writing...

In an effort to dust off my writing skills, I've decided to write a few articles for this here blog. I'm trying to jot down ideas every day and such. I think 2-3 articles a week would be good for now.

The plan is to write one article based on this little weight loss journey I'm on & another article about food in general. The food article would probably comprise a recipe or two, along w/some pictures or something, and some general info about the nutrients found in said food. I think that would be interesting for some people b/c I know I'm always looking for new recipes & stuff to try. So, actually, this will benefit in two ways, b/c I'll be honing my writing skills AND my photography skills at once! Wee! :)

Anyway, as for the more personal article, I don't know. I think I can help people who are struggling or having a hard time of things. I know I don't always have an easy time w/all this. But, I love to help people and think it would be awesome if something I wrote inspired someone or helped in some way. So, that's the plan...just thought I'd put that out there, that way I'm held accountable. I had the intention to do it, now I've stated it, so now I have to do it!

The kids should be home soon, so I better get ready to go back out & have some fun while the sun's still shining. (Not that it ever really stops shining in Texas *sigh*) ttfn!

ow! ow! ow!

My thighs were apparently planning a revolt overnight, based upon the torture and torment that I put them through yesterday. Because today, they are barely functioning...talk about revenge! haha...weight went down a notch...I think I'm gaining muscle right now from the weight lifting I've been doing. Yes, I know, I haven't been logging it, but trust me...my arms and legs can attest to it! ;)

challenge...

so, there's this challenge thingy going on over @ traineo - it's nearly done me in! heh...had to do 5 exercises (squats, lunges, jumping jacks, situps, and burpees), 1 min ea/max reps, no rest btwn exercises, 5 min total for 1 set - rest for a min - then two more sets. My thighs were killin' me on the squats (though these were probably my favourites out of all the exercises as I love squats!)...the lunges seemed to go sooooooo sloooooooow...the jumping jacks killed my poor boobies (even w/my best sports bra on)...the situps were the only ones that seemed easy...and the burpees? holy shit, the burpees...reminded me of sun salutations on crack!! I'll post my results here to prove to myself months from now that I really did this insane thing. I don't know if I'm going to try to improve my #s or not, but I might give it a shot before the challenge is "closed". ok, so....

*drumroll*

squats 51/49/50 (best - 51)
lunges 20/24/22 (best - 24)
situps 32/30/32 (best - 32)
jumping jacks 40/45/46 (best - 46)
burpees 12/14/16 (best - 16)

right now, my thighs are killin' me...man, i don't even wanna go to the bathroom, it hurts so much (not to sit down...to GET UP!!) AYYYYYYEEE! and I've had a raging headache all morning...I swear, right now I just wanna go back to bed! lol....toodles, poodles!

push!

so, I pushed myself today...did 45 mins cardio & 45 mins weights. all upper body stuff since my legs were dead from the cardio...heh

anyway...good times...good times... ;)

disturbing precedent

I don't know what's wrong w/me...I keep STOPPING :( I don't like stopping...stopping means not moving, not moving means no progression, no progression means no results, no results means my fat ass stays MY FAT ASS! Not good...must change that...will do so now! toodles!

Turbo Jam!!!

(I'm cross-posting this from the Turbo Jam forum on Traineo, k? k...)

Well, I just got the Turbo Jam Maximum Results set...all I can say is WOW! My poor thighs! hahaha...

I've been doing the Walk at Home 3 Mile workout (w/Leslie Sansone) prior to this and Turbo Jam is DEFINITELY a step up in intensity. I only did the Learn & Burn, but I was sweating up a storm and really felt the burn in my abs & thighs. It was really fun! I can't wait to try the other workouts. But, I'm gonna stick w/the Learn & Burn 'til I have all the moves down. LOVED the capoeira moves mixed in...I'm 1/2 Brazilian and always wanted to learn capoeira!

Anyway, just wanted to share & say this is a really awesome workout!! You don't need much room at all (only had to push my coffee table out of the way). And they show modified moves for those of us who are a little slow or out of shape. ;) I liked the instructor, Chalene, a lot. Yeah, she's a little goofy, but her personality reminds me of my own, so I was diggin' it.

p.s. how fabulous are those hand weights?!! I can totally see using them w/my Walk at Home workouts, too! As well as when I actually go for a walk outdoors! hehe

fit

i almost can't wait to start seriously lifting weights again! we got a weight bench w/the leg extension thingy & preacher curl pad last week. i've been testing things out to see how much weight i can handle. anyway, now all i need are some dumbells & i'll be set :) w00t! can't wait!!

exercise & shopping

now, if you know me at all, you know that i seriously dislike shopping...i've been known to shop at the super wally world (wal-mart) at 4am for my groceries simply b/c i hate the whole shopping "experience" (i.e., people...lol) grocery shopping, in fact, ranks right up there w/visiting my peesh doc, so yeah...i'm not overly enthused.

now, when i lived in nj/ny, it was a bit better b/c there were plenty of farmer's markets & bodegas to visit for my stuff...here in tx (where they grow just about everything) farmer's markets are not easy to find or come by...so, i'm stuck going to h-e-b (our main grocery store...there's also sun harvest & whole foods for the gourmet stuff) for everything...

let me describe to you my usual shopping "experience", shall i? this way you'll get an idea of what i go thru:

1. first, there's the people...always an endless stream of people to get into this place...why? i don't fucking know...there's an h-e-b every 3 miles in this town, you'd think people would just stay local
2. get the cart, walk to the far end of the store and start there (logical, no?)...but first have to fight my way through all the lolly-gaggers in the frickin' main aisle to get to that far end *sigh* oh, and this store is gigantic...HUGE...takes at least 1-2 mins just to reach the far end
   
3. get all the heavy stuff first and load up the cart, trying to move as swiftly as possible around gramps who can't decide which crackers to buy, or suzy homemaker who leaves her cart on one side of the aisle, but stands on the other side to peruse the multitudes of laundry detergents available to her, or billy picks-his-nose-a-lot who insists on running in and out of the aisle like this is play-land (how i miss the grocer's in nj that have little play-lands built in where the kiddos can stay while mommy or daddy does the shopping) *double sigh*
4. often i am left standing there, patiently waiting for said "aisle blocker" to move their farking carcass outta my way...do i say anything? not usually...i hate to be a bitch...but when my tolerance level has been breached, i do *cough* & say excuse me while desperately trying to nudge my way past the rude bastard *heavy duty sigh*
5. it's at this point that i usually check my list, realize i forgot something 5 aisles ago & have to backtrack to get it...this is often more arduous than the first time around b/c all the slow people i left behind ARE STILL THERE!!!!! *whew* sorry, got away from me for a second
   
6. produce is always last & here i take my time...i always go shopping w/a list, but things often change depending on what's available, what's fresh, etc. lately they've been having a lot of tropical fruit, so i've been loading up! :) anyway, this is the only area i go slow, but it's worth it and i always pay attention to the "traffic" and try to stay out of other people's way...
7. then it's on to the check out...my cart is usually PACKED w/stuff...i'm very organized and have a "system" (you knew i'd say that, didn't you?)...i have a system for UNPACKING it as well...honestly, i wish they'd let me bag my own groceries...but that seems to be against the law in tx, b/c every time i try, someone comes rushing over to do it for me...weirdos...anyway, i try to get everything on the conveyor as fast as possible...i'm usually sweating at this point from all the (attempts at) speed walking thru the store, plus by the time i'm done, i'm pushing about 300 lbs of groceries around (not exaggerating)...they always ask if i need help taking it out to the car & i always (politely) say no...it used to offend me, 'til i realized they have to do it...
8. take everything out to the car, load up the back (again, i have a system!! lol) and go home
9. get everything inside the house, unpack, put away, blah blah...usually still a little sweat there, too

and there you have it...after i roll up all the bags (saves space & we use them as kitchen trash bags), i'm done...but do you see? do you see all the crap i have to go thru? i HATE shopping...i HATE slow people...i realize that may be me one day, but by god, i will do everything in my power to keep that from happening!!! sheesh...

(events might have been slightly over-dramatized for your amusement ;) hehe)

p.s. now you know why i log this shit as a workout on traineo...all in all, i spent over 2 hrs shopping today...wtf???

body for life goals

so, part of the whole body for life (bfl) program is setting up a series of goals you would like to achieve in the 12 weeks of the program. now, mind you...if i start this thing next monday, i won't be done until June 30th. which is a few weeks after my start at FCI...it will be interesting to see how i get my workouts in then! heh anyway, here's what i've got so far:

Goals

1. I will lose 40 lbs of fat within 12 weeks
   
2. I will bench press 100 lbs within 12 weeks
3. I will jog 1 mile within 12 weeks
4. I will do a yoga headstand within 12 weeks
5. I will do 100 crunches w/o stopping within 12 weeks

Unauthorized Patterns of Action

• I will eat high-nutrient foods & limit all low-nutrient foods (no cheating!!)
  
• I will not skip any workouts
• I will allow myself only ONE "cheat" day per week (NOT 2)
  

New Patterns of Action

• I will lift weights four three* days a week
• I will eat six mini-meals a day
• I will get more sleep (at least 7 hrs a night)

oh, and i will make sure to read my goals & action items every morning & every night ;)


*edited to just three...dude doesn't want you lifting weights more than 3x's a week :(

body for life & turbo jam

ok, so i broke down and got the body for life book this weekend. i've known about this book for many years and since everyone seems to be mentioning it to me lately, i figured it was about time i got it. now, the premise is fairly simple: do weight lifting 3 x's a wk & do cardio 3 x's a week; eat 6 mini meals a day (1 portion ea. from three groups of food: protein, carbs, veggies = a meal) & have 1 "free" day a week. all well & good, though i'm not planning on eating "protein" (i.e., meat...nevermind that there's tons of protein in veggies) every day. i don't mind eating fish once a week or so, but that's probably going to be it for me. and frankly, that will probably only occur on my "free" day. but, i could see how this would work for others....i was on a diet/fitness regimen many yrs ago when i lived in fl, and i was basically eating 6 meals a day, drinking lots of water, etc. of course, i was SUPPOSED to exercise only 6 days a week, but i was a bit obsessed and i did it every day. his thing w/the weights (and cardio) is to build up the intensity of each set (or cardio) w/lower reps/greater weight...blah blah...i'll have more to talk about once i actually start it. i plan on doing cardio every day though. so far, i tend to do it four days a week. so, we'll see how this works out. :) which leads me to....

beachbody sent me an email letting me know that my turbo jam order was on its way! :) yay!!! i'm really excited about trying this one out. again, as i stated earlier, i will probably start out doing this every other day - so, 3-4 x's a week...i figure, between the bfl & the turbojam, i should drop another 20-30 lbs in the next 12 weeks (the length of the bfl program)...wish me luck!!

:-S

well, i don't know what it is, but i feel totally lethargic today...didn't want to get out of bed...don't want to do shit right now...am debating forcing myself to exercise b/c it usually makes me feel better...maybe i'll just go for a walk, or pop in one of my yoga dvds...*le sigh* ever have one of those days?? :-\

woohoo!

down another pound! yeah, bay-bee!!! I knew that hour of cardio yesterday would pay off!! haha
today, my thighs are killing me though...must've been all those squats! (eep!)

i've already gotten my core stability workout in...will do an hour of walking today (nothing crazy! no power walking, dangit!) to get a little cardio in, but i'm gonna give my thighs a break

today's danger is going out to lunch w/a friend...haven't seen her in ages...but you know...eating out is never easy when you're trying to eat "clean" (as i put it) here's proof!!

anyway, i shall do my best...maybe i can convince her to go to the mall...i can get my walking in & they have an awesome salad bar there...*crosses fingers* we shall see ;)

finally!

finally saw the numbers going down this morning (and yesterday, a little, but that was recovery from the debauchery of this weekend past)...that was a relief...

i actually did a little over 1 hr of cardio today...w00t!! :D i popped in the Crunch Fitness Dance Party dvd first...made it thru about 15 mins of that before i wanted to kill the dancing bitch in front of me (hahaha)...and then popped in my Walk@Home dvd & did the whole workout...maaaaaan, my legs were KILLING ME...the dance dvd is kinda challenging, and i definitely moved around more...but it was fun! :)

ooh, ooh! and i ordered the Turbo Jam Maximum Results set from beachbody.com today!! weeeeeee!!!!! I can't wait to get it...i know that it will totally kill me and that i will barely be able to finish the "learn & burn" starter dvd, but it will soooo be worth it...i've heard so many great things about this set, i couldn't resist. :) w/the bonus pkg i'm getting a total of 6 dvds, plus weighted gloves and some other fun stuff...i'll definitely let you know how it goes - what i can do, and what kills me! hahaha

anyway, that's all the news that's fit to print right now ;) gonna see if i can squeeze in my core exercises today as well...wish me luck! ttfn

updates...weeeeeeeee!!!!!!!

Well, it's been over a week, and I'm still eating vegan...shocking, eh? ;)

Seriously, it hasn't been that bad. Aside from a minor freak out when DH wanted to eat at Pappadeaux, it's been easy-peasy. I have my fruit smoothie in the morning (2-3 pieces of fruit, tossed in the blender along w/a 1/2 c of vanilla soymilk & a tbsp of ground flaxseed)...for lunch, it's usually a salad and some hummus & pita bread (I still loves mah hummus)...for dinner, salad &/or cooked veggies & some more fruit. Honestly, I love salad...AND fruit...sometimes together!! hehe...I have a recipe for this awesome blueberry dressing - it is SOOOO good! Of course, my fave dressing right now is a mix of: freshly pressed garlic, horseradish, dijon mustard & balsamic vinegar. DH says I've been eating so much garlic that it's starting to come out of my pores! eeeeep!! It's all good though, he says it's not "offensive". :D

Since this is the first week where I felt even relatively healthy, I've started working out again. I have a few workout DVDs to rotate, and a book w/core, lower body & upper body exercises to do. The schedule in the book is to work out M, T, Th & F. So, I'm doing my regular aerobics DVDs on those days as well (prior to the exercises) & I'm going to do my yoga workouts (killer DVDs w/Shiva Rea - LOVE her!!) on W & Sat. Sunday will be my day of rest. (I'm gonna need it!)

Anyway, that's it for now. Still working on getting stuff together for FCI. More on that another day. ;) ttfn!