Moving on ..

Wow.  It has been a while .... again.  I guess you can see where "fitness" had been ranking in my day lately.

I did run the Tunnel to Tower 5K that Hot Springs hosted, in honor of 9-11-01.  I have to tell you it was amazing watching all walks of life crossing the finish line, including the firefighters that ran in their full gear.

I finished that race (sadly) in 38 minutes.  What is even worse is that other than a portion of the first mile, it was all down hill.  That is an average of a 12.5 minute mile.  Although I know I'm not ready to work on speed, I would really rather that number be close to an 11-12 minute mile for now.

---

Through calorie restriction and a teensy bit of running, I have managed to drop about 15 pounds since April.  NOT MUCH.  I need to lose 8 more pounds to be at my pre pregnancy weight, but even then I won't look the same.  I had so much muscle when I got pregnant, that I have since lost, my pre preg jeans def look different on my body.   I tried wearing them out the other day; while they did "fit" they were no where near comfortable...  =/

I got my freecycle treadmill in the house and it runs ... sort of.  It is tough to get it going, and it is just sorta slow.  I want to try to walk for 30 minutes during Lexie's naps and then also run outside.  The training clinic for the Spa 10K begins this week, so I sure hope that helps get my butt in gear!

Weight Loss Update

-2.0 lbs!  YAY  Basically I have just cut way back on sugars... I did not realize just how much sugar I was eating.  It is the little "splurges" that kill you!!  Instead I eat about 3 bananas and lots of grapes a day.  I also started eating oatmeal, which is new for me.  I have never liked the texture of oatmeal, but I suffer through.  That with a banana keeps you full for a while. 

AND, great news.. I thought the childcare room at the Y only took babies 6months and older, but I was wrong.  It is 2 months and older!  So starting next week, if I get the courage up to leave her in there, I am going to start back at the gym.  Before his second surgery, J.Tom kept her for me, but he cannot lift her now so I  either have to stay home or take her with me.  I really want to take her with me, so I think I will start out by running for 30 minutes around the track, check on her, and then go do some weights.  Then maybe I will get the courage to leave her for the duration of a spin class!  I know I have to get the courage at some point... I mean she starts school in Jan, so maybe this would be a good way to transition for us me.  I don't think she is going to care if a stranger is holding her and playing with her for 30 minutes, so I am pretty sure it is just me holding myself back.

That is a hard thing about being a mom, especially with such a young child.  You have to make decisions based on what is best for her, and for yourself, but sometimes you feel selfish for the choices you make.  And what really stinks is that I know it is in both our best interests for me to drop her off in the childcare room and go sweat my butt off, literally.  However, it is just a scary first move.  But isn't everything in life a little nerve racking the first time?

Also, I have started doing crunches with Lexie.  When I crunch, I hold her up like we are doing superman and then when I lower down I rest her on my knees.  She LOVES it and it works my tummy and my arms.  =)  She makes a good 15lb weight!!

Oops... again

Well, it has been a while since my last fitness post.  As you may have read on my other blog, things have been crazy at our house!

After eating a lot of sugar this last week, I posted a note on my fridge which reads "Self control = Skinny!!!".  Hopefully that will deter me from scarffing snacking on the homemade cookies I hid from myself gingerly placed in the freezer.  Out of sight, out of mind... right?  =)

I did do some wii fit tonight and I am hoping to get a new wii fit game soon.  Maybe with some Christmas money..  I won't be able to go to the gym or run with my group on a regular basis until J.Tom is able to watch and care for Lexie again.. which will be a few months because his lifting limit will be like 2-3lbs and then 5-10lbs for a while.

I am just going to try to continue to move as much as possible and stay away from the sweets (again).  OH!  Speaking of which, weight watchers went a change their whole freakin program right when I was getting the points for all my favorite foods memorized!   Grr...  I am not changing to the new program though, it's too confusing.  I am just sticking with the way I know.  Why do people have to mess with a good thing?  If it's not broke, don't go trying to fix it please...

Wii Fit, anyone?

I love my wii fit.  I do not love that every time I turn it on my little person looks like George Costanza.. but I enjoy playing it.  I also enjoy that it burns calories.  I burn 168 doing the hoola hoop for 45 minutes, or 102 calories doing the step class on there.  While it is not a lot of calories, it is better than nothing.  Usually I can get Lexie to entertain herself for about 30 minutes at a time, or she may take a cat-nap for that long.

I am also starting back to spin class this week.  I was going to start back last week, but we had family plans that night with out of town guests.  So, tomorrow will be a big challenge at the gym.  Then Thursday I will run with the group.  My goal is to work out 5days a week, doing something.  It doesn't matter what, but I am going to move and sweat!  And bouncing Lexie through gas pains doesn't count.

A little tip: rather than just sitting while watching tv, try flexing your stomach muscles, or getting on the floor and doing a few crunches.  Every little bit helps!

staying motivated

well, here we are upon the holidays, and I (along with many other Americans) am trying to watch what I eat and exercise..  But it is NOT a lost cause.

I remember reading in one of my Runner's World magazines that it takes time to see weight loss and toning for several reasons, but oone of those is because our bodies burn fat from the inside out.  And guess where lots of fat is stored when we don't work out?  IN THE MUSCLE!  So, while you may be running, walking, lifting weights, or doing aerobic classes, it takes time to see changes.  You may not see the scale change because as your body burns off the fat hiding inside the muscles, it is building muscle, which weighs more than fat.  You may not see toning right away because that fat has to gradually burn away before the muscle starts to make drastic changes in appearance.

So, there is no need to become discouraged when it takes time.  The goal for me until January is to continue being consistent with my workouts even through the holidays.  I know we all have family visiting, or we are traveling ourselves but it is not that ahrd to set aside an hour a few days a week to just move!  =)

Spa 5k/10k: First Race since December 2009

Well, this morning I ran my first race since December of last year.

Let me start from the beginning (we all know this could take a while... haha)
In December of 2008 I decided I no longer wanted to smoke-I loved smoking, as nasty as that is. My reason for wanting to kick the habit was I wanted to lose weight.  I had been doing aerobic classes at the local YMCA, but just wasn't seeing the result I wanted.  So I thought to myself, "Meghan, you should run."  Who tells themselves such things?  Me.  However, in order to run I needed to stop smoking because I could not breath, especially since I have asthma (who smokes and has asthma?  Dummies like ME).  So, I quit.

And I began the couch to 5K running program the 6th of December, 2008.  In February I saw something about a running clinic for women, it was the "Women Can Run" clinic sponsored by a local running group, the Spa Pacers.  So, in Feb of 2009 I started that.  I remember the night we had to run a while two minutes without walking, we were all dying at the end.  It was pretty pathetic.  But hey, everyone has to start somewhere!!!  So, those of us who finished the clinic went on to run the 5K race the first week of May.  It was really awesome to finish the race; it felt like a really big deal at the time.  I finished my very first 5K ever in 38 minutes, on a flat paved surface.  That's pretty slow, but I did it!

After that I jumped right in.  I started running 2 & 3 times a week with the pacers,  ran 1-2 races a month; a few of them were just 2 milers, but they were fun and helped me push my pace.  I was not what I would call a "real runner."  I did not do speed work on the track, or run hill repeats for endurance and strength.  I just ran to run and get fit; despite all my running,  time in the gym, and diet changes I did not lose any weight, I just toned.  In July of 09 I lost my brother and got pretty depressed; I stopped running until September when I ran the Ashley Scott 5K in Bartlett, down the road from my Dad's house.  (It was a race in her honor after she lost her life due to domestic violence.)  Anyways, when I got home, I began the training for the Spa 10K/5K, and I chose to run the 10K.  I am proud to say it goes over the mountain and I ran my little heart out... slowly.  I finishes in 80 minutes.  But I did it!!

In Dec of 2009, we found out we were having a baby, but I started the women can run clinic in Feb. because I was determined to run.. yea that didn't last long.  I quit running and started Yoga at 20 weeks.  haha  Yoga is not quite as physically demanding as running, however and i lost most of the super great muscle I had built running the last year.

So, longer story long: this time I trained 7 weeks (I started the clinic late) about 2xs a week.  This race was a good accomplishment for me, exactly 11 weeks & one day after Lexie was born.  My official time was 39:54, which is a 12:54mi average.  There was a lady who is like 60-70 years old that walked the race faster than I ran it.  I finished 116th out of 144 women.  But, I only have room for improvement, right?!

The pros:
*I proved to myself I could do it
*the first 1.5 miles were up hill, but the second half was mostly back down all those continuous hills
*I got to run with my running buddies in the Spa Pacers again
*it encouraged me to keep running for fun/fitness

The Cons:
*I proved to myself I could do it, which means I have no excuse for pooping out on easy runs
*the first 1.5 miles were up hill, which were dang hard to run up one after the other (on the way there, there are only a few downhills, as you just keep climbing up and up until you turn around!)
*it encouraged me to continue running!  What was I thinking?!  jk 

It is fun and I am looking forward to my Mondays and Thursdays with my running friends!  Also, I would not have started the clinic and ran this race if not for the encouragement of some super great friends and all those wonderful Spa Pacers that helped with the clinic and race!  I hope to be so encouraging to others who want to being exercising and running, but just don't know where to start,

Congrats to everyone that raced and I hope to see you on the road.

Well, I did not get to post yesterday.  We had some upsets with Lexie's tummy yesterday.  However I did manage to eat relatively well and I got in some weight lifting and leg lifts!

I should probably mention that I am doing weight watchers points.  I get extra because I am breast feeding but it really helps me keep in check that those small slip ups count BIG!

------
Well, I started that yesterday and things got a little nuts around here, so I lost track.  But i do know I was under my allotted weight watchers points!

So, today is a new day.  I went grocery shopping and got LOTS of those good frozen veggies in the steam bags.  Did you know studies have shown that frozen veggies are just as good, if not better than fresh?  Also, they are much better for you than canned!!  I got several bags of those, some frozen chicken breasts, granola (real) bars, a bottle of red wine and some rice.

Today I had Zoe's chicken salad sandwich with a fresh salad on the side.  I am not sure how many points that is, but I am sure it's quite a bit, so I am going super light for dinner tonight.

Tomorrow is my first race since December of last year, when I ran the Jungle Bell 5K!  This is the Spa 10K/5K race.  Last year I ran the 10K over the mountain, but this year I was not able to train as long or hard so I decided to try for the 5K, which is super hilly.  =)  Not a mountain, but I can settle for 1.5 miles up hill I guess.  It starts at 8:00 and I am a little nervous because I only got one run in this week.  Poor Lexie has had a terrible week so yesterday I was just too pooped out to run.  I took a shower and went to bed.

However, I did get my blinking saftey light since the sun sets at 5:00 now so it will be completely dark when I start my runs in the evening.

Here is the deal, Lexie is too young to run in the jogger just yet, and it will be way too cold in Dec-Feb for her when she is able to jog in it.  So until then, J.tom has to watch her for me while I go run.  This means I cannot go run until after 5:00 when he gets home, which is fine with me.  It gives him and Lexie some quality time and me some much needed "mental clarity" time.  SO on Mondays and Thursdays I run with the Pacers, and then I am going to start a spin class on Tuesdays at the Y.  I really miss spin classes!!  (and that 500 calorie burn you get!)

So, this is my update for the last few days.. whew, sorry I have not been doing so well writing daily, but hopefully I will get better.

Oh, also I have decided to do a small workout tip on some of my posts for us busy mamas, students, and hard workers.

Tip of the day: take 10 minutes to lift a moderately heavy set of weights.  Do a few set of bicep curls and a few shoulder presses.  Ten minutes is all you need!!

First fitness blog

Well, this is my first post on my new blog.  This blog will be dedicated to my fitness and weight loss goals.

I decided to do this because I think that I eat good and exercise a lot, but really I think I am over estimating how good I am really doing.  So, each day I will (try) to post what I eat and what activities I am doing.  Maybe making myself publicly accountable will help me stay on track and not make those tiny, but fatal mistakes.

I will start by saying that last night I ran 2.3 miles without stopping for 30 minutes!  Now, I do realize how incredibly slow that is, but 7 weeks ago I could not do that.  Saturday I will I run my first 5K race since last December.  It is something I just had to train for and work for on my own, which is why no one but my family knows I am doing it (well, until now I guess).  I know I will not have a very good time, but I am going to complete it!  About the first half of it is all up hill, so that is the biggest challenge.

So, here is to eating well and exercising more!!  =)