I will tell you though, this weekend I've been tired. I watched TV and snoozed a whole lot of yesterday and today isn't looking a whole lot better.... I guess I will have to really rest on the weekends. That's what they are for...

Skin Care and aging

2012-02-12T09:06:00.001-10:00

I know I've talked about skin and age before, but these are the kinds of things on my mind now. Now that I'm aging.... My skin used to be so oily that I could wash it 4 or 5 times a day and it would still be slick. I used to use alcohol straight on it to try and dry it up a little. Didn't work. However as I'm aging my skin is changing. Not only am I getting more wrinkles, but the skin is getting more papery and I dislike that look intensely. I apply moisturizer extremely frequently and it doesn't help a whole lot. There is not much I can do about that, but I can do something about wrinkles. I've done some reading about anti-aging light treatment that seems promising. I just may have to check into that. I am going to have to do something because it's not getting better.

Treasure Hunting

2012-02-12T08:46:00.002-10:00

Written by my friend Betty Walls

I have been a homemaker for more than six years now and with that honor, come sacrifices. I haven’t had the luxury of designer clothes or a decorated home but I have been very hands on with the raising of my children. While watching TVByDirect one afternoon, I had a great idea come to me. After seeing the incredible transformations of consignment finds some folks were making, I decided to scour my own local spots and see what inspired me. To my amazement, there are treasures of all kinds to be had. It is amazing what some people will throw out! I have seen high end items with tags still on them for 90% less than department stores. I have gathered an eclectic collection of art and frames for pennies compared to retail prices. I have found unusual one of a kind pieces like chairs to also add into my existing décor. All these little details really make a house feel like a home and I am eager to continue my search for fabulous finds.

Time for a new hobby

2012-02-12T07:49:00.000-10:00

So things have been a little busy around here lately but I'm doing more of the things I want to do - so that's good. One of the things that happens when I get real busy is that I do more. A lot more. So in my busy state I wrote a post in passing about learning to play the guitar. It's something I've wanted to do for a long, long time and I still do. I wrote the post because something I saw on TV reminded me of the guitar. Well, since that post I've been fairly obsessed about the guitar. I really want to get back into it. I have a smaller guitar but I would really love to get a regular sized one. I don't need anything fancy like a Fender, though I sure wouldn't mind one, but I think I'll start a little smaller :)

I have done a little research and the community college right around the corner from me offers guitar classes at night. Hmm...They are extremely reasonable because they are at a community college. The next class won't be starting until summer but that's just fine. I should have some free time around then.

I think part of my problem with moving past things and getting things accomplished is that I don't have a lot of "hobby" type things in my life. There is usually something I do that, while it's in my schedule, it's just for fun. Right now I don't have much of that - too much on my plate. Definitely time for some fun stuff.....

Falling off the wagon

2012-02-05T20:32:00.001-10:00

Off the food and water wagon that is. My food has not been that bad but I have not tracked in a long time. The water though is a problem. I have not been drinking much at all and I need to get back into the habit of drinking lots more. Especially if I'm riding my bike I need to make sure I'm hydrated. So tomorrow it's another new start. I packed myself a nice healthy lunch and am going to have a good breakfast. So it back on the wagon. No more avoidance....

Things to do.....

2012-02-05T11:04:00.000-10:00

One of the things on my bucket list is to learn to play the guitar. I have wanted to do this for years and I'm thinking I may pursue it again. I really, really love music and really, really want to play an instrument. I have a guitar but it's not normal sized, it's slightly smaller. When I was looking for guitar cases for it I really had to shop around and be careful because it is smaller than normal. Anyway, I think I may take this up again. I am definitely going to check into it.

Tap, tap, tap.....

2012-02-05T10:59:00.000-10:00

Is this thing on??? So where I have I been for the last week or so?? Well, things have been crazy around here.

It all started on Christmas Eve, believe it or not. We were with some friends and the Super Bowl came up. One friend was going to have it at their house when we informed them that we have 2 giant TVs and I mean giant - 65" and 52". They said we should have it at our house since we have the big TVs. So we said okay. Well that started a chain reaction that was only finished on Friday. We thought we'd fix the place up a little since we would be having everyone here. Initially we thought we'd do the bathroom. Then we figured we'd do the kitchen and things just got crazy. We ended up doing the kitchen counters and floor and the bathroom floor. Writing it doesn't sound like a lot but the kitchen floor took one whole day. The kitchen counter took a day but then we had to let it cure and grout it, each of which was a 24 hour process. The bathroom floor took an entire week between cutting Hardiboard and tile, mudding and grouting, then trimming and cleaning....Ugh!!! The bathroom was completed on Friday and yesterday was spent cleaning the house from all the work that's been going on. And today?? It's Super Bowl.

Also this week I got rid of my car. Between the payments, gas and insurance, that thing was costing me about $800 a month. It sucked gas like you wouldn't believe. 17mpg was my average!!! Yikes. So I'm carless for now. I'll be busing it and riding my bike. I actually like riding my bike and riding the bus provides me with 45 minutes to an hour where I have nothing to do. Awesome. I'm also getting a whole lot more exercise because I'm riding my bike to the bus stops. In the morning the stop is only about 4 blocks from my house and I get off less then 1/2 a mile from school. But in the evenings I'm riding my bike about 5-6 miles to get a bus. That takes about 20-30 minutes, so everyday I'm getting in ride. Awesome. I figure I'll go without a car for 3-4 months then pick up a little beater - something with no payments!!!!

So between all of the above I just have not had the time to sit down and blog. It's not like I've been doing anything fun like hitting up the cigar auctions or anything. Just working, working, working. Either on the house or on my actual job. Now that the Super Bowl is here things should quiet down some and I can get back to a more normal routine. At least I hope so....

Time to step it up

2012-01-29T07:36:00.000-10:00

Friday night I averted an eating crisis which is good. But the choices I made were not so good. How can I put this delicately, ummmm....Those Magnum bars contain far too much chocolate and too much chocolate causes me to spend too much time in the bathroom. In a way that's good because everything just seems to pass right through, but it does not feel so good. So I was dealing with that yesterday. Which led me to some thinking.

Why do I do this to myself? Seriously, why? I love the Magnum bars but they do this to me every single time. When is enough enough? If this made me throw up I would never eat because I hate to throw up, but the other is acceptable?? Really? I think sometimes, at least for me, choices are made without really thinking it all the way through. I think it happens with food more than anything else. I never do a workout that I know will hurt me - I stop. I never go somewhere that's excessively dangerous. So why do I eat foods that do this to me? Because they taste good. Time to rethink some of this stuff.

Also, I've kind of been cruising along the last week and planning on cruising along for the next week. I think that needs to change too. I think it's time to step it up a notch or two and I think I need to start today. I have some work around here to do but I can track my eating - which considering the state of my stomach and intestines is a good idea. So that's where I start. Tracking...Today...All day....

Crisis Averted

2012-01-27T19:57:00.002-10:00

I really did dodge a bullet tonight. Hubby has been working all week and I've been on my own for dinner. Overall I've been doing fairly well having salads and chicken and doing pretty darn good. Tonight though I was teetering on the edge of a binge. I did not want salad or chicken. I did not want to cook. I did not want what was available. I decided to make the drive to Jack-in-the-box and get a burger. And a shake. And some fries. And probably stop for dessert. Yeah, that would have been bad. Really. Really. Bad. But I grabbed my wallet and keys, headed out the door with every intent of consuming more calories for dinner then I have all week. Thankfully something inside kicked in and as I got in the car I decided that was an incredibly stupid idea. I did continue driving but instead of going to Jack I headed to the grocery store. I had decided that I did not need a burger, fries, shake and dessert. I would settle just for dessert. So I got to the grocery store and got my go-to, all holds barred dessert. Magnum.

This stuff is expensive and worth every single penny. I paid $6 for a box of 3 - $2 each. But they are so, so good. When I really want a dessert and I haven't had one in a while (and I have not had any sweets all week) this is what I go to. So I got a box of these, went home and had a small sandwich. Nice. What could have been a 3,000+ calorie night ended up being about 500 calories. Considering I had salad and nachos for lunch and yogurt for breakfast, it's not bad at all.... I am pleased.

In other news. I love gadgets. I am a real tech geek. I am usually the first to have all the latest toys. I especially love toys that help with my fitness. I've had a Body Bugg, a Fit Bit, pedometers, Garmin, heart rate monitors, Nike+, and I'm sure there's more I'm missing. I really enjoyed the Body Bugg but it cost like $12/month to access the website and get the data off it. That got to be pricey. I had the Fit Bit for more than a year and I really liked that. It was small and easy to wear but rather limited. The website was a little clunky too.

Then last week I was watching Biggest Loser and they showed this new device they are using - I guess they dumped 24 hour fitness and had to dump the Body Bugg too. Anyway, it was a brief clip and the device was called a Slim Coach. I immediately went and Googled it. I found it and discovered that next month, February, the My Trak M2 is becoming the Biggest Loser Slim Coach. I wanted one. I looked up buying one and found they were $130!! Well, that's too much and I wasn't going to be able to afford it - nor could I spend that much in good conscious. But I kept looking around and reading reviews and found a bunch of people that really loved it. I then stumbled across a site with a discount code. I ended up getting one for $69.99 - woo hoo!!! The most amazing part was that I ordered it Tuesday night and it was delivered yesterday!!! From Canada!!! To Hawaii!!! Amazing..... Here is what it looks like:

Last night I got it all set up and I wore it today. The thing I like about it is that you set a fitness goal, calorie burn, and it starts the day red and changes to green as you get closer to meeting your goal. It's a fun toy. I like it and hopefully it will help me keep active. New toys!!!
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Playing games

2012-01-25T17:09:00.000-10:00

I love to play games. The simplier the better. I don't like games that make me think a lot or require a serious strategy to play. After teaching all day I like to do some fun, mindless stuff. Well I found a new place to do this, Winster. It's a slot machine type game where you win points and earn prizes. You also play with others and you can help them or let them help you. It's fun and definitely relaxing. So check it out. You can click the link below or the banner in my sidebar. It's fun and you know you want to have fun....

Self perpetuating

2012-01-22T07:06:00.000-10:00

There are many sayings out there the promote positivity.

Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you are right
Where the mind goes the body will follow.
Where the body goes the mind will follow.
Fake it until yo feel it....

And so on. These are all true. The hardest part is putting yourself into the positive mindset. Even if you are faking it. Some times you just have to drag your way through negativity, self doubt, and even self loathing to get to a point where you can create a spark of positiveness. The good news is sparks don't like to be alone. Create one and another will follow. And another. And another. And on and on and on.....

Yesterday I had some major triumphs early in the morning with my bike ride and my weight loss. Once I got home I decided to track my food, since I'm doing so well I should learn what I'm doing. So I did. I also made an effort to get enough water - something I struggle with on the weekends - but fell a little short in that area. I also wanted to do a boot camp workout last night, but after my bike ride in the morning and walking the dogs in the evening I was really tired. So I passed on the boot camp. I ended the night feeling good and tired. I slept really well last night and woke up early this morning. I've been up for a few hours now and feeling pretty darn good. I have nothing earth shattering on the agenda today, some housework and maybe some school work, so it will be a relaxing day. I am going to get my workout in and I am going to go shopping for food for next week.The only thing negative in my life right now is my neighbors. Maybe I should look for some southern shores real estate to get away from these jerks. Or I can just do like I've been doing and ignore them......

Bottom line here? Positivity breeds positivity......

Conquering fears and being a loser

2012-01-21T16:06:00.000-10:00

8 weeks ago today I crashed on my bike. It was pretty bad and I was in a lot of pain for awhile. Of course, all things considered it was not a bad crash at all which is what scares me. If I was in that much pain for that long and that wasn't a bad crash.....what would a bad crash be like? It took a long time for some of the injuries to heal. I have a scar on my arm that was probably the worst injury and I'm sure it will be there forever. For the last month or so I've been wanting to get back on my bike. But every week I find an excuse; it's too hot, it's too cold; it's rainy; it's windy,I overslept, etc. The truth of the matter was, I was scared. I was afraid to ride again because I was afraid to crash. My little crash caused a whole lot of pain, I didn't want to take the chance and have a worse crash. So I've been finding ~~reasons~~ excuses not to and that wasn't hard at all. Well, this morning I found myself wide awake at 5:30 am. It was not windy and there was only a little, morning rain. None of my excuses would fly this morning. So I got ready, got my bike out, and headed off to Weight Watchers. It was scary going I tell you. But I took my time, rode very conservatively, and it was great. I didn't take my mind off what I was doing for one second. I was so focused it was insane. But I did it. When I was getting near the intersection where I crashed I started getting a little anxious, but I went through it no problem. I do have to say that I did things I felt were safe but were not necessarily following the bike laws. I used some crosswalks to cross streets when I didn't feel comfortable going with traffic. I rode on the sidewalks a couple of times. But I was careful and safe and I'm glad I finally did it and my fear has been conquered.

Now, as for being a loser, I am :) I was down 1.2 lbs. Yeah!!! Considering the week I had, this really surprised me. I haven't worked out all week. Eating was not the best it could be, but I'm getting really intuitive about the eating. I did have dessert one night but basically I eat decent amounts during the day and stop eating dinner when I'm full. Some nights that's a lot of food and other nights it's just a little. The point is I'm paying attention and able to realize that I'm full and stop. When I do that I do not feel stuffed and bloated. And apparently it's paying off. Down 1.2 lbs Woo Hoo!!! Now this week I'm definitely going to track and work on getting my workouts in. I'm going to get up in the mornings and do my bootcamp even if I only get one round done. It's better than nothing. A girl at WW today said she gets and hour exercise every morning no matter how early she has to get up. Hmmmm....maybe I need to shift my thinking....

Time to take control

2012-01-21T06:32:00.000-10:00

After I wrote my post the other day it came to me that I'm not in as much control as I like to think I am. I was letting life and responsibilities get in the way of what I want to do. I was worrying about everything else and not about me. Wow! That's a huge change. When I first started WW and they would talk about how people with weight problems have a hard time saying NO. How they put everyone else's needs before their own and that ends up being part of the problem. Heck, they even talk about it on Biggest Loser. Anyway, I used to say that I don't do that. I take care of myself and do what I want to. It wasn't completely true then and now I've fallen further into the habit of taking care of everything else and ignoring me.

Some things I've noticed lately. I don't workout at night because we have to walk the dogs and I don't want to delay dinner too long. I don't workout in the morning because I don't have time because I've gotten into my head that I need to be at school by 6:30 - a full hour before I have to be there. I don't workout on weekends a lot because we have things to do and I don't want to delay hubby. I don't eat as well as I should all the time because Hubby makes dinner and I don't want to tell him what to do or make. Really???? Who is this person and where did they come from? I don't know but it's time to kick her butt to the curb.

It's 6:30 right now. I'm going to get my bike out and ready and I'm riding to WW. After that I'm going to carefully ride to the racquet club and check out the happenings over there - big national tournament starting tomorrow. Then I will ride home shower and clean up this room. Once that is all done I will get some work done on my thesis - that is starting to become critical. I will work out later and we will walk the dogs. I will consider it a good day if I fall into bed exhausted tonight. Tomorrow it will be more of the same only with football thrown in - the 9ers are playing :)

Moving at the speed of light....

2012-01-19T18:36:00.001-10:00

That's what I feel like anyway. I have been working hard and working to keep on top of everything and not let things slip. It's only the first cycle and I can already see where things can go wrong. I've been going in early and getting things ready. I have to admit that I haven't been doing anything at home at night. That is step one into changing my routine.

So I'm this huge advocate of choices. There is always a choice - Always!! You give me any situation and I will show you a choice. You may not like the options but they are always there. So why am I lamenting my own choices so much lately? Back to school and I'm tired and drained at the end of the day. I can't force myself to get up in the morning and by evening I'm wiped out. I want to workout, at least I think I do. I know that I don't want to feel the way I do and look the way I do. Wait! I think I just hit on something. My motivation is from the negative. That never works for me. My motivation has to come from a positive side or it just doesn't work for me. My motivation has to be things like, I want to feel better, I want to run faster, hell I just want to run, I want to not be so tired, I want to be fit and trim. I heard Oprah once say, what you resist persists, and it is so true. If I focus on the negative I will stay stuck where I am. I need to shift my view and focus on the positive. I know this in every other area of my life, why can I not get it together in terms of health and fitness? What is wrong? Okay, nothing, I just need to break old habits. Course it would be a whole lot easier if I was trying to do motor home repair, but I can do this.

Start small. One step at a time, just continue to make forward progress.

New Shoes

2012-01-15T10:33:00.001-10:00

Sometimes a new item will inspire me to get moving again. I don't do it often, but every once in a while I buy something new for my workout.

Yesterday I discovered I had a $25 coupon for Sports Authority and it expired yesterday. I had to go spend it, didn't I? Hate to see $25 go to waste. So I headed over to see what I could find. Being on the larger size I tend to go through shoes quickly. Also, with no cartilage in my right knee, as soon as the cushioning wears down a little I can feel it. So I figured I would take a look at the shoes on sale.

I ended up getting the ones in the picture. I have not owned Nikes in years and years. I wore them today and I like them. Doing a boot camp workout in my running shoes was okay but it's better in these....

Okay, I had a long, insightful post planned but I walked away in the middle to do laundry and now I've lost it. If it comes back to me I'll be back to finish this. If not, oh well.....

My New Addiction

2012-01-14T10:40:00.003-10:00

This guest post from Margaret Mills

I have recently become the biggest online shopping addict. Just in the last week I have ordered two pairs of shoes, a winter coat and a wine sampler from different websites. I started working from home about a month ago, so I have a lot more freedom to do what I want with my time. Of course this means I shop for shoes and clothes when I’m supposed to be doing work! I guess I could exercise or clean, but who wants to waste time with that? It’s so much more fun spending my time looking at and purchasing the latest trends. Sometimes I actually do look for things my family needs though, like wireless internet service deals. I figure that if I start searching for deals on things I really need I can offset the extra spending I’ve been doing. With the holidays coming up I know I need to get the best deals possible so I’ve really been doing my research this year on things I want to buy. It’s amazing how much cheaper shopping online can be than buying in stores. Getting great dealsmakes me feel so accomplished!

Up and Down

2012-01-14T10:37:00.000-10:00

Really tired of this cycle I seem to be stuck in. One week I'm up, the next week I'm down. I wouldn't mind so much if there was general progress in the down direction, but there's not. I'm very close to where I was when I first started WW again.

I was down 2 lbs this week. That is awesome. I'm feeling good and I knew it was going to show a loss. I need to keep this going though. I can't go ,'oh yeah, I lost. This week I can slack a little.' That's kind of what's been happening. I go down. I think I've got it wired. Then I lose focus. So I want to take a few minutes and look at what's working for me and how did I lose 2 lbs. this week?

First was the food. I did not track every day, but I was extremely mindful of what I was eating. Not only did I consider what I ate but how much I ate of it. I never walked away from a meal this week stuffed. Never. So mindful eating.

Second was the water. This week was back to school and back to the habit of drinking 64oz of water a day. I fill my 32oz cup up in the morning and at lunch. With all the talking I do as a teacher I need that to keep my mouth and throat lubricated. The fact that it also helps my body is an added side benefit. When I'm at home, no matter how much I try to make it a habit, I just don't drink that much water. So drinking my water.

Third has to be routine. Being back to school, I'm back on a regular routine. I eat breakfast at 7:15. I generally eat lunch at 11:30, I have a snack at 3:30-4:00, finally dinner is usually 7:30ish. I eat every 4 hours or so. It's not something I planned, it's just the way it works out. But it works for me. When I'm home I find it hard to stick to a schedule like that. I sleep later, workout and then don't eat breakfast until almost 10am. Then depending on what I'm doing, I can eat lunch at noon or not until 2pm. Or not at all. Then have dinner at 7 or 8. Now that I look at that, I can see that this is not good. So routine.

Finally the workouts. I have not worked out every day but I did workout 2 days and these are killer workouts. I'm doing the BCx Bootcamp and the workouts really kick your butt. I can feel my core muscles and I'm seeing muscles in my arms. The week before I did the entire week and I think I'm having residual effects from that, but these are great workouts. The success this week is that I did the 2 workouts at night. That is huge for me. I get these routines and schedules set in my mind and breaking out of them is difficult at best. For example, I have it in my head that I workout in the morning. That's it. I do. So working out at night just goes against everything that I believe and that makes doing it hard. Also, I have this routine in my brain: come home, walk the dogs, clean the bird room, relax, eat dinner, watch TV, go to bed. Relaxing usually involves 30-45 minutes on the computer. Watching TV is usually done prostrate on the couch and generally lasts an hour or more. Now, why can't I replace one of those two things with working out? No reason except that it's not on the schedule!!!! Stupid, I know, but true. So I am going to work on switching that around this week. I have this weekend and Monday off. I'm going to work out at 6:30 each night - that's generally the time I'm done with everything else. So that will be 3 days of working out. Then I'm going to try and do 2 more nights during the week. That will give me 5 workouts for the week. Yeah!!!

Someone at the WW meeting last week said that weight loss is an inside job. That is so true. And being successful at weight loss requires recognizing those thoughts and beliefs that are holding you back and changing them. Maybe I used to be a morning workout person but maybe I'm not anymore. Things change, people change, this too can change.

Need to change

2012-01-10T17:12:00.000-10:00

School started yesterday. After 3 weeks off it's back to work. Ugh!!! I really want to work out. My alarm went off yesterday and I didn't get up. My alarm went off this morning and I didn't get up. My ~~reasons~~ excuses are of the flimsiest you can imagine. It was cold. I was tired. I didn't want to workout that hard when I'm not completely awake. I don't have enough time. Wow!!! Can you get more cheesy and weak??? I am reaching a point where I just can't listen to myself anymore. I just need to move. I read blogs of people who are active and I envy them. I envy them a whole lot. People making plans for races and events and what am I doing? Not much. Making excuses. I've gotten to the point where I will use any excuse not to workout. I have a Wii and bitch because I want an XBox. Well crap! Want an XBox look for some xbox deals and STFU!!!

What I need is a good butt kicking. I really, really need to get my act together. I need someone like Jillian to get in my face and yell. Loud!!! But, since I don't have a Jillian I will just have to do it myself.

One step I am making in the right direction is that I am going to workout now. I didn't get up this morning but Hubby is working and I have the time now. I don't have the energy but that is just too bad. I will workout now.

Time to get serious

2012-01-07T09:18:00.000-10:00

I need to lose weight. I don't like the way I look or the way I feel and I'm concerned about my health. I want to lose weight to fit into the clothes in my closet. So I have need and I have want. I have desire and motivation. I just need to do it.

Weight Watchers was this morning and I am up .6 lbs from where I started. Now, yes, in the overall scheme of things that is not much at all. But for someone who is trying to lose weight that is not the right direction. So I need to get serious.

School starts on Monday and that will be good in many ways. I'll be back on a schedule and back to a routine. It will also require more discipline since I will need to get up early to workout.

Too much running through my mind right now to write. I need to work some things out before I try putting them down.

I want to be a success

2012-01-05T08:21:00.000-10:00

Perhaps I should first define success. To me success is doing what I set out to do. It does not mean being the best or being first, it means doing it. So if I say I'm going to workout in the morning and I do - that's a success. It doesn't matter that it took me forever and I had to stop 3 times to rest. I did it and therefore it's a success. That means that the next time I want to do it better or faster or something in order to be a success. But it does not have to be earth shattering. If I do 5 push-ups one day that's a success. The next day I do 6 - huge success. The following day I do 6 with perfect form - another huge success. See where I'm going here? I'm not judging my success on anyone else's, I'm basing if firmly on my own self. I am the gauge and the meter stick by which I measure my success.

Now, having said all that, I don't feel like a success and I want to. I think the first thing I need to do is set some goals so that I can define my successes.

Two days ago I started this boot camp program that I really like. I found it at FitStudio and they given you 28 days of workouts and tell you what to do and how. I really like it and I am left in a giant puddle of sweat after every workout so that's good. So my first goal is to complete this workout. 28 days of boot camp. Every day I do a workout will be a success and completing all 28 days will be a big success.

Second goal, track my eating. I h ave not been eating right and I have not been tracking in any way, shape, or form. I need to track. In my head I am justifying what I eat. For example, yesterday I worked out then had an egg sandwich for breakfast. I went to school to work on my classroom and by 3pm realized I hadn't eaten any lunch. I stopped at Safeway and got a turkey meatloaf sandwich. I had no idea of calories or points but my justification in my mind? Well, I've been working and I'm sure it's not that bad. So I ate the whole thing. I need to stop this. I need to take control of my eating and be accountable to myself. So that's my second goal; Track!!!! Every day that I track all food will be a success.

I guess that's really it for now. I just want to develop these habits so that I can then move on to other goals and success. Workout and track. Doesn't sound very hard does it???

In a past life

2012-01-04T20:09:00.000-10:00

I worked in a medical office. I also worked in a vet's office but that's for another post. Anyway, I worked in a doctor's office and I was in charge of the records. Yes, this was my domain. This was a time when computers were just becoming ubiquitous, yes, I'm that old, and I really did envision a day when medical records would be keep on computers. I actually used to dream about that because do you know how hard it is to copy x-rays?? Anyway, I digress. I could see how this could work. Record info directly into the computer and all the data is kept there. Since this was the beginning of the Internet, I could also see how you and your doctors could all access the information without having to photocopy charts and mail things all over the place. I could see how much easier things could be.

Fast forward a few ~~years~~ decades and my vision is a reality. It was a year or so ago that I noticed my vet moving to Electronic Medical Records. Then I noticed Kaiser was installing computers in all the rooms. Now they are completely electronic. I recently signed up with their website and saw that I could see all my Electronic Health Records. It's kind of cool. I can see all my test results and keep track of everything they've done to me. I can also schedule appointments and such, it's awesome.

This really is cool and everything I thought it would be when I was searching for records through all those rolling shelves. The hours I spent copying and mailing charts and x-rays. It's a great idea. I can see the implications for other places too, like Long Term Care and nursing homes. It's so much easier to have all this information in one place to cut down on flipping through papers and taking the chance on missing something.

I really can see a time when there is little to no paperwork. When everything is done electronically and paper is basically used for record keeping. I myself am moving towards that. I do almost all my stuff online and keep almost everything on my computer. I think soon most everyone will be doing that... Of course, that is assuming the world doesn't end at the end of this year. But that's a post for another time.

Back to it

2012-01-04T08:26:00.000-10:00

After the flooring blitz of Monday I was sore. Very. Very. Sore. I ended up taking yesterday off and working on school stuff. About 2-3 hours after I got up I felt fine. I actually considered working out then but it was really hot and humid and there was not a breath of wind. Also, we have vog. Vog is volcanic fog and it is miserable. So I didn't workout yesterday but did get a bunch of stuff done.

I am trying to decide what to do today. I'm going to workout first but after that I'm not sure. I may take some stuff up to school and do some work up there for a little bit. Or I may stay home and do that tomorrow. Not sure. Right now though I am off to workout. Public schools are back today and we are back on Monday. Oh Joy!!!

I'm sore

2012-01-03T07:25:00.002-10:00

This is how I spent about 6 hours yesterday. I was either on my knees scraping old tile up or laying new tile down. Ouch!!! My back, legs, neck, arms, everything is sore. Last night I hurt so bad I could hardly lay down. Or sit. Or stand. It was pretty back. I took some ibuprofen and went to bed. Luckily I fell asleep pretty quickly and slept good. Woke up this morning feeling better but still sore in places.

During this whole event yesterday I hardly ate. I had 1/2 an egg salad sandwich about 1 pm and that was it. When we finished at 5pm I was a mess. I had a headache and felt like crap. I went to the store to grab something quick to eat and to get something for dinner. We ate 3 pieces of fried chicken between us and felt a whole lot better. Later on we had dinner and that helped even more. Bed helped the best by far though.

I'm sitting here now thinking about the workout I have planned and wondering if I can do it. I really am sore. Also, it's overcast and looks like rain. A good day to just hunker down and do some desk work. Maybe I'll work for a little bit and then see about working out. Sitting in this nice comfy chair feels good for now......

I have a plan

2012-01-01T22:28:00.000-10:00

So I've been a little bit lackluster about the whole New Year only because I could not seem to latch onto exactly what I wanted to do. Fitness wise anyway. I know that I want to work on organization and financial health and those are actually pretty easy. But for my health goals, I was dragging my feet and could not seem to focus on what I want to work on. I don't want to get caught up in numbers and goals that are really insane. I have to remain reasonable about this.

I have been doing Bob Harper's Ultimate Cardio Workout and Karen Voight Personal Best and I love both of these but I am already getting bored with them. Also, each one takes an hour and once school starts I may not have an hour every morning. I will be taking the bus and I need to be out there early, earlier then when I drive. So that's to be considered. I will need to be amazingly organized and do things at night so I don't have to mess with them in the morning. I want to wake up, feed the birds, workout, shower and leave. That's it.

As I was looking through the ads in the Sunday paper, I came across an ad that said I could win a NordicTrack Incline - I want one so bad.... Anyway, I went to the website to register and came across a very cool BootCamp Workout. Hmm...It's just a list of exercises that I do in a certain order and a certain number. For example, one curciut has 20 squats, 20 burpees, 20 squat kicks and you do it 3 times. This is awesome for a number of reasons. First, I don't have to follow along at a prescribed pace. Sometimes that is the hardest part. Second, if I'm running late I can do 2 sets instead of 3. Then on the weekends I can do longer, harder workouts.

So I'm excited once again. We have some serious upgrading planned for the next week and I'm back to school next Monday so I'm starting this program tomorrow. It's a 4 week program with a different workout every day. I'm looking forward to it.

My goals for January are to workout 5 of 7 days each week. Track my food 4 of 7 days. Remain consistent in whatever I do since I know that consistency pays off in the end.