Cardio Day

So as I'm sure you all know, I've been working out for a while now.  And while I know I'm still not in great shape, I thought I was at least getting more towards being in decent shape.  I was wrong.  So very wrong.  I have been working out (fairly regularly), but it has all been combo cardio and strength training.  I have not done more than like 2 or 3 minutes of straight cardio since I can't even remember when.  So today on my FE (Firm Express) workout calender it said I had to do the cardio dvd, which is 20 minutes of straight cardio.  I thought I was going to die.  On the upside I got a great workout in, but I thought I would die, lol.  I made it though and lived to tell about it.  I am so looking forward to my rest day tomorrow, I need it!

And on the last day of February winter has decided to return.  It's f***ing snowing.  It was just spring out there, we haven't even been wearing our winter jackets the last few days, we down graded to sweatshirts!  Since it is a nasty, cold, snowy day I decided to get some books and some movies from the library after story time today.  Nothing like curling up on the couch with a good book and some hot chocolate.  Yes, I absolutely plan on having hot chocolate today.  Weigh in tomorrow, hope my hard work shows!

Apples & Bananas

I have known all my life that I'm not a "good eater".  I am very picky, I like what I like, and it is mostly crap.  Carbs and sweets with some burgers thrown in there.  I do like some veggies.  I have always liked broccoli, peas, carrots, lettuce, green beans, and raw spinach.  I am not counting corn and potatoes, too starchy, but I do love those too.  So I don't like many vegetables, but I've got some good ones in there.  Fruit is a whole nother story.

I hate fruit, even bananas.  I have never liked it and I don't have high hopes for that changing.  But today I thought maybe I could give it the old college try.  I bought some apples while at the store today, figuring I could put some peanut butter on them and it would be all good.  So I get home, cut the apple into wedges, measure out 1/2 tbsp of natural peanut butter, and proceed to smear it on.  I wanted to gag.  It was so gross.  I was determined though and managed to choke down about 2/3 of the apple.  I don't know why I thought it was so disgusting, it was just an apple.  I like apple juice, I like apple sauce, so clearly I like the flavor of apples.  This was just nasty though.  *sigh*  I will try again tomorrow, but I'm not counting on it being more successful.

In other news, I worked out today.  Even though this was supposed to be a "rest" day according to The Firm Express workout calender, I just wanted to do something.  So I did the bonus dvd again, both workouts.  I think you can only get away with doing the 3 20 minutes workouts a week if you follow their meal plan, which as I previously stated I am not interested in.  And OMG is my chest sore from that workout yesterday, wow!  I am really enjoying these, I can't wait to see what my workout tomorrow is like!

1st Day on The Firm

Today I did the first workout on The Firm's Thin in 30 program.  The workout absolutely flew by.  And she broke down the moves a little better than the woman on the Pump It Up DVD (which my abs are extremely sore from btw).  Like most workout DVD's now there are beginner mods, I just didn't use them.  I really like it, it's totally doable, and it's 20 minutes.  I'm interested to see what the next workout is like.  I'm really hoping that my doing Weight Watchers will be enough for me to drop the 15 pounds in a month they promise.  I know I'm spupposed to follow their plan, but like I said, their food options are just not my thing.  Even if I only drop 10lbs in the next 30 days, I will feel like it was money well spent.  Tomorrow is supposed to be a rest day.  If I'm feeling up to it I might just do a Walk Away the Pounds DVD.  Just so I don't feel lazy, lol. 

I also need to buy some new weights before next week.  Cycle 2 requires 8-12 pound weights.  I think I will get a pair of 8's and a pair of 10's since Cycle 4 says 5-15 pound weights.  I'm not used to working with anything heavier than 8lbs (that's my kettlebell) but like Jillian says "You gotta push yourself, that's what it's about.  You want results, they're not coming for free."  Is it bad I can pull quotes from her videos?  Yeah, I have done them THAT much.  Oh, and for anyone interested in trying out a vegan lifestyle, check out my friend Kerry over at Vodka is Vegan (there's a link on my sidebar blog list, have no idea how to just add it here!).  She's been at it for 3 weeks and just started her blog.  I think it's interesting.  So that's it, hope you're all enjoying your week.  I will be back Wednesday with a review of C1 Cardio.

First Time

The Firm Express workout calender says to do the workouts Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I'm assuming I could do them Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday and have the same results, but M W F works for me.  So instead of officially starting I did both bonus workouts Pump It Up, and the Ab one.  Each are about 10 minutes, so I got a 20 minute workout in.  Things I liked: Pump It Up was challegning, I was breathing heavy and sweating, awesome!  And with the ab one, I could feel it in my abs so that's a good thing.  What I didn't like was they moved so fast and since it was my 1st time through, I missed doing the first set of each move because I had to watch and figure out what they were doing.  In Jillian's dvd's she breaks it down a little slower for you.  But I will figure it out.  Tomorrow I am officially starting the FE program (Firm Express).  Tomorrow is C1S (Cycle 1 Sculpt).  I will try and post and let you know how I made out!

Crazy Crazy Day!

So today we went to a Dr Suess themed pancake breakfast at this indoor play facility we frequent.  It was so much fun, the kids had a blast!  They have been looking forward to this for weeks.  Then I had to drop my daughter off with my mom so I could take my son to a birthday party for one of his classmates.  I was starving, so I had a slice of pizza while we were there.  Then I had to go pick up my daughter and make the hour long drive to my dad's house.  I normally go visit him every other week, but due to some car issues it's been about a month.  It was so great to see that side of the family.  Then on the way home we stopped at the mall, I got the kids dinner, and we finally got home around 6:30.  We left here at about 8:05, in case you were wondering.  Needless to say I did not (nor do I plan on) work out today.  I made myself a WW meal and now that the kids are in bed I am here.

So I did very well considering where I went and all the temptations there were.  Very proud of myself.  The only thing I could have done better was to bring myself a snack.  Some baby carrots or even a yogurt (it was cold enough, it would have been fine in the car!) because I was so hungry all day.  Oh, and I had a very pleasant surprise when I got home.  My Firm workouts came!  I wasn't expecting them until at least Thursday but here they are!  Yay!  I can't wait to try them.  I will not, however, be following the meal plan.  That stuff does not look appetizing to me.  But I will try to pay more attention to the sodium levels in the food I'm eating, as they recommend cutting way back.  They also say no sugar (or sugar substitute even if it's calorie free), but seriously f*** that!  I can't have my coffee without sugar, and I can't do sh** without my coffee.  And my ice cream of course =)  That's about it.  Oh and I did SIWW yesterday, so it was okay I took today off.  

Official WI

Down 2.6 for a total of 34.6!  Yay!  I knew getting the chicken and broccoli at Steve's would pay off ;)  Anyway, not a bad week, not as good as it normally is for my TOM, but still very good.  This week I plan on not taking so many days off of working out.  And I know I've been saying this, but I really would like to do a few days that's just cardio.  Not that I'm going to stop the strength training, but instead of doing it every time I work out, just do it like 3 days out of the week.  Hopefully my Firm workouts will be here by this time next week.  Not that it really matters, I will probably end up waiting until that Monday to start, but it will be nice to have them.  I have 2 birthday parties for friends of my son coming up this weekend, but that's not a huge deal.  I don't plan on having to eat there so I will be fine.  It will not be anywhere near as challenging as last weekend, and I am thankful for that.  So that's my check in for today, hope you're having a great week!

Treating Myself

It's happening, I'm getting bored with my workouts, I'm not getting the results I want.  So what was my solution?  To treat myself to a new set of workout DVD's of course!  Last night I ordered The Firm's Express Thin in 30 program.  I am super psyched to get it (in 7-10 business days, grrr!).   Hopefully it lives up to the hype.  If it doesn't, it has a money back gaurantee so at least I won't be out any cash.  At which point I will be ordering Brazilian Butt Lift.  No, I'm not kidding.  I've been seeing those infomercials and since most of my weight happens to be in my butt and thighs this time around (usually I'm pretty evenly distributed, not this time though!) I figure why not.  Even if The Firm does work, I plan on saving my pennies and getting BBL anyway.

I did SIWW today, have been eating well and OP.  So things are going pretty good.  It was absolutely gorgeous here in Jersey today!  The end of February and it feels like the end of March, I shall take it!  The kids and I were outside a good 2 1/2 - 3 hours today.  Which was awesome.  We've actually gone to the park it's been so nice out lately.  We have been to the park in January AND February which is unheard of.  This winter has been crazy.  As much as I love it (a. because we spend a lot more time outside, and b. lower heating bills!), I feel bad for the kids.  They love the snow, they love making snowballs, and sledding, and all that fun stuff and they have kind of been jipped this year.  So that's it, offical WI at WW tomorrow.  Hopefully my hard work will show on the scale!

Buh bye Plus Sizes! (For good)

So major major major NSV today.  I went to get dressed, I put on my size 12 jeans, which have been a little loose lately, but I never thought much of it until I noticed today they are pretty big.  Getting overly excited, I dashed to my closet and started tearing through all my old clothes.  I found jeans in 0, 2, 3, and 6, and my hopes of finding what I wanted started dwindling.  Then suddenly, all the way at the bottom I spied a pair of jeans, I checked the tag and yes!  They were the size I was looking for.  I quickly got ot of my 12's, and started pulling on the other pair silently praying the whole time.  And they fit!  I didn't even have to suck in and lay on the bed, they buttoned and zipped right away!  And do you know what size they are? 9!!!!!  Please pardon me while I do a little jig here.  They are a smidge tight, and I do have a bit of a muffin top, but they are 9's!

In other news, I did really well with my girl's night out on Saturday.  I had 6 beers, and did not indulge in my post drinking eating binge as usual so I stayed with in my points for the day!  Sunday I didn't do a formal workout.  I went into the city to see Priscilla Queen of the Desert with my mom, so I'm counting walking 8 or 9 New York blocks exercise.  AND so proud of myself, we went to Steve's for dinner afterwards and I got grilled chicken and steamed broccoli!  I did steal 1 of my mom's fries (because Steve's fries are aahh-mazing!), but that was it.  That was probably one of the hardest things I have EVER done in regards to eating.  I love Steve's, and because it's an hour away I NEVER get to go there, so for my not to get the burger and fries is huge.

I was so incredibly sore from SIWW that I didn't workout yesterday either.  And the funny thing is that it wasn't even my upper body that was sore, it was my thighs.  They absolutely killed.  Like when I was at the play with my mom, I had to ease myself down to go to the bathroom, that's how bad.  Which is weird, because I was doing SIWW last month and it didn't hurt.  Maybe it's because I'm using my kettlebell now and the added weight has something to do with it?  I might also have gone down lower with my squats.  But I did do it again today.  Feels so good to get a workout in!

And lastly I did my measurements today.  So here they are.  Waist-36, hips-36 1/2, thigh-22.  Hope you all enjoyed your weekend!

A Win?

So last night I went out with this guy I have been friends with for 8 years.  We're pretty good friends, but don't get to see eachother often.  And yes, JUST friends.  Anyway we were supposed to go to Applebees, so I planned for it and I was going to have a 1/2 chicken caesar without dressing.  Wel they were packed so we got Chinese instead.  Oops.  Instead of getting the General's chicken which I normally get, I got the chicken & broccoli (which still probably isn't great, but I'm pretty sure it's better than the General), and only a pint.  And I didn't even eat the rice.  I did, however, eat half of those fried noodles it came with, and I had 4 beers.  Whoops.  But this is the winning part.  I did not let it derail me, I was back OP today, I even worked out.  I did SIWW, I think I'm giving up on the 30DS for now at least.

Also tonight I am having girls night with my dear friend from way back.  She is the one I usually go out with, we try to make it a monthly thing.  So knowing I went over last night I have very carefully planned what to eat today.  I had 1 c Multi grain Cheerios with 1/2 c. skim milk (4points), 1 fiber one brownie (2points) and a salad with lettuce (0), 1 hard boiled egg (1) and 1/4 c. Purdue over roasted turkey breast (1).  That puts my grand total for today at 8 leaving me with 18 points!  That's like 6 beers!  So as long as I don't get the muchies I am golden.  Wish me luck!

Official WI!

Down 1lb from last week.  That puts me at 156.6.  I actually had started feeling today like I might have gained, so I'm glad I lost.  However, I worked so hard I really felt like I earned more than just a pound.  But tomorrow starts a new week!  Also, TOM arrived today, and a full week early!  WTH is up with that?  So maybe also there's some 1st day bloat.  Since it is here I am expecting a stellar number next Thursday.  I took yesterday and today off from working out.  Yesterday because I slammed my knee Tuesday night and it killed, and today because of some killer cramps.  Ladies who also suffer, you know that this very well can be a legit excuse!  Stayed on with my eating though, and now I'm glad I worked out so many days in a row this past week!  So back on with the working out tomorrow, have a great night!

Scratch That

I felt like such a loser not doing 30DS, trying to weasel out of it.  So I made myself do it anyway.  6:00 at night, I got out the dvd and pushed through.  So proud of myself right now.  This is day 15, half way there!  5 more days of level 2 and then I will really feel like I'm dying.  If I recall correctly level 3 is full of a bunch of plyo moves, and the cardio also incorporates the hand weights.....I'd be lying if I said I was looking forward to moving up.....

Slow Day

I didn't do 30DS this morning.  I did however, do a high intensity, short length Zumba class on the Wii.  I would like to do another, but at this point in the day I don't see that happening.  We shall see.  I'm feeling really hungry today, and I only have enough points left for dinner and my ice cream.  Already had my carrots, and I don't have any bananas to snack on, so I will just deal with it I guess.  So that's it for today, hope you enjoyed your weekend!

Still Strong

Did 30DS again yesterday!  That's 3 days of level 2.  I wasn't really in the mood to do it yesterday (if you recall from my previous post), but I forced myself, I got through, and I felt better.  Today I did not do 30DS, I did 2/3 of Jillian's Killer Buns & Thighs.  I probably could have done the whole thing, but whatever.  I did most of it and I have every intention of doing Zumba later.  Just the short class, but it's going to be medium intensity.  I really feel like I should have done 30DS but I really just wanted a break from it.  I do want to finish, I want to do it for 30 days like I originally planned.  I know that I can, I'm just making excuses. I have to force myself to do it.

I went over by 4 points last night, no big deal.  I was hungry so I made some toast.  Overall my eating has been really good.  I am very proud of myself.  I've been having lettuce every day, carrots every day, and even a banana here and there.  I know a lot of the blogs I follow, these women are absolutely getting all their fruits & veggies in daily.  I wish I could, I hope that eventually I will be able to make myself eat that healthy.  Right now I am just trying to focus on one thing at a time, and my biggest issue right now is the exercise.  Doesn't it take like 30 days or something to create a habit?  Or maybe it's just 3 weeks?  Not sure, but anyway I want to make sure that working out is definately a habit before I started making other changes.  At least I am headed in the right direction, I know I will get there eventually!

Stupid Bagels

I did get my 30DS in yesterday, yay!  I am really debating on whether or not I want to continue this challenge or not.  I like it because it is only 20 minutes, I get it done right away and then I don't have to worry about it.  And since I have started it, I think this is the most I have exercised since I started WW.  I just don't know if I'm ready for it.  It's tough and I don't feel like I'm in that kind of shape yet.  But I also think that if I quit and start doing some other work out routine I won't do it with the consistency I have been doing 30DS.  So I don't know.

I DO know that I will be doing some sort of work out today, whether it's going to be 30DS, or Zumba, or whatever, I will workout today.  I took too many days off this week.  I am staying on track with my eating, and as I have posted, I have been eating much healthier than normal.  I am very proud of myself for that.  My biggest triumph of the week?  A while ago I had gotten some bagels from the bagel place (I believe I may even have posted about how guilty I felt for consuming one) and I had put them in the freezer so they would keep.  I've been letting the kids split one once in a while for snack or breakfast, and I think I had two myself.  Anyway there was one left and I had been wanting it all week.  All week I was waiting to be able to fit it in so I didn't use any weeklies, then I said well if I do well at WI I'll just eat it and use some weeklies for it.  This bagel was in my head all week.  Finally yesterday I recalled how horrible I felt the last time I had eaten it.  So what did I do?  I gave it to the dog.  Screw you bagel, you are not worth it!

Unofficial WI

I skipped my meeting last night, my 6 year old has been sick the last few days and he had a high fever.  I didn't feel like it was worth it to drag him out just so I could hop on a scale.  So I weighed myself here.  Last night I was 158.4, but I like this morning's weigh in much better.  157.6!  So I am going with that one, lol.  I did do 30DS on Wednesday, but due to my son being sick and having a bunch of running to do yesterday, I slacked and took the day off.  Today is a new day, I will be doing 30DS and I am really actually going to make an effort this week to add in some cardio.  Even if it is just the short Zumba class on the Wii instead of the midlength one.

I have also changed up what I'm eating a little bit.  Instead of having 2 ff hot dogs on a potato roll every day for lunch, 3 days this past week I had 1/2 c Perdue short cuts roasted turkey, with 1 slice ff cheese, romaine lettuce, and 1 tbsp light mayo and a ff, high fiber tortilla.  6 points!  And very delicious.  I've also started having hard boiled eggs and yogurt for snacks.  Feeling good, hoping for another 2lb loss this coming week.  Will check back soon!

Waiter, I Would Like Some Motivation with a Side of Death

So remember that picture I posted of that shirt I wore like 7 summers ago?  Well, I decided it would be a great motivator if I hung it on my freezer.  Yesterday I was just extremely hungry, so I thought maybe if I kept that shirt in plain sight it would help me make some good choices.  It did, I am very happy with how I did yesterday.  That right there was my motivation.  Now for my side of death.

Oh. My. God.  I forgot just how f***ing hard level 2 of 30DS is.  Before I was even 1/2 way through the first strength circuit I thought I was going to die.  I kept thinking I can do this, if I can just push through to the cardio I can get a little break.  Well that turned out to be quite the joke.  Now I know I am still not in great shape, but even level 1 when I first started wasn't that hard!  I really thought since I had 10 days of level 1 under my belt that this would feel a little challenging, not like mission impossible!  But I made it, without taking a break and with only modifying like 2 moves slightly.  I was literally panting by the time I was done.

There were a couple points during that workout when I really thought I couldn't do it, that I had bitten off more than I could chew.  But then I remembered you, my 4 awesome blog readers.  I had said I was going to do this.  10 days per level.  And I will do it this time.  I have done 30DS many times, I have done all 3 levels, but I have never ever done it for 30 days.  I am determined to make this the time I actually complete it.  Thanks to you guys and this blog.  For without you, I would not have even made myself finish today.  I don't even know if you guys still read this, but it still says you follow me so that's good enough.  On the chance you guys are still checking on me, I am going to finish. 

Two Steps Forward, Two Steps Back?

I got my 30DS in yesterday!  That makes Day 9 out of 10, so today is my last day on level 1.  I stayed within my Points yesterday, had some baby carrots and even a banana!  Wow, I actually had fruit!  So proud of myself.  And I got an amazing night's sleep Friday night.  Last night was okay, I probably should have gone to bed a half hour before I actually did, but whatever.

So the bad news?  I have become really obesessive with weighing myself.  I used to just weigh myself on Wednesdays so that way I kind of knew ahead of time how bad or good it was going to be at weigh in on Thursday.  Then I started weighing myself (daily) starting on Mondays.  Just so I knew how much harder I had to bust my ass to get a good number on Thursdays.  Now (starting last week) I weigh myself every single day.  Every morning before breakfast.  This is something I have never done on WW.  I never weigh myself at home.  Weighing myself daily was something I did when I was anorexic.  Does this mean my eating disorder is back?  No, but it could be a sign that I may be headed in that direction.

I am trying really really hard not to feel like I have to be "perfect" on WW.  I have allowed myself to use my my Points allowence which is a huge step for me.  I even gained once (back in December) and didn't cry.  I don't want to start moving backwards, but I'm not sure how to stop without falling completely off plan and regaining all the weight I just worked so hard to lose.  I find that I am really strugging this time, and I don't know why. 

Feeling off Track

So as you know I went out last night.  As far as not blowing Points goes, it was a success.  I only went 1 Point over.  Today I have stayed within my Points, but have not worked out.  I really want to, but all day I have felt dizzy and light headed, so I figured I should probably take today off, try and get some rest tonight, and be right back to it tomorrow.  I hate when I don't work out.  It makes me feel like I'm 5 times larger than I am.  I keep getting so disgusted with myself.  Especially when I don't have a great week  (like this past week).  Tomorrow's another day.

Weigh In

Normally I weigh in at WW Thursday evenings, but tonight I happen to be going out with a friend of mine.  So I busted out my scale this morning and hopped on. 159.8, out of the 160's!  I knew this wasn't going to be a great week in terms of weight loss (my little mini binge and all), but I'm happy to have lost and not maintained, or even worse gained!  I am not going to let tonight derail me.

 We are going to a concert, I am not going to drink and I think we are getting Subway for dinner, so that is completely doable.  I actually have to go to work today (wtf???) so I do not have high hopes for getting in 30DS.  Not a big deal, I did it the last 3 days in a row, so I deserve a rest day.  I also have to go to work tomorrow (my mom's office is a little short this week, and let's face it, I need some $$), but I am determined since I have nothing else to do tomorrow that I will get 30DS in.  2 more days on level 1 and I can move up to level 2.  I hope I'm ready for it!

Also Jillian has apparently come out with a 90 day program.  I was very curious and interested in it (in case you didn't know by now I have a mini obsession with her) so I checked it out.  The preview scared me.  Like it's scary.  I'm also afraid of p90X and Insanity.  I'm trying to decide if Jillian's Body Revolution is worth the $130 or if I should just stick with her regular dvd's.  I am tempted to buy 2 that I don't have.  Her new one, Extreme Shed & Shred, and Killer Buns and Thighs.  I might do that today actually, after work before I go out.  I've been going through some things lately and need a little retail therapy.  And it would be good if I spent money on stuff I actually kind of need/use.

So that's about it.  I want to check in here tomorrow and post about how it went tonight.  I gotta say, this concert isn't really my thing.  My friend needed some one to go with her, and so me being the good friend I am, agreed to go.  It is a night out without the kids after all!  She is about as excited about this concert as I am when I go see 311, so this is a big deal for her.  She better have a good time, I'm missing Jersey Shore for this! ;)  Happy Thursday.