Week 8 - Wednesday

Things are going well. I'm losing weight, and looking forward to Friday's measurements. I'm eating more than I was, which I'm hoping will pay off the way I want it to. ;)

Curcuit work today. My favorite exercise today was decline bench press. I rock that! ;) My knees were a little sore today, so I didn't push it on a few things today. Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow. I'm going to try to get some extra cardio in Friday since I'll be off work. I need to get to burning some more fat! ;)

Week 8 Already?!

I really can't believe it's already the eighth week of the challenge. I haven't made as much progress as I thought I would by now, and food is the reason. I really still need to be eating more, but it's been really hard! This weekend I had my "cheat day" during which I had some red wine and chocolate chip cookies. (Not at the same time.) Amazingly, I've lost two pounds since Friday. This goes along with what I was saying about my cheat days. I'm smart enough to know it's not the chocolate chip cookies that are making me lose weight. However, it dies speak to the caloric deficit I'm in. I haven't been consuming enough calories to adaquately stimulate my metabolism. I'm going to try really hard to consume more calories. If I need to have a cookie every now and again, I guess that will be okay. ;) (Kidding.)

Week 7 - Wednesday

So the scale was down two pounds this morning. I told you I was burning up last night! ;) Workout was good today. Chest, squats, decline bench, seated row, Australian pull-ups, stairs with a little jog around The Dome, sit-ups, oblique globes, and planks. Kendall does a great job of mixing things up to keep my body guessing.

Let's talk about food, because I'm discovering something. I tend to see greater results when I throw a little something bad in. Not something big bad, just a little bad. For example, the first weekend I ate a Kashi pizza (not bad, just a little bad) I lost four pounds. When I cheated and had a little Starbucks one day, two pounds lost the next day. Now, I don't think it's the cheats that do it of course, but rather my reaction to the little cheats. I think I subconsciously workout harder the next few times to make up for it. I get the satisfaction of the yummy goodness and the motivation to push a little harder. Now, I am not promoting the eating of a whole bag of Oreos, that's bad for you no matter what. But, there's nothing wrong with a little indulgence as long as you stay within you caloric budget for the day. I eat VERY well most of the time, so I can afford a baby cheat here and there. I'm still making progress, so it seems to be working for me. ;)

Week 7 - Tuesday

I passed out a bit after getting home from workout today. I'm really sore! Probably more so than I've been in quite some time. That's a good thing, because it means I should see some results soon! It is funny (frustrating) how you see success, then plateau. I know my body has been challenged again, so I should see some results on this week's measurements. I'm lying in bed right now (you have to love iPhones) and I can feel the heat I'm radiating. So cool to know your body is working away, burning calories, while you're doing "nothing." ;) Throughout the challenge I've learned to really pay attention to my body. I can tell when I deviate from the formula. I sense how each choice I make with food and how much I push myself during certain exercises affects my body. It really is cool to start to see and appreciate your body for the beautifully complex machine it is! I will never again give this engine crappy fuel, old oil, and dirty filters again! ;)

Week 7 - Monday (Fresh start)

I've been slacking a little lately. Not keeping up entirely with my food journal, not blogging everyday, etc. I missed group Saturday, which I really enjoy, but I was out of town picking up Alex from my Mom's house. I'm still making progress, but I feel a little bit like a bum. I don't usually half-a$$ so much. Sorry. So, I decided to pick it up hard today. Food journal is complete and accurate for today, I'm back at work after spring break, and I pushed myself during workout. The moral of this story is that every day is a new day! Just because you have a bad day or a few bad days isn't an excuse to keep having more bad days. Remind yourself of your goals and get back in there! Nobody's perfect. The turtle wins the race, right? ;) you just have to keep truckin' along.

Here's to a great week 7!

Week 6 - Tuesday

Cardio! I feel like I worked harder today than I usually do on cardio days. Which, I thought I was working hard on cardio days, so I guess I didn't realize I had more to give. :)

Everything is going pretty well. I can't complain. I do a good job sticking to the workout routines and a healthy diet, so I'm seeing steady progress. I am having the "munchies" tonight, which I don't normally have. So, instead being miserable, I'm going to indulge my cravings sensibly.

Week 6 - Monday

I'm back! I took some time off from blogging. This week is Spring Break, so no work! Alex is staying with my mom for the week, so this is going to be a real vacation! I'll miss him dearly, but I will certainly enjoy the time off and flexible schedule.

I'm about to leave to go workout with Kendall. Last week ended on a high note - fat% down and weight down another 1.5 pounds. Hopefully I can make this free time this week count for me and not against me! :)

Week 5 - Wednesday

Kendall is trying to kill me. I have been so tired after each workout with her. I really don't know what it is, but it's working. She just keeps smiling the whole time, so I don't realize how dead I am until I get home. :) I went up ten pounds on bench. I'm doing four flights of stairs during each circuit now instead of three. I did the assisted pull-ups today for the first time. I also did planks for the first time. I know I'm getting stronger, so I just have to keep trucking along. I didn't get out of shape over night, so I can't expect to get back in shape over night either.

I was upset about the pound I put on so I got out the body composition tool today to try to make myself feel better. Fat % is down from last Friday, so it's muscle and not fat. :) That's good. Still, I want to try to get down a pound or two by Friday. We'll see what happens.

Week 5 - Tuesday

I feel like poop today. I had a splitting headache at the end of the day that got worse instead of better during cardio. I've taken some Excedrin Migraine now that I'm home, so hopefully that will help. (Remember their old slogan? "I've got a headache THIS big!")

I'm up a pound from last week. I'm hoping it's just fluid. I know a pound is negligable, but still a little disheartening. That on top of the headache, and general life stress at the moment have made today kinda suck. Good news is, tomorrow is another day! ;)

I also realized as I'm updating my food journal that I only had 999 calories before workout at 4:30 today. Not good. Might be part of my headache problem. I'll try to do better tomorrow.

Week 5 - Monday

I won't have a chance to blog tonight, so I'm going to go ahead and get one in now.

I have workout from 4:30 - 5:30, PTO meeting at 5:45, and a Road to College Workshop at 6:00 tonight. Needless to say I'm going to be exhausted by the time it is all over tonight. The husband is out of town as well, so Alex will be running around town with me all evening.

This weekend four of us were able to make it to play basketball. Fun, but very exhausting. I wish I would have worn my heart monitor, because my heart was beating out of my chest during parts of the workout! I took Sunday off, which is nice. I firmly believe that your mind, body, and spirit need a break from time to time.

I hope workout goes well tonight. My core was really sore this weekend and I'm not sure if it was Friday's workout or Saturday's basketball that did it.

I really hope all of my fellow challenge participants are able to get on solid ground this week. I know the last week has been difficult for several of them. We can do this!!!

Week 4 - Friday!

It's FRIDAY! The happiest day of the week. I had a great workout with Kendall. I'm more tired after working out with her. We do the same exercises (or some variation) but for some reason I've been more tired. We'll see if that continues. It may just be that I'm not eating properly, but probably just because she's awesome! ;)

I am looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow. It will be nice to catch up and see what kind of progress folks are making. I think we could stand a good pep talk too. ;)

Alex has a friend over tonight, so I'm off to be a mommy! More tomorrow.

Week 4 - Thursday

Good news! Kendall will be taking over my training! I'm super excited. She's awesome.

I feel great today. I got a ton of compliments today about my looks. The hard work is paying off! Lots of comments about the way I'm carrying myself. Apparently I've got a spring in my step and my head up again. ;) I got comments about the spark in my eyes and nice comments about my figure. No one has ever believed that I have weighed as much as I do because I still have a good shape. One lady today said, "You can tell you had a smokin' body before you gained weight and it's starting to show again." That's the goal! I want who I am inside to show on the outside. ;) My students are saying that I seem happier. Everyone is seeing/saying positive things! I really appreciate the feedback. Thank you! Keep it coming! ;)

I'm looking forward to measurements tomorrow!

Week 4 - Wednesday

Today was TAKS day for a lot of kiddos, including my students. So I spent the entire day tied up with testing. Out of curiosity I wore a pedometer today. I walked five miles around campus today! Craziness. I was also wearing my new workout shoes to break them in before workout today. Mission accomplished!

Kendall graciously stepped in to be my trainer today. She's so awesome. She was worried she wouldn't push me enough, but the sweat I was drenched in by the end thought differently. She did a great job, and I certainly wouldn't mind if she could pick up most of my sessions. ;)

I finally got introduced to the benchclimbers today. Good Lord! I'll tell you what I thought about that tomorrow when the pain sets in. I want to do it justice. ;) stairs continue to be the hardest thing I do, in the sense that they spike my heartrate.

I'm totally starting to dig Smoothie King. A Gladiator post-workout sure hits the spot!

Week 4 - Tuesday

Cardio went okay today. I was able to jog more and a little faster today, which makes me feel good. The session was a little down, because both Jackie and I are going to be getting new trainers.

I've loved working out with Wade, and I'll miss him dearly, but life happens and you have to move on. I'm very thankful for the time and energy he has put in with me over the last three weeks. Yesterday when I was telling/showing him my sit-up success, he said, "That's all you!" I know I'm the one doing the exercises, but he's been there every step of the way showing me what to do and how to do it, always pushing me just hard enough to improve but not injure myself. I know that the trainer they get to replace him will be great, and I wish him the best of luck. THANK YOU, WADE! :)

Hopefully I'll know who my new trainer is going to be soon.

Week 4 - Monday

I feel really good today. I took Saturday and Sunday off from working out and blogging. I felt slightly guilty at first, but I had a lot to catch up on. Taking a break paid off, because today at the gym I was down four pounds! Workout went well, I was sweating, feeing good. The best part of today was that I got to show Wade and David my sit ups. When we did the initial fitness testing three short weeks ago I couldn't do a single sit up. Now I'm doing 15-20 at a time. It is such an awesome feeling! I really appreciate both of them being genuinely happy for me. I know sit ups aren't a big deal for most people, but it's huge for me considering where I was just a few short weeks ago. I'm really pumped up to work hard this week.

I went to the grocery store today. I've been doing the vegetarian thing since November, but I haven't tried hummus, tofu, etc. I picked a few of those things up today. We'll see how it goes. I need to expand my culinary choices. :)

Can't wait for workout tomorrow!