Tag Archives: fitness

New Week, New News!

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Hi Everybody, Hope you had a great weekend! While my weekend was kind of an unproductive bummer because I had a cold that kept me pretty much incapacitated, I do have a couple exciting bits o’ news to share with you. :)

The first is that I am now a Sweat Pink Ambassador! In the past few months my focus has really changed from weight loss to fitness, and being accepted into this group is AWESOME for my new goals of being fit and in shape – the weight loss will follow suit!

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What this means is that I’m joining a community that’s over 800 fitness oriented women bloggers who are all about educating the world that strong is the new skinny – meaning you don’t have to be a stick, you just have to be healthy! Part of the sweat pink lifestyle is making fitness fun – which is why I’m scoring these awesome neon pink shoelaces to send to you! If you want a pair (Free), leave me a comment. All I ask if that if I send you a pair, you tweet, Facebook or instagram a post of yourself wearing them so I can share our Sweat Pink message. Yay!

 

Borrowed from fellow SPA fromfltond.com

The second is that I’m now helping with social media at the totally delicious and super fun Lenny and Larry’s! They make “muscle brownies” which are protein brownies, and complete cookies, which are vegan cookies. They’re all about delicious snacks with NO JUNK. This company really jives with my philosophy about life- having fun, eating yummy things, but always with a focus on health! I am continuing to work part-time with my current job, and I’m thrilled to be making a living in social media and blogging which I love, love, love. Check out Lenny and Larry’s on twitter here and Facebook here – and stay tuned for a new giveaway so I can have you try out some of their products. Their lemon poppy seed complete cookie is vegan and has 15 grams of protein and is OFF THE HOOK.

Larry

Lastly, the Double Chin Diary DietBet has ended!! CONGRATULATIONS to everybody who lost their 4%. Sadly, I was a couple pounds away from meeting my 4%, but I feel proud about what I did manage to lose. I’m not sure if April made it – will check in with her shortly. However, we will be hosting another DietBet in a few months, but in the meantime, I’m super proud of everybody who participated. Even if you didn’t “win”, you made strides towards a more healthful you, and that’s something to brag about.Now I am starting my “no weigh” month where I completely focus on fitness and nutrition, and measurements. I’ll have more info about that for you shortly.

Well Chinners, that’s all I’ve got for now! I hope you have an amazing week!
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2012 Turkey Trot – My First 10k

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April and I about a mile in.

Hello! Yes, blog friends, I have FINALLY received the card reader I complained about not having several times this week. Which means… PICTURES! VOILA! (Did you know that word is “Wah-lah!” For the longest time I just wrote wahlah. Had no idea it was Voila. Anyways, random is me.) So! All week I had been pumping myself up to do the third annual Petaluma Turkey Trot. Sure, I’d need to wake up earlier than I do for work, and sure, it’d be 44 degrees when we started, and sure, a large portion of the trail was up a steep, rocky hill. But, SURE, I could do it!

I arrived in Petaluma the night before and my sister and I spent the night awake and giggling like we have too many times. Finally, we knocked out around 1:45 AM, and I awoke the next morning to the blaring alarm clock set 14 minutes too fast (I guess delinquency runs in the family). My sister had an ailment that could have prevented her from going, but I’ll let her tell you all about that tomorrow. (She’s a trooper! Go April!) We got dressed, got in the car, and were on our way!

We showed up at the park at 8:38, where everyone was supposed to be meeting at 8:30. There were no turkey trotters in sight. Plenty of cars, but no people. Had we missed the turkey trot? Indeed we had! But, since we are super hardcore and were determined to come home with the glow of pre-feast fitness victory, we relied on our pal Melody’s trusty sense of navigation (and her phone) and created our own route. We were initially going to do the 5k track, but as we got going, catching up and BSing about life, the Sonoma Aroma filled our lungs and we were filled with motivation and inspiration, fueled by perspiration. We trudged forward, stopping to check out cows and compare manicures.

Reached the top of Helen Putnam Park without going into cardiac arrest. YAY!

Right before this picture was taken, I was sitting on a bench, breathing heavily, half wondering if I had overdone it on the huge, steep hill leading up to the nature trail called Helen Putnam Park. I had pushed myself forward, but it was a long, steep climb and all of a sudden I felt really out of breath and could tell I was having a pollen reaction, combined with hauling 50 extra pounds up a huge hill. (Long story short – when you have crazy allergies like I do, if you suddenly take in a lot of pollen or an inhalant, your body gets a little… fuzzy feeling. This can happen even with allergy meds ,and it sucks – it’s kind of like feeling super super tired all of a sudden yet panicky at the same time. It’s a big fat fail.) I sat on the bench, feeling frustrated and wondering why this all had to be so damn hard. Hadn’t I just said I was feeling more in shape? I said this aloud to my friend Melody (who has lost 70 pounds – SUPER STAR! She’s amazing!) – and she provided even more weight loss wisdom. “It’s hard, but you have to push through it. Just keep going. Just. keep. going.” She enunciated the last three words, and I realized, she’s right. Everything I’ve ever done that’s been worth doing has been HARD. Victory and success doesn’t come without major perseverance. I got off the bench… and I kept going.

The beautiful Petaluma, California

The rest of the trail was awesome, as we got on top of these hills which then took us through a beautiful wooded area, dappled with morning light and gently rolling fog. Once I made it past that hill, the rest of the hike was gravy. We were jolly and laughing the whole way down, proud that we had done something so good for ourselves on a day that’s usually good for the soul but bad for the arteries. By the time we got back to where we started, we had clocked 6.9 miles – just over a 10k, and according to MyFitnessPal, a 910 calorie burn. I think I need to make this a new Thanksgiving day tradition, because it made the rest of the day feel so rewarding. I felt great after my workout and I’m proud to say now that I can walk a 10k.

April, Melody and I after our Turkey Trot.

Have you or would you ever participate in a “turkey trot”?

Wednesday Woohoos!

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Hello everybody! So sorry I missed a Thailand Tuesday yesterday. Since the holiday break I have been getting back into the swing of things with work and getting ready for our trip! Woohoo! So – all day yesterday, it never occurred to me to step on the scale. My weight was just… not really on my mind. Other than sweating it out at Zumba, I didn’t want my mood to change based on three numbers. So I gave myself a pass. You know how in Weight Watchers you could pick a week to not weigh in? Yep, I’m using my “Thailand Tuesday Pass” pass. I don’t even necessarily think my weigh in would have been “bad” – but after last week’s frustration, I want to take away the focus on the NUMBER and instead focus on how my life is changing. Let’s begin! (PS I so want to write about Thanksgiving, but I refuse to do it without pictures and my new card reader comes tomorrow!).

Yummy Erewhon Strawberry Cereal!

Before I started my weight-loss journey, I never ate breakfast. I would roll out of bed, shower and basically starve myself until lunch time, when I would pig out. Once I stated meeting with a dietitian, I realized how important it is to fuel your body in the morning. Lately I’ve been loving cereal with ice cold milk – like this super delicious Erewhon Strawberry Crisp cereal. I’m in love with Special K Red Berries but when I found out Erewhon makes a gluten-free, organic, non-GMO option, I had to convert. The lovely folks at Erewhon/Attune sent me a box to try and I’m in looove. My favorite way to have it is with a sliced banana. Woohoo for a healthy, delicious breakfast!

Feeling great after a six mile hike!

Like I wrote last week, I feel like I’m making new progress with fitness. I’m learning to make the gym less of a “Should I” and more of an “I Will”. Yesterday after my allergy shots I felt kind of blah and was pretty much going to blow off my zumba class. My friend texted me that she’d be there, and I threw on my clothes and rushed out the door. Afterwards, I felt so good – and we even stayed after class to do 30 sit ups each. My attitude is starting to change from fitness as an option when it’s convenient to more of a “prescription” for my good health and mood. This makes me happy! Woohoo for fitness!

Last week when my sister and friend Melody and I did our 10k Turkey Trot, I had some of those feelings of “I’m the only fat person out here, I shouldn’t be here.”. And then as I climbed that mountain, and huffed, and puffed, and almost felt like I was having a heart attack, I broke through. I stomped those thoughts out and powered on, until the only thing left behind me was my self doubt. Fitness is one size fits all. You do not need to be thin, muscular or gorgeous to be fit. I saw this picture on George Takei’s Facebook post and I loved it. Woohoo for healthy habits at ANY size!

So that’s all I got for today! I promise I’ll be back soon with posts all about my Thanksgiving and Turkey Trot and a super special hard apple cider recipe. :) Have a great week! Woohoo!

A Major Non Scale Victory

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Sweaty after bootcamp, but loving my pretty purple “stay dry” tank.

So, on Tuesday I was all pouty because I gained a pound. Tonight, I realized that I’ve foolishly been looking for reward in only one place – the scale. I’ve been trying to do a couple of group exercise classes every week, because it’s the best way for me to get the full hour of cardio in without sneaking off early like I’m inclined to do if it’s just me and the treadmill.

I sweated my butt off in Bootcamp tonight, and about halfway through I realized something. I was winded, sweaty and tired – but I was keeping up. I didn’t need breaks to catch my breath, and I was doing the intermediate moves. I attacked the 45 squats with gusto and didn’t freak out when we did 100 knee kicks in a row. As I started putting two and two together, I realized “Holy crap! This is working! I’M GETTING IN SHAPE!!!”

I’m always amazed at how long it takes to get in shape and how quickly you can get out of shape. It makes sense that I’d be starting to feel some results now as I’ve been back to my old gym since September and working out more than ever. This was exactly the reminder I needed that helps me remember why I need to stay on track and keep pushing. I may not see the number move on the scale, but tonight, I felt great! I left the class drenched and tired, but my endorphins were rushing, my body felt loose and limber and my skin had that pretty pink glow. It’s times like this that I remember that success in weight loss isn’t just about a number – it’s about how you feel.

Sadly, I’m one of these people. “I skipped the french fries! Did I lose weight yet?”

Are you the type of person that expects instant reward when it comes to weight loss, too? Have you had any “non scale victories” lately?

 

April’s Hula Hoop Challenge

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Hello double chinners!

I am bursting with excitement for joining along with my sister, Alyssa, on this blogging journey through weight loss!  I have decided to challenge myself further by doing a “Hula Hoop 30-Day Challenge”.  Back when I was losing my big chunk of weight I invested in my most precious exercise tool yet – The Acu Hoop!  The Acu Hoop is a three to five pound hula hoop that advertises itself as an easy and fun way to lose inches off the waist with a mere ten minutes a day.

The Acu Hoop

 

I discovered it while working at the gym and lost nine inches off my waist with the combination of healthy eating and exercise.   I’ve continued to use the hula hoop from time to time when I need to lose an inch or two for an upcoming event and it still amazes me with results within a few weeks.

One thing I have yet to do since I lost that fifty pounds years ago was to see what kind of progress I could make if I was to be 100% dedicated to doing the Acu Hoop every day.

Since this blog makes me very accountable for my actions, I will turn that pressure into motivation to stick with this challenge.

So here I am on Day 1.  I just finished my 10 minutes.

My waist is 45 inches.

My fat roll (that sweet spot below the belly button and above the ‘pubic mound’) is 48.5″

I think the smallest I got my waist down to was 35″ so that’s pretty depressing to realize I’ve gone up 10 inches.  What’s crazy though is that my pant size hasn’t really changed!!  How does that work!?

Anyway, I look forward to updating you all on my inch loss soon!  I’ll do another measurement in two weeks from now to see how it’s going!

Here’s the link to the Acu Hoop – http://www.sports-hoop.com/product_sportshoop/SubCategory.aspx?CategoryID=1&SubCategoryID=79

Also, don’t forget to enter for a chance to win a case of popchips! The contest ends Friday at midnight – enter now!

 

 

 

Making Fitness Work For Me

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I'm not horsing around with my fitness anymore. (Creepy and awesome mask courtesy of my brother Tommy)

Good morning, everybody! Remember how last week I had an exercise confession? Well, I’ve been making sure that I don’t let that happen again – by taking quick 10 minute breaks during the day to ride my bike to the post office, or walk to the grocery store. Last night I took a major step in reclaiming my fitness – I re-joined my old gym, Total Woman.

In January my membership expired, and because CSUN had opened their new and free gym, I decided to start using that. However, because of the annoying parking that you have to pay $180 every 3 months to use, the limited class hours because they’re designed for students who don’t work, and the co-ed mixed gender vibe, I decided to re-join my old gym. The CSUN Rec Center is amazing, but I really missed my Saturday morning boxing class,  the hot-tub, and the fact that Total Woman is women only. I missed working out with some of my friends who are members… Merrie, Eileen, Sal… There’s also some sort of comfort factor in knowing that nobody cares if you rolled out of bed, forgot to brush your teeth, and still have zit cream on your chin. Not that anybody cared at CSUN, but I feel like when I’m surrounded by all women, I can be 100% transparent in the fact that I’m there to get in shape – not attract a mate or meet new friends.

There’s also the “I’m paying for this” factor that seems to help pressure me into going. At CSUN, the gym dues were part of my tuition, so I technically did pay for it, but I didn’t have that fire under my butt saying “Do you really want to waste $39 this month?”. Since I am a frugalista at heart, I know I’m not going to just sit on my butt when my hard-earned cash is at work. So there ya have it. I went in last night and the sweet membership girl remembered me, so she worked out some savings for me – and this is the best part – she noticed last time I was a member, I never did my fitness evaluation. This is basically where you get weighed, measured, BMIed and tested on all sorts of levels of fitness. Can you see why I never did it?! ;) She offered to schedule me an appointment and I casually noted how my schedule was crazy and I’d call in to make an appointment. Well…. I was in the locker room getting changed for my workout, and she walked up with a fitness evaluator and scheduled my appointment RIGHT THEN AND THERE. So… now I have a fitness evaluation on Saturday morning and I’m terrified – but I know everything I’ll be told is everything I know. It’s more just the sting of being reminded that I’m fat, out of shape and have a lot of work to do. But, as my clever husband reminded me, that’s why I’m there – and that every epic journey starts with one small step.