A Year of Gratitude #132

 

A Year of Gratitude #132: Pilar and Christy

I never would have guessed that I'd be able to find the desire and, more importantly, the desire to change my lifestyle. Being overweight, running/jogging/walking was not something I was interested in doing, because it made me tired.

It's always easy to find a reason NOT to do something. Finding the strength and will power to actually do something challenging, that's another story. I'm so so so thankful that a switch was turned on in my head, and my focus, determination, and motivation to turn my life around has continued.

I credit a LARGE part of this to Pilar and Christy. They are so supportive of me, and hold me up when I'm down. They don't have to go walgging with me. They are both more accomplished, can run further, faster, and better than I can, and yet, they stay with me and keep up the positive talk. They help keep me accountable, and don't let me give up when my brain is saying to stop.

The three days a week that I get to spend my morning with them are so much more enjoyable because of them. I thought I could do my Couch25K program here in my neighborhood and do it alone. Pilar was 100% right when she said to be successful, I needed to do it with others. 

I'm so very grateful for Pilar offering to work with me three days a week. I love when Christy can join us and when Leslie joins it's great too. 

Never in a million, bazillion years would I have ever thought I'd be spending my mornings walgging with the ladies. I'm thankful for them in my life and for my continued progress. This week I went from jogging for 30 seconds at a time to 45 seconds at a time. Next week, I think I'm going to attempt the solid minute of jogging. 

I'm thankful for Christy and Pilar and for their support, love, and encouragement.

A Year of Gratitude #123

 

A Year of Gratitude #123: Will Power and Determination

 

Gus and the boys running on the greenway after our cool-down period

I wasn't sure what to expect from today's walk/jog/walk. I was sore yesterday, and mainly it was my abs that hurt more than anything else. I had decided that if I wasn't feeling up to it, I would just walk and not do any jogging.

I have to say... today was GREAT! Christy and the boys joined us and we had a great time walking and talking. My stroller has this speaker system that you can use, and for whatever reason, I wasn't able to hear much and so I kept trying to figure out why I wasn't hearing my iPhone with the voice commands. I think being distracted with that, actually helped.

Or... maybe mentally I knew what to expect and I wasn't as nervous. I don't know. Whatever the reason, today was not awful and I didn't say, "I hate this" or "This is effing hard" at all. Now, don't get me wrong, my shins still burned and my thighs were burning a bit too, but it wasn't a bad thing. I felt like I was really working parts of me that haven't been worked in quite some time, and as a result, I felt great.

Because of the sound issues, I did skip one jog cycle... and it was interesting to be walking and have a thought in my head of, "I'm ready to start jogging now... why is this walk taking so long?" Then I noticed that I had skipped the jog and it made sense. It was still so odd to have the thought in my head that I was ready to jog. That's so totally NOT the Cathy from two weeks ago.

I packed a banana to eat on the drive home and I shared it with Gus. I had a salad for lunch and I have been drinking a lot of water. I just feel better about my choices and there's no doubt in my mind that if I keep this up, I WILL be successful.

I can't even being to say how much the love and support of family and friends means. My dad called at noon to see how my morning was and he wanted to know if I just walked (as I had said I would do in my blog post), or if I jogged. He was quite proud of me that I actually jogged. I asked him if he'd be willing to walk/jog/walk with me during the week that we're in MI. He said he would love to. Then my mom said she wants to walk with me too... so maybe on MWF I'll do my C25K with my dad and then T/TH I'll walk with my mom. I'm excited that I can stay on track while on vacation.

I just hope Steve stays supportive. His ex-wife was a crazy runner and COULDN'T do anything if she didn't have her run in. When I met Steve's dad for the first time, he said, "You're not a runner are you???" I jokingly said, "Look at me... do I look like a runner?? I don't run unless something is trying to eat me." 

All joking aside, I just want to feel better about myself. I want to look in the mirror and actually see the payoff for my hard work. I know it'll come... and after talking to Jessica yesterday, she said in a month I'll be amazed at how far I'll have come in the C25K training. 

So... Week 1 Day 2 is complete. We're meeting on Friday morning before the Busy Bag Swap that I'm hosting here at my house... and we're going to walk at the greenway that's closer to me. Hopefully I can get back here and be ready for the swap by 10:15/10:30 (it starts at 10:30).

I'm officially on the books for a MWF training cycle. Christy and Pilar said they're on board and hopefully Leslie can join us too. It's incredible how being accountable changes your views on things. Having people to do this with has made it all possible and I'm so thankful for the role that so many people have played in my motivation and determination.

I hope I'm not too sore tomorrow and that the section of the greenway that we're doing on Friday is as flat as the one we've been going to!! I HATE HILLS!!!

Does Walking Around Target Count???

I'm going to say that yes, walking around Target for about an hour, most definitely constitutes as exercise. :-) 

I was told not to stay home and do nothing today because it'd make it even worse tomorrow... and I needed to head to Target anyway, so I went. And I walked around the entire store for almost an hour (mostly on purpose).

There's only so much that an almost-two-year-old can handle... and it WAS lunch time, so I had to play my cards right. I also ran into a friend from AAM (Atlanta Area Mommies) and spent a few catching up with her... but other than that, we were moving the whole time.

I was able to get home and put Gus down for a nap and I was able to chat with my cousin Jessica about running and the Couch 2 5K program. I found out that my (TMI-- AGAIN SO SORRY) feelings of instantaneously needing to poop are normal. Apparently, my body will adjust to all the moving around that I'm doing when I'm jogging (and friends... there's a WHOLE lot moving around). I thought it was just me and my nerves... but it's normal (I guess) to feel the sudden need to go. Not sure what can be done about that... since I do my moving at the greenway and there's NO PLACE TO GO but the woods. HAHAHA.

I also came to the conclusion that I do not ever have to RUN an entire 5k. I am totally fine with my jog/walk combo routine. I hope to be able to jog longer as I get stronger and more endurance, but I don't HAVE to jog an entire 5k without stopping. In fact, I'm following another site (Run Injury Free with Jeff Galloway) and feel like his method is perfect for me. You run 30 second and walk 1.5 (which is what I did Monday)... it gradually increases. This is where the C25K differs-- in that program, you eventually just run (without walking) for the entire time. 

I was talking to my dad yesterday (he called to see how my first day went of training) and he suggested that I get a heart monitor watch. I found a Polar (I did some research on heart monitors) for a pretty good price and it even tells you how many calories you've burned. I thought I had ordered a Timex, but I was wrong... It was a Polar (there are so many brands of heart monitor watches... I got lost in all of them). It should be here next week and I'm looking forward to using the chest strap to see my heart rate. My dad said it would be a really good idea to know if I was in the right zone for optimal exercise. I don't want to over do it, but I don't want to under do it either.

So we'll see. I am meeting Pilar in the morning to walk again... round two. What's really odd to me is that my legs don't hurt like I thought they would... but my abdominals seriously hurt. I feel like someone has been beating on me. My arms hurt too... I'm guessing from pushing the stroller. Even my back muscles are a little sore, but my legs are totally fine. WEIRD.

See you tomorrow for an update on training day two. I pray that I can stay focused and just take it one step at a time.

Running Is Effing Hard!!

So today I started the Couch 2 5K program. I modified it and instead of jogging for a full minute, we did 30 seconds. It was more than enough for me. 

I was so nervous about starting today. I didn't sleep well last night because I kept thinking about today. Plus, Steve left this morning for NYC and I never sleep well before he leaves. 

So this morning I got up, showered and then went and got Gus. We had breakfast and then headed to the greenway to meet Pilar and Leslie. I did a few stretches before I left the house, but I think I need to do more on Wednesday.

We got to the entrance of the greenway and we started right away. The five minute warm-up took the entire walk to the main path... and then as soon as we got on the path, the jogging began. Pilar said to just do a quick walk... nothing too strenuous. The first 30 wasn't too bad. I tried to focus on my breathing... Leslie said she heard you're supposed to do two breaths in and two breaths out... I tried it but it didn't work for me.

Then I walked for 1.5 minutes and it was a brisk walk... I was still feeling good. I realized two things after my first jog (TMI here sorry): 1) I need to wear tighter undies when running. They were falling down as I ran... which made me very self-conscious about what the people behind me were seeing.  2) I need to wear tighter pants when jogging/running. My pants (and undies) were falling down as I was moving. I had to keep pulling them up... which was not fun.

As I moved through the cycles of walking and jogging... my shins were on fire. Seriously burning and aching. Each step I took was painful and I began to just think about getting to the parking lot. I just wanted to be done. 

I realized when I was about 1/2 way through... that running is hard. It's seriously hard work. I got mad at myself for letting myself get to this point. Had I been more aware and more focused before, it wouldn't have been AS hard as it was today. 

The good news is that I got to the bridge (the same place that Pilar and I stopped on Thursday) and realized that I was well past the 1/2 point of my training. I had 12 minutes left to go... 

I really can't picture myself running a 5K. I can't even picture myself running for five straight minutes. I guess it's all about building it... and hopefully it'll get easier with each day. I hope so anyway.

When my training was finished, we were still quite a bit out from the parking lot, so we got another 15 minutes of walking in, but it was much slower (which was nice). I let Gus out of the stroller and he and Riggs and Logan had fun running on the path. 

I'm sore tonight. My legs hurt and I feel like I weigh a million pounds. I took a two hour nap when Gus was napping and I woke up feeling a little better. With my exercise today, I burned over 600 calories... so I had a lot of extra added to my available for the day.

On the way home from playgroup (we went to Kathryn's for playgroup after the greenway), I stopped at Chick Fil A and got a chargrilled chicken salad. It was so delicious. It was like 200 calories and then the dressing was another 140 (Berry Balsamic Vinaigrette). I also had a fruit cup (100 calories) and a Dr. Pepper 10 (10 calories). So my entire lunch was less than 500 calories and I felt good. 

It's 10:35 and I have consumed 1,090 for the day. My dinner was filling (crock pot tacos) and I had an apple a little bit ago and a banana after my jog this morning. I like that I'm aware of what I'm eating and making better food choices. I probably should eat something again before bed... but I don't know what. I'm a little hungry so I'll probably have a piece of cheese.

 

My tacos (275 calories each) and I splurged with a Mt. Dew (it was soooooo good)

I'm grateful to have tomorrow off. I plan on sitting on my butt all day and stretching as much as I can. If I'm not feeling better on Wednesday, we'll just be walking. I am not going to give up... and staying focused is critical in the beginning stages of anything new. I figure I need to do this many many times before it's a habit and I get into "the zone" as Lacey calls it.

Again, I'm so glad to have the love and support of friends and family. It really means the world to me. And I'm most thankful for Pilar. She's such a good person and so patient with me. She uses her MWF with me as her "easy days" and does her running on T/TH. :-) At least she isn't being held back by my beginning abilities.

:-)

A Year of Gratitude #120

 

A Year of Gratitude #120: Six Pounds

I got up this morning and weighed myself for my weekly weigh-in. I had a really good feeling that I lost, but I wasn't sure how much. When I saw my number... it was six less than last week. That means I am six pounds closer to my goal... and six pounds away from my heaviest. I am determined to never go back to my weight as of last Sunday.

I'm thankful that I was able to see my hard work pay off. I know there will be weeks when I weigh-in and I don't see any movement on the scale, or heaven help me, it'll say I gained. With everything worth doing right, there will be challenges. I will face difficult decisions and have to pay for my choices. I pray for strength and motivation to stay on the positive side of this and to always have a positive attitude. I honestly believe having the will power and support of others is what will get me through my tough phases and back on track for accomplishing my goals.

I have to go one day at a time and one week at a time when it comes to this journey. If I stand back and think about the BIG picture (and it's quite a BIG picture friends)... I am overwhelmed and scared. So instead, I focus on each day and one week at a time. 

This week I am starting the Couch 2 5K program and while I am a little nervous about it, I know that I just need to face it as it comes. I will focus on Monday and getting through my very first training and that's all I am going to think about. Then I'll worry about day two of training.

I think if I can stay focused, I'll be able to stay in this for the long haul. I am very realistic about how long this is going to take... and according to my Lose It app, I will reach the first goal for my weight-loss in April of 2013. That's just under a year from now... and a year brings a lot of things. Once I reach my goal (and who knows, it could be sooner that I'm able to reach that first goal), I have another goal that will be much harder to reach. 

I'm determined to just go with the flow and let things progress naturally. I didn't get where I am over night, and it's not going to come off over night. 

I'm asking for prayers that I can stay motivated, inspired, and focused. For those things... I am most grateful. 

I lost six pounds. I am six pounds lighter. I am six pounds closer to health. I am six pounds down... and it's a hell of a lot better than gaining. :-)

A Year of Gratitude #119

 

A Year of Gratitude #119: Smart Choices

I'm thankful that my friend Kristina told me about the Lose It app for the iPhone. I downloaded it (for free) last weekend (Sunday) and started monitoring my caloric intake and exercise. 

This entire week I've logged each thing that has gone into my mouth. Yes... everything. It's actually not as difficult or time-consuming as I thought it would be. The app has a built in barcode scanner, so all I have to do is scan a barcode and it'll give me the calories. There have been a few food items that it didn't have stored in the system, so I had to use the internet to search for caloric information.

This week I've also realized that pop is a waste of calories. I'd rather save the 170 calories for something filling, rather than a Mt. Dew. Don't get me wrong, every now and then, it's a treat to allow myself to have one, but I've decided to just switch over to diet pop instead. I don't really like the taste of diet pop, so I am starting off by drinking Dr. Pepper 10. It has 10 calories and tastes so much like regular Dr. Pepper that I actually forget that it's not regular.

I'm going to get some Sprite Zero too this week. For some reason, Diet Coke and Diet Mt. Dew just taste disgusting to me. So I'm going to save the transition to those for a later time. For now, I'm just drinking a lot of water.

It's amazing that the more I'm walking and exercising, the less crap I want to consume. I don't want to burn calories only to throw my hard work out the window by eating something that's full of fat and calories. It's amazing that my thoughts and eating have aligned. I'm so thankful for it.

I'm thankful that tomorrow I'm starting my preparations for running my first 5K on September 15th. I am turning over a new leaf and trying to get healthier. I feel more determined than ever before and I don't know where all my motivation and inspiration is coming from, but this time really, honestly, feels different. 

I just downloaded an app called Dotti's Food Score. It goes with the website that I used to use when I was doing WW. I like it because not only does it have WW points for everything (I am not doing WW), but it also have calories and fat info. It has just about every restaurant that you can think of, and I think this app will be really helpful when we're traveling north in a few weeks.

I'm thankful that I have been able to find the tools to help me reach my goals.

My First 5K...

Okay... I just got an email from Pilar asking me to take a look at a link that she sent me for a 5K here in Johns Creek. It's September 15. She asked if I wanted to do it and set that date as my goal to be able to run my first 5K.

I'm all a flutter inside. Will I be ready for a 5K by September??? I looked at my calendar and it's like 20 weeks away. That means my 9 week Couch 2 5K program that's set for three days a week for nine weeks... would give me extra time to keep working up to the 5K. 

I told her I'm in. I'll set that as my goal. 

Holy S#*t!!!

I hope Steve and Gus will come and cheer me on! I pray that I am able to prepare myself for running a 5K, but it's good to know that even if I can't run the whole thing, I can walk if needed. I just need to focus on each day and stay strong. 

On Monday we're starting the Couch 2 5K program. It's 30 minutes. Starts with a 5 minute warm-up and then you run for a minute and walk for 1.5 and keep going back and forth for 20 minutes. We'll see. I don't know if I can run for a minute. Seriously. 

I'm going to enjoy this last weekend of my former non-running self... because Monday starts the real training. No turning back now!! 

I have been doing really well with keeping track of EVERYTHING I eat and I haven't gone over on calories at all. I weigh in on Sunday. I'll be sure to post if I lost. I hope I did. Even if it's just a pound!!

A Year of Gratitude #110

 

A Year of Gratitude #110: Effort

I did it. I got off my bum after Gus's nap and we took the stroller on its first voyage. LOL. I learned a few thing as I was out with Gus.

1. I am so incredibly out of shape. I had to stop numerous times on my mile walk. It's sad, but at least I'm doing something to combat it.
2. I must get the brake fixed on the stroller. I had initially said, "Why would you need a brake on a jogging stroller?" Then I started my first downhill descent and I had a difficult time controlling how fast the stroller was going. My toes were crammed into the tips of my shoes... not comfortable at all.
3. I need to update my iTunes playlists and sync my phone with these new playlists. My music selection today was not the greatest.
4. My app that calculates how many calories I burned forgot to take into consideration two things: a) I'm carrying a lot of additional weight on my body-- surely I burned more because I was carrying more weight... right???  b) I was pushing a stroller AND Gus in addition to my walking... AND had a dog thrown into the mix.
5. My neighborhood is VERY hilly. I didn't realize how steep the hills were until I was working my butt off today.

I didn't think my transition into becoming a jogger/runner would be easy, but after just walking today, I feel like it's a much bigger hill than I had expected. I can only go out and try again and not give up, but man oh man... I kicked my own butt, and all I did was walk.

I got to our driveway and it took all the strength that I could muster to get us up the driveway. I thought I was going to die pushing Gus up the drive!

I don't know if it's normal to finish exercising and be ready to sleep, but I was. I didn't get the "rush of energy" that I assume most people get. I just wanted to take a nap. Maybe that'll change as I get more active and my body adjusts to burning more calories.

All I know is that I gave it an great effort. It's going to be really hard and a long road, but as long as I get out there and try, something positive has to come from it. It's better than just sitting on my butt doing nothing.

I also found that after I finished, I was drinking water and plugging in my info on my phone, and it said I burned like 260 calories. I seriously had a "WTF???" moment. I couldn't believe all the effort it took to only burn 260 calories. Hmmmm...

Anyway. Not sure if walking/jogging/running with friends is a good idea at this early stage. I was so out of breath and had to stop so many time, I don't want to hold someone else up, or feel like I can't stop because of someone else. Maybe I'll get to the point where it's easier and I don't stop as much. Maybe today is as bad as it'll ever be because it was the first day???

I Am Not A Runner (YET)

 

TRUE DAT

So I was on Facebook not too long ago, and my friend Lee posted that she was so excited to do The Color Run 5K. I had never heard of it, so I decided to Google it. I'm not sure what happened, but I immediately decided that I wanted to run it in 2013. It was like instant motivation for me, and it looked so fun.

It just looks like a complete blast and I want to do it. Maybe I can get three others to join with me and we can run as a team of four. I just think this is just what I need to get myself motivated.

As if the stars weren't aligning enough with a sudden burst of motivation, I sent out an email to my MOMS Club asking if anyone had a jogging stroller to give/sell me and I actually had someone email me and tell me that she had one for me! I was able to go today and pick it up and it's beautiful. It's a Jeep Music on the Move stroller and has a built-in speaker/iPod cord so I can listen to my music while out and about!

So then today, we were at an event and I was talking with some of the ladies about my decision/motivation to start the Couch to 5K and Pilar said she'd work with me and help me built up to being able to run a 5k! I'm so excited! I told her that I am VERY out of shape and it's going to take a while for me to get into the groove, but she said she and a few of the other ladies run and they started off very small too.

 

It's an official program where you can get a plan for running

 

I have an app similar to this for my iPhone. It let's me know when to run/walk/jog and plays my music for the intervals needed

I'm more motivated than ever before. I am not a runner. Yet. I hope to get myself into a groove and run with the ladies three times a week and then Steve wants to start walking after dinner at least three times a week... so between running and walking, I should be moving my behind seven days a week and I'm very excited about what can come from it.

 I ask for prayers as I start this new journey. Ultimately, I don't have a weigh goal, it's more of just feeling good. I want to not be out of breath, not be tired, and live a long life with Steve and Gus. I MUST lose weight... and while I'm sure that running isn't the answer to all the issues, it should at least help me burn calories and get me moving. As my dad says, "You can eat whatever you want (in moderation) if you're regularly exercising and burning calories."  :-)

As one last motivator for starting my metamorphosis into a runner, I bought myself a GOOD pair of running shoes. I did some research and looked at motion-controlled shoes for overweight women and found these:

 

Adidas Supernova Glide 4

Now I just need to get started!! I can't wait until I can say (with pride)... 

I

Am

A

Runner