Ok, so I've been AWOL. I've been super busy with my secondary teaching certification courses. 1 year of coursework in 10 weeks = very messy house, other people raising my children, and absolutely no care for diet and exercise. Hence my and my family's suffering. And although I've only gained 2 pounds, I've probably lost 10 pounds of muscle and gained 12 pound of fat.
Tonight I rejoined WW online. Tracking my food really is the only way I can stay accountable. I know what I should and shouldn't be eating, but when I know I have to enter it in my journal, it gives me more will power. For example: do I really want to look up how many points a venti iced white mocha is, or do I really want to see "glazed old fashioned donut" in my food log, and really, how embarrassing is it when I spend half my days calories on breakfast cereal?
To make matters worse, Ryan decided to start his diet the week before my classes started, and he went from 236 to 204, and is still losing. I can't weigh more than my husband! It's bad enough I'm 3 inches taller than him, I can't also be fatter! Apparently, insecurities can be a positive motivator, despite what clinical psychologist say.
So, here we go, again.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
"Welcome to ONEderland"
Finally! I'm under 200 pounds. For the last 8 weeks, I've been fluctuating between 200 and 202, despite doing everything right - doing weight watchers and swimming 5 miles a week. I seriously felt like giving up, all because my scale wouldn't budge. I knew I was getting skinnier (ok, less fat), because my pants were too big. But the number on the scale was just demoralizing. I discovered the weight watchers message boards, and vented my frustration. I received encouragement, some down to earth advice (lock your scale up), as well as a discussion on our lumberjack arms which didn't have anything to do with much, but made me laugh and feel better. So I kept doing what I was doing. I keep visualizing the end scene in The Labyrinth where David Bowie is trying to get the girl to stay (god, he was so yummy - I would've stayed and let the brat turn into a goblin), and then everything crashes down as she realizes "you have no power over me". Overly dramatic as it is, that's how I keep envisioning my bathroom scale.
Despite my lover's quarrel with my dear digital weight barometer (looking for better synonyms here), I got on it this morning and I'm 198.7. Woot! Woot! As one of posters said on WW, "welcome to onederland". I have to confess though, I cheated while on furlough from my dd scale. I think it's the scientist in me that has to quantify everything. I tested my % body fat at the gym last night. I'm down 6%!!! It may actually be 8%, but I can't remember my starting number because I was so mortified I tried to block it out. It was either 37% or 39%, and now it's down to 31%.
The bad news is, I just bought 2 pairs of jeans, and now they're almost too big. There goes $60 down the drain - not that I'm complaining (well, I am, but at least it's not because I'm too fat).
Despite my lover's quarrel with my dear digital weight barometer (looking for better synonyms here), I got on it this morning and I'm 198.7. Woot! Woot! As one of posters said on WW, "welcome to onederland". I have to confess though, I cheated while on furlough from my dd scale. I think it's the scientist in me that has to quantify everything. I tested my % body fat at the gym last night. I'm down 6%!!! It may actually be 8%, but I can't remember my starting number because I was so mortified I tried to block it out. It was either 37% or 39%, and now it's down to 31%.
The bad news is, I just bought 2 pairs of jeans, and now they're almost too big. There goes $60 down the drain - not that I'm complaining (well, I am, but at least it's not because I'm too fat).
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
I feel like a walrus doing a somersault...
After practicing doing flip-turns in the pool (where else would you practice them?), I've decided that the above statement is more likely an insult to the walrus. Nothing like learning a new skill to learn a little humility. Tonight, I was able to overcome the chlorine nasal lavage and actually successfully complete several laps with flip turns. I think the breakthrough was when I realized I was closing my eyes when I went into a somersault for some reason, and as soon as I started keeping them open, I was able to stay in my own lane even. Oh, yah, and not hit the bottom of the pool - that was fun. I need alot more practice, but I can do them. Timing is everything. For some reason, if I don't breath out pretty hard, I get water up my nose and into my sinuses, which hurts like hell - sort of an internal face burn. And somehow I did this swallowing thing and popped my ear, and it still hurts. Anyway, I practiced this for 45 minutes today in a full pool. I felt like a spaz, but at least I was trying. How else am I going to learn except by doing it.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Peculiar...
I'm avoiding the scale. Not because I'm not doing good on my diet and exercise, but because I am doing well. The last 5 days weren't all that great - I got a cold, stomach bug, and my period all in the same week. But the week before, I swam 4 miles, walked a 5k, worked out in the gym with weights and treadmill for an hour. Of course, I haven't lost a single ounce!!!!!!!!!! I can't insert enough exclamation points to represent my level of frustration. For 2 weeks, I've been swimming one mile a day, 4 days a week, and doing a land based work out at the gym. Not a single ounce. Of course, I weighed myself this weekend, and I lost 1 pound. This is particularly funny, since I've been pigging out. You know, the whole pms/chocolate/carb thing. And I didn't exercise. So what gives? Oh well. Anyway, my jeans are less tight, so I must be leaning up, which is fine with me. That's why I'm staying away from the scale.
Tonight I swam my fastest mile, after not swimming for 5 days. It took me 45 minutes, which is 3 minutes faster than my fastest time last week. I got a really nice complement, too. The lady who I was sharing a lane with (who incidentally had the same swimsuit on, which is why we struck up a conversation), said she was watching me from the hot tub and thought I looked so relaxed and effortless. I laughed, because I can tell you, it is not effortless. She said she was just learning how to swim laps, and I told her I had never swam a lap in my life until 4 weeks ago. She said she was really surprised at that, and that maybe there was hope for her, that I inspired her. Me? I almost felt like crying (don't worry, I didn't, that would be kind of weird and uncomfortable). And an old acquaintance on facebook, who was a swimmer in high school, is talking about looking up a masters swim team because I've been bragging about how much I love it. It makes me feel good. Kind of like a fitness-pay-it-forward (did I mention I was inspired by biggest looser - that'll have to be a blog for another day). I always look to others for inspiration - I never realized people could look to me. It's a peculiar feeling, one I'm not used to. But in a good way.
Tonight I swam my fastest mile, after not swimming for 5 days. It took me 45 minutes, which is 3 minutes faster than my fastest time last week. I got a really nice complement, too. The lady who I was sharing a lane with (who incidentally had the same swimsuit on, which is why we struck up a conversation), said she was watching me from the hot tub and thought I looked so relaxed and effortless. I laughed, because I can tell you, it is not effortless. She said she was just learning how to swim laps, and I told her I had never swam a lap in my life until 4 weeks ago. She said she was really surprised at that, and that maybe there was hope for her, that I inspired her. Me? I almost felt like crying (don't worry, I didn't, that would be kind of weird and uncomfortable). And an old acquaintance on facebook, who was a swimmer in high school, is talking about looking up a masters swim team because I've been bragging about how much I love it. It makes me feel good. Kind of like a fitness-pay-it-forward (did I mention I was inspired by biggest looser - that'll have to be a blog for another day). I always look to others for inspiration - I never realized people could look to me. It's a peculiar feeling, one I'm not used to. But in a good way.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Swim Therapy
OMG. The strangest thing is happening. Something that has never, ever happened in the paradigm that is Kim. I actually am looking forward to going to the gym. Watch out for low flying objects of the porcine kind.
Last summer while watching Michael Phelps win 78 gold medals, I thought "hey, swimming burns allot of calories, I should try that". I even went and bought a pair of swim goggles and watched videos on youtube about how to swim a proper crawl stroke. But that's as far as it got. My gym has a pool, and when I joined, I thought I wouldn't use it. After all, it has glass walls on 3 sides of it, one side facing out to the street and parking lot. That doesn't quite seem copacetic with me in a swimsuit. But the idea that planted itself somewhere in my psyche last summer said give it a try. Costco had speedo swimsuits in my size. The stars were lining up. What the hell. After enduring 2 children's worth of ob/gyn doctors, nurses, receptionists (seriously, that's another story), I decided not to let a little cellulite stand in my way. Wait a minute - I flunked my YMCA swim class when I was 8. Not a problem. I've already thrown caution to the wind. I don't care if people glare at me for splashing too much, or smirk at my poor form. I'm doing this. And you know what - I loved it.
The first day, I was a little irritated with constantly swallowing my hair, even though it was in a bun. My little baby hairs are long, and they were really annoying. So I went out to Big 5 and bought a swim cap, even though I think they look dorky. The 2nd day of swimming, it was really enjoyable. Yes, I used the word enjoyable and a form of exercise in the same sentence. Half way through swimming laps, I developed a rhythm, and everything but breathing, kicking, reaching and pulling fell away. That noisy voice in my head that just won't shut up was silenced. Yes, my heart was pumping and I had to rest between laps sometimes, but that felt nice, too. I swam 1/2 a mile. The next couple of times, I swam 3/4 of a mile. Me. I can't frickin believe it. The one who hates water and failed her swimming lessons.
I can't really explain it that well. But the self-consciousness and insecurity that constantly plagues me goes away, and the weird thing, it stays away for awhile. I can walk out of the locker room in a swim suit to the pool surrounded by glass walls without even a towel while wearing a silly swim cap, and I have confidence. I know I am going to swim almost a mile. And it lasts when I leave the gym, too. Nothing has physically changed (yet), but doing this one thing makes all the difference in how I view myself. I might not be Michael Phelps, but that's not really the point is it. I'm me, and I don't have to make excuses for it. Call it swim therapy.
Last summer while watching Michael Phelps win 78 gold medals, I thought "hey, swimming burns allot of calories, I should try that". I even went and bought a pair of swim goggles and watched videos on youtube about how to swim a proper crawl stroke. But that's as far as it got. My gym has a pool, and when I joined, I thought I wouldn't use it. After all, it has glass walls on 3 sides of it, one side facing out to the street and parking lot. That doesn't quite seem copacetic with me in a swimsuit. But the idea that planted itself somewhere in my psyche last summer said give it a try. Costco had speedo swimsuits in my size. The stars were lining up. What the hell. After enduring 2 children's worth of ob/gyn doctors, nurses, receptionists (seriously, that's another story), I decided not to let a little cellulite stand in my way. Wait a minute - I flunked my YMCA swim class when I was 8. Not a problem. I've already thrown caution to the wind. I don't care if people glare at me for splashing too much, or smirk at my poor form. I'm doing this. And you know what - I loved it.
The first day, I was a little irritated with constantly swallowing my hair, even though it was in a bun. My little baby hairs are long, and they were really annoying. So I went out to Big 5 and bought a swim cap, even though I think they look dorky. The 2nd day of swimming, it was really enjoyable. Yes, I used the word enjoyable and a form of exercise in the same sentence. Half way through swimming laps, I developed a rhythm, and everything but breathing, kicking, reaching and pulling fell away. That noisy voice in my head that just won't shut up was silenced. Yes, my heart was pumping and I had to rest between laps sometimes, but that felt nice, too. I swam 1/2 a mile. The next couple of times, I swam 3/4 of a mile. Me. I can't frickin believe it. The one who hates water and failed her swimming lessons.
I can't really explain it that well. But the self-consciousness and insecurity that constantly plagues me goes away, and the weird thing, it stays away for awhile. I can walk out of the locker room in a swim suit to the pool surrounded by glass walls without even a towel while wearing a silly swim cap, and I have confidence. I know I am going to swim almost a mile. And it lasts when I leave the gym, too. Nothing has physically changed (yet), but doing this one thing makes all the difference in how I view myself. I might not be Michael Phelps, but that's not really the point is it. I'm me, and I don't have to make excuses for it. Call it swim therapy.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Bring it on!
So, I can't seem to get BOTH the diet and exercise thing going. I'll get the diet going good, but can't seem to get the exercise part. Now, I've got the exercise part down, but my diet has been horrible. I think I just need some motivation.
In steps the challenge: Becky says she wants to loose 2 pounds a week for the next 5 weeks. I figure, if she can do it, so can I. A wager is made. Looser has to watch the other's kids for a night. Even though she has 4 kids, I have a 2-year old, which is like watching 3 kids, so a fair deal. Is that motivation or what?
I'm thinking maybe instead of the number of pounds lost, maybe percentage, especially since I have more weight to loose and I'm a bigger person. Percentage is fair, but I also think it's important to keep up the weight loss for the whole 5 weeks. So maybe whoever has the best weekly percentage average? Details, but bring it on!
In steps the challenge: Becky says she wants to loose 2 pounds a week for the next 5 weeks. I figure, if she can do it, so can I. A wager is made. Looser has to watch the other's kids for a night. Even though she has 4 kids, I have a 2-year old, which is like watching 3 kids, so a fair deal. Is that motivation or what?
I'm thinking maybe instead of the number of pounds lost, maybe percentage, especially since I have more weight to loose and I'm a bigger person. Percentage is fair, but I also think it's important to keep up the weight loss for the whole 5 weeks. So maybe whoever has the best weekly percentage average? Details, but bring it on!
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Is going to the gym a form of masochism?
I have been really blessed this week. My mom-in-law signed us up for a 6 month family membership to the new LA Fitness in Covington, 8 minutes from my house. She even included the childcare! I tried out the yoga classes Monday night, which was just OK. I'll probably do it once a week, but it can't compare to my old yoga teacher. She was an exceptional teacher, though, so it's probably not fair to compare the two. The gym facilities are sooo nice. The locker room is probably cleaner (and prettier, too) than my kitchen. When I get into a little better shape, I may try a spin class or a kickboxing class, but I don't want to get ahead of myself.
Today I had a free training session. I guess I was expecting him to take me around and show me the machines, etc, but it was a full-out training session. I wish I was wealthy, because I would love to have this guy as my personal trainer. There's no way I would ever push myself that hard without one. All day my legs have felt like jello, and I have a feeling tomorrow I'm going to get a taste of what it's like to be an 80-year-old trying to get out of bed in the morning. Most - and I really mean all - the trainers I've had in the past have been morons. This guy was very smart and taught me allot - he had a 4-year degree, even - imagine that! Anyway, before my training session, I walked 5k at a 1% incline, at about 3.6 on the treadmill, and it wasn't that hard. I probably wouldn't have done the whole thing, though, if I had any idea what the trainer had in store for me.
Today I had a free training session. I guess I was expecting him to take me around and show me the machines, etc, but it was a full-out training session. I wish I was wealthy, because I would love to have this guy as my personal trainer. There's no way I would ever push myself that hard without one. All day my legs have felt like jello, and I have a feeling tomorrow I'm going to get a taste of what it's like to be an 80-year-old trying to get out of bed in the morning. Most - and I really mean all - the trainers I've had in the past have been morons. This guy was very smart and taught me allot - he had a 4-year degree, even - imagine that! Anyway, before my training session, I walked 5k at a 1% incline, at about 3.6 on the treadmill, and it wasn't that hard. I probably wouldn't have done the whole thing, though, if I had any idea what the trainer had in store for me.
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