I’ve been sticking to the 1800 calories for the most part and I’m averaging 13 miles per week on the treadmill. I’ve been doing Pilates and weights a couple of times per week. Because I’ve been keeping track of my workouts and weight on excel, I can see what has helped me lose the most. It also shows me that I’ve been making progress even though it may not look like much when looking at the numbers on the scale. I was pretty excited by the inches I’d lost (and gained) in two months. I’ve also lost nine pounds since my last update.
July
September
Bust
37.75"
38.25"
Waist
35.5"
33.5"
Hips
45"
42"
Weight
170
161
I noticed that the most weight loss comes from doing the free weights exercises at least three times per week so that is my current goal. I’m aiming for Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. If I can get some in on the weekend or on Mondays as well that will be a nice accomplishment.
My big hurdle with doing this is that I have to lock myself in the office in order to do these exercises because that is where the internet connection is to watch the videos on exercisetv.tv. Sometimes my kids get really unruly during that time and I come out of my workout to confront some mess that’s been made in my absence. My plan to address this is to make index cards of the workouts so that I don’t have to be in front of the computer to do them. This way I can do the free weights in the same room as my children and not have to worry about any surprises.
They’re very intrigued by my exercising and try to copy me. This is good preparation for when I start teaching them Tai Chi. I believe I’ll be ready to start that once I reach my running goal.
I’m still making progress towards my goal of running 20 minutes straight at 6.0 miles per hour. Here are the latest numbers:
3.36 miles
363 calories
average heart rate: 160
45 minutes total
I’ve been waking up at 5:30 a few times per week which is how I’ve managed the 13 miles. So the next challenge is to make sure to go to bed before 12:30am so that I can have the gas I need the next morning without napping.
What has helped me love the process of reaching my fitness goals is:
1- Music. Music or watching a movie (for weights and Pilates) really takes away the potential for boredom and consequently not pushing yourself as hard. I can get lazy when I’m bored with the activity. While treadmill running is fulfilling and fun with music, it is really boring when you’re staring at the gym tvs without sound or staring at the calorie counter on the treadmill. I’ve never stopped exercising out of boredom but I do get tired faster without the entertainment. Some people might say, “Why not try running outside, it’s less boring?” Well, the truth is I’m rather clumsy. The treadmill keeps me from falling to the floor when I misstep (which is pretty often). Last week I tripped on the treadmill on three separate occasions in 35 minutes. The treadmill saved me from falling. If I had been outside, I could’ve gotten hurt and then been out of commission for a few days, resulting in having a harder time getting back into the exercise routine.
2- Reading. During the warm up and cool down on the treadmill, I like to read inspirational, self-improvement books. Reading before the challenging running part gives me some wonderful self-talk while I work out. Sometimes I get so into the book during the cool down that I end up walking more than I had planned. I choose one book to read that is only read during the workout so that this tool can be motivating. This also helps me look forward to the next workout when I can get back to the book again. Right now I’m reading Ask and It Is Given: Learning to Manifest Your Desires by Esther and Jerry Hicks.
3- Tracking. Keeping track of what I’ve done in an exercise log has helped me see that progress is being made even though it may not have seemed like it. I can see on paper how much stronger I am and how much more stamina I have. Having a clear picture of where I currently am has been really motivating. For instance when I notice that I have lost another pound or that I can run a minute faster, I’m less likely to skip working out so that I can “keep” the progress I’ve made. From my experience I have seen that it’s quite easy to gain that pound back just by missing a couple of days at the gym.
All in all, I’m quite proud of myself and appreciative of how healthy my body is. Some people have to overcome some very real physical hurdles before they can get to this level of fitness. I’m blessed that I’ve just had to overcome some mental ones. I’m loving my progress and I’m beginning to love the process. Loving the process is key, it’s what gives you the energy to make progress.
This is just a reminder to make your new moon wishes today. The new moon enters Virgo today at 2:44 EDT. Don’t know what I’m talking about? Read my book review about New Moon Astrology, at my blog Astrology Mommy. Need ideas about what to wish for at this time? Read about the new moon in Virgo.
I have run 122.46 miles since January 30, 2009. I feel very accomplished. I’ve added free weights and Pilates to my workout schedule. Right now I’m using 2.5 pound weights. Basically I’m following these workouts from exercise tv Monday – Friday:
I’ve been consistent with the Pilates and free weights for about three weeks. My stomach is flatter and I see some definition in my arms.
I’m now able to run 20 minutes at 5.0 mph. I’ve already started training for 6.0 mph, the longest time at that speed is three minutes.
I have a new goal to lose 30 pounds by December 21, 2009. According to Fitday.com I need to eat no more than 1873 calories every day. It’s easy to exceed that amount if I’m not conscious but if I keep track it’s easy to come in way under that amount and still feel satisfied.
My 30 day challenge of not hitting the snooze button went well. I think I only hit it once the first week of the challenge.
I’ve made a lot of improvements in my running. I’ve even lost 7 pounds. Right now my schedule is 62 minutes on Saturday and Sunday and 42 minutes during the week. I’m able to run for 20 minutes straight. Today I ran for 40 minutes with a 5 minute walking break in between.
Today’s Numbers
Treadmill
4.21 miles
528 calories
heart rate: 160
62 minutes total
My pressing the snooze button totally messed up this challenge. I’ve been getting up late and not going to the gym for about two weeks. There were quite a few times when I didn’t even realize I had turned the alarm off. So I’ll have to start a new challenge. It begins tomorrow. It will be to set the alarm and NOT press the snooze. I won’t worry about getting up at the same time every day. I need to break the snooze button habit first. Tomorrow I’ll set my alarm for 8:30 am and NOT PRESS SNOOZE. This challenge ends on March 30th.
I went to the gym today and I added an extra minute to the running portion of my workout. I felt energized throughout most of it. The image of my sexy summer legs kept me going as well.
Today’s Numbers
Treadmill
average speed: 3.8 mph
2.69 miles
322 calories
heart rate: 175
43 minutes total
It may not be considered “diet food” given the cheese and the non-whole grain egg noodles but this casserole was a big hit with my husband and I. This is a very good thing since I’m generally not enthused by my own cooking. I got the recipe from my cousin who is an excellent cook. However, I got it over the phone and she tends to eyeball her stuff a lot so this recipe is for those who know how they like their dishes in terms of seasoning and salt content.
You’ll need:
2lbs of cooked, cubed chicken (I seasoned the chicken with Adobo, salt, pepper, and light cilantro and sauteed this in a fry pan with garlic and onions in olive oil .)
1lb of egg noodles cooked in water and chicken broth until only slightly soft- do not overcook (I added salt and boullion to the water. Be sure you taste these when they’re ready. That is your chance to add salt and or garlic to the noodles if necessary.)
1 to 2 bunches (depending on preference) of blanched broccoli
shredded cheddar cheese to taste (save some to put on top) I used three quarters of a 10 ounce block
additonal 1 cup of chicken broth
Mix all ingredients in a casserole dish. Add 1 cup of chicken broth. Add shredded cheese to the top. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
*The picture above shows the pieces of broccoli and chicken larger than I would prefer. The next time I made this I made sure to make the chicken cubes and broccoli bite sized so that all the flavors could be in each mouthful.
I need to modify my 30 day challenge. I need to wake up at 7:00 am instead of 5:00 am on Saturdays and Sundays. I like to hang out on the weekends and whatnot. I’d like the liberty to keep late hours on Friday and Saturday nights without having to survive on 4 hours of sleep.
I got up at 7:00 am today and went to the gym. I was a little more tired than the last time but I pulled through. I feel great. While I was running and needing more energy I was imagining how great I’d feel once I was finished and that kept me going.
Today’s Numbers
Treadmill
average speed: 3.8 mph
2.60 miles
305 calories
heart rate: 171
42 minutes total
I read a book while I do the walking part of my routine. The current book is The Amazing Power of Deliberate Intent: Living the Art of Allowing by Esther (aka Abraham) and Jerry Hicks. I’m enjoying the suggested Law of Attraction “games” or processes as Abraham would call them. It’s good for the treadmill because there’s not a lot of stuff per page that I need to flag so I just dog-ear the page I want to come back to.
That’s when I finally got out of bed after hitting the snooze a few times. It took me a while to get out of the house but I did make it to the gym. I said a lot of affirmations during running. That was especially helpful when I was getting tired.
I’m getting inspired by Personal Development for Smart People. I’ve decided to revisit the 30 day challenge. I’ve done two so far. The first was to stop complaining for thirty days in 2006. The second was waking up at 5:00am every day for 30 days. Both of these challenges were extremely successful. The 30 days of not complaining really helped me to break that habit. I’ve learned to be a “suck it up and get over it” person when it comes to the stuff I used to complain about. I honestly feel that breaking this habit has changed my life dramatically. I bordered between ingrate and martyr more times than can be counted before that challenge.
The 30 days of waking up at 5:00am resulted in me losing 30 pounds of baby weight in about 4 months. Because I got up so early and didn’t want to wake the kids, I would go to the gym. I became an early riser for a couple of months but slowly slipped back into my regular “sleeping in” mode as time went on. It’s time to do this again. I’m ready to lose another 30 pounds and what’s kept me struggling with going to the gym is not waking up in time. I’m thinking of going to the gym 4 times during the work week and one day on the weekend. However, the goal in this exercise is to be up at 5:00am. Going to the gym will be icing on the cake.
So I start tomorrow morning. I’m excited to see the changes that this challenge will bring this time. I think the next challenge will be to do Pilates every day for 30 days but I’ll get to that next month.
A friend recently gave me his copy of The Secret History of the World: As Laid Down by the Secret Societies by Mark Booth. This books starts at creation of course and goes all throughout known history and mythology, explaining how each of these events would be interpreted by said secret societies. Right now I’m almost 1/4 into the book and as fascinating as I’m finding the subject I wish it read more like a historical reference than a novel. I don’t mind creative embellishing and whatnot but it would’ve been nice to see footnotes for some of his assertions. Instead there is a super long reading list in the back from which the author says to draw his information. For instance, on page 90 he talks about the belt of Orion being a euphemism for Osiris’ penis. This is fascinating. I would like to read more about this. However, I’ll have to slog through that bibliography and hope I find the book that will lead me to that piece of information.
Although I’m reading both at the same time, I foresee finishing Personal Development for Smart People first. I’m at a point right now when I’m ready to put my energy towards those long term goals that I’ve been setting. I’m seeking inspiration to stay motivated and ideas for how to organize my goal setting so that they are the first thing I’m thinking of when I get up. I’m excited to see what other useful tidbits Pavlina shares. I’ve found a couple already. His words on failure were really interesting. It’s not that I hadn’t heard it before but the language he uses seems so “common sense” that the message has finally sunk in.
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Diet/Excercise, Tracking Motion 
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. I’ve decided to revisit the 30 day challenge. I’ve done two so far. The first was to 
by Mark Booth. This books starts at creation of course and goes all throughout known history and mythology, explaining how each of these events would be interpreted by said secret societies. Right now I’m almost 1/4 into the book and as fascinating as I’m finding the subject I wish it read more like a historical reference than a novel. I don’t mind creative embellishing and whatnot but it would’ve been nice to see footnotes for some of his assertions. Instead there is a super long reading list in the back from which the author says to draw his information. For instance, on page 90 he talks about the belt of Orion being a euphemism for Osiris’ penis. This is fascinating. I would like to read more about this. However, I’ll have to slog through that bibliography and hope I find the book that will lead me to that piece of information.