Week 2 of C25K

I finished up week 2 of C25K. I'm going to repeat it, though. I can't run it the whole way thru without stopping short. So I'm going to do it until I can. I've also added in some abdominal work. It progresses, too, but I'll spare you the gory details. You start with 5 days of 20 jumping jacks, 20 burpees, 20 squats, 20 push-ups, and 20 sit-ups. Every week you do more. I'm currently down 18 pounds. I have my follow up Dr appt on May 16th. I'm hoping to be down at least 20 lbs by then! I think 2 lbs in 2 weeks is realistic. I sorta hope I shock them :D My current weight is 197. Ha! Numbers, numbers, numbers.

Oh, today is also my 9th anniversary <3

Some people just need a high-five...

Up to now, all of my posts have been about my weight loss and exercise goals. However this one isn't about that. It is about how some people just need a high-five. In the face. With a chair.

Unfortunately, I was made acutely aware of this fact by a 1st grade little boy. And he needed the high-five. Or honestly, just some better home training. Apparently, he has been picking on my Kindergartener. On Friday afternoon she got off the bus and and stomped up to me.  "H****n from 1st grade called me F-A-T!"  Thus began the internal battle.

Internally, I was fighting myself. I was raging at a snot-nosed little boy. I was groaning because THIS had already started and she is too young for us to already be fighting the looks battle. I was also scrambling to figure out how to talk to her about this and make sure he hadn't made her feel bad about herself or planted an evil seed of doubt in her head.

I asked her how she responded when H****n called her F-A-T. (She refused to say it; she just spelled it the whole time.) She told him that was not a nice thing to say, that he was RUDE, and she was telling  the bus driver. I'll never know the outcome of the last, but apparently the driver did relay his name-calling to one of his parents. I was happy with those responses bc it told me that she wasn't afraid to stand up for herself. Next, I asked her how she felt about what he said. "He irritates me." I'll take irritation over hurt feelings bc she didn't take what he said to heart. Last, I asked her if she thought she was F-A-T. She pulled up her shirt and looked down at her belly. "Nope." Fabulous, baby girl! Simple, straight forward, and to the point. She really doesn't believe that.

I still can't believe that attacking of self-esteem and outward appearance has started at 6 years old. I work really hard to teach her that what someone looks like has NOTHING to do with who they are as a person. I want her to understand that her actions are what will make her beautiful, not what the world sees when they look at her.

I still think about high-fiving him. In the face. With a chair.

(Playing dress up in Mama's wedding dress)

Training for a 5K....inside

Today was Day 2 of my C25K program. Just before Heather came over, I got a call from the elementary school.  My oldest has been fighting her allergies like the rest of us. However, today she complained so much that her teacher called me.

So. Day 2 was the exact same set up as Day 1 - 5 minute warm up, 60 sec run + 90 sec walk alternating for 20 minutes, and a 5 minute cool down. Since I had a "sick" child at home, I had to do my work out inside. I did my warm up, used my elliptical for the running, and walked circuits around my house for the walking portion. Luckily, I have a very open living room, kitchen, and dining room. I have to say that workout was MUCH less rewarding than Day 1. I just didn't feel that same sense of accomplishment for some reason. My hips, thighs, and shins would disagree with me. Ha!

Tomorrow is another day. Tomorrow brings the Brazil Butt Lift video with it....

Breaking Barriers

The last couple days have been RED LETTER days for me!

First, I changed every number on the scale! YAY, me! I'm now down 16 pounds and the scale reads 199! Now I know that the scale is not the end all, be all to getting healthy. Getting healthy really is my goal. However, I really had to fight the urge to yell, "Take that,  you jack-legged son of biscuit eater!" You know...because the scale has been my enemy forever.  Then I did my booty shakin' happy dance in the front yard. I do mean that literally.

Second, I went on my first run today. I loaded the Couch to 5K app to my phone and am using that. It's C25K Free by Zen Labs, in case you were wondering. Now this doesn't start you out running. Day 1 is 30 minutes. You warm up for 5 minutes, then you alternate running for 60 seconds and walking for 90 seconds for a total of 20 minutes. You end with a 5 minute cool-down. That last 60-90-60 combo was killer. But I made it! I ran every time it said run. I stopped 10 seconds short on one of the run cycles just ONE time. JUST ONE! I am SO proud of myself!! Of course, my partner in crime was with me. I don't know if it was easier for Heather or not, but if it wasn't she faked it well :) She didn't seem to struggle with it as much as I did. It was nice to have her there for that last 60-90-60, too. The encouragement really helped! Yay, us!!

I will leave you with a recipe today. It is super good and does things for tuna that I didn't know were possible.

Pesto Tuna Salad with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Rest Day

Yesterday, I rested. I did what I was supposed to do and I had a rest day. It sucked. I felt like a total slacker. I did, however, attempt my first burpee. I did a whopping two of them. I decided I could deal with feeling like a slacker because those suck more.

Heather, my partner in crime, ended up having to work today. So, we did some rearranging and improvising to get our work out in. We did the Basic and Bum Bum part of the Brazil Butt Lift video. What? Shu'up. Yes, I said Brazil Butt Lift. At least we managed to get our sweat on. Also? My thighs hurt.  Heather texted me and said her butt hurt. I guess that means that we got something from it.

It is SO hard not to get impatient. I'm excited about doing this and I want to be good at it NOW! It's supposed to rain tomorrow. All day. I think I'm going to bike ride tomorrow morning after my medic gets home and can watch Banana (my youngest).  The crime partner has to work and I don't have new shoes for walking/running yet.

Oh! I found this today, too! I have to say I'm pretty excited about it and think it will be a great first experience!

Pretty Muddy

Getting started

So. Here I go.

I am 33 yrs old. I have two children, 6 and 3 years old.  Two months ago, I went to the doctor with the demand "Fix me." I had a laundry list of complaints. Fatigue, inability to lose weight, depression, no libido, excessive bleeding at that time of the month. (Sorry.)  Seriously, I couldn't make it through the day without a nap. Turns out I did need to be fixed. After tests and more tests, this is what I got back:

You're overweight.
Your hormones are WAY out of whack.
You have polycystic ovarian syndrome.
If you don't make some major changes, you WILL be a diabetic.

Um. Not cool. And not what I wanted to hear. My weight was one of the things that I was really struggling with. I was up to 215 pounds. 215 pounds. Ugh. How did that happen? I was 25 pounds heavier than when I gave birth to my second child. So, here is what happened.

I got on birth control to attempt to level out my hormones and also keep my ovaries from making cysts. I have been doing that for two months. No update yet on whether it is working.  I cut gluten out of my diet. The biggest thing that has done is cut out processed foods. I have felt SO much BETTER since doing that! I cheated a couple of times. Ordering pizza is just too easy when you're busy and tired. But, oh, did I pay for it! Knowing that I'm going to feel really bad if I cheat has made staying on the wagon super easy! That pizza, pasta, or cake just isn't worth the way it's going to make me feel.

I've also lost 13 pounds. I'm now down to 202. That was just from diet changes I've made. I've also lost a couple inches from my chest, waist, hips, and thighs. Why, YES, I am masochistic and, YES, I did measure myself. Ugh.  But, I'm making progress and I'm beginning to be able to see it.

The next thing on my list was exercise. Because, you know, I wasn't. I started occasionally biking around my neighborhood. Thankfully, my 3 year old loves it. "I wanna wide da bike." isn't an uncommon demand nowadays. More recently I have begun walking with my friend Heather. We did 6.5 miles in two days and my feet are KILLING me! However, I'm going to fix that by getting some proper footwear. Also, amongst the walking, complaining, and groaning over fat clothes, we decided we should work up to running a 5K.

This is why Motivation is Always Needed. I really want to do it. But of course, all my fears, insecurities, and being massively out of shape keep whispering, "You can't do it. You're going to fail."
So, I have something to prove to myself.  I guess that means it's time to get started.