Bringing Sexy Back

Has it REALLY been that long?

2008-04-11T15:19:00.002-05:00

Since I last blogged. Wow. I'm so sorry. I hate that I have neglected this and my weight loss efforts for this long. I am nearing the end of planning a very stressful conference and dieting and exercising has been near impossible. I am about to really kick this into high gear again. I wish I was now. I'm doing the best I can which unfortunately isn't good enough. I'm back and will definately be here with another post Monday.

Hi

2008-03-19T14:09:00.002-05:00

I've been going through a lot personally and professionally and have been way too busy to do much of anything out of the ordinary. I have been super stressed with work and have practically been living there. I am also emotionally in a rough place but I am working to climb out of my funk. It's hard though when I am sleep deprived but I am working on fixing that problem.

I am hoping to get back into the routine of things by tomorrow. I just got my office under control this morning and I am hoping to regain control over my house tonight. I think once I do that I will be good to go. I just feel so out of control of everything right now. I am so overwhelmed.

I will weigh in tomorrow morning which I am not looking forward to. I have had a lack of time to take care of myself and I am very worried that after all my hard work its going to show on the scale. I'm just going to have to work that much harder.

Catching Up

2008-03-11T09:35:00.002-05:00

I think my body is finally getting the idea on this whole weight loss thing. I am starting to lose the weight a little better and dropping a little faster. I am so excited.

There is no weigh in this week because I weighed in twice last week. I'm starting to move up in our family weight loss competition. I am now positioned in 8th place from about 15th place. I am starting to gain on the others. It feels good to feel like I am back in the competition.

I started getting up earlier to get to the gym. I figured if I got there earlier I could get a longer work out in. This is the first day to make it out of bed almost on time and I feel like I have been run over by a truck. I hope my body can get used to this routine. Going to bed early is the really hard part especially now that it doesn't get dark until close to 9:00 now.

Much to talk about...

2008-03-05T10:44:00.002-06:00

Sorry I am a little late. I had an insane weekend which left me not too well on Monday. I'm still not feeling great but I am a million times better.

The gym is going great! I am LOVING my new treadmill routine. My hour and a half on there flies by. So far there has been no agonizing times while I'm on it. I am slowly getting into the Curves routine. it's been hard since I'm at my other gym so much and I don't ever feel like Curves is adding much. I need to make it at least 3x a week to give it a fair chance.

I did great on my weight loss this week. I lost nearly 5 pounds, 4.8 to be exact. I am hoping to pull ahead some in the weight loss competition. We will have to see how the next couple of weeks go but I think my body is starting to catch on to the weight loss thing.

Last night I went to go get fitted for a bridesmaid dress. I need to lose about 10 inches in the waist and 20 inches in the hips to even fit in it. Which means I have to hit this whole thing even harder than I already am. I have a new focus, new determination and a new game plan. Here are the pictures. I HATE the color and this is not the dress. I am so glad that the color looks better in pictures because its terrible in person.

Can you feel the sarcasm?

Hmm... Is there anything that I am missing? I think I've covered it for now. See you later.

Words of Affirmation

2008-02-27T17:11:00.003-06:00

Last week was a good week. Not necessarily in pounds or inches but in spirit. I am really getting my fun groove back at the gym. It was really enjoyable for a long time but getting into it this time around has been terrible. I've gotten into 3 forms of exercise that I am just digging and I have the best set of music I've had in a long time. I am not looking forward to the day where I lose interest in the music and it stops working for me.

This week I got 3 random compliments from people at the gym and some advice that really confirmed what I've been doing at the gym. One of the compliments came from a cute boy and i have to say that I was glad that he finally got off the treadmill so I could run again. My heart rate would not go down far enough with him there running next to me. LOL.

I am only down .2 this week but that's ok because I am having some major PMS issues right now. So its all good. As long as I didn't gain.

That's more like it

2008-02-18T09:20:00.002-06:00

I am down nearly 4 pounds!!! Yay for me!!!

So I am really proud of myself. Things have been different for me this time around. I have noticed some really great habits coming out of me lately. The first one, I am an emotional eater. I eat when I am happy or sad and I eat when others are happy or sad or anything in between. I have made many conscience choices to not eat emotionally over the past several weeks. I've had some pretty challenging situations lately. I have also been careful to reward myself with food for good diet behavior. I don't want to think of food as a reward.

Then there is the gym. No matter what I have made going to the gym a top priority. I've pulled many late nights just to make sure that I go. On the weekends, I have been trying to go twice a day. It's hard because I live pretty far from the gym but I am still trying to do it anyway. I've changed the treadmill routine. I am walking at a slower pace without an incline and then on a few occasions during the workout i will bump up the speed and run in 2 min. increments. I can't do it any longer than that because my heart rate starts to get too high. Running is a big deal for me. i am pretty clumsy and accident prone so running for the most part is generally out of the question. That ad its kind of uncomfortable with your fat flying around. LOL. Surprisingly that hasn't really been an issue. I'm also varying what I'm doing. I take water aerobics now, swim, and play racquetball. I actually thing the treadmill is beginning to miss me a bit ;O) This week I actually start using my Curves membership.

Well that's it for now. Here are this weeks stats.

last Week: 328.0
This Week: 324.2
Weight Lost: -3.8 pounds

I better be losing inches..

2008-02-11T12:45:00.000-06:00

because I am definitely not losing pounds. I've been working my ass off at the gym and staying in my calorie range and still have nothing to show for it. Well not really. My clothes are fitting better and I did buy a smaller size pant. I really don't count the pant thing for too much until I can fit into a smaller jean size not casual workout clothing.

Is it too much to ask to want to see pounds too?

I weighed myself on Friday afternoon and I was down to 326.2. I was thinking it would be at least that if not a few pounds lighter. I dropped 2 1/2 pounds in one day so I was thinking I would have a great weigh in. So I guess that was were the disappointment was. I have been really good and making it to the gym sometimes twice a day. Don't take this as discouragement because I'm not discouraged. My clothes are fitting better and regardless of the kind of pant I bought it was still a smaller size. That alone is worth celebrating!! I'm just wondering when I get to actually see the pounds come off?

Oh well, it will happen, I just need to practice some patience!!

This week's goals. I refigured my calorie intake. Which hasn't really changed since I haven't lost much but I balanced the calories out a little better. I just gave myself more to eat during the week and less to eat on the weekend.

Have a great week!

I have a new love!!

2008-02-08T13:47:00.000-06:00

And it's called racquetball. On Superbowl Sunday, I was over at a friends house and I got to experience the Wii for the first time. It was so much fun!! My best friend and I played tennis. We had so much fun and I remembered that we have racquetball courts at our gym. So I recommended that we pick up the sport.

Vanessa and I have two weekly dates. Lunch on Wednesday and the gym on Thursday after her kids are in bed. We never miss lunch and always forget the gym. I think we've made it to the gym twice over the past 2-3 months. We have finally found our motivation for our Thursday night gym time. I am so excited. It's also great exercise. I looked it up I burned about 1000 calories playing last night. I felt great but by the time I got home and showered I could hardly walk. So, i pulled out the myoflex, motrin and heating pad and got busy nursing my wounds.

This morning, i tried something new... water aerobics. I've been wanting to try it out for almost a year now but either forgot about it or I was too tired to get out of bed for it on Friday morning. I got my ass kicked. I was pleasantly surprised. I was still in some pain from racquetball the night before so the nonstop leg exercises in the pool were pretty brutal. Nothing the hot tub water fall couldn't fix :O)

See you on Monday, unless i come up with another reason to blog!

What A Week!!

2008-02-04T10:10:00.000-06:00

So between traveling and PMS I gained .8 pounds. I stayed within my caloric intake and I wasn't bad at all. I even had about 6 moments this weekend where I was proud of myself. I guess that's ok. It could be worse. So much for that 8 pound loss. It's a new week with hopefully new determination. Thank you guys for all of your love and support. I love it when you comment on my blog.

This week I really need to concentrate on actually making it to the gym. For some reason that has been a challenge for me this time around. I think it has to do with the condition of my back and my left foot. I bought some new tennis shoes over the weekend so hopefully that will help my foot. I really hope that my shoes were the problem because if not then I just wasted money on shoes that I didn't need. Then there is my back. It's in terrible shape. For those of you that don't know this about me, I trained to become a massage therapist and let me just say that ignorance is bliss. I would probably still be in pain but I wouldn't be as aware of the pain. Does that make sense? I decided this morning at the gym that I was going to get better about doing an all around stretch. I've been stretching just not every part of me.

I signed up for Curves! I am NOT a morning person and the morning lady at Curves is a little irratating to me. So I just need to bite the bullet and go.

So this weekend was extremely stressful. I was put in a horrible situation during my business trip to Dallas. On my way home I was extremely distressed and upset and I wanted a sweet tea from Chickfila to soothe my pain. You would be proud of me. I passed them all and never stopped to get one. You have no idea how hard that was. I am an emotional eater, happy or sad. I was in an emotional crisis and completely passed up the opportunity to feed my pain over and over again. Yay for me!

Please keep my back and foot in your prayers. I am already off to a difficult start this week. It is now Tuesday and still haven't made it in to the gym. We have our first weigh in for the family competition on Thursady and I would like to drop a little more before then.

Have a great week.

Curves

2008-01-31T10:36:00.000-06:00

So I signed up for Curves yesterday. I thought it would be great to add that to my exercise routine. I do have to say that I feel a little out of place. I am by far the youngest person I have seen in my two days there and my mother assures me that will be the case from here on out. The lady training me this morning was excited because I was young and picking up quickly. We will see how well this goes.

Bittersweet

2008-01-28T09:29:00.000-06:00

This weigh in was bittersweet but mostly sweet. I lost 4.2 pounds. Yay for me. The reason why it was a little bitter is because I weighed myself on Friday and I was down about 5.5 pounds and was thinking I would be able to hit the 8 pound mark by this morning. Oh well. What can you do? The weekend was a little off but I stayed the corse regardless. All that matters is that I hit the 4 pound mark. My goal for awhile is 4 pounds a week. So I am patting myself on the back.

Last Week: 333
This Week: 327.8
Total Loss: -4.2

This weeks goal is to hit 320 pounds. That means I need to lose 7.8 pounds. I don't believe that is too far out of reason. Last week I only made it to the gym 4x and the workouts were very short. Here are the things that I am going to add this week to boost my weight loss efforts.

1. Make it to the gym everyday with regular length workouts.
2. Sign up for Curves and attend if I am signed up early enough in the week.
3. Continue to drink all of my water.
4. Continue keeping a detailed journal.

Can you hear that?

2008-01-24T15:31:00.000-06:00

No. Ok. I guess its just me. I am at work right now and the Chex mix is calling my name. There is nothing I love more than snacking on Chex mix and sipping a cold Dr. Pepper in the afternoon. Mmmm. My best friend said I should threaten it with violence. Not a bad idea if the Chex mix belonged to me. Somehow the peanut butter bar and apple are not cutting it. Sigh....

I made it to the gym!!

2008-01-21T10:42:00.001-06:00

Yay! It actually happened. I made it to the gym this morning. This was extremely hard for me. I haven't been myself lately and as much as my head is ready for it all of the my heart and body have had a hard time catching up. I figured if I didn't make it in today it probably wouldn't happen again until next week. My determination is starting to come back. I am definitely a work in progress right now but I am determined to beat my lack of determination and will power.

My dear friend, Sasha

2008-01-15T09:34:00.000-06:00

There is no weigh in this week. Yesterday, instead of weighing in I had to go say my final goodbyes to a friend I grew up with. She passed away one week ago, today. It was sudden and unexpected. Sasha was very well loved and will be missed.

As for the diet, last week was just rough. Emotionally and just lack of time. It was unexpectedly crazy busy. Oh well. I did watch what I ate but I didn't count calories or journal. I was even snacking on carrots, cucumbers, avocados and tomatoes instead of other crap in the midst of all the sadness.

So you might be thinking, what will Shannon be doing to snap out of the funk. I have two motivations. Yesterday, I found out what dress and color I will be wearing in a wedding in July. The dress is beautiful, the color is burnt orange. There are 3 colors and this was the color I did NOT want. I wanted the wine colored dress. Oh well. It's not as bad as I imagined but I am going to have to change the color of my hair a bit so that my hair doesn't look orange and lose a lot of weight so I don't look as much like a round pumpkin. I am hoping for 80 pounds. I have a little more than 5 months to kick ass in the losing weight department. That is about 16 pounds a month. My dream is to lose about half that within the next 6-8 weeks. My dress needs to be ordered by then and the less they will have to alter, the better. I am a big girl so the 80 pounds is a lot to lose but not a complete stretch either. That would also put me at 250 pounds. Still not light but compared to what I look like now, I will be smokin' hot. Or as the blog says, I'll be...

Bringing Sexy Back

The second motivator is the $1000 weight loss competition that I have organized. That's right, you read that correctly. The family has started another weight loss competition that will extend through May 7. Check out the competition blog thebiggestfamilyloser.blogspot.com. This time around we addded friends to the competition.

I am currently, as we speak, in the process of posting pictures of the burnt orange dress all over everywhere. So far the refrigerator at work has 6 dresses taped to the inside and outside of the refrigerator. I have one on my monitor and soon there will be one over my phone. I am going to go searching for pictures of a $1000 bill to add to the collection. I think I will post a picture of the dress on this blog. It will be everywhere I am at all times.

See you next week with my new weigh in results.

A little bout with depression

2008-01-11T23:27:00.001-06:00

So this week is not the outstanding first week that I wanted. It's been a difficult week to start. I've had unusal circumstances almost everyday this week beginning with Monday and a late work night. Tuesday was my Dr's appointment followed by an all day celebration of my best friends Vanessa's birthday. Wednesday was rough. A friend of mine that I grew up with passed away along with Vanessa's grandmother. Her grandmother raised her and was the only family she has left. Thursday was just filled with sadness and Friday through Monday will be filled with working and seeing lots of old friends and remembering Sasha. I'm a little down and allowing myself to be that way. I am giving myself through Monday night and then first thing Tuesday morning it will be back to the daily grind and routine.

Please keep Sasha's family in your prayers. She was an only child an really close to her family. Also keep her friends in your prayers too. She was too young to dye and there are a lot of people having a hard time with her death. Also keep Vanessa in your prayers too. She is having a really hard time as well. It's been really hard on her too.

I'll see you either late Mondy or sometime on Tuesday with week one results.

The Joys of Starting Up Again!!

2008-01-07T20:20:00.000-06:00

I'm back. Sorry for the lack of communication over the past several months. I've been here, there and everywhere. Literally. So I am back in the swing of it all and already have a story for you. It only happened a couple of hours into my first day back into dieting. But first before I go into that let me tell you what kind of things I've discovered about myself and dieting over the past few months.

I LOVE Jillian Michaels and her approach to fitness. Jillian was one of the trainers from the Biggest Loser. I watched the show for the first time from start to finish. I've watched it before but usually just an episode or two per season. This year was different because my sister was college friends with one of the contestants on the black team. Anyway, I purchased Jillian's book Winning by Losing which is absolutely amazing and would recommend it to anyone of any fitness level. I now have a lot of direction for what I need to do for myself.

To make a long story short, I think my problems with losing the weight earlier in the year came from all the things that were going on and the stress I was putting myself under. I had a Dr.'s appointment today and she seemed to agree that that was more than likely the cause. I am really looking forward to getting back into the swing of things and discovering a smaller me!!

Not much is changing with what I'm doing. I was able to find out how my body metabolizes food and the formula for figuring out what my calorie intake should be. So now I know what foods to eat and what percentages of fat, proteins and carbs to consume per meal. I think that is the short of it all. I'll let you know if I think of anything else.

Ok. So back to the funny story. Well, I thought it was funny. I'm not sure you will think so. Jillian has this water she recommends drinking for 7 days to help rid your body of 5-7 pounds of excess water weight. It consists of distilled water, sugar free cranberry juice, lemon juice and dandelion root tea. All of which I am not a huge fan of. So I made the drink Sunday for Monday. I knew it was going to be terrible so I automatically plugged my nose and decided to just do it. That's what I did but at what I thought was more than half way through the glass, I need to stop for air. Well, I was barely a fourth of the way through it and I started feeling a small gag reflex coming on. I decided to start drinking it again and stop thinking about it so much. So within the first gulp I puked the water up all over the kitchen. So much for that. At lunch I decided to try again. This time I decided not let the tea sit so long in the water. I am now ready to try again except this time I decide not to unplug my nose if I needed to come up for air. I got that second glass all the way down. Yay for me!!!! So I attempted a third. I pushed my luck on that one. I barely made it through a fourth of the cup before it all came back up agian. I am waving the white flag! I tried and won't try that again for a very long time. LOL.

Thanks for sticking this out with me and supporting me through all of this!!

Happy New Year!!

2008-01-02T18:30:00.000-06:00

I know its been awhile. I've been working a whole lot lately and haven't had time to do much of anything with my site, diet and healthy living. It has been crazy to say the least. I can't say that I haven't been completely lackadaisical on the issue. I've been doing a lot of research, reading and planning. I just haven't had the time to execute the plan but that all changes on Monday. I will probably have a large post sometime this weekend or first thing Monday morning. Those are the plans anyway :O) See you soon.

Hang in there

2007-11-28T13:52:00.001-06:00

I really am coming back. I promise. This coming Monday for sure. It's really hard to start dieting in the middle of the holiday rush. I have my full time job then a PT job with a babysitting agency that practically turns into a full time this time of year. My life has been in shambles lately so I'm trying to put back together. I am the type of person that has to have it all together before starting something as big as dieting and making myself a priority. Does that make sense? Anyway, don't give up on me. I'm coming back.

Shannon

I'm Still Here

2007-11-01T12:01:00.000-05:00

I'm not trying to avoid you guys. I promise. I've been terribly busy and haven't had much time to blog or even think about blogging. I'll be back full force by November 12. I am in the middle of our first big family wedding and I have a ton of responsibility for it. That and all the traveling. I don't really think I stop till mid November. Thanks for all your ongoing support. You will never know how much I appreciate it.

If you have access to the Tyra anks show, you might want to tune in over the next couple of days. She is talking about women and body image. It should be very intersting. So I encourage you to tune in.

Hmmmm

2007-10-16T21:00:00.000-05:00

So I weighed in today. After 2 weeks of eating whatever the hell I wanted and absoltely no exercise, I broke even. Nothing lost, nothing gained. Not bad but I do have to say that I am a little confused. I work my ass off and sometimes gain. And then over the past couple of weeks, do nothing and gain nothing. I'm seeking God's direction right now and trying to figure out what I need to be doing differently. But until I figure that out, I'm back to the same ole' same ole'.

So what do you think? I am open to your suggestions. maybe God wil speak to me through YOU.

A Great Article

2007-10-10T10:26:00.000-05:00

A lady left a link to this article on our family weight loss competition page a few weeks ago. I thought it was a great article and I wanted to share it with you.

Today I am recognized for being the lean, mean fitness trainer on the competitive weight-loss show The Biggest Loser, but I wasn't born with a flat tummy.

As a young girl, I was overweight and had to battle my own demons with food. I was inactive and ate for all the wrong reasons, mostly emotional ones. While this was not a pleasant time in my life, it was a valuable experience for me and very much led me to who I am and what I am doing today.

Even though I am a fitness trainer, I don't believe that beauty is solely in the physical. Personal beauty for me is someone who is at peace with themselves in every aspect. I think women can be especially hard on themselves in this respect. I remember reading Naomi Wolf's book, The Beauty Myth; and it really changed my life. It made me realize that we women are perfect with our imperfections. We need to accept not only ourselves, but also the other women around us. When we do that, I believe health and happiness are the byproducts!

Although I am thin now, I constantly battle with the emotional issues behind weight management. My own personal struggle with weight allows me to be empathetic with my clients. A person who has never struggled with their weight might be sympathetic, but they will never truly understand the issues behind obesity or the strategies with which to combat it.

My mother saw where I was in my life, and at thirteen she enrolled me in martial arts. This was a defining moment for me as it not only turned my health around, but also ultimately shaped the course of my life. The physical intensity of martial arts healed my body physically, while the self-empowerment I gained helped to answer my emotional needs. My passion became fitness and being able to use fitness as a tool in order to help people fulfill their true potential and live out their dreams. Martial arts gave me the inner strength and confidence to go on to become the woman I was meant to be.

Working with The Biggest Loser has made a real difference in my life. The show has given me an international platform to spread my thoughts and ideas. While I am not necessarily concerned about my appearance, I do feel a certain responsibility to live my life in a healthy positive way in order to practice what I preach and have the maximum impact for my message of health, wellness, and personal power.

I'm Back!!

2007-10-10T08:49:00.000-05:00

Hello friends. I'm back. I headed off to California with my sister last Monday and just returned this Monday. I was going to try and blog and keep up with this while I was out but it took us a long time to get the internet up and running. I wish I had something to report but I don't.

I had every intention of staying the coarse and exercising while I was gone but it didn't happen. And I really just don't care. I finally made it to the grocery store last night so I'm back on my A game today. I leave for out of town again Saturday come back on Sunday and then head back out on Monday and will not return until the weekend sometime. Those details still have to be worked out.

I hope ya'll are having a god week and i'll talk to you agian in a few days.

I'm in a funk..

2007-09-27T12:40:00.001-05:00

and I shouldn' be since I've started losing. I should be that much more determined but what can I say. This week has been nuts. I leave for california on Monday morning and there has been so much to do at work and home to prepare. Next week work will be crazy busy with a school and Bible study. I'm also just flat out exhausted. I can't seem to shake it. I stopped taking my iron vitamins because I was feeling great but I think that is part of the reason for why I feel so tired. I've started taking them again but it takes about a week or a little more to get in my system. Starting today I'm trying to get back into journaling and actually making it to the gym.

I plan on keeping up with my diet and exercise as best as I can while I'm gone. I am going to make sure we find a hotel on the way that has a gym. It will feel good to workout after being in the car for 12-15 hours. My sister is moving on to a college campus so I should have access to their gym as well.

That's all I have for now. I hope you are having a great week.

Today is a good day!

2007-09-24T13:36:00.000-05:00

I lost 3.1 pounds. I am so excited. Yay! I treated myself today with a sweet tea. yum. I only made it to the gym about four times last week. I've been working really hard lately and was too tired and on a couple of occasions there were just not enough hours in the day. I listened to my body and did what it told me to do. I usually listen but was better about it this time around. I think I finally feel confident enough about my plan.

On a completely different subject other than weight loss, I made a big purchase today. I purchased a really nice camera. It was an unintentional reward. I don't know how I am ever going to top that reward. I am so excited about it. I get to learn how to use it on my way to California!! Now that I think about it, I don't think that I told you that I am helping my sister move to California. We are leaving on October 1 at 5:00 am.

Anyway, I have to actually get to work. I have little of that and tons to do before I leave for out of town. Talk to you soon.

So far so good

2007-09-19T17:38:00.001-05:00

I was a little upset Monday. I am actually down -1.4 pounds from the weigh in for The Biggest Family Loser competition that started two weeks ago. So I am NOT gaining. I overlooked some important facts on why I am not dropping yet. I just didn't want to go back into that gain loss cycle again and I am determined not too. It freaked me out a bit. Here are some reasons why I don't thinking I'm dropping right now.

1. PMS. Do I need to say anymore?
2. I've thrown my body into shock between the normal calorie loss from dieting and jumping right into vigourous exercise.
Weight Watchers (WW) suggests waiting 3 weeks to allow your body to adjust to the dieting phase before adding exercise.
3. I changed dieting focus in the middle of a week. My body and my mentality needed to adjust.

CAUTION: I ramble so if you don't want to know about the ups and downs of my thought processes on deciding my calorie intake, skip this section. I'll let you know when its safe.

I've been stressing off and on since April about my calorie intake. You see, WW changed their points system (calorie intake). For my weight, I used to be at 1600 calories or 32 points. Well, with the new system I was supposed to consume 1900 calories or 38 points. After a week or two of that I decided to go back to the old way. Then their was the activity point factor. On WW, you get extra points (calories) to eat if you exercise. Because of my weight and the intensity of my workouts I was gaining like 14-16 extra points (700-800 calories) a day. That is an insane amount of food when you add it to 38 points. Well, it seems that way when you're dieting. Needless to say I had no idea what I was supposed to be eating. Sometimes I was afraid I was eating to much and other times not enough. Neither is good for you. I was even questioning my workout routine even though I knew I was right on.

I stepped on the scale last Wed after being so good and noticed that I was gaining. So that whole workout I was really seeking God's direction for my dieting needs. I came up with small solutions but nothing that would really answer my questions. I had to go to Walmart after that workout and I was roaming the isles of the book area when The Biggest Loser diet book literally jumped off the shelf at me. I was like why not, these people are in the exact same place that I am in and the amount of weight lost every season is huge. We are also doing a competition called The Biggest Family Loser. It seemed appropriate. I started flipping through the book and skimming it. It answered all the questions that I had. From dieting, to food consuption, to exercise. I was so excited. I purchased the book. So here is my new game plan.

IT'S SAFE TO START READING HERE

1. Calorie intake: 2100 (42 points) a day and no extra calories for working out. I do have to say that I listen to my body
signals. If I am hungry and I have had all of my calories for the day, worked out, had some water, chewed some
gum and waited awhile and the feeling is still there, then I will eat something small.
2. 60 min of cardio. I was doing that right. After 4 weeks i will be adding circuit training. I will be joining Curves in addition
to my current gym membership. It sucks to pay for two gyms but will be well worth it in the end. I am going broke on
dieting but its for a good cause, ME.
3. What I am eating. I was doing that right too. What I was doing is pretty close to right on for me. I am just making a
few minor adjustments.

Do you have any comments or suggestions for me?

I am so discouraged

2007-09-17T09:02:00.000-05:00

But not near to the point of quitting. I just weighed in at the gym and in spite of a great week of working out and dieting I managed to gain weight. I am SOOOOO frustrated. You cannot even imagine. I am going to keep trying and perserving but its really tough. I have a hard enough time making time for me. I would really like to see the benefits of that. I know even if I don't lose weight I am still a healthier me by making myself a priority.

Here are the positives for the week.
1. I made it to the gym 5x this week. It was an extremely BUSY week but I did it anyway. I was even there are 1:00am.
2. I'm not feeling condifent about this right now but I found some direction in my dieting and working out.
3. I only stepped on the scale twice. Once to weigh-in and the other time because I am a little OCD.
4. I journaled almost everday.
5. On most days I was drinking about 5-6 bottles of water. That is 80-96 oz of water a day.

Here are this weeks changes.
1. I am back to being extremely anal about what I eat. The measureing spoons, cups and scale are on their way back into my purse. The spray buter might be traveling too.
2. No sweet tea. It was my one treat. Even though the calories were accounted for and I have really limited my intake, I have to cut somewhere and that is one of the only ways to do so at this point. I am at a loss.
3. I am increasing the amount of time spent at the gym. I plan on going everyday and on Friday, Saturday and Sunday I plan to go twice a day. I was reading my biggest loser diet book and it recommended cuting any weights out the first four weeks. So for now I am taking a break from that.

Is there anything I'm missing? Did I leave anything out? Do you have any suggestions for me?

I wish you could see the people at the gym

2007-09-13T16:51:00.000-05:00

Everytime I am there I can't help but laugh or be completely disguisted. I really wish you could see what I see. Everyday I think I really need to blog about him or I really need to blog about this group of people. I think I am going to start a series. Would you be interested in my crazy antics? I am going to try to start posting more frequently than once or twice a week.

I'm making some changes

2007-09-13T15:22:00.000-05:00

I went to the gym last night and got on the scale. I had only lost .2 so far this week. I get on it way too much. I've got to work on that. It was a little discouraging because I used to lose weight a lot easier than I do now. I used to barely try and drop like 3 to 4 pounds a week and now I really try everyday and I get practically no where. I know I need to give myself time. It just gets a little frustrating. I keep thinking that I haven't hit 30 yet so I shouldn't be having any problems but my actual body age is much older than I really am and it makes me wonder if that is a factor.

With all that said, I was trying to do some brainstorming on the treadmill last night. You see, I've been having a hard time deciding what my body really needs to lose weight. I am following Weight Watchers and they changed how you figure points. The new way actually gave me an extra 6 points. I'm sure your not intereted in the back and forth nature of my thought process so I am going to just sum it up by saying that I didn't know if I was eating too much or eating too little. Neither is good for you and I was overwhelmed with what I should be doing. Even my exercise routine was in question. I am a big girl so what I do is going to be different from the average joe trying to lose weight. I want to do this right but its hard to get the answers you need on a limited budget. The cost of buying healthy food alone is enough to strech it. I was really seeking God for some answers.

After working out, I needed to go to Walmart to get a few grocery items and a new food journal. I want to get really specific and not so general when it comes to journaling my food intake. I want to make sure the right foods and variety of foods are being consumed. I was roaming the isles and ended up in the books where The Biggest Loser diet book was jumping off the shelf at me. I was curious. Most of those people were simular in size and have the same needs as me. To make another long banter short, the book answered all of my questions on diet, calorie intake and workout routines. It confirmed a lot, gave me the direction I needed and took away any self doubt that I had. I will be making some changes but nothing major. I just skimmed it last night and hope to read it in greater detail tonight and lay out a new game plan.

Overcoming the usual obstacles

2007-09-10T10:32:00.000-05:00

I hit the dieting/fitness road pretty hard at the beginning of the week. But then Thursday night came along... I had a long night with my best friend Vanessa and her son (my nephew), Brandon. To make a long story sort I ended up in the hospital with them because Brandon had croup and was having a difficult time breathing.

Now if you look back at my track record, everytime I get serious about dieting and my mind is in it as well, I end up in the hospital or going through a difficult time with loved ones. One of my biggest attributes, becomes one of my biggest hurdles to overcome. I have a big heart and will do anything for those I love. In order to take care of others I abandon myself. Neither way is fair. I can't abandon the needs of my loved ones so I can lose a few but I can't just over look my need either. I don't know if you know what its like to staying in hospitals or helping out loved ones but that kind of living encourages vending machines, fast food and meals prepared by other people complete with yummy desserts. Not exactly easy for keeping the pounds off.

I am proud to say that I was sucessfully able to lose 1.5 pounds this week with my small hospital stay. Yay for me! Don't get me wrong I still ate the cheeseburger cassarole, garlic bread and the moist, gewy brownies that were brought to us but over that 24 hour period I made some good choices and a conscience effort not to screw it up.

My track record (Just this year alone):
April 2007 - Cousins little girl in the hospital for 2 weeks. Took care of the boys by day and was up at the hospital by night. Weight gained was 3.8 pounds

June 2007 - Finally started losing consistantly after the long struggle of gaining when I was being near perfect in my dieting routines.

June-Aug 2007 - Towards the end of June, I ended up in the ER with my best friend Jennifer. That was a month long issue with tests and Dr.'s appontments. This went on through the end of July. As well as her health issues, she was trying to move her family to another city a few hours away. They were living with me so there was the added stress in the house with job hunting and moving issues. Weight gained was 6 pounds.

September 2007 - The Biggest Family Loser competition is off to a great start and so was I. Brandon goes into the hospital and I LOSE 1.5 pounds. It's a small number but a big victory!

Havin Fun

2007-09-06T09:47:00.000-05:00

I think we are all having a little fun with The Biggest Family Loser contest. I have a feeling its going to get ugly before all is said and done. It has been a great motivation for getting out of the bed in the morning. I do have to say that I am exhausted. I have to get used to going to bed at 8:30. It is an unnatural bed time me as well as an unnatural wake up time for me. I finally had to make myself go to bed at 9:30. I think it would help if my TV was still in my room. I used to fall asleep to it at night. Maybe in a couple of months as soon as I WIN this competition I will be able to afford to hire someone to wire my room for it.

The Biggest Family Loser

2007-09-04T08:46:00.000-05:00

Hello Friends. So I am back today without weigh-in results but for good reason. My sister came up with the idea of a family weight loss competition. So last night I was busy making phone calls, creating a blog and sending emails. So I was not able to make it to bed until 11:30. Three hours after my bed time and too late for getting up in the middle of the night. I will have a weigh in for you in the morning. You should check our competition out. Just click the title to go to our new blog. So far the winning pot is up to $550!!

Better late than never

2007-08-29T13:03:00.000-05:00

I weighed in at the gym yesterday. I've been in meetings for the past 3 days and have had no time to post. I didn't do too bad in spite of myself.

8/20/07 - 329.6
8/28/07 - 327.6
Total Lost: -2 pounds

No more goal setting...

2007-08-26T16:26:00.000-05:00

I'm done setting goals for awhile. I'm tired of not getting anywhere close to them. Maybe the trick is to not set them. I don't know what I was thinking setting goals like that considering what I knew my week was going to be like. Here is a summary of the week.

Monday: Got up and made it to the gym at 4am. Yay for me! I went to work and prepared for my sisters arrival. We lined the driveway with Christmas lights to "roll out the red carpet." She has been living in India for the past 2 years and moved home Monday. Only for a short time though, she's moving to Cali. Well, on our way out the door to the airport, I dropped my really heavy camera on the top of my foot. I thought it was broken for a couple of days. It instantly went numb, bruised and swelled. I've come to the conslusion that I bruised the bone and had a little nerve damage.

Wednesday: Car shopping all day with my sister and aunt.

Friday: Had a knock down drag out fight with my bank. Shopping all day with mom and sister. Last outing with my best friend before she moved away.

Saturday: Moved my best friend and her family out of my house. Attempted to start putting the house back together.

Sunday: Putting the house back together for next weekend. Working to put stuff together for next week and packing my bags.

It's been a pretty emotional week and weekend. I'm glad its just about over. I need to find my motivation again. Somewhere along the way I lost it and need to get it back. No goal setting this week. I am going to try though. We are have a staff retreat this week and the hotel we are staying in is across the street from my gym. So maybe i won't have to get up so early and it will make it an easier adjustment.

I didn't join WW online this week. It's too much money. Well not really just too much for all the stuff I need to pay for in the next couple of months.

I still haven't handed the letter off either, due to circumstances. I will hand it off later this week. So keep praying.

Have i left anything out? Just keep praying that I find my motivation. I'll be in meeting all day Mon., Tues., and Wednesday. So you might hear from me as I watch the snack foods in the meeting call my name in either pure boredom or annoyance.

I DID it. It's time to make up for LOST time!!!

2007-08-20T07:53:00.000-05:00

I actually made it to the gym this morning and I am already feeling so much better. Are you proud of me? I am. I'm feeling a little tired though. I was just feeling like I was going to be able to do it by the end of the week and then the weekend hit. My best friend and her family lived with me for a few months and they are in the process of moving out so I've been trying to move back into the master bedroom. That was my project for the weekend and although my house is nowhere near being put together the bulk of it is done. YAY! Sometimes I feel like a professional mover. I worked in the evenings also. So it was early mornings and late nights all weekend. So I am back to being exhausted but its a different kind of exhausted. One that I feel like I can handle.

My weight is on the rise again. I thought I was doing better but I guess not. I was watching what I was eating but wasn't counting and journaling. I am up close to 10 pounds since I fell off about 2 months ago but I am back in business. I expect to make up for lost time this week and be back where I left off by this time next week. It's amazing what 2 months of stress and depression can do to you!

As for the confrontation that was going to happen, it never happend. But it will. I HATE confrontation but I feel I have to do it. I wrote a letter and I will hand it to this person as soon as they are around. I missed my window this weekend. Too much going on. Just keep praying. I don't know how its going to be taken but i am hoping for a really good outcome. Part of me wonders if I should still go through with it.

I'm thinking about signing back up for Weight Watchers. I really like some of their online tools. So I might sign up for that. It's so much cheaper. I think. I will be looking into that today.

The Goals:
1. Journal all food and exercise
2. Stand up for myself
3. Make it to the gym daily
4. Lose 9.8 pounds (this takes me back to where I was before life was turned upside down)

I have been making these goals for the past few months but this is the week that I will actually hit them!!

New recipes

2007-08-18T01:45:00.001-05:00

I am looking for some new reciepes so if you have any to share please do. Email them to me. My address is shannon.divers@gmail.com.

Working on me

2007-08-18T01:18:00.000-05:00

I am still here. I have had a rough couple of weeks. I'm not really sure why but I have. I have been soooo exhausted and worn out. I haven't been able to pull myself out of bed to make it to the gym. Or anywhere else for that matter. I am slowly getting better and am hoping to be ready to go Monday morning. I think some of it is a mild depression. But who knows.

I have to do something this weekend that will be really hard. I need to confront someone in my life over my weight. I kept ignoring it thinking it would get better but it hasn't and it needs to come to an end. It's effecting me and my weight loss efforts. So if you think about me pray for me and this other person. I am afraid of the other person not taking what I have to say very well. I could really use your prayers.

Well, I'll see you on Monday.

Am I proud of myself?

2007-08-06T19:22:00.000-05:00

Not really but I'm not beating myself up either. I went to weigh-in. That sucked. I weighed when I got to the gym and it was terrible. I had an oh shit moment. I went and stretched and laid by the sun and got in the hot tub and weighed agian on the way out. It was much better but still not great. It has been downgraded to holy cow. So here are the results...

7/2/07 - 319.6
8/6/07 - 325.8
Toal Gain: +6.2 pounds

Oh, I forgot to mention earlier that I had to cancel my Weight Watchers membership. Money has been tight and I could't justify spending $39 a month to get weighed. I love the accountablity but I just can't do it right now. So I will be using the scale at the gym from now on. It works, I'm just praying that I don't get on it 14x a week. That's why I don't own a scale at home. It makes me crazy. I am still doing Weight Watchers thing. Just not paying for it.

I'm Back!!

2007-08-06T10:59:00.000-05:00

Hi. I've missed blogging. Thanks for leaving me a comment Julie. I was planning on blogging today but it was nice to know that I was missed. Please continue to hold me accountable. I need it sometimes. Well, due to circumstances, I have NOT been dieting and excersizing. Life happened and was either too busy or too tired to care. You do the best you can or not and then get back on and try again once the dust settles. My dust is settling and its time to start back up. I have to be honest i am a little terrified of weighing in but I need to be accountable for my lack of trying.

I'm leaving work early today and going to the gym to relax. I am going to stretch (I am very stiff) and realx in the SUN by the pool, then hit the hot tub and suana. After the gym I need to get groceries, otherwise this will NOT work this week. I am hoping for a huge week but I am tired and exhausted and will need your prayers to make it through. I have to get used to the early morning routine again. Yuck. I' am not looking forward to that.

This Weeks Goals:
1. Focus
2. Make it to the gym everyday this week
3. Journal everyday
4. Stand up for myself
5. Lose 10 pounds

Sigh.... missed weigh-in, again

2007-07-09T12:26:00.000-05:00

I know, I know. I didn't mean too. I was about to leave to go weigh in when my grandfather called. Some repairs need to be made on my house and the workmen had arrived to check it out. If I make it into town tonight I'll go weigh in, otherwise it will have to wait until next week.

My boot camp week failed miserably. No real good excuses, that's just the way it was. But here's to another try. Same rules and goals from last week apply.

Other Weight Loss Bloggers

2007-07-03T13:47:00.000-05:00

So I started this blogging through weight loss thing and so far my sisters are on board. Alicia had her sight ready before mine and Amber just joined us. Go check em out. If you have a weight loss blog let me know. I would love to link you on my site.

You can see the different personalities of the Divers' girls very well on our blogs. As Alicia has pointed out our pages are COMPLETELY who we are. It's a nice peek into our personalities. I hope you enjoy reading their blogs.

trunkminusjunk.blogspot.com
eyesfixedahead.blogspot.com

I can't figure out how to creat a link so you will just have to copy and paste or click on the links on the side of my page.

Struggling

2007-07-02T23:29:00.000-05:00

There is no weigh in this week. Sorry. I had some personal business I needed to take care of instead. I promise there will be a weigh in on Monday.

Here is the part of my journey where I struggle. Satan always seems to know how to break me but I am rising above that and taking back control. He takes my strengths and and gets them to work against me. Does that make any sense? I have had the crazyist past few weeks. The first couple of weeks didn't get to me too bad, I was extremely busy but still holding on. The past week really did me in. I spent a lot of time in and out of hospitals and doctors offices and if anyone has experieced what its like to live that life, well its not diet friendly. It's the life of fast food and vending machines. Soooo not diet friendly. We finally got passed all that by Thursday but I got sick and went through a mild depression over the weekend. Over what, I do not know. I think I was just tired.

So after sleeping the weekend away, I believe I have a renewed sense of I can do it. It's back to the gym today. I have an excellent opportunity to focus on myself this week. I have the rest of the week off and 6 days of nothing planned to enjoy the gym to its fullest. I have all the time in the world to focus on me. I just hope no one finds out that I have all that free time.

So this week for sure is another diet boot camp. And I'm stepping up the goal a bit. I think I probably have some weight to catch up on lossing. I'll step on the scale tonight or in the morning. I'll keep you posted throughout the week on my progress.

This weeks goals are as follows:
1. Lose 10 pounds (I know its big but I think I can do it)
2. Journal EVERYDAY
3. Make it to the gym at least once a day for the full amount of time that I need to be there

No Weigh-In This Week

2007-06-25T15:25:00.000-05:00

Sorry but there is no weigh in this week. Sometimes you jsut have to take a week off. My best friend was in the ER a couple of times over the weekend, she's fine but I'm tired and just not in the mood. I plan on getting back on track tomorrow. I need another boot camp and focus week. I had a really great workout on Thursday and hope to have many more of those this week. I have to admit that there was some really nice eye candy for that great workout and hope to see more of that in the future :O)

My ankle

2007-06-21T18:25:00.000-05:00

So I think I snapped a muscle not by bone. I started massaging my leg/ankle and found 3-4 marble sized knots in my shin leading to the top of my foot. I've been working them out but its been hard. It's in an akward spot to massage on myself.

Last night I was just about to pass out when my ankle started hurting really bad. Enough to make me get out of bed and do something about it. I massaged muscle relaxer into my leg and ankle and found a considerable amout of knots and tight muscles. Its getting bad so I think I need to book a massage soon. Again, it's too ackward of an area for me to do myself.

I've had to take it easy on the treadmill because of the tightness. It's been difficult not being able to do my normal routine but I've gotta take it easy. I hope to back to normal by the first of the week.

I hurt my foot :O(

2007-06-19T08:49:00.000-05:00

Yesterday at the pool when I was swimming I felt my foot snap. That's not a good feeling. We were getiing out of the pool and I could feel it as I was walking. It's never a good sign when you can feel the pain in water. I can't figure out if the muscle snapped or if it was one of the small bones in my foot. I'm still trying to determine that.

It bothered me all night but I still made it up and to the gym to workout. I pushed through it. I'm not in terrible pain but it does still hurt. Please pray for healing in my foot and that I use wisdom on how much to push it.

New week. Let's try again.

2007-06-18T19:19:00.000-05:00

Last Week: 319.4
This Week: 319.8
Total Gained: +0.4

Next Weeks Goal: -4 pounds

Well, this past week the diet pretty much went out the window. I tried hard at first but the week consumed me. I was so busy. I was proud of myself because even with the diet out the window, I still was careful and I put my foot down on a couple of occasions. So even though it wasn't great as far as food goes, it was good in many other ways.

I hope you are having a great week.

Shannon

Catch Up

2007-06-12T09:29:00.000-05:00

Sorry about the lack of communication yesterday. It was a terribly busy day. Here are the stats from weigh in.

This Week: 319.4
Last Week: 320.4
This week's loss: -1

Weight Loss Total: -7.4
Goal for next week: -4

Boot Camp was a success. I journaled everyday, worked out everyday and posted signs all over the house with my goal. This past week was a big week for me. Regardless of what my technical weight loss says. I really lost 4-5 pounds. I got on the scale Thursday and noticed I was up 3-4 pounds. I was shocked. Again wondering were it was coming from. After my workout I figured out why. I discovered that I had a trigger point for weight gain. I think it was the reason for my problems for the first couple of months. So, I delt with those feelings and literally worked my ass off the rest of the week. I was able to lose that weight I put on plus an extra pound. I am proud of myself.

Treadmill Update:
It continues to up the game. While its not torturing me anymore, it is still intensifing. It's only kicking my ass about every three days which still leads me to believe that it knows me. And working out in the summer is miserable. Last week was our first full week of intense heat and humidity so my body is still adjusting. Which means by the time I get off of the treadmill, I am drenched with sweat and the hot tub is really refreshing.

This weeks goals will be like last weeks.

1. Workout everyday
2. Journal everyday
3. Post motivation around my house and office

Weight Loss Goal for the Week: -4 pounds

Not Today Maybe Tomorrow

2007-06-07T09:45:00.000-05:00

i never made it to the gym this morning. I think i talked myself out of it. I should have the fit test information for you tomorrow.

Friends with the treadmill??

2007-06-06T09:07:00.000-05:00

Crazy, I know. Is it possible?? Could this really be??? I think it might be. Let me explain.

Every morning I hit the same treadmill. It's right under the air conditioner and right next to the wipes for the machines. Super convient. My routine is set by the machine. I want a cardio workout so I select that and enter the rest of the information like weight, time, speed... It selects my target heart rate and keeps me within range. Normally, it keeps me at my same speed and will increase the incline to raise my heart beat. I can't say that I've paid much attention to the exact number range that it sets the incline but it's never much. It goes down as soon as my goal heart range has been met and back up a little if it gets to low. Well, yesterday I noticed things were different...

Almost immediately yesterday, I noticed that the incline was a little steep. So I move my towel away from the display to look and see what going on. The incline was way up. I don't really remember what it was set on now. I was a little confused since it had never done that before. This morning I get on the treadmill and almost immediately after it reads my heart rate the incline flys up to 7.2. At this point I am holding on for dear life. As I'm starting to gasp for air I'm thinking, is this machine trying to kill me? As much as I'm thinking about fighting the urge to manually change the incline back down to what I think is managable, I continue on with the incline that it has set for me. Really I wasn't dying. I was still within my target heart range. Just on the higher side instead of low to average side.

After about 9 min, I decide that I need some serious music if I am going to keep this up. I've started listening to the Sandals Church Podcast out of Riverside, CA. Great church and I am really enjoying the teaching. It's been keeping me entertained on the treadmill. I'm probably known as the crazy lady who laughs while on the treadmill. Anyway, at this point I have not heard a word the pastor has said. I needed something that rocked hard. I was praying that just the right song would come on. And thank God it did.

It's like the treadmill knew that I was putting myself through a diet boot camp this week and I needed to step it up a notch or 5. I am going to take a fit test before my workout tomorrow to see how i've progressed since I joined in December. I wanted to do it after my workout today but it has to be done before not after. Look for those results tomorrow.

Exhausted

2007-06-05T13:18:00.000-05:00

I am so (insert bad word here) tired. Sorry but someimes you just have to use them. I have just taken my all day active multi-vitamin so hopefully that kicks in soon. I just want to curl up under my desk and go to sleep right now. There is such a lack of focus right now. Because of the early morning I hit my late afternoon exhaustion right after lunch. It's terrible timing. Does anyone have any ideas for getting some energy? Other than coffee or caffeine. Your stumped now aren't you?

Diet Boot Camp

2007-06-05T08:43:00.000-05:00

This Week: 320.4
Last Week: 321.4

This week's loss: -1
Goal for next week: -5

I'm putting myself through a diet boot camp this week. I need to create some routines that I can stick to. If I can get into a good routine then I should be good to go for awhile. I've got a 5 pound goal over the next week and I should be able to accomplish that. My goals for the week are as follows.

1. Journal ALL week. I usually do great with this until Friday or Saturday.
2. Workout EVERY day. I have an extremely hard time getting up in the morning. I talk myself out of things without even
knowing it half the time.
3. Post my goals everywhere. All over the house, car and work.

Facing the scale

2007-05-29T22:48:00.000-05:00

I did NOT want to weigh in yesterday but I knew I needed to. After my last couple of months of gain and loss every other week I was nervous and scared about whether or not I had actually broken the pattern. Especially coming off of a holiday weekend. i don't think I was doing as bad as I thought. I needed to face the scale regardless of the outcome and it paid off.

It's wasn't much of a weight loss but it was one nonetheless which means that terrible pattern I was in of gaining and lossing every other week is over and I can move forward without that hanging over my head. I lost .4 this week. I should do something to celebrate. Oh wait I already have. I got an icedream from Chickfila!!! They are yummy you should try one sometime if you haven't already.

Pattern broken!!!!

2007-05-21T15:04:00.000-05:00

My terrible pattern has been broken. I had a 5 pound loss this week!!! I'm trying not to get too excited. I will throw myself a party if I can manage a loss two weeks in a row. At least this up 4 down 3 thing is over. Today I am down 5. I was looking through my book and this has been going on for about a month and a half now and quite frankly, I'm tired of it.

Kind of random but my baby sister, Alicia asked my mom if I really was trying as hard as I said I'd been. I mean who could blame her. You might be thinking the same thing. I would have asked. My mom replied yes and then some. Just in case you wanted to know.

That's it for now. I'll try and follow up with pictures later.

I'm sick...ughhh

2007-05-18T18:47:00.000-05:00

I got sick Wednsday afternoon. With what I don't know. I just have a massive headache and major body aches. Yesterday, my hair hurt. I really hope this doesn't throw me off for the week. I've only been able to work out twice this week and I don't know if will be able to before weigh in on Monday.

Major Test of Willpower

2007-05-16T09:50:00.000-05:00

Why do i have to be tested so early in the game? For those of you who know me, you know how much I love and need sleep. For me to fuction well a good 9 hours of sleep a night is needed and if I'm lucky, a nap mid day. I usually get between 7 & 8 hours a night which for most people is a great nights sleep. Not me... It is almost like having my teeth pulled to get out of bed as early as I have to now.

This morning when it was time to get out of bed, all I could hear was the pitter patter of rain on the roof. It is the most soothing sound for me especially when I'm sleeping. It took every fiber of my being not to talk myself out of going to the gym but I did it!!

The other test I was put to was the treadmill. Sigh... I like to spend 45-60 minutes on the treadmill. Usually I shoot for 60. My problem, I get BORED!! And today was no exception. I was so bored and so exhausted. I only got 5-5 1/2 hours of sleep. So 60 minutes seemed like an impossible task. I don't function well when I'm tired and I talk myself out of so much when I'm that tired. I thank God everyday for my ipod and the music on it. Each song got me through another couple of min. I don't think I'd make it 10 minutes without it. So, good news, I made it to 60 minutes!

One day down and many many more to go.

My Workouts

2007-05-15T21:56:00.000-05:00

I'm back into the full swing of things. My first almost complete workout was today and I am exhausted but I feel great. I thought I'd fill you in on my workout routine.

4:00 am - wakey wakey
4:15 am - finally hearing the alarm
4:30 am ish - out the door and on my way to the gym

Once at the gym:
5-10 minutes stretching
45-60 minutes cardio treadmill
15-20 minutes with the weights
5-10 minutes stretching again
10 minutes in the hot tub
10 minutes in the steam room

After all that is said and done its home for me to get ready for work. By the time I get to work it feels like half the day should be over but really it has just begun!!!!

As Promised....

2007-05-15T21:37:00.000-05:00

Here are this weeks pictures. I'm having a tough week so they are terrible but at least they are up. I do have to say that I am never wearing white for my weekly picture ever again!!!

Pattern

2007-05-14T15:12:00.000-05:00

I am stuck in a pattern that I don't know how to get out of. I gained 3.2 pounds this week. It has been up 4 down 3, up 4 down 3, up 4 and we will see about next week. I want to be upset but I can't because I've been working really hard. Even everyone around me is wondering what the deal is. I have to say that I am a little confused.

In the past when I was doing Weight Watchers I could goof off half the week and be serious the other half of the week and still manage a 2 to 3 pound loss. One of the only differneces between now and then is the amount of points they allow me to have. I am up 7 points from what I've had in the past which is a lot. So here is my game plan for this week.

1. Cut back to my orginal points. I will be eating about 350 less calories a day. Which gives me about 1600 calories a day and
2100 less calories for the week.

2. Double my water intake. I've been drinking plenty of water but with the workouts and the heat I thought it would be
good to increase what I am already doing. I should consider purchasing stock in the bottle water industry :O)

3. Back to my full gym routine. I will be back to working out 1 1/2 - 2 hours a day.

I am praying really hard that it is a great week. I am hoping for a seven pound loss. I know its high but for my size and a the calorie cut it is not unrealistic. I only want that weight loss for a week or two. I believe in losing it slowly.

Me at the Gym

2007-05-10T08:54:00.000-05:00

My friend Julie asked a really good question. So I thought I'd blog about it. She wanted to know "does anything help while you're there? watching tv, listening to music, etc?"

I am sooooooo not a morning person and right now going with my best friend Jennifer helps. I sleep through my alarm pretty easily and knowing that she is going to is a huge help to me. We are leaving at about 5:30 every morning. She only needs about 30 minutes to work out and I usually go for about an hour and a half. Next week I start back at my 4 AM routine. Ughhh....

TV and music are huge factors for the success in getting me to the gym and staying there. If it wasn't there I wouldn't be able to do it. I get bored. If I work out at night (which I did a lot at first) I would try to be on the treadmill by 10:35 when friends came on. It would keep my entertained for the first half hour cardio routine on the treadmill. When I go in the morning I rely on my music. The news just isn't enough to keep me entertained. It actually has the reverse effect. It makes me want to go to bed.

I should post my workout playlist. Is anyone interested? Maybe I will post my playlist and my whole workout routine this weekend or the first of next week. Would anyone be interested in that?

Julie had another good question. "and where are the promised pics?" Thanks for holding me accountable to that Julie. Mondays are pretty busy and getting someone to take them has been hard. When things are busy I feel bad for asking someone to take a couple of minutes to do it. Which I shouldn't. Monday I will post pictures. If I don't, pester me until I do.

Does anyone else have any questions for me?

Getting there...

2007-05-07T14:18:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm getting there. Much better weigh-in this week. I lost 3. I was hoping for more but I have no reason to complain. I won't get excited until I have a couple more weeks like that. I'm hoping that I am not in a strange pattern of up 4 down 3, up 4 down 3. After talking to several people this week, I am not the only one with strange weight gain. So that makes me feel a whole lot better.

I made it to the gym 4 days last week. It's not where I want to be but that will happen next week. One more week of taking it easy at the gym and then I am jumping back in full speed.

Sigh....

2007-04-30T14:14:00.000-05:00

Well, I don't know what to think. My weigh in was terrible. I'm beginning to think there is something wrong with me. Last week was a good week. It wasn't perfect but it was good. I am upset, discouraged and disappointed. Not to the point of giving up. I'm just upset. Oh well. Moving on...

So this week I've added exercising back in to the routine. I'm starting off slow. I'll do a couple of weeks of 45 min workouts then bump it back up to 1 1/2 hours. I'm extra tired from the past month and I need to listen to my body and not push it like I want to. Last weeks massage was terrible but I think I am going to book another one this week. They really are important for good health. I know you probably think I'm crazy but after going to massage school I know from experience how good they are for your health. I'll probably book another next week to and then just book them twice a month after that unless financially I am able to do it more.

Pictures are hard to do. I'll try and get one posted soon.

Feeling Better

2007-04-26T12:05:00.000-05:00

I've been having some pretty bad back pain for over a year now. It all started with jury duty. Two and half weeks of an extremely emotional trial and sitting in those aweful chairs for 8-10 hours a day will do it. By far one of the worst experiences of my life. I think I have a pretty high pain tolerance so I have been able to put up with it this long without doing something about it.

Last Thursday on a whim I decided to get a massage. I finally had enough. So I booked and 1 1/2 hour massage with a moist heat pack. It was heaven. It put me in a mood for a couple of days. I was exhausted from the previous weeks, wasn't feeling good and I was sore from having my muscles worked out. Regardless of all that, I hadn't felt that relaxed in a long time and my body felt good.

I am going for another one today. I really need to get my body functing again. I think after I am done (if I'm not too relaxed I am going to go to the gym and stretch and then sit in the sauna and hot tub. This should help with the toxin release and help my muscles loosen up even more. I am considering doing this once a week for a couple more weeks and then try to make it a priority to get it done once a month after that. Even though she made good progress on my back last week there is still much more work to be done.

With my back feeling better it is giving me a better focus for staying the course. It's giving me some renewed energy.

That's more like it

2007-04-23T21:57:00.000-05:00

I weighed in today and I lost 3 pounds in 5 days! I am proud of myself. I was able to do that while not being in control of my environments. I've had an unually busy week. My eating habits have consisted of Chickfila at least once if not twice a day. This week will be crazy too. We will see how I do next week.

Weigh-In Sucks

2007-04-19T09:45:00.000-05:00

So I weighed in and I did a lot worse than I thought. The past few weeks have been tough on me and the diet. Between PMSing and going back and forth between the hospital and San Antonio and Dallas my diet has majorly suffered. I have done nothing but eat out and eat really late for the past 2 weeks. So needless to say I am up 3.8 pounds! I can hardly believe it. I thought maybe a pound or two but not nearly four.

I'm not depressed or discouraged but I'm actually pretty pissed. I also think I am just going to keep the weigh-ins on Monday's. I really did not like the mid week weigh-in. Pictures hopefully coming soon. The week has been crazy and I haven't had much contact with people who can take the picture for me.

Changing the Plan A Bit

2007-04-17T11:39:00.000-05:00

Well, I said that i was going to weigh in and take pictures on Monday's but I think I am going to change that. It's too much for me to go into San Antonio to weigh in after just being in town to work out. There is a place here in Bulverde that I can go weigh in at. The meetings are at 10 on Wednesday mornings. So I am going to give this a try for a couple of weeks to see if I like it. So look for updates tomorrow. I really like the Monday weigh in and I think I am going to miss them. It helps keep me accountable over the weekend.

MIA

2007-04-11T09:18:00.000-05:00

So I started this blog and then I went MIA. Sorry. My cousins little girl was in the hospital and i took a little trip to Dallas for a little more than a week. I went off the diet. Between running back and forth to the hosiptal and taking the boys out you could just say that I went off my diet for the week. I tried hard at first but then with all the caos it just happened. I am back home now with the boys and I am struggling to find the time to get to the grocery store. I'm watching what I eat but not really doing what I need to do. Hopefully by this weekend I will be back on track.

My friend Jennifer made a really good observation about me. It's something that I've thought about before and taken notice to but there is something about when someone else tells you... She noticed that everytime I get really serious about a diet, jumping to someones aid is soon to follow. I know that I don't jump to someones aid to avoid dieting. I actually enjoy dieting once I get into it but I think its satan using a really big strength of mine to get me off track. Do you have any thoughts on this? If you do I would love to hear what you have to say.

You Know You're On A Diet When...

2007-03-29T10:14:00.001-05:00

So, I've been a little hungrey the past few days. The first few days of a diet you notice odd behaviours in yourself. Here is a list that my best friend and I started last time we dieted together. Please feel free to add on.

You know you’re on a diet when…

1. you ask your husband to get a shake from Chick-fil-a so you can watch him eat it
2. you lick your plate for every last calorie you can get
3. you take your measuring spoons, spray dressing and spray butter into a restaurant with you
4. you take your left over broccoli from lunch back to work for snack time
5. you dream about having an extra bowl of cereal and then realize that you didn’t have any extra points for a 2nd bowl and
that put you over for the day and then you wake up panicked
6. things that you never liked before, you suddenly find yourself devouring
7. you spend all day in the bathroom

My Goals

2007-03-27T11:11:00.000-05:00

I have all these goals and the only one with a reward attached to it at this point is my final goal weight. I need to set goals for all the others. Do you have any ideas? I don't want to use food as the reward. I am an emotional eater. I eat when I am happy, I eat when I am sad. I eat when you're happy, I eat when you're sad. I don't want to associate food with an emotion any more.

So non food goals are good. I'm not really motivated by them any way becasue I don't deprive myself of anything. With all that said. Any ideas?

2007-03-26T22:50:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my new blog. So I missed weigh in today due to the weather. I thought it was worse than it was. But I am planning on going sometime tomorrow so the updates should be there by tomorrow evening. Here is the first picture. It's from my weekend on the riverwalk.