Angels, Heaven and Light

You know that point in the movie where the skys open up, the sun shines through the clouds and you hear angels (I dunno, I assumed it was angels) singing AHHHHHHHHH (ok, ok, I've been trying to recreate the sound via type in my head, but can't seem to do it justice)?

This is THAT moment Rita! YOUR moment!

We know we feel better after exercise. But now you, Rita, KNOW you feel better after exercise!

The thing that I've learned, even for myself, is that you have to do whatever it takes to trick yourself into doing what is best for you. I do it all the time. I avoid places that I might behave badly at (OH, all the time!), I don't buy foods I shouldn't eat, I even became a Personal Trainer to make sure I got exercise! I buy vegetables so I will eat them, I ride the bike because I know my hips might feel better, I spend time with people that might influence me positively...

Maybe this is the way that you need to trick yourself into feeling better? I'm actually glad. This feels like a breakthrough.

Just imagine weighing in without that 30lbs on your chest?

Location:The higher ground

I hate technology

I wrote a great post. Somehow lost it. Freaking phone.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The "D" word...

As in "depression"... not "drama". Or "danger". Or "diaper".

So. All my life I've battled with mild depression. For the most part it hasn't been too much of an issue and I've been able to bootstrap myself back to "normal" (ha!). But especially during the really tough times, being a single mother and feeling overwhelmed and terrified of what the future holds, I would feel like there was a 30 lb weight sitting on my chest. I had a hard time sleeping which only magnified the feelings. I ate for comfort. I sat around and distracted myself with TV and then when the World Wide Web hit, I immersed myself in the online world. I could happily avoid any and all issues by surfing the web, playing any number of games and chatting with strangers. Granted, some of those strangers have become my heart and soul, my best friends, my confidants and my greatest support system, but at the time it was a way to avoid dealing with what was going on inside the beast.

I finally acknowledged that there might be more going on than I was willing to admit to so I went to a therapist. Her name is Brenda Barton (http://www.brendabarton.com/) and she was so amazing and did so much towards letting me find coping mechanisms for dealing with my low times. But... money was tight and when I went back to work I wasn't able to keep up with my sessions and even though working with her gave me a new outlook on life, I still carry around some of the demons that crippled me before.

This last month has been tough. I can't say it's been the toughest time of my life, but it's been a hard one. The worst part has been my work.  I'm not a big fan of the job hunt so historically I've settled for less than I deserve rather than get out there and make it happen.  I'm in this situation now and the pressure of dealing with it has re-introduced the 30lb weight on my chest.  It's been very tough on the people around me to watch my normally sunny disposition fade into a dull shade of grey.  I've had no energy and motivation.  It's been a struggle to keep up with the exercise, but I've done what I could.

Last Friday night was bad.  Really bad.  After a week of working my ass off I was feeling depressed, demoralized and just crappy.  But I put on my runners and went out.  To date, I've only been walking when I go out, but Friday I decided to throw caution to the wind and run a bit.  Previously when I started running I followed the Sun Run Training Program and it was a great way to ease myself into this great new habit.  So Friday I started by running 30 seconds and then walking until I caught my breath.  Rinse. Repeat.

Can I tell you how much better I felt when I got back?  Like... a million times better.  I remember that feeling of accomplishment when I finished a run, that euphoria, that inner glow.  I'm not quite at the same level that I was before, but I remember it and I want it back.

HOWEVER, I went out again tonight and I think I finally ground my runners into a pulp.  Coupled with the fact that my bra straps kept sliding down my shoulders it wasn't the most inspiring run.

But I went from going 30 seconds at a time to running a full minute at a time and IT. FELT. GOOD.

Win.

Geesh

Ok OK. OK!!! LOL

I've been slacking. But being the believer that I am of positive reinforcement (in addition to trouser socks), here goes...

You have lost a grand total of 23 pounds. Which is AWESOME (and at least one size)!

You have lost more than 23 inches overall, including almost 4 inches through your midsection and even 1.5" in the ankle! :)

Your best weeks were week 2 and now this final week which saw a loss of FOUR POUNDS - which was conveniently posted to Facebook within SECONDS of verification! LOL

So, in short, what this means is that you are definately on the right track. I notice a huge correlation between an increase in movement with a decrease in both inches and pounds so if you can keep that momentum going, we're laughing all the way to the skinny farm!

Results?

I'm still a'waiting....

I want numbers!

Violins & guilt

Ok ok. How can I argue with THAT? And publicly? Lol

One more week...


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Dear Tara's boot...

I love that you are supporting me in this but here's the deal:

These last couple of weeks were hard on me personally. My cousin dying was massive. Like, overwhelmingly, gut wrenchingly, heart breakingly hard. Yeah I made up some words there but I'm fly like that.

I needed more than just one week to process, grieve and get to a point where I'm "ok" with this. I'm still not ok but I'm getting back in the swing. I've been depressed. I'm not ashamed to admit that I was bruised by this. It's the first REALLY tragic death in our family. The first one of my 40 cousins who was taken too soon and I still get very emotional when I think about it.

Add on to this the fact that work has been HARD. We are overworked to the n-th degree and I'm rolling around the idea of a future job change in a very big way.

Oh and did I mention that my mom broke her arm? Yeah. This is another tough one. My mom is a beautiful 81 year old lady who I adore and it's tough to watch her age and show signs of being less than indestructible.

AND my van decided to give up the ghost. You know that weird knocking sound that I've been ignoring for the last little while? Well it turns out that you can't drive with a broken water pump. So yeah, that's coming up on one week. My lovely and wonderful boyfriend has been trying to fix it in order to save us some money, but he lacks the proper tools so it is taking some time. The only upside to this is that the idea of biking to work is becoming more appealing.

Soooo yeah. BUT. I'm not using this as an excuse. I have not been as exercise-y (yep, another made up word... on FIRE tonight) but I've still made it out more than half the week. I'm not eating AMAZINGLY, but I'm not being stupid either. There has been some comfort food because I've needed some comfort.

But I'm back on track. If you feel like I need my picture posted then so be it. But I'd appreciate just one more week to prove to you that I'm working hard. Life sometimes gets in the way of all this, but it's good to know that I won't give up just because I've had a few good sized hits.

Dear Ritas Ass..

Its time for a good kicking.

hahahahaha

Seriously, this is what happens to almost EVERYBODY when they are trying to lose weight. Part of the issue is that they (you) get comfortable, the changes become habits, the body doesn't have to work as hard, you stop trying so hard etc etc etc....

Which is, my dear old friend, why we took the pictures.

That's right! In case the rest of you didn't know, we took some pictures. At my home, on a memory stick, hidden out of site are before pictures of Rita front, side and yes, REAR. And, if I may remind you, our original agreement was that if you fall off the wagon, then I get to POST those pictures on this blog.

Ahem.

So, allow me to play "HardAss Trainer" for a minute please.

I understand you've had a hard time, death in the family, holidays with family, bad work days, what else? Oh yeah, forgetting the sexy trouser socks.... But, what's our new mantra? That's right NO MORE F-ING EXCUSES.

You wanted/want to make these changes. You need to make these changes for your own health. You know what to do, and you know how to do it. You have ALL of the tools at your disposal. So I"m afraid my friend, that the only thing stopping you from achieving YOUR goals, is YOU.

Its time to stand up, put on your big girl panties, stop procrastinating, start moving and DO THIS THING.

We've discussed obstacles, and for some reason you've never really clearly defined what those obstacles are. And that's fine, we'll move on pretending there are none until you get there.

So here's the thing. You're back writing down your food every day. You're moving 20-40 minutes/day at something that elevates your heart rate. You are finding alternatives for exercise when you have to do it on your own. And you are working out what both your motivations and your barriers are. That's it.

Big Girl Panties.

Next week we address this thing, changes are to be made, or by Wednesdays we'll have, hmmmmmm, let's see - the side view pictures posted for all to see!

I love you Rita, I want you to do this.

Backsliding and sadness and other things...

So. It's been a while since I reported regularly in this here blog thing. I have to be honest with you, dear Internet, I've been getting a little slack. Not to the point where I've stopped believing in this whole adventure, but somehow just... slowing... down.... easing back into less than productive habits. I'm still making progress, but it's a pound a week instead of 2 or 3 and the inches are slowing down as well. Again, a little here and there, but not the same as the first couple of months. I have no reason behind this and something happened today that is making me take a really good hard look at some stuff.

One of my cousins was killed in a tragic farm accident. I'm having a hard time with this. He was one of the nicest men to ever grace this earth. He was kind, and happy, and generous, and loving, and wonderful. He's leaving behind a beautiful family and friends and people who loved him. Our whole family is heartbroken.

So what does this have to do with me and this experiment? He lived life to the fullest. This was something that I promised myself when I took this on. That I would stop making excuses as to why I can't be more, be better, do the things that I stopped myself from doing.

So. Now what?

First I have to process today. Then I have to give myself a good talking to. I'll let you know how that goes.

Blocky-mc-blocker pants...

So blocks to my success have been discussed here and there and Tara has given me the task of trying to identify those things that I'm putting in the way of my kicking some serious health ass.

I put it off for a week using being in Kelowna as an excuse. Then I put it off claiming to be very busy.

And then I had that crystal clear flash of insight.

My biggest barrier? Stupid PROCRASTINATION. I am horrible about putting things off that need to be dealt with. It is The Thing that I am least proud of.

I'm going to work on this... tomorrow. ;o)

In all seriousness, it is something that I need to address in a big way because it affects my entire life, not just my health...

The Week of 20

For a "mulligan" week the results are actually impressive.

As of this week Rita has lost 20 pounds and over 20 inches all over.

As mentioned in her previous post, I am asking rita to consider her "obstacles". Each one of us has these obstacles. Little niggly things (self talk/doubt, fears etc etc) that have stopped us from achieving our goals in the past.

Rita and I have had ALOT of discussion about it. I think that there is definately a bit of a wall up there somewhere. She is making changes, for sure, but not as quickly as she might if she were to acknowledge these barriers/obstacles.

Please understand, its not a fault or a criticism of what she is currently doing. I happen to think she's doing fantastic! She's making better choices, feeling better, losing the weight etc etc. Its all good. I just happen to think she could get there faster.

So we'll see how this plays out next week. We spoke about it, and with Ritas permission I think next week we will post her actual numbers?

Mulligan...

I'm claiming a Mulligan this week.  I've been in Kelowna hanging out with my family and while I haven't been going crazy with the food and whatnot, I haven't been following the meal plans in any way, shape or form.  I've discovered when you are at the mercy of other people, it's harder to stick with the "eat every two to three hours" thing.  I haven't walked to any significant level of intensity at all but I've walked and I've swam... oh my how I've swam.  I've been keeping my portion sizes under control for the most part and have only really caved and nomed  to excess one day.... but it was salmon.  My brother's salmon.  Those of you in the know will testify how you just can't resist.  And can I get a "nice job" on the amount of alcohol I DIDN'T drink?  I was really good.  Even at the wedding I only had about 4 glasses of wine.  But it was realllllyyyyy good wine.

It's been fantastic spending time with my family and we've had a ton of fun.  But today we head back home and I've already booked my walking buddy for tonight.  I'm curious to see how I've done weight wise.

HOWEVER, my job over the last week was to figure out what is stopping me from totally diving into this adventure and I've spent a bit of time pondering it, but I'm still not sure what it is.  Once we are home and back in the groove, I'll work on that a bit more.  Anyone who's spent time with my family, especially en masse, will understand that it's hard to get time alone in your own head.  We are an intense bunch that way.  But I love them.  Oh how I love them.  They are a good bunch of people.

I'm just sayin'...

http://caloriecount.about.com/

There's an app. Easy to use.

Not about the counting of the calories as much as creating a true awareness of what you are eating.

You'll see.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Before you get all uppity...

... lets see if this app actually works for me.  So far, not so much.  I downloaded the MyFitnessPal for Android (http://www.myfitnesspal.com/).  There are a few more out there so I'll try a couple out before I either settle or throw my hands up in frustration.  I am less than thrilled with this app because of the following:

1. I don't like spending too much time futzing about with entries.  This app takes a long time to enter in one meal.  Granted the more you enter, the more options you have for "quick picks" but it's still fussy.
2. With the amount of cooking from scratch that I do, especially without recipes, it's hard to enter in the caloric value of a meal.
3. We will HAVE to sit down and discuss exactly how many calories I should be taking in each day... something tells me that 1500 calories is just not enough for a gal my size and that is what this app is recommending. 

I really really really don't like counting calories. I just don't want to be so mindful of it.  Yes it's a good idea to get a bigger picture look at what I'm taking in, but I just want to LIVE, not always be thinking about how many calories this is or what the fat content of that is... I just want to get into the habit of healthy eating, smaller portions and good clean food.  

HOWEVER, the other app that I downloaded is RUNTASTIC (http://runtastic.com/en/users/Rita-Floor) and although I've only used it twice, it gets a solid TWO THUMBS UP from me.  It tracks your exercise routes via GPS and gives you a summary of where you went, how fast you went and how many calories you ultimately burned.  I foresee this app being used a lot in the coming months.  

So back to the food... Someone asked to see what my daily food is like so here goes: 

Today, June 23:

6:30 AM - Fruit smoothie; 1 cup of 1% milk, 1/2 a banana, 3 good sized strawberries, 1/4 cup of blueberries, 1 scoop of Gensoy Vanilla Protien Powder.

9:30 AM - 1/2 cup fresh pineapple, 2 strawberries, 1/4 blueberries, 1 cup of Kashi cereal, 1 container of blueberry Astro yogurt.

12:30 PM - Turkey sammich on whole wheat with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and a bit of cheese

3:00 PM - Fresh peppers and cucumber, 10 whole wheat pretzels (omg nom nom nom)

4:30 PM - 1/4 cup salsa and a handful of chips

6:00 PM - beef stirfry with a crap-ton of veggies, wild rice

According to this app (it took me at least 10 to 15 minutes to upload everything!) I took in 2178 calories, burned 425 with my uber awesome walk, leaving me 213 calories short for my goal of 1540.  

It's all well and fine, but ultimately I just don't care.  I don't care that I ate exactly 2178 calories.  I just know I had a really tasty sammich for lunch, and was served really delicious beef stir-fry for dinner.  I had enough that I was satisfied but not so much that I felt full.  And that's how it should be.  I don't ever want to be obsessed with each and every morsel of food that passes my lips (ha!  I typo'd lisp instead of lips...).

But I'll try it.  My biggest challenge with this will be to remember to enter everything on the day I eat it... I have a tendency to let slip once in a while, and have to back track one day and remember what I ate.  This app doesn't let you go back.  Kind of like life.... right? ;o)

 

Almost...

... Broke through our first barrier AND made (what I think) is a major breakthrough!

One more pound, which is easy peasy this week, and our first little milestone will be reached. Which makes me happy.

I know, I know, it's not about the weight. However, the decreasing weight IS an indicator that this is moving in the right direction.

So there!

The milestone that I am so very happy that we have reached is that now, Rita is tracking her food using an online app WHICH then let's her see things like sugars and salts WHICH then allows her to make different (better? I think so) choices in the products she will choose.

Again. So there!

Rita - you may now both put in a plug for the App AND admit I was right...

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

A day in the life...

Well, more like a week. This week actually. This week started off on the tough side. I had my weigh in on Tuesday after work and it was GREAT. I went home and put on my runners... wait, let me digress just a bit:

I have to get new runners. The reason I know this is because I have two pairs of runners that are a billion years old collectively. One BILLION. One of them (Pair 1) has bits of rubber missing from the heel. But they are comfortable. So comfortable. The other pair (Pair 2) is seemingly in MUCH better shape. But they lie. Ok, back to the narrative... 

I put on Pair 2 thinking that since they appear to be in much better shape, they'll be better suited to my increasingly more intense walks. I was wrong. Sooooo wrong. I started my walk on Tuesday but by about 1/2 a block from my place I knew I was in trouble. Pain SHOOTING up my legs. Intense, searing stabs of pain that went up the outside of my lower leg. So bad that I cut my walk short at 10 minutes thinking 10 minutes is better than none minutes. I thought perhaps it was because Pair 2 was a little lacking in arch support so I went to Ye Auld London Drugs and bought a set of pretty decent supports that came highly recommended by my cousin's wife who works there.

Cue Wednesday's walk - started out a little better.  Supports were super comfy, but sure enough, 1/2 a block away the pain started again.  A little less intense, but still there.  I managed 15 minutes before I couldn't take it any more.

Thursday night I went for a walk with the Significant Other (aka B-man) and I wore Pair 1 and nary a pain did I experience.  I was able to walk as quickly as I wanted and no pain.

So there you have it.  I need new runners that are exactly the same as Pair 1.   Because with Pair 1 I've gone for 4 consecutive walks with the ever so wonderful Mrs. J. and we've walked I tell you.  We've gone out for minimum 45 minutes almost every day.  Sunday morning was a glorious trek all over our neighbourhood with the beautiful sun beating down on us, conversation flowing as easy as a mountain stream.  Mrs. J pushing me to go faster, harder, more... I love Mrs. J and am ever so grateful that she's supporting me on this journey.

Next post, lets meet my food journal!

My "i" is sticking

So instead of tryng to fght my way through ths - I need to say that - its not a spellng error. Its my "i" key.

Yes, yes, Rita. I was wrong. Well, not WRONG, but premature (c'mon - we've all been THERE) lol!

Three pounds ths week and another few nches. thngs are defnately movng n the rght drecton.

SO - some sort of cardo actvtes every day. 20-40 mnutes and keep up the great work on portons and sugars.

Great job - I wll wrte agan as soon as I get my keyboard fxed.

I'm just going to say it...

...before you get a chance to post...


HA!

I saw it in drafts. Hahaha


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Boo!

What?

How did your post happen before mine?  Are you behind me??!!!!!

Whoa!!!!!

So lets get this straight... I've steadily progressed over the last few weeks, lost weight every week and just because I didn't lose the 5 lbs you wanted me to, I have to start counting calories?  I might not have lost 5 lbs, but I did lose weight.  And inches?  Did I lose some inches too?

A big reason why I like what we are doing together is that I don't have to obsess over each and every calorie I ingest.  I know these sites work great for a lot of people, but I want to see how far I can get before moving on to the big guns.

And most importantly, lets not forget my reasons for doing this:

1.  BE HEALTHIER - Stop the downward spiral to an early heart attack by changing my lifestyle and eating better, cleaner foods
2. GET FIT - Get more active.  Move on a daily basis.  Stop being sedentary and get used to doing something physical more often
3. FEEL BETTER - Get more energy, feel more comfortable in my skin, get more done in the day without feeling like I'm dragging my ass
4. LOSE WEIGHT - Get into non-plus size clothes because face it, plus sized clothing ain't always that flattering

Notice how losing weight is not the first priority?  That getting healthier and feeling better are more important?  And hey guess what? I DO.  I have so much more energy now and I'm getting so much more done.  I keep going on and on like the fricken Energizer Bunny.  I am ON all day at work.  I am pretty sure that the only reason I haven't run screaming from my job is because of all this.  I've even started annoying my boyfriend with how much energy I've got. 

I've got a little theory as to why last week's weigh in wasn't as successful as you had projected: Work has been unbelievably stressful.  Our workload had increased by over 50% in the last few months and we haven't hired anyone else to help lighten the load.  Increased stress = increased cortisol.  Increased cortisol = less ability to lose weight.

http://stress.about.com/od/stresshealth/a/cortisol.htm 

Gandhi is quoted as saying “We must become the change we want to see.”  Last week I decided to adopt this as my mantra at work.  I've stopped allowing the little things to get under my skin.  I've started shrugging nasty negativity off and smiling more.  I've made sure to thank the people who make my day better.  When people ask me how I'm doing, I tell them I'm awesome.  And the result has been that nothing at work has changed.  The grumpy, bitchy people are still grumpy and bitchy, but I'm not as fazed by it.  

But I feel better.  And that's all that matters.  So how about we give this a bit more time to see what happens.  I've got years of bad habits to get over.  It ain't going to happen over night.

Ok OK

I know where Rita is going with this.

And no, its not the weight. But things/numbers aren't changing as quickly as I think they should be for all of the major changes that she has been making. I like Calorie Count and if you'd rather find another means thats fine, but part of it is to just bring an accurate awareness to that part of the whole deal.

Am open to suggestions...

Rita?

So. When I did Ritas measurements this week I did not have the previous measurements to compare against.

I had really high hopes this week. Rita is eating more regularly - becoming increasingly aware and diligent about her portion control (which was her biggest issue) and I think the testing the week before should have shocked her a little into how a realization. Realization of how far she has to go.

Again, I'm not trying to guilt Rita into anything. But I have known her for long enough that I too am very aware of how in shape she used to be as compared to now.

So. The short version of this is that she lost 2 pounds from March 16th to the 30th. That's great - its still two pounds, but really, given where we are starting from and the changes that are being made I would have expected greater results.

Now, according to Rita, there has been both an increase in movement and a decrease in caloric intake. And that may be true, but I think greater change is in order. I think its kind of time to get serious about this - no more wasting time. We've coddled enough and now its time to get agressive.

Here's how this is going to go down.

We are going to track your intake on http://caloriecount.about.com

We are going to track your exercise and intensity DAILY

Somethings not working as well as it should and the only way to know is to track it all. Ok?

Just do it

Two suggestions;

1. Put your workout shoes on before you leave work. Sounds silly I know, but try it.

2. This one is kind of mind over matter. You have to remember 3 things. First, we are creating a HABIT. You can't develop the habit without taking action. Second, remember how much better you will feel for having done something and how lousy you feel when you don't. Third, anything is better than nothing. If you are absolutely, over the top drained, get out, get some fresh air and just move.

(here's where I become hard-ass trainer)

The shorter version is that this is the cycle you've created and we are trying to break that cycle. You're making excuses and you can't do that and have it be acceptable and still expect to make changes. You have to get up and move.

Just do it.

Trust me.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Just Do It

Really.

This week was tough.  Not because of the "plan" necessarily, but work has been very challenging of late and getting up enough energy after being bombarded with crap all day was not always easy.  I only missed two days of walkies though so that's pretty good and I've taken up yoga again which is also very good.

So here's a question:  Work is 8.5 hours of emotional warfare sometimes.  I deal with co-workers who are in all senses of the word gigantic bullies.  I am constantly waiting for an outburst.  I come home after my day and honestly have absolutely no energy whatsoever.  What gets you off your butt and out the door?  I've had days in the last couple of weeks where all I can do when I walk in the door is curl up on the couch and stare at the TV.  Thank goodness for pre-packaged salads because that's about all I have energy for.   Honestly?  I'm even more thankful that I've taken this on at this time because all this healthy living has given me WAY more energy.  I can't imagine how I'd be coping without feeling that much better in general.  Oh I remember... I'd be drinking a bottle of wine a night.  Yeah, that didn't really work that well for me either....

The upside to all this is that I've kept fairly close to the food plan during all this.  I've not overeaten in a long time, kept my portion sizes under control and made sure I get a good balance of proteins, fiber, carbs and lots and lots of fresh fruit and veg.  I've had a few indulgences (*cough* baked brie with tomato jam OM NOM NOM) but even that was a handful of multi grain crackers and the brie (omg nom nom nom).

The even bigger upside has been that the chronic heartburn that I endured every day to the point where I was taking 4 or 5 Tums a day has all but disappeared.  I get the occasional sour tum but NOTHING compared to the gut burning acid reflux that required medication that used to plague me.  Score another point on the "feeling better" side of this whole experiment!  I've even noticed that my stomach has shrunk to the point where I get fuller faster and can't do the whole "shovel food in until you are ready to burst" thing any more.  I had a beef and been burrito yesterday and I couldn't even finish it (made by me, all natural ingredients, extra lean ground beef and my own mix of spices so low in sodium TARA).  This is all making me feel way more in control of things and reinforcing the knowledge that I am the master of what goes in the machine.   I CONTROL THE MACHINE!!!!  <cue insane laughter>.

So back to my original question - what is your motivation when you are so beat down that you are physically numb?  When you just don't have it in you to pull it together and get moving?  Even with having all this extra energy, I'm still dragging by 4 PM.  Because I really need help in this area right now.  Really really really need help.  Really.

Let's just say, It's A Start

So. We did baseline fitness testing this week testing upper body strength, lower body strength, core strength and cardio.

I don't think it's necessary to post the numbers. Really they are meaningless until we do follow up anyway.

Let's just say that there is room for improvement? Nowhere to go but up? Ya gotta start somewhere? Heehee. I've known Rita from the days she could run a solid 30 minutes on a treadmill so I am confident this level if fitness will improve fairly speedily once Rita gets her groove.

No measurements this week. Definitely next.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Moody Park, NW

Yay me!

Yeah, I know I said weight is a number and it's not that important and how I feel will be the true measure... but damn that number does feel good.  I've been following the plan pretty closely, BUT... it hasn't been "work".  It's been deceptively simple.  Cunningly easy.  I've not been necessarily "denying" myself anything significant.  I've had the occasional cookie.  A beer even.  I think the key has been the consistent feeding of the machine (rawr) every two to three hours and making sure what I DO eat is as clean and healthy as I can realistically manage.  I figure that 95% of the time I am on track and making really good choices.  That 5% is what makes this no big deal.

Case and point, last night's dinner was BBQ'd steak.  Delicious, juicy and meaty steak.  BUT, my portion wasn't huge and I had a great big salad and some steamed yams with it.  The yams were dead easy.  I saw this idea on Shannon's blog and thought I'd give it a try.  I wrapped them in paper towel and soaked it right through, popped them in the microwave for 7 minutes and then drizzled them with some rosemary-infused olive oil, salt, pepper and a sprinkle of garlic powder.  Turned out really tasty.  With something that easy to prepare, I can easily bring a raw yam to work and whip it up there.

As for the exercise, I spent over an hour in my yard last night pulling these hideous vines out of the ground.  I worked up a great sweat, huffed and puffed and got a good chunk of work accomplished.  I used all my muscles, worked in some stretching while I was doing it and it was great.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good walk as much as the next guy, but being able to do something productive instead is WAY more appealing.  I would happily spend an hour pulling weeds or mowing the lawn over walking around in circles.  And with the weather being all gorgeous-like outside, I can only see that happening more!  BRING ON THE SUN!

PS: Hey Tara, how many inches did I go down this week?

Resultz

Clearly I'm technologically challenged. Because as I tried to post this yesterday (ended up archived somewhere) and THEN I was unable to copy and paste onto a new post. So here we go again..

Take II

Yay Rita! Four (yes 4!) pounds lost this week. Its always a relief when predictions come true! Rita has worked very hard for a couple of weeks now and sometimes it seems to take the body a couple of weeks to catch up. This is obviously the case - and I think being sick may have helped a little bit :)

So what this tells us is that her eating habits/portion sizes and coming into place where they need to be to make this happen.

I know I know "but weight loss isn't my main goal - feeling better is." Blah blah blah. You should be pretty freaking happy and I know you are. LOL

Next step? Rita is going to continue to journal, continue to increase her exercise levels (longer duration) and increase her resistance exercises. Then next week when we meet we are setting up a baseline measurement of her fitness level. I haven't decided exactly WHAT yet. But I'm thinking if this weather holds up we might have to take it outside!

Congratulations Rita - its a great start!

Wow.

So I've been silly sick for the last three days.  Truth be told I shouldn't have even gone into work yesterday (it had NOTHING to do with the glorious weather outside, I promise), because the sneezy/sniffly/coughy/yucky feeling that started on Thursday just got progressively worse throughout the day on Friday and by the time I got home from work, I only had enough energy to grab a pillow and a blanket and huddle down on the couch.  I was fed leftover Minestrone soup and I slept.  And slept.  And then slept some more.

So needless to say, I, Rita Floor, admit to going two whole days without doing any exercise.  I did some sit-ups and leg lifts and butt crunches on Thursday but other than that nada.

And then I got the notion to get my garden in working order so I joined forces with Andi and we got some soil.  Boy howdy did we get some soil.  We hit the landfill and got two loads of compost which we proceeded to spread on her yard and then on mine.  It was hard labour people.  Tara, I know you wanted me at a RPE of about 7 but I'm pretty sure I hit 9 a couple times today.  It was very satisfying, very productive and CHEAP!  We got a whole trailer FULL of soil for a whopping $20!  It's beautiful, dark, and will be FANTASTIC for my new garden.  I had been quoted over $110 to get the exact same soil delivered to me but by getting it ourselves, we saved money and got a really good day of sweating in.

And the best part?  It erased any and all guilt I felt over not having exercised the previous two days.  Because I WORKED.  HARD.  I know I'm going to feel it tomorrow and that's alright by me.  I'm planning a good long walk tomorrow afternoon to work out some of the kinks.

I'll post some pictures of the garden when it's all planted up.

One Step At A Time. Week 2

Rita - for a few reasons I'd like to wait. I would like you to start getting into the habit of more movement, and ultimately I'd like to build muscle (the greater proportion of lean body tissue we have in our bodies = the faster the metabolism) but let's really one step at a time through this. I'd like to know first where your eating is at before we start confusing things with the physical activity.

Often people try and change too many things at one time. Then if something doesn't work right, we don't know which element is being measured incorrectly.

I'll tell you what - once you've lost a reasonable amount of weight three weeks in a row - we will set up a baseline for you in terms of strength, cardio and flexibility. Ok?

How This Week Went

Well. We did another weigh/measure and despite a great start no pounds were lost, however, we DID see an impressive loss in inches. Particularly in the legs.

More importantly for Rita, she is FEELING better. And that is/was one of her secondary goals.

Her habits are definitely getting better. And her attitude is positive. So we talked about upping her daily physical activity plus one more week of "cleaner" (getting there) eating. If the numbers on the scale don't show more positive results next week then we need to look more closely at her caloric intake. Rita has admitted that its not the food itself, but the portion sizes, so we may have to go to learning to measure portions next.

Great job though Rita - I am pretty proud!

One Step at a Time

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Where it's at...

I got two turn tables and a microphone...

But what I don't got is a baseline of where I'm starting physically... So Tara my dear... what do you say about setting up a repeatable fitness test that I can use as another means to measure where I am and how I'm doing?

Poor Tara....

I'll forgive you this time given the weekend you had but next time I'm getting Steven to pony up some good dirt.

So this week was interesting. I'll let Tara fill in the details, but suffice it to say my weight didn't go down, but I lost inches all over. Hormonally induced water retention might be responsible for the lack of weight loss, but I'm going to step up the intensity just in case. I want to see lower numbers next week. The biggest challenges have been finding the energy and time to fit in exercise, but I tried little bits all during the day instead of trying to lump it into one chunk. Tara is also getting me to increase my protein intake a bit. Hopefully the two combined will give me some interesting results.

So I celebrated with Sushi from Bao Sushi. For those of you who don't know about it, go check it out.  I got enough sushi and miso soup to seriously fill three empty bellies for just over $34.  That is value you just can't beat.

Technologically challenged

I am trying yo post but unable to log in. If this works I want an update please. How are your goals for this week? Moving more?


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Hey Tara, where are you?

We've never discussed what happens if YOU don't check in every once in a while...

I wonder if your delightful husband is willing to provide some good ammo...

I'm going to stray...

Just a bit. Because I just heard a new band last night that is going to be the soundtrack of my summer...

http://www.imaginarycities.ca/


Say You Live

Imaginary Cities | Myspace Video

They opened up for the Pixies (THE PIXIES!!!) who were responsible for me getting my exercise for the day.  I danced my butt off for well over an hour and it was amazing.  This band however was sweet, charming and I promptly bought their CD (met the singers!).  I've been listening to it since and I love.

Ok, back to healthy living, eating right and whatnot...

Wait! DAILY???? I missed a few days....

Ok, so this weekend was tough. Party on Saturday night (some nibbling, two glasses of wine - red, for my health), baby shower on Sunday (more nibbling, no wine)... All things considered though, I'm pretty pleased with my progress. Yes I indulged, but not obscenely so and then yesterday I was right back on track. Today is much of the same. Eating every two to three hours, mostly fruits and veggies or controlled amounts of whole wheat pretzles or one of my daughter's "healthy cookies" - made out of whole wheat flour and honey instead of sugar... Pretty dang tasty actually...

I also got a walk in yesterday by trotting to my voting station and back. I'm actually thinking that this will be the biggest challenge in all this, MAKING the time to get some exercise after being so sedentary for so long. Eating comes naturally to me (shocked, aren't you) but getting off my tail and going out for a walk is not. I am going to have to employ the "hey good friends who love me and want me to succeed, what are YOU doing right now? Come walk with me..." method of dealing with this. If I know motivation is a challenge, make it someone else's job.

I should be in management.

Buahahahahahaha!!!

So we are in agreement then? You will check in daily - and if you don't follow any of the four goals, we post a picture?

Week one - check. Pictoral evidence - check. Awesome feeling of accomplishment - check.

I'm feeling pretty good about everything so far.  As I said to Tara, the motivation for me is not "the pictures", the motivation is getting to work with someone who knows her shit, knows how to fix my shit and is, without a shadow of a doubt, on my "team".  The price I have to pay for that support and guidance is having those god-awful pictures taken of me. 

I like my new goals, they are not overwhelming or unattainable.  I'm pretty pleased about the 4 lbs lost since April 4th and I'm really looking forward to going forward.

BRING IT!!!!

This just in...

Rita is just walking out the door right now from my gym and we have done our "before" pictures both clothed and in her sexy new undies. (I have to apologize to the poor woman who walked in on us as I was on my knees showing Rita the pictures as Rita stood over me in her purple lacy undies hahahaha)

I have also done head to toe measurements, weight and taken her body fat measurement using a Bioimpedance Analyzer.

Rita has goals of overall health improvement. I, personally, have other goals for her.

Her current Bodyfat percentage is way to high at 44%. My goal is to get this down to under 25% - a healthy percentage taking away her increased risk of all sorts of heart diseases and other health issues. (Did that make sense? I just felt myself rambling)

Now, with regards to her measurements, I took a total of 12 measurements. When all these numbers are added up Rita's total inches are 384.75. This is the number that I want to see the most significant changes to. I'll keep you up to date.

So. Rita's goals for this week are as follows.

1. To eat something every 2-3 hours, never going over three hours

2. To consume 250 mls of water at each of those meals

3. To continue journalling

4. To try and spend between 10-20 minutes/day that she would ordinarily be sitting and do something moving during that time.

Rita - your turn. Thoughts?

One week down...

So, I've been keeping a food journal for one week now and I have to say I've noticed a pretty significant difference in how I feel.  I haven't really "cut out" any foods, or existed solely on rabbit food and air but I'm willing to bet that I've dropped a pound or two.  I know I feel better.  Less bloated, less heartburn, and much to my family's relief, less gas.

I think the biggest difference is that I'm thinking about everything that goes in my mouth as opposed to blindly eating in a vain effort to "feel better".  And the result is that I actually feel better.  Cutting back on drinking is also making a difference in my energy levels - I'm not as lethargic during the day.  To wit, I actually had a couple glasses of wine last night with friends and today I was all... blarg.  Got a decent amount of sleep, but just felt... yeah, blarg is the only way to describe it.

I'm meeting up with Tara tomorrow to do all my measurements, weigh in and *gulp* take pictures.

Will update with all the gory details once that happens...

Didja forget I see your Facebook status?

How was dinner? Did you write it down? When are we meeting this week? I have time on Wednesday night....

Two words...

Purple.

Lace.

Picture this...

I'm totally fine with the "Mile 1" photos and am shopping for pretty ginch on Monday after work.

I'm kind of liking the look of this one:

But might go with practical instead and get this one:

We'll see what the local store has to offer.  Maybe I'll get both ;o)

In agreement

Rita - I totally agree. None of this is meant to be a negative experience. Besides, if everything goes in the direction we want it to, these pictures will likely never be posted anyway.

When Rita and I were first speaking about her goals, we were trying to find some motivation to get her to adhere to whatever plan developed. I had mentioned my previous "Shamefit" idea an she had agreed. Again, I don't think the idea was to ever to be embarassing, more just incentive to stick with the plan.

I've known Rita for, what, 25 years? I've always known her to be active. (beginning with our cheerleading days - damn, I keep meaning to find that picture - LOL) and for the past couple of years that has simply become less so. What typically happens when someone is moving less, is that eating habits soon change also. I think the body craves food differently at that point. So these two things have brought Rita to where she is today.

The great part about this for Rita is that as of today she has no medical conditions (but a scary family history), no injuries, no real barriers and a great amount of self confidence and drive. NO EXCUSES. And she really wants to make sure that it stays this way and is at a great age to turn things around.

So tell me - having reviewed your reasons for taking the pictures - have you changed your mind? I still think its a good idea to get a photographic reminder of where you are coming from.

I'm going to go find that picture now.

Points to ponder...

My good friend Andi posted this comment:

My first suggestion:
Don't make the photo shoot anything nice.
No pretty ginchies.
WHY?
Are you PROUD to be in them?
There should be absolutely no reason what-so-ever that can allow you to feel okay with this initial set of photos.
These are the "At My Worst" images...barely the kind you want to post on your fridge to remind yourself not to chow down too heavily.

And I had to ponder a bit to figure out exactly why this didn't ring true with me.

I completely understand where she is coming from, but to be honest, my reasons for doing this are varied.  Being "ashamed" of what I look like is not one of them.  I kinda like who I am and what I am about and that includes the body that carries me around.   That is one of the reasons I'm doing this.  Not because I hate myself and the way I look, but because I love myself enough to know that I need to take better care of myself and achieve a better level of fitness.

I've told a few people about my family health history.  My mom's side of the family has a very large percentage of people with heart issues, regardless of size, fitness, lifestyle (non smokers, non drinkers).  My dad lost one of his brothers to a heart attack.  On both sides there are people who wear pacemakers.  Heart problems are rampant in my family and I know full well that if I don't take better care of it now when I'm able to, it's going to be that much worse for me down the road.

I don't smoke and haven't for 20 years... wow, actually, my quit date was sometime in April, so happy anniversary to me I guess... I drink socially but I've cut down my drinking so I'm only having a couple glasses on the weekend instead of sharing a bottle a few times a week.  My blood pressure is bang on, I don't have any thyroid issues and I'm pretty much a-ok health wise.  I do have asthma, but I manage it with medication and even though it will add to the challenge of getting fit, I know I can deal with whatever comes up.

BUT.

I have a hard time walking up more than one flight of stairs.  I can't bend into the yoga positions that I used to easily manipulate myself into.  My feet hurt ALL. THE. TIME.  I have low energy.  I'm not happy with how I feel physically.  I'm not as concerned as much with what I look like.

So back to the "pretty ginch" comment... I'm going to wear pretty ginch for my first photo.  Not because I think those photos will be spread all over the internet for all the world to see, but because I want to make this whole process as positive, happy and encouraging as possible.  I don't want any negative thinking in to create doubt that I can't accomplish my goals.  I am not worried about what I look like in those photos because they are just a milestone.  My "Mile 1" so to speak.

Besides, I need a new bra.

Eureka!

And that my friend is half the battle. Creating an awareness of what habits you are currently partaking in is the only way that we can start to make changes to those habits and make them better!

I expect you to lie a little bit. You won't have to for long! :)

Its a great lesson to learn and keep - to keep a journal. It creates an accountability, even to yourself, of what you're doing.

I'm proud of you my friend. That's step one. Keep it up!

Watching me, watching you... ahhhhaaaaaa... (thanks ABBA!)

Physics has shown that simply observing atoms at the quantum level is enough to change them.  I believe the same is to be held true for most people.  More specifically me.  KNOWING that I would have to report my daily food intake has caused me to be UBER aware of what I'm putting in my maw.  With this in mind, you, my dear Tara, will have to add an extra, say, 10 to 25% on to what you estimate my daily noms to be.  Just saying.

You and me and some sexy undies...

... like we haven't been THERE before... ;) Just kiddin'

So. What I would like to do first is two things. First, pictures and measurements. You and I will pick a time to set this up. Its helpful to know what your starting point is. I'm going to do front, back and side pictures and a head to toe set of measurements.

Secondly, we need to see where your habits are currently at to figure out what needs adjusting first. So if you could please, I would like you to journal your eating and your exercise habits. Get a notebook and write down everything you eat and drink (and at what time) as well as what exercise you are currently doing.

It would also be helpful for you to keep track of your energy level or how you are feeling at certain points in the day. If you feel particularly energetic or tired, make note.

Maybe what I'll get you to do is to start the journalling tomorrow and we will meet in a weeks time to both review the journal and do measurements?

Deal

Bring it.

I at least get to wear pretty ginch though.  Aight?

Alrighty then!

Rita.

We had discussed the Shamefit plan. The idea is that you and I will get together and take some pictures. You in bra and panties. I will keep these pictures hidden.

Then we sit down and formulate a plan. Involving some combination of nutrition and exercise that you will agree to follow for a two week period. Yes?

I'm thinking NO EXCEPTIONS.

As long as you follow our agreed plan, being accountable here, on this blog, the pictures stay safe.

The minute you DON'T follow the plan we start, shall we say, exposing you to your blogging friends.

Deal?

Open book?

I think I'm pretty comfortable with posting "most" of the gory details about this adventure on here. The idea behind this blog is to push me out of my comfort zone and give me a huge dose of accountability. As long as we work together I don't think I have anything to worry about. I trust you and I believe you have my best intentions at heart.

Let's rock this.

Well Rita

Here we are. So Rita - how honest/public are you ready to BE about all of this? My thinking is - if we set up your plan(s) using this blog as our forum it would give you accountability. Thoughts?

Sink or swim...

Well, it's starting.  I've lived 41 years in this body and it's about time I started taking better care of it before it has enough, stomps it's feet and leaves the room.

Wish me luck kids.

I'm meeting with Tara Lowry later this week.  She's a trainer at Dynamic Health and Fitness (http://www.dynamichealthandfitness.ca/) and she's promised to kick my ass into shape.  Here's the "best" part... if I don't follow her plan, she gets to post pictures of me in all my succulent, fleshy glory.  I'm thinking that's pretty good motivation to do as I'm told, don't you?

I'm hoping I inspire others to take this journey with me.  I'll need all the help I can get.