Oops!

I'm still here I promise! things have been slow-going in the weight loss department around here for the past few weeks (has it been a month already?) I feel as though I've been sort of hovering around the same few pounds and not really making any headway. I know exactly why. I'm not doing anything active like I was and I haven't been as careful about what I eat or how much water I'm drinking although I have been making an effort this past week. I'm just happy to not be gaining.

Ok, that's kind of a lie.

I would like to be consistently loosing like I was the first month and I'm frustrated with my lack of motivations at times because this is something I want so bad so why am I not willing to make some changes. Blah! Ok time for some positive reinforcement. It's OK to be the tortoise, healthy even. Changes in the way clothes fit and to how I feel are more important then a number on a scale. I need to keep telling myself these things and not let my slow progress side line me.

Alright then, on to the good news. I'm down 1.5 lbs this week for a total of 14 lbs lost over all. Not too shabby. I've started to unpack some of my smaller clothes just to get an idea of how far off I am. I tried on a pair of pants I haven't worn since even before I had kids that a month ago I couldn't have buttoned up to save my life and I could do them up! They are no where near comfortable enough to wear but still, I feel like I'm so close I can taste it and I have to admit it made me a little giddy. I'm trying to look ahead and break my journey up into smaller milestones. I find it really overwhelming to think about how far I am from my goal but if I have smaller goals and I reach them it's better motivation then any end result I can visualize or strive for. This is really a learning process for me but I think I'll be more resilient in the end. I can do this

week 2

Alright so today is weigh-in day and I won't lie that I'm disappointed with my very small loss of half a lb this week. I know I should just be glad it wasn't a gain but honestly I'm having to try really hard not to let this suck the wind from my sails. Silly, I know. I'm down 10lbs this month which was my goal so why am I letting this small loss over-shadow my achievement? I don't know but I need to find a way to stay motivated. I think I'm just feeling a little down all around. Blah I need to snap out of it!

Anyways.

I did really great at my water intake this week and did ok on only eating when hungry, but i get a FAIL for stretching everyday. I have, however, been hula hooping (almost) everyday and have gone out a couple of times for a run/walk so that has to count for something right? Right? It felt great to get back to running especially the first day I went out. What I'm really loving though is hooping. It's something I can do with the kids that's fun and I find it relaxing and it get's me sweating and my heart pumping pretty good. I finally dug out my yoga DVD and did a work out last night. Boy I'd forgotten how challenging, in a good way, it is. It showed me that I need to work on my balance and strength a LOT.

I feel very lucky to have my husband. He's a good friend that I can complain to when I'm feeling discouraged and always finds a way to prop me back up and reassure me that I can do this and that he believes in me. I don't take that for granted.

Run!

May is Running Month over at The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans and what better timing as I'm just recovered from my shin splints and ready to get back at 'er. They have lots of things planned like product reviews, a "how-to" series, avoiding injuries and training for a race to name a few. I'm really looking forward to learning more. they are also giving away a pair of new balance shoes so run don't walk over to enter for a chance to win.

there's only a couple days left!

1 week check-in

So I've just finished the first week of my 21 day challenge and it's gone really well. I find it the easiest to get my water in first and last thing (minus this morning where I was totally almost finished breakfast when I realized I hadn't had my water) I'm finding it hardest to remember to do stretches although I've been hula hooping with the kids pretty much every day and have started doing sit-ups and try to do some stretching between reps but I need to try harder with the stretches. I have to say I'm feeling really great though, probably the best I've felt since before my son was born (coming up 4 years) I'm down 2.5 lbs since last week which leaves me half a lb shy of 10 lbs in the last 3.5 weeks. I'm hoping to continue a steady loss of 8-10 lbs a month. For the first time I'm starting to really believe that I can reach my goals and feel great again. More good news is that my shins are feeling great and I'm so ready to get back out there. I'm going to take it a little slower and not push myself too hard to start but I'm very thankful to be feeling back to normal. That's all I have to share right now. Hope to be back soon with more good updates.

challenging myself

I've recently been spending some time over at the 'hood and they've just started a new challenge that I'm really excited about participating in. Ok, so in a nutshell the challenge is to choose new, healthy, habits you'd like to have and commit to doing them every day for the next 21 days. I really love this because I think the key to maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle is not about what 'diet' or whatever will get you there fastest it's about making the conscious choice to make small changes and stick with them until they are second nature. I really think that if I want to be successful (and I believe I can) I have to be more aware of what I choose to put in my mouth and how active I am. Anyways, I've been pondering all day what habits I want to choose. I feel a little hindered by the fact that I'm recovering from shin splints at the moment but I just need to jump (off this computer chair) with both feet because if I'm going to make excuses there will always be something to stop me. Ok, so here I go:

• I've been trying to up my water intake in the last couple weeks and I can already notice a difference but I want the first thing I put in my body in the morning and the last thing at night to be water. Too often I start the day with tea/coffee or nothing and wind up well into the day before drinking anything or drink nothing but tea all day.

• I want to start stretching everyday whether it's 5 0r 10 minutes of stretching or a yoga DVD.

• Only eat when I'm hungry. Seems simple but I'm bad for mindlessly snacking if I'm bored

Alright there it is. I'll update to let you know how it's going.

Disappointment

My run monday did not go well. At. All. My Shin pain was still pretty bad when I headed out. I did my regular 5 min. warm up walk and then I stopped and stretched a bit and then headed off into my run. Right away my calves started getting tight and I tried various things to relax them, tried just ignoring them and focusing on the music. I made it through two running intervals and then I just knew that was it. I was super dissapointed in myself and felt like I should have been able to just push through it. I had an appointment with my Dr. yesterday and I have shin splints. Yeah. Awesome. That means running is out, for as long as I'm having any pain and then I have to wean myself back into it. I'm thankful it was nothing worse but I'll admit I feel very frustrated and defeated and discouraged at the moment.

What have I spent my evening doing?

Why hula hooping of course! now you may be thinking say what!? I'm not talking about the small light hoops you can get at any toy store. I stumbled upon a link to a tutorial for making your own adult sized hoops and let me tell you it was super simple and fast to make one. Mine isn't pretty like some but I may spurge on some fancy tape one of these days, anyways back on topic. Wooo boy does it get your heart pumping! I can definitely see why this is a work out and why you would want to do it. Super FUN! Ok I'll stop with the exclamation points but I am weirdly excited about this.

On the running front, Friday's run did go a little better and i think a was able to pace myself but man oh man my calves and shins were really unhappy. The muscles in my calves felt like they were being wound tighter and tighter. It made running really uncomfortable but still do-able. in the back of my mind I'm worrying that it's something serious but I'm trying to stay calm and tell myself it's just my muscles getting used to the new activity. The last thing I want is an injury that would put me out of commision. I move on to week 2 of the C25K training so I'll assess how I'm feeling during my run on monday and may just have to modify my intervals a bit for a while. We'll see. I'm looking forward to my run tomorrow though, sore shins and all.

week 1

As I mentioned in my last post I started the Couch-to-5K training this week and feel more determined then ever to keep up with it. Monday's run I didn't watch the interval times as closely as I could have. I did my one lap warm up and then ran half a lap walked half a lap for my 20-25 min I felt strong and energized and really great considering it's been months since I last ran. Tuesday I walked to the store and back with the kids (about a 30-40 minute walk) and then went out with my sister in the evening and mostly walked but did a couple of spurts of running in there. All day Wednesday I was pumped to get out there. I followed a tutorial on how to make a playlist that would switch songs at each interval and carefully selected the songs I wanted. I was so excited I started my first few runs too fast which made pacing myself for the rest really hard but I FINISHED and ran all the running intervals. Phew. I'm still feeling it a bit two days later but I'm starting to get pumped again about my run tonight. Yesterday was basically a rest day for me, although I did walk over to my sister-in-law's for a visit in the afternoon, but I'm glad I decided to take it easy because today I have that itch to run and I'm not sure I would have if I had pushed myself to go out last night. Hopefully tonight's run will be a little easier.

coming out of hibernation

So my 30-day-shred turned out to be more of a 90-day-slump, to say the least. The fact of the matter is I just really dislike 1.) workout videos 2.) working out indoors 3.)trying to pretend I'm coordinated when clearly I am not. The only exception to this would possibly be a Yoga DVD that I enjoy called Yoga for Wimps. I'd actually really recommend it if you are interested in giving yoga a try for the workout but aren't really interested in the meditative side of it. I thought for a while that I had misplaced my copy and was frantically searching for it in the usual and not so usual hiding places. Turns up it was on the shelf right by our tv, a clue that it may be time to declutter. Anyways, I've been getting the itch to get back to running over the last few weeks. I'm not sure if it's been the extra stresses of the past month or so or if it's just that the days are getting longer and the air is sweet and enticing with the arrival of spring but all i want to do is get out and go. ANYWHERE. I find myself looking forward to a summer full of days spent on picnics at the park and bikerides and trips to the beach.

Last night I took the plunge and started the Couch-to-5k training. It felt really good to push myself at something and have some me time. I surprised myself actually. One, because i went out complete by myslef, two that i ran dispite the fact that there was a large group of teenage boys hanging out beside the track (something I've always found intimidating), and three that I was able run even more than i was anticipating and it felt great. I can't wait to get out again.

in which life gets in the way

so i woke up tuesday morning sooo sore. i felt like i had been punched in the ribs. i was expecting it and got ready to work out, did the warm up, and then when it was time to start with push-ups the only thought running through my head was "yeah right!" so i turned off the dvd and decided that i would do the shred every other day for the first couple weeks. i may do yoga on my off days and then take sat & sun off. we are usually out and about so much on the weekends. anyways, so then yesterday was suppose to be a shred day but my sweet little girl had other plans. she has decided to cut 3-4 teeth at once and didn't nap at all for me, being unbelievably clingy. c'est la vie. i'm not getting off to a very good start but i'm just trying not to beat myself up over it and use it to push myself even harder next time.

day 1

YIKES! so i started Jillian Michaels' "30 day shred" today after hearing so much buzz about it. i'm hoping that it will be my go-to work out while the weather is still too gross and dark for running outside. i started running with my sister this past fall and was just starting to really enjoy it, crave it even, when the weather started to get really cold and wet. the wet i can deal with, but when it comes to running in the cold i'm a big baby and just really struggle with it. my daughter was also at a really clingy stage at that point and would scream the entire time i was gone.

anyways it's a new year and a fresh start. i figure that seeing as how i turned 28 last week it was time to get serious and get in shape so that i'm not heading into my next decade over weight and out of shape. i have a hard time excepting that i have as much weight to loose as i do. i don't think it's even the amount of weight so much as how long i've let it go and how much i've let it effect my identity and day-to-day life.

i want a change. i want myself back.

this is my journey to a better me.