Another accomplishment I forgot to share....

So Wednesday when I did The Biggest Loser Power Sculpt one of the exercises was to do a push up followed by a t-stand.  I'm not going to lie, it was HARD, I didn't hold it for long, but I DID it!  I didn't think I could, but I gave it a shot and surprised myself!  Maybe I should call my own bluff more often!

Recap of Yesterday

My hubby has been using my computer a lot, so I didn't get a chance to update my blog much yesterday.  First of all, I had planned to go to Zumba, but figured since I'm already in the habit of doing some type of workout at quiet time, I may as well get in a little extra cardio.  So I got out the step that my mom got me for Christmas and started stepping.  I WAS going to count how many steps I did, but that seemed impossible without a clicker of some sort, so I set the timer for a 1/2 hour and got to work.  About 5 minutes in I was already getting bored, so I started adding in some alternating knee lifts at the top of the step.  When it got to where I either couldn't catch my breath or my hip flexors were SO sore I could barely make it up the step, I went back to a regular step until I had caught my breath or relaxed my hip flexors a bit and then back to the knee lifts again.  It ended up being a REALLY good workout.  I'm thinking I will maybe look up some more exercises to do with the step and see what else is out there.

My first day at Zumba....YIKES!  All I can say is I got my ass handed to me by a girl half my size.  It wasn't so much that the workout was THAT hard, but for my uncoordinated self, some of the steps were challenging.  I guess I expected it to be more of a teaching thing than it was.  It was just jump in and GO!  Which to an extent I think was a good thing, but it was harder to learn and standing directly behind the instructor who had ribbons hanging from several parts of her pants, I found myself staring either at her feet to watch what she was doing or at her ribbon clad ass to figure out what to do with my hips.  All in all it was a good experience and I plan to go again next week, Tuesday and Thursday.  Then, once bootcamp starts, maybe I can throw in a Mon, Wed, OR Fri.  There are several classes offered at Willowbridge Center and I would like to try a few of them.  There are all different types of Yoga and there is a cycling class, which honestly I'm terrified of, but I'm told it's a fabulous class.  We'll see.  Today....strength training at home and then our annual New Year's Eve party!

Produce Rainbow

I got this article from Women's Health in my email today.  I liked that it lists the peak months from 17 fruits and vegetables and talks about how to store each and the benefits, but I wish they would've included more produce. No where do you see the "orange" group, "white" group, and some others.  Overall a good article, just wish it was more inclusive.

Master the Produce Aisle

How Food Affects Your Mood

I got this link in my email this morning from Spark People and thought it was definitely worth sharing.  It explains how different foods really DO affect your mood.  I completely agree!  I, personally, can notice a difference in my mood when I've been slacking on certain foods.

How Food Affects Your Mood

Power Sculpt Take Two

Well I decided to give The Biggest Loser Power Sculpt DVD another chance.  I did level 3 today (supposed to be weeks 5 & 6) and THAT was the workout I was looking for!  45 minutes of PURE SWEAT!  Much better! My muscles are sore and my clothes and hair are soaked...THAT is what I call a workout!!  Thumbs up for The Biggest Loser Power Sculpt :)

**NEW!!** 20 Worst Foods in America

I got this today in my email from Eat This, Not That and was not at all surprised by a lot of the contenders, except when Culver's pulled off "Worst Fast Food Seafood Meal".  Check it out for yourself.

NEW 20 Worst Foods in America

Article on Salt

Jillian Michaels shared this article on her facebook page and I thought it was a great article and explains very well what sodium/salt does to our health which in turn affects health care dollars.  The sodium/salt content definitely affects my decision when choosing the few prepackaged foods I DO purchase.

Saving Lives Through Salt Reduction

Yoga Kids

So Izabella has been VERY interested in exercising and regularly "does" Yoga with me, so for Christmas Grandma got her a "Yoga Kids" DVD and a Kids' Yoga mat!  She was sooooo excited and today we tried it for the first time with the daycare kids.  They all had a great time!  I think I will make it a regular part of our day.  I'm stoked to ask my daycare parents what they think.

Tae Bo AGAIN

Well I did my Tae Bo Live workout again and I'm really loving kick boxing in general, I'm sweating my butt off, but I feel like I should be doing more.  I'm feeling like I'm gaining weight.  I'm feeling more sluggish, more tired, and less motivated.  I think I'll need to start logging what I'm eating again on sparkpeople.  I haven't recorded a thing since I stopped boot camp.  Time to get back on the ball!  Starting tomorrow, I will be keeping CLOSE track of what I'm eating (and not eating....I've been skipping some snacks.) and making sure I'm hitting all my marks.  I'm also going to get over to GNC and get some GOOD vitamins since my Target brand ones have FINALLY run out.

The Biggest Loser Power Sculpt

For Christmas I got The Biggest Loser Power Sculpt DVD and it is very much like the bootcamp DVD where there are levels and you do each level for two weeks and then move on to the next.  I started out on level 1 and I have to say I was NOT impressed!  All of the exercises were really easy for me and I barely broke a sweat.  Maybe I should've started off at Level 3 (Weeks 5 & 6).  I'm going to get another workout in today, because I feel like this one just did not do much for me.  I also need to invest in a pair of heavier weights.  The heaviest I currently have are 10 lbers, but at bootcamp I was throwing around 20 & 25 lb weights doing some of the same exercises.  I do NOT want to lose any strength because I'm not pushing myself to my full potential.  Maybe I'll break out my step later and see if I can hit 500 steps like the contestants on The Biggest Loser had to do last season.

Back to Hard Work

Well I unintentionally took Dec 25th & 26th "off" as far as working out is concerned.  There was so much going on with Christmas and such and I did not do a good job of scheduling in my workout.  But today, I'm back at it.  I got a step and a new fitness DVD from my mom, so I'll be trying out one or the other today and then the other tomorrow :)  Can't wait!!

I'm not going to lie and say I didn't struggle with food the last few days, but I can say for the most part I'm proud of my choices.  I ate ONE cookie while the kids and I were baking them and while it TASTED ok, I did not like that way it made me felt.  I felt binges coming on several times, but I fought them and I won!!  This holiday season I WILL be smaller when it's all over.  New Year's Eve party and one more Christmas party next weekend.

Tae-a-Bo on it :)

Cheesy title?  Check! lol

Did Tae Bo this morning after breakfast.  I'm definitely not a fan of working out in the morning anymore (I used to love it).  I have to ATLEAST have breakfast first.  If I workout before eating breakfast I get light-headed and dizzy while I'm working out and my muscles get fatigued much quicker.  But I worked it and I worked it HARD!  And I'm very proud of myself for giving myself what I deserve at Christmas and that's a stronger, healthier body.  Merry Christmas to me!

So glad I did it!

So today after I finished wrapping Christmas presents, I was so tired and cozy in my hooded sweatshirt, I snuggled up with Izabella and about the time I was starting to feel like I could take a nap, I sat and thought about the people that say the way I eat and how hard I work out is unrealistic.  That I'll never be able to do it long term and that I will eventually "not be able to take it anymore" and end up failing and gaining all my weight back.  I've never wanted to jump to my feet and run for my gym shoes worse in my whole life.  I busted out the Boot Camp At Home Workout #2 and I rocked it.  No rests in between, just push push push.  I had sweat dripping from anywhere it could, including my eye lashes.  I say, if you have sweat literally dripping from your eyelashes, you worked hard and boy did I!  I'm so glad I have negative people in my life to motivate me!!

America's Best and Worst Restaurants for Kids

In my "Eat This Not That" email today I got a link to their reviews of the best and worst restaurants in America for kids.  I clicked a few of my favorites and wasn't at all surprised that Subway ranks really high as does Denny's.  I was VERY disappointed in a few restaurants though for not giving up the nutritional information.  I think that is a solid reason NOT to eat at those particular restaurants.  If they are too scared to dole out the info, then you probably don't want to know anyway.  Check it out.

America's Best and Worst Restaurants for Kids

Tae Bo Baby!

Well today I did my Tae Bo workout and boy did I!  As I sit here with sweat running down my chest, dripping off of my loose hairs, and nearly ready to vomit, I know I worked out HARD today and I'm very proud of that.  I'm not afraid to get out there and challenge my body.  Not to cool down and relax a little :)

Workout

I just got this in my email from Women's Health and think I'll give it a try tomorrow (today I'll be doing a strictly cardio workout).  Check it out and give it a shot, let me know what you think.

Daily Dose Workout

30 Worst Chicken Dishes in America

Just because you choose something from the menu that is chicken, does NOT make it good for you (just like the salads I mentioned earlier).  Check out the 30 worst Chicken Dishes in America and think twice before ordering one of them.

30 Worst Chicken Dishes in America

My First Self Made Workout

So today, I KNEW I needed to do a strength training routine and I was a little lost as to what to do.  So I made a list of workouts we did in bootcamp and made this:

Warm Up - 5 mins

Run through each of the following sets 3 times with a 30 second rest between sets.

Set 1
Chest Press - 1 min
Squats - 1 min

Set 2
Pushups (on toes as long as possible, regressing to knees when necessary) - 1 min
Bicycle Abs - 1 min

Set 3
Back Row - 1 min
Stationary Lunges - 1 min each leg

Set 4
Super Man - 1 min
Bicep Curl w/Overhead Press - 1 min

Set 5
Tricep Extension - 1 min
Full Plank/Side Plank - 1 min

I used 10 lb weights for all of the exercises requiring weights, because that's the heaviest I had.  I really should've been using 20 and sometimes 25 lbs.  Work with what you have :)

On a side note: I've made some choices today that not everyone will agree with, but I am proud of my choices and will stick by them no matter what.  I am healthier today than I have ever been.  Mind, Body, and Soul.

TOTALLY FORGOT TO SHARE!!!

So last week at bootcamp I actually HELD A SIDE PLANK and did a number of pushups on my TOES!  I was amazed and thrilled and at the same time wanted to drop the plank and jump to my feet screaming "YES!" at the top of my lungs!  For the longest time I have not had the core strength to do either of these things.  SUPER excited!  Now to keep it up while BootCamp is on break....my motivation has been lacking but all of a sudden went through the roof today!

My thoughts on the holidays....a lot of people "splurge" during the holidays eating all kinds of fattening, high caloric, high glycemic foods.  From mountains of potatoes to stepping stone size slices of pie to cookies by the dozen.  These types of foods are not good for ANYONE!  I don't care if you are small or large, you are doing damage by eating them.  And chances are most folks out there can not have just one cookie or just one bite of anything, so why even start?  Some people say "I've worked hard to be where I am, I deserve to "cheat" or "indulge" a little bit during the holidays." Well yes, you have worked hard so why would take a giant step back and make the New Years resolution even HARDER?  What you deserve is to eat healthy, nutritious food.  You DESERVE to take time away from the holiday stress to do some relaxing yoga or a dance class or tone up those muscles for that holiday outfit.  THAT is what YOU deserve!  I don't want to hear a single person say "I'll start Jan 1st."  I don't want to hear a single person say "When you are average weight and trying to maintain, it's ok to indulge through the holidays".  No, no, no it's NOT ok.  Yes, if you can eat just one and have ONE treat or even one SMALL treat each day, by all means go for it, but most folks I know do NOT stop at just one.  One leads to two, two leads to three, and three leads to the whole pan of bars, multiple cookies, or bellying up multiple times to the buffet.  Why would you completely waste 1-2 weeks!?!?!  Why would you waste one single day, hour, or minute?!?!  Do you know what you can accomplish in that amount of time?!?! ALOT!

Step up and give your body, mind, and self what they deserve....GOOD HEALTH!

Hip Hop Baby!!

So today I was looking for some cardio, something with NO weights.  Almost all of my DVDs are either full body circuit workouts, or targeted muscles groups, except one....Dance Off The Inches: Hip Hop Party.  LMAO!  I felt like an idiot and any peeping tom probably would've gotten quite a show!  The moves were hard for my uncoordinated self, but my heart rate is up and I'm sweating like a pig and it was a good 45 minutes, so I'm calling a good workout!  The more I do it, I hope I can catch on to the steps and such and maybe not feel SO clutsy while doing it and to have HER abs would be good too hehehehe!!

20 Salads that are WORSE for you than a Whopper!!

I just got this in my email from Eat This Not That, HORRIFYING!  LOVE that they put healthier alternatives at the bottom of the page though.  First of all, Whoppers are nasty, but to think these "salads" are worse than a whopper makes me ill.  Anyway, here they are for your viewing pleasure.  "Salad" does NOT = "healthy"  Does any of this mean you should eat a Whopper rather than a salad...two words...HELL NO!!  Just choose your salads wisely!

20 Salads Worse Than a Whopper

Rock on Bootcampers!!

I just got an email from my bootcamp trainer that went out to all bootcampers and I'm just amazed at the results.  We all worked so hard and totally ROCKED bootcamp!!  So excited and proud of everyone!  Look forward to seeing you all again!

These are the whole group results.....

Out of 14 people that took the final assessment test we had a total of 77.75 inches loss and 45.2 pounds shed for life

Join my Pound for Pound Challenge Team!!

Hey everyone!  I just joined the Pound for Pound Challenge!  Pledge the number of pounds you will lose in 2011 or pledge to maintain your current healthy weight.  The number of lbs pledged will also be the number of lbs donated to Second Harvest Heartland.  Click HERE and type "Body By Me" in the search area and join the team!  You can also click the badge on my home page to join.  There is really no obligation to you except to hold yourself accountable and lose or maintain the weight.

Bootcamp Results are in!!

Well tonight was our last night of bootcamp and I'm going to MISS IT SO MUCH until I get to go again on the 11th of January!  I thought I would share my results with all of you.  I'm very proud of my improvements and I just know I will continue to see such amazing results with the amazing trainers at Total Wellness Coaching, LOVE you ladies!!

Strength            08/02/10       12/09/10
Pushups (1 min)        29 (granny)        34 (knees)      Increase of 134.48%
Stand 'n' Sit (1 min)   46                        53                   Increase of 15.22%
Full Plank                   37 seconds        55 seconds      Increase of 48.65%
Tree Pose                  37 seconds         65 seconds       Increase of 75.67%

Endurance/Speed
Step ups (3 min)        103                       113                  Increase of 9.71%
Burpees (1 min)         20 low impact     15 high impact  Increase of 50%
Walk/Run (1 mile)     13'38"                   -  (too icey out to run)

Measurements
Weight                       254.4                    243       Decrease of 11.4 lbs  (I WON!)
Chest/Rib                  41.5"                    39 3/4"  Decrease of 1 3/4"
Arm                            15"                       14"        Decrease of 1"
Waist (at BB)            46.5"                    45"        Decrease of 1 1/2"
Abs (Biggest)           49"                       47 1/2"  Decrease of 1 1/2"
Hips                           49 1/2"                 47 3/4"  Decrease of 1 3/4"
Right Thigh              31 1/4"                 29 1/2"  Decrease of 1 3/4"

Overall Increase in Strength - 68.51%
Overall Increase in Endurance/Speed - 29.86%
Overall Decrease in Weight - 11.4lbs
Overall Decrease in Inches - 9 1/4"

Thank you so much Tina for being such a wonderful trainer, motivator, supporter, and inspiration!

NOW - to stay motivated and moving for the next month until I'm back at bootcamp.  Tomorrow I'm hoping GOING to get a cardio workout in and then Thursday a group of us girls from bootcamp are going to Zumba!!  Should be interesting!!  Stay tuned to hear all about it!!  LOL

Workout CHECK!

Got my workout in yesterday (TaeBo) and today I decided to give the Shake Weight a try...for a funny South Park clip about the Shake Weight click here  The DVD that came with the weight is only a 6 minute upper body workout, which felt like it didn't do much for me, so I popped in the Biggest Loser Weight Loss Yoga after the "Shake Weight Workout".  The yoga definitely got the sweat moving!  I feel really awesome!  If anyone is on facebook and would like to join my "Biggest Loser Move to Lose It" team, message me and I'll get you signed up for the Body By Me team :) 

Also restocked the fruits and veggies in the house, got them all cut up and ready for snacking and have already dove in to them :)  Loving my new way of life!

Tomorrow is the last day of bootcamp and we find out which team improved the most and wins prizes!  So pumped for that, but a little bummed that I don't get to go to bootcamp until the next session starts (Jan 11th).  Thought I was going to have to brave the next session by myself, but just got a text from a girlfriend today that she'd like to go with me!!  Can't wait!!

Restocked!

I was stressing out a little because I hadn't made it to the grocery store for a good portion of the week to restock my fresh fruits and veggies.  I did it last night and I feel so much better to have lots of healthy choices within arms reach.  The carrots, green pepper, and celery will be cleaned, cut up, and put in one big container in the fridge, ready to grab on the go, toss in a stir fry, or munch for a snack.  Everything else will STAY on the counter, so in those "times of need" when I head to the kitchen on the prowl for something to eat THEY are the first thing I see!

Sick of being sick!!

Well another night of bootcamp gets flushed down the tubes, because I'm sick! grrrrrrrr  Hopefully the dr can get me in today with my little man and see if there is anything they can do or if I just have to tough it out.  At this point, I'm kind of hoping it's strep or something because then I can get the antibiotic and be done.

Great Choices!!

Ok so yesterday as I was walking through Cub I could FEEL my tummy rumbling and looked at the clock realizing that it was 1:30pm and I hadn't eaten lunch yet.  In a bit of a panic, because I knew I should've eaten long before then, I was sooooo tempted to run for the nuts and/or trail mix.  I stopped myself after reviewing several of them and realizing the mindless eating that was about to take place in my truck would leave me consuming a whole bag of trail mix which is EASILY 6+ servings at around 150 calories per serving....that's too much....and the fat in the nuts is something I need to be avoiding or SEVERELY limiting right now.  Instead I went to the deli and got 8 ozs (2 servings) of shaved turkey breast, a 1 lb bag of carrots, and some hummus.  I ate all of the turkey, 1/2 of the bag of carrots and about 3 servings of the hummus.  I wasn't sure if there was a better option or if I did the right thing, so I just HAD to come home and email Tina (my bootcamp trainer).  This is what I got back and it MADE MY DAY!

"More response to follow but I just want to say - great choice at Cub!  The best lunch decision you could have made!  Good job!!!!"

Oops!

I didn't realize it until I was half done with the Greek Yogurt I bought yesterday to try.  It was so yummy and thick and creamy and then I looked at the nutrition information so I could enter it on spark people...apparently I didn't get the right kind.  This one had 230 calories and 17 grams of fat (11 saturated)...NOT GOOD!  I'm a little bummed that I bought 6 containers of the wrong kind :(  I may try to return it to Cub and see if I can exchange it for the right kind or if I can get a refund and go elsewhere to get the right kind.

No more excuses!!

So this morning I KNEW I needed to get in a cardio workout, but I also knew Hubby took my DVD player out of my gym so he had one for his truck (he's an OTR truck driver) and I HATE working out on carpet!  So I came up with a solution...I pushed my dining room table up against one wall creating enough room in my dining room/kitchen for me to workout, then I put my Tae Bo DVD in my computer and VOILA!!  No more excuses!! 

I was also very excited that I made it all the way through the Tae Bo DVD without giving up and stopping.  I had to pause a couple times to get my coordination down, but I didn't quit!!  I kept at it and FINISHED!  Shoveling snow later today and then in the shower and on with my day! :)

Update

Bootcamp was AWESOME last night!  It left me motivated to do something with myself.  It was a HARD workout and Tina really pushed us, but it felt sooooo good!  I did ALL of the exercises with 20 lb weights, which amazed me and I think on the back rows I could've maybe even done 25.  But 20 lbs on tricep lifts, back rows, bicep curl with an overhead press, chest press, everything!!  I also got myself registered for the next bootcamp session starting January 11th!  I am REALLY going to miss bootcamp for the month between the end of this one and beginning of next.  I absolutely love going, I love the support from other members and my wonderful trainers, I love the workouts, I love everything about it! 

Oh!  And if anyone wants to join me at bootcamp check out Total Wellness Coaching's website.  I'd love to have company :)

Kick the Fat

So today as I dished up Ants on a Log to the kids (celery w/peanut butter & granola) I thought about how I could get the same taste without the peanut buttery fat.  I just posted the recipe for my concoction on my cooking/food blog.  Check it out!

In My Pans

Plateau Culprit Identified (possibly)

Well after analyzing a week of what I eat my trainers have come to the conclusion that I don't consume enough lean protein and my fat intake is much too high (nuts, peanut butter, etc) so the plan this week is to limit the nuts or peanut butter to one serving a day and otherwise just keep plugging away.

Overeating: An Addiction?

Please take the time to read this article.  Whether you currently overeat or want to understand WHY people do.  It's something I've been saying all along my weight loss adventure and there is scientific evidence the proves that hi fat hi sugar foods trigger the same things in our brain as drug addicts.  Check it out

Overeating: Is it an Addiction?

NOT an obsession

This is the first morning in MONTHS that I have not stepped on the scale.  I honestly believe I have a real problem that maybe I honestly need to see a shrink for.  As I sit and think about the fact that I CAN'T weigh myself this morning my heart starts to beat in my throat, my mind races and I have to force my mind to think of something else for fear of an anxiety attack.  The scale has become an obsession.  I'm addicted to weighing myself, if that's even possible.  Last night one of my friends graciously took my scale home with her and as much as I appreciate it, I hate to say that when she left I almost cried.  It just kills me to NOT know, but I also understand that weighing myself everyday, sometimes multiple times a day is NOT healthy and isn't that what I'm trying to do...be healthy?  So the next time I weigh myself will be the end of bootcamp (Dec 14th) and then not again until the beginning of the next bootcamp (Jan 4th).  It stresses me out to no end, but it's what I have to do.

Cooking

If you haven't already, please check out my healthy cooking/food blog!  LOTS of wonderful healthy, easy ideas!  Some from cookbooks, some straight out of my head.  Enjoy!

In My Pans