day 137 (day 4 / week 20)

Yaay! I went jogging again today! I'm a joggin' fool! Yesterday we drove my route and it is 2 miles exactly in the car (plus some change on foot). Woo hoo! 2 miles!! (not 1 block lol *happy dance*). As soon as I stepped foot into my driveway, I did a little gardening, since I was there, and since it's not 100F+ yet (it's supposed to get hot today). I jogged/walked for 35 minutes and played in dirt for 25 minutes. I planted some bright pink vincas and yellow, pink and red celosias (just like the picture!) :). So purty!

Yesterday I started out slowly as a few of you suggested to prevent injuries, and today I tried to work a little harder. I don't want to push myself too hard (which is easy to do for me), because I don't want to keep myself from being able to exercise another day (as you guys also suggested). My heartrate monitor is inaccurate and totally douchy, I can't rely on that, so I went by my time. I know my distance is constant. Yesterday I did 2 miles in 45 minutes, jogging and walking. I could only jog for 30 seconds (on average) at a time. Today I was able to jog for 1-2 minutes at a time and took 10 minutes off of my total time! Yaay!

I really have to focus on my stride, and making sure that my body weight is balanced and centered, so that I don't hurt my knees and ankles (or look like Pheobe from Friends running lol). A long time ago when I first started running, my running partner told me to make sure to place my feet directly underneath me when I run, to prevent injury and so I did that too (it used to help me back in the day). When I wasn't focusing on these things, I felt wobbly (like Pheobe) and felt like my left ankle and knee hurt a little. I tried to focus on my leg muscles pushing also. *shrugs*

Fun story...when I was gardening, my hubby kept messing with the hose (men need to feel like they are useful outside--well mine does...j/k *wink*) and he broke the nozzle on the hose and BLASTED me with water lol (accidentally). It was quite funny but he was annoyed that his new nozzle broke (his fault for messing with it! lol). It felt good, I was hot :).

Hope you all have a great day! I am going to a 3 year old's birthday party! We bought him a bath blizzard, because he likes a few bubbles in his bath. Make today count!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 136 (day 3 / week 20)

Let me tell you a tale, a smelly tale, about an ambitious semi-fat girl. She set out on an adventure to lose her butt and instead got lost herself. As she found her way home she sounded the trumpets the entire time--rest assured the dogs knew she was there.

none of that makes sense. lol. it sounded better in my head. oh well :).

Well I did it! A semi-fat girl (myself) who hasn't run in a VERY long time, ran (well jogged)! I didn't get very far, but I tried it, and now I know what I'm capable of (not a whole lot lol).

I set out to walk/jog for 30 minutes, and it turned into 45 minutes. Not bad for a big girl! I started off jogging and made it to the end of our street before stopping--lungs burning, heart pounding--man that was tough. I caught my breath and then kept going. I would walk as fast as I could (HR around 135-140) and then I would jog for 10-15 seconds, and then speed walk again. Toward the end it was getting easier to jog for longer periods of time--30 seconds and more. The last lick I jogged was for over a minute, which isn't bad at all considering I haven't ran in YEARS! The best part was that every time I went to jog (like took a running step), the trumpets would sound, and all the dogs in the area would start barking. I was laughing so hard--it was just so funny to me. Every time I tried to jog I would fart and it was almost with every step. You could hear it echoing between the walls (which is why so many dogs would bark)! TMI but it was funny for me :). My son and hubby would have been right there laughing just as hard as I was. lol.

I got lost. lol. No, not lost...I think I just didn't know where I was (lol, yes that's the definition of lost)--it's a new neighborhood, but I knew I would find my way home, so I don't consider that "lost." I had a plan, and was going up this r.e.a.l.l.y loonog street and then I thought I saw a school and I was hoping it would be a High School, so I could go onto their track, but it was just a stupid park. I walked and walked this different way, for what I thought was great distances, because I was speed walking, ya know, and then I found a street that sounded familiar. So, I took a right and I walked down that one and it took me to Flamingo where I took another right, and found myself literally 1 street away from mine! *grumble* I need to get in my car now and drive what I walked/jogged to see how far I went, cause I know that I didn't just go around the block lol. . That's what it seemed like though, coming off of that street lol.

I worked my butt off today. I am dripping sweat! My HR monitor acted lame, when I was jogging, it said my HR was 52. pssht. then when I finished jogging it said it was 124 but I felt like I was going to push out a lung, I was breathing so hard. *shrugs*

At least I did what I said I was going to do. I jogged! Not very far or very much, but I did it! yaay!

Hope you all have a great weekend! Make it count :)

I can do this. I am a star!

UPDATE: So I clocked it and it was exactly 2 miles, that I jogged/walked today :). My first running goal will be to do the whole thing jogging, and not having to stop! Yaay!

day 135 (day 2 / week 20)

Today I started off my workout (Ramp It up from Slim in 6) with the word of the day, from yesterday, resonating in my mind....boredom. If I think I'm going to be bored with my workout, then I'm going to be bored with my workout. Why am I letting myself be self defeating? I am a star! I can do this and have been doing this! I know I can do this!

With that attitude in mind, I didn't focus on the workout anymore, but on my body. My muscles. My movement. My breathing. The task at hand. I just closed my eyes and focused. You'll be surprised with what you can accomplish when you approach every task with this kind of focus. Before I knew it, I had done every single second of Ramp It Up, as if I had been doing it for a month straight...including those tedious leg lifts! I did EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM--IN A ROW! I definitely felt the burn, but that burn just made me focus even more!

The moment I decided to let go of the workout and focus on my body, my entire focus of the workout changed. I am no longer thinking about the mundane and monotonous workout--the time that it takes to complete it, but that the more I do this, the stronger I am going to get.

A friend of mine that lives next door to my in-laws here in Vegas, runs every Saturday morning with her "running group." When we first moved here and she saw that I had been losing weight, she asked me if I wanted to go running with her. First I thought, "wow that would be a great way to lose this weight faster" but then reality set in and I kind of chuckled in the back of my head thinking, "that's a good one, a fat girl 'running.'" But instead of saying "no," I said, "when I have a pair of running shoes that fit me w/out causing pain, I will go running with you," knowing fully well that that wasn't going to happen. I think it was the next weekend that my MIL bought me these shoes (I love them so much!).

I saw my friend the week after I got these shoes and I was still on the high from being able to fit in these shoes, that I mentioned to her that I had them now. Well she invited me then. The idea of going to run, is more exhilarating to me at this point, than doing it. I am scared! She said she would email me some information and we left it at that.

Two days ago I got that information and it's been gnawing at the nape of my neck ever since. When it was just the thought of her and I running, I was ok with it. Now she has a runner friend coming too! They want to run 5 miles for 2 hours. How on earth am I supposed to do this??? I have not ran a single step in a VERY long time--at least 5 years. I used to run all the time when I was fit, but I had some problems with my foot, that I am afraid will come back to haunt me.

All of this went through my mind as I found my focus in my workout today. How will I ever become a "runner" and get into the best shape of my life, if I don't just do it? My friend knows that I am overweight (duh it's obvious lol) and she knows that I will probably not be able to run like her and her friend. She knows she will probably have to stop for me a million times, and she still wants me to come (I think, lol). What's the worst that will happen? I go and all of this happens--I'll stop, my foot will hurt, I will have to walk, I'll slow them down, annoy her friend, yadda-yadda-yadda. No the worst thing that would happen, is that I think about it, and that's all that I do. "What if I went running with her?" "Would I have been able to do it?"

I think I'm going to do it. I woke up this morning planning my email to her, telling her why I couldn't do it. I will tell her exactly how I feel, and if she still wants me to go, I will. If she doesn't, then I will go running in my own neighborhood, by myself, just to see how I do. What's the worst that could happen? I find out that it's just not the right time for me yet, and I know, not assume, but actually know :).

It amazes me that when God sees us grabbing for the strength to do something, He gives it to us. We can do all things in Christ, who gives us the strength to do it! ALL THINGS. (Philippians 4:13).

I can do this. I am a star!

day 134 (day 1 / week 20)

Today I did Ramp It Up again (Slim in 6). It took me almost 2 hours to finish 48 minutes of exercise due to numerous interruptions. I guess I'll be doing this workout for 2-3 weeks, until I move onto Burn It up. I need to figure out how to trick my brain so that I don't get bored doing Slim in 6 for the next 6 weeks. (on a side note, my son is standing next to me watching me type this, and he laughs hysterically as soon as I type something *shrugs* 2 year olds will laugh at anything lol) Today is only day 2 of doing Slim in 6 again, and I can easily see myself getting bored. I'm sure I'll figure out someway to trick my brain into happily doing it--after all that's what I did to get myself to exercise for 20 weeks straight so far!

Yesterday I was never able to do Slim & Limber like I wanted to (when I am done here, I am going to fix my labels so that it's not accounted for). The monkey boy just never went down for a nap, making him a tiny terror for most of the day, so I wasn't able to get anymore alone time than to type my post. We did, however, go for a walk to the park down the street. It was nice because it was windy yesterday, but it was still close to 90F and the sun was so bright I ended up with a headache (I need to find a cute sun hat or something).

Today I want to do Slim & Limber and Slim & 6pack when he goes down for his nap, but I'm not going to hold my breath. If it happens, it happens, if not, oh well. We will probalby go for another walk as well.

I hope everyone has a great day. I can't believe tomorrow is Friday?!?! These days are going by a little too fast for me. Make it count!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 133 (day 7 / week 19)

This morning I did Slim in 6's, Ramp It Up (48 minutes) and sometime this afternoon I want to do, Slim & Limber (it's basically just 15 minutes of stretching).

Do you know how God helps women to forget just exactly how painful childbirth is, so that we will continue to have children? I don't know if that's for that exact reason, but I'm focusing mainly on the forgetting the pain part :). Like, we have an idea, and remember that it hurt horribly, but we--well, no one I have ever spoken with, and certainly not myself--can remember exactly how horrible the pain was (my epi didn't work correctly--I could feel everything on my right side).

Well, lol, just like in that instance (not really), God had me forget how much the leg lift/kick things hurt in this workout, so that I will come back to do it again. OMG I can't believe I forgot about those horrid things! I do remember now dreading the leg kick variation part, but wow. They truly truly suck, but I am going to have an awesome butt and legs for sticking to it. Man, I wish there was an epidural for that! (haha I'm j/k ;)).

My left pectoral muscles are pretty sore from yesterday's push-ups. Today I just pushed through them (I even did a "man" push-up!). If I'm sore tomorrow, I will not do the push-ups.

I wasn't able to finish the last few minutes of the workout which is just stretching anyway, because Logan decided to sit on my stomach while I was doing a full body stretch. He just about had a cow (bouncing up and down on my stomach) when I tried to get up and asked him nicely to move so that I could finish stretching. He must have gotten confused though and thought "get up" meant to lay his head on my shoulder (silly boy). All good :). I can't resist my baby doll's lovin' and I will just get a good stretch in this afternoon :).

I hope everyone has a great Wed. Can you believe it's Wednesday already?!?!?! Make it count! Before you know it, it will be Thursday! :)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 132 (day 6 / week 19)

So today I started the Slim in 6 series again. I did, "Start It Up!" (25 minutes) and planned on doing, "Slim & Limber" again, but did ",Slim & 6pack" instead (11 minutes). Going back to something that I have already done has great advantages. I can see how much I have gained from exercising everyday. I realized while I was exercising today, some of the things I can do now, that I couldn't do at all before or w/out some sort of a struggle:

1) push ups! (shedding 15 lbs helps!)
2) I can touch my toes with my legs straight and am A LOT more flexible :)
3) I can sit on my knees (resting my bottom on heels) (my legs were so big before that I couldn't do this--at all!)
4) I can do squats AND lunges! (15 lbs really does make a big difference!)
5) Lying on my back, I can pull my knees into my chest (like I'm hugging my knees)
6) I can stand with my legs together, knees together and have my feet also be together! (and do a squat at the same time w/out falling!)
7) I can kick AND I an jump--more than once in a row!

There are others, but I like the number 7 :) (I know, I know, #7 is really 2 points, but I'm allowed to make it 1 lol) . I am still a big girl, but exercising has given me my life back. I can do pretty much do anything that any average person can do--maybe more! (I say this just because I'm pretty sure that I exercise more than the "average" person). I couldn't say this before, and that is such a blessing.

So amazing!

Doing "Start It Up!" today really excited me. It's different from Turbo Jam, but I think it will help give some muscle definition. I think I might do Slim in 6 for 2 6week periods, and use my sculpting gloves from Turbo Jam, on the 2nd round (we will see).

I feel like I am moving onto a new level of exercise, and I have energy again!

On a side note...I think I might have developed an aspartame allergy and that's why I've been so tired, and have had so many headaches! I stopped using my protein/fiber water things, that I mentioned a few weeks ago (the South Beach Tide Me Over things that you mix in your water), and I feel much better!

I hope you all have a great day! I feel great and hope you do too! Make today count!

I can do this! I am a star!

day 131 (day 5 / week 19)

Today I did Turbo Jam's Cardio Party, but felt like I had to force myself to do every minute of it. I even skipped through a few minutes of it *gasp!* where I literally wanted to just sit down and watch. I don't know if I feel tired, but I'm a little sore from yesterday. I think I'm just bored with Turbo Jam now *gasp!*. Don't get me wrong, I truly <3 size="1">*gasp!*

It sounds ridiculous, and maybe boring for you guys, but I think I am going to do the Slim in 6 series over again--for another month. I had great results in the first month I started exercising, and I have no doubt (after yesterday's workout) that I will see great results again. It still blows my mind that I thought, "this is harder that what I have been doing," when I was doing "Start It Up!" yesterday, because it used to be REALLY easy for me to do when I was doing Slim in 6 often.

So that does it, tomorrow I will start Slim in 6 again. Maybe I will feel more energy due to a lack of boredom. I will definitely have to bring my own music into the mix though, cause going from club music in Turbo Jam, to elevator music in Slim in 6, is music shock (kind of like culture shock, but with music lol). We'll see what tomorrow brings!

I hope you all have a great Monday. Before we know it, it will be Friday again, so make today count! The day's fly by so fast if we don't stop to smell the flowers!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 130 (day 4 / week 19)

Today I tried to switch it up a little... ok. I lied. I actually just didn't want to do "punch, kick and jam" so I did 40 minutes of something else, to get out of the 48 minutes of PK&J (such a dork! lol should have just done the 48 minutes).

I decided to pop in my old friend, Slim in 6, today. I did the first one, "Start It Up!" and Slim & Limber. Wow! I thought it would be a breeze because I started out my resolution doing Slim in 6, and I felt that I had mastered it--after all, I could get through the toughest workout without a blink. Man, it was tough! It's A LOT different from Turbo Jam, but I knew this. Slim in 6 is more Calisthenics (squats, lunges, plies, push-ups--utilizing our body weight) and Turbo Jam is like aerobic/kickboxing/dancing. Turbo Jam is definitely a lot funner :). I'm sure I will feel today's workout tomorrow with all of the lunges and squats I did. My knees really don't like Slim in 6 lol. They really don't. lol.

Anyway, off to go help my friend move and spend some time with family!

Hope you all have a Happy Mother's Day!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 129 (day 3 / week 19)

Well I just finished my workout and I feel great! I wish this feeling would last throughout the entire day.

Today I did Turbo Jam's 20 minute workout and Ab Jam. It's really neat to see how much stronger I am getting, and such a blessing that people that I haven't seen since Christmas are blown away by, "how much weight I have lost." Yaay *claps*!!! Their reactions have made every second of exercise, that I didn't want to do, so worth it!

Today I am going to wear my FAVORITE pair of "semi-fat" jeans (they are a size XL so I guess a that would make them a size 14-16 (?) yaay!) I used to wear these jeans all the time 3+ years ago and haven't worn them probably since I got married (3/06) mostly because I worked a lot and had to wear scrub. I have a fairly large muffin-top in these pants now, but my shirt covers it, so I don't care! I just can't believe that I can wear them, and walk comfortably--they don't hurt at all or make me feel like I can't breathe lol!

I'll try to get my hubby to take a picture so you guys can see how happy I am in my favorite jeans :D.

Have a good weekend everyone! Make today count! Every second that you do, is so worth it! Have a great workout :)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 128 (day 2 / week 19)

Today I did Turbo Jam's Cardio Party. I felt a little tired at first, but pushed through it, and now I feel great! I am all sweaty again, but it's all good. I would have to question my intensity if I didn't sweat at all, ya know?

Well today's post is a quickie, because I have a ton of stuff I have to go do!

Hope you guys have a great Friday and a great weekend! Make today count! It feels great when you know you did!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 127 (day 1 / week 19)

I just wanted to start off this blog entry by saying if anyone out there has a sparkpeople.com account, and you would like to add me as a friend, please feel free to do so! My username is:

heynowbnice
(hey now b nice -- without the spaces :))

I didn't know until recently that you couldn't have spark-buddies until you had a profile. If you had searched for me before, it would have said that I didn't exist on sparkpeople lol. I finally have a profile now (after like 4 months lol), so now I can have spark buddies! I find the site and all of the people that I have met on it, to be extremely motivational and inspiring. We are all in this together, and that rocks!

Anyway, this morning we were woken up pretty early by ghetto birds circling just above the house, and it ended up being a horrible car accident not far from our back yard. A police officer died and the driver in the other vehicle is in the hospital (please take a moment to pray for all people affected by this accident). I have been up for a while, so I did my thing, as usual. It's surreal because it's really quiet right now--they closed off Flamingo where this happened (a larger vein in Vegas just on the other side of our backyard wall)--it's usually buzzing with traffic, but now all we hear are helicopters.

I did Turbo Jam's 20 minute workout and Ab Jam. I decided that when I do this combo, I am going to count it as 30 mins cardio and 10 mins ab work, because Ab Jam is 10 minutes standing ab work (low intensity cardio) and then 10 minutes floor ab work.

I hope everyone has a great day! Count your blessings--we never know what's around the bend (or beyond the fence). Make today count whatever you do!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 126 (day 7 / week 18)

I just got done exercising and now I'm salivating over a cookie that Erin over at Nagle5 News posted on her blog today. She linked the recipe to that scrumptious looking cookie, which led to even more goodies! I must joke around about wanting sugary treats, more than I actually want them, because my former self (before the sugar strike) would have gladly baked them. right now. But I feel fine. I miss it, and think it looks absolutely delish, but I think I am fine without them :). for now. (lol).

Today I did Turbo Jam's Cardio Party and if I thought I was sweaty yesterday, I was seriously mistaken. Today I am super sweaty. Just what everyone wants to hear about, right? A big sweaty girl drooling over cookies. mmmm.

Ok well off to take a shower and start the day!

Go check out Erin's blog. Bake those cookies, and eat some for me! :) *evil laugh* muahahaha! muahahaha! If you don't like the cookie idea (shame on you!) then go check out the cute bag she made. Yes! She made that! (super talented chica). i totally want one now lol

I hope everyone has a great one! Make today count!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 125 (day 6 / week 18)

Today I did Turbo Jam's Turbo Sculpt and it felt great (I sweated a lot). I know it's gross, but I love when I sweat when I exercise--itt reminds me of the old days.

Today my hubby's grandparents, Gram and Papa, arrive from Texas for my sister-in-law's graduation ceremony from UNLV this weekend. I am so excited to see them! They are so much fun and there is always at least one smile in the room (Gram is really funny).

Even though there are times that we hate being here in Vegas for whatever reason, it makes it all worth it to be able to see our family like this. If we lived in Reno or Washington, it would have been a lot harder and probably more stressful. We don't have to worry now, and that is such a HUGE blessing!

This will be a busy week for me so I am going to make an effort to wake up even earlier to exercise (6am instead of 6:30-7).

I hope you all have a great Tuesday! Make it count! You can do it! You are a star!

I can do this. I am a star too :).

day 124 (day 5 / week 18)

I just got finished doing Turbo Jam's Ab Jam. Man I love that workout now that I can feel my muscles again. Earlier this morning I did Turbo Jam's 20 minute workout.

According to my workout schedule, I am done with the month it gave me, but I am going to do the "Advanced" month now. This is what I am scheduled to do this week. I modified some of it to fit where I am a little better (for the first week), so the workout in the parentheses is what Turbo Jam has us do (if I modified it) and what I am doing is next to it, outside of the parentheses.

Mon: (Learn & Burn) 20 minute workout and Ab Jam
Tue: (20 minute workout) Turbo Sculpt
Wed: Cardio Party
Thu: (20 minute workout)--I am going to do this but am adding Ab Jam
Fri: Cardio Party
Sat: (rest day) 20 minute workout and/or Ab Jam
Sun: Punch, Kick & Jam

The "learn and burn" threw me off, so that's why I am modifying it so much. next week i will do what the schedule tells me too :).

I hope everyone has a great day! Make it count! :)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 123 (day 4 / week 18)

When I think about it, I can't believe that I have exercised for 123 days IN A ROW! That blows my mind, but only because I take baby steps, and take one day at at time (I don't think about it as a bigger picture). A lot of littles, turned into one big HUGE number! I can't thank you guys enough for your encouraging words and support. You really don't know how much you lift me up!

Today I did Turbo Jam's Punch, Kick and Jam. I am really tired. I didn't get much sleep and was up 4-5 times throughout the night. While doing my workout today, I was trying to break in my new shoes. I returned the shoes I mentioned yesterday (my feet felt like they were trying to curl in!) and exchanged them for a pair of Nike's. My feet feel much better today, but I definitely have some breaking in to do with these (they are stiff!). My feet hurt a little, but what do you expect? I haven't worn actual real tennis shoes for like 3 years! lol. I only did 36 minutes today, out of the 48 minutes today.

For 3 years I have struggled with shoes (and clothes and a lot of other things because of my weight). At my largest, 240 lbs, and up until recently, my feet were so wide I needed to wear an 8.5-9 despite how stubby they are (I am wearing a 7.5 this very second) because my feet were so wide. Losing the weight and inches that I have, during this year, made it possible for me to wear shoes again--not flip flops, Ugs or Crocks--real shoes! Tennis shoes! With shoe laces! And not from a specialty store. This to me is a huge, huge blessing and proof that perseverance pays off with exercise. That's not to say that this is easy yet, and I don't still struggle, but I have faith! I'm so excited for the future!

I hope everyone has a great and blessed Sunday. Make today count. Your future self will be so happy that you did!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 122 (day 3 / week 18)

Today I woke up early to exercise and was excited (my MIL bought me a much needed pair of tennis shoes! Thank you Nana Jana Banana!). There is a pattern for this week, so I continued with it. Turbo Jam gave us a rest day--but I don't have those as you know, so I did the 20 minute workout instead.

I had a huge post typed out, and it kept getting longer and longer, so I decided to delete it. It was boring anyway. When I accomplish what I set out to do, I will mention it then. It has to do with my elephant feet and struggle with shoes, yadda yadda yadda--boring stuff.

Hope you all have a good weekend! Make it count! :)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 121 (day 2 / week 18)

Today is bittersweet for me. I am happy because I get to see how far along I am coming, but I am upset because my camera is on it's last lick. I have a digital camera (Sony, Cyber-shot) that my hubby bought, long before we ever started dating (so it's old), and it's what we have been using for all of our family pictures and outings, including my monthly photos. I also used it as our video camera. Today my hubby took my May 2009 picture. The camera works fine--takes great pictures. When I got it over to the computer to transfer the picture over from the memory card, the folder was empty. I put it back in the camera...the folder was empty. I think we took 3 pictures before we could actually get one onto the computer without the camera erasing it. I also had pictures in there from the last month, of my family, and another family (with their new-born). They had relied on us for the pictures, because they accidentally forgot their camera. I also captured some cute videos on it of my son and my hubby making each other laugh (it was hysterical). I feel horrible that I don't have these pictures for them! I usually take all of my pics (at most 15-20) off of the memory card, when I am doing my monthly picture.

They are all gone :(. I'm sad about that, but I guess there are worse things to be upset over, so I'll get over it. I just hope I get a job soon, so that we can replace the camera, so that I can take my picture a month from now. There is still a lot of time, so that is good :).

Onto the good news.

My measurements:

Measurements: (day 121 / 90 / day 10) (- "/# lost in current month)

Wt: 200.0 / 203.6 / 215 (-3.6#) (total lost 15#)
Chest: 39.5" / 41" / 43.75"(-1.50") (total lost -4.25")
Waist: 35" / 36" / 41.5" (-1.0") (total lost -6.5")
Hips: 44" / 45.5" / 47.75" (-1.50") (total lost -3.75")
Neck: 13.25" / 13.75" / 14.25" (-0.50") (total lost -1")
Under bust: 33" / 34.25 / 36.75" (-1.25") (total lost -3.75")
1" below belly button: 41.25" / 43.25" / 47.5" (-2.0") (total lost -6.25")
below my bottom (above my thigh): 40.25" / 42" / 44" (-1.75") (total lost -3.75")
R Thigh: 19.75" / 20.5" / 27" (-0.75") (total lost -7.25")
L Thigh: 19.75" / 20.5" / 27.5" (-0.75") (total lost -7.75")
R Calf: 13.75" / 14" / 14.5" (-0.25") (total lost -0.75")
L Calf: 14" / 14.5" / 15.5" (-0.50") (total lost -1.5")
R upper Arm: 10.75" / 11.25" / 14" (-0.50") (total lost -3.25")
L upper Arm: 11" / 11.5" / 13.5" (-0.50") (total lost -2.5")
R wrist: 5.75" / 6" / 6.25" (-0.25") (total lost -0.5")
L wrist: 5.75" / 6" / 6.25" (-0.25") (total lost -0.5")

Jan 2009

Feb 2009

March 2009

April 1, 2009
May 2009

I lost 10.25" overall and 3.6 lbs in April 2009. Yaay!

Onto the mentionables. I mentioned the first one yesterday. I cheated and got on the scale the day before yesterday, and to my surprise it said 200.4! I got on it again today (hoping it wasn't a fluke lol) and it said 200.0 on the dot. Twice! (I only stood on it twice lol). I havent seen that number in a LONG time. I'm so excited!

Onto the second (not as exciting as the first).

Did you notice that I am wearing a different shirt this month? My previous shirt is now too big for me to wear (it was a size XL). I miss my shirt--it was my favorite to wear, but I have to pull it in the back for it to give me any shape or it just looks like I'm wearing a tent (ok, over exaggeration) but then I have all this fabric in the back, and it just looks silly. The arms are also way too big. I swim in it. Yaay!

I am also wearing most of my pre-pregnancy clothing, which I haven't done for almost 3 years. The shirt in this picture I haven't been able to wear since before I got married 3 years ago--it's a size L--not a large from a plus size clothing store or anything just a plain 'ol regular LARGE. I am also wearing my old pants, and all (but 1 or 2) of my old shirts (14 or 15 shirts?). yaay!

Onto the boring stuff I have to mention...(lol)...Today I did Turbo Sculpt and used my sculpting gloves along with my hand weights. They just aren't heavy enough anymore. I also did Ab Jam except for the last 2 minutes because Logan turned it off lol. He was tired of Mama exercising and wanted his snuggle time.

I guess that's it! I still hate that I am not dropping pounds like everyone else I read about, but we are all different, and at least I am not at a stand still. It is also noticible that I am losing inches/weight, so that's all that really matters. I am not as disappointed as I have been in the last few months, because I can see it. Under my clothes, I look WAY different :).

I hope you all have a great weekend! Make it count! It's worth it--I'm proof! You are stars!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 120 (day 1 / week 18)

Today I woke up early and did Turbo Jam's Cardio Party (mix 1). Now that I can actually see results on my body (more specifically my mid section), that is what gives me the extra energy during my workout when I need it. About 10 minutes before my workout ended, I woke Logan up and brought him into the exercise room with me, put him on the floor next to his blankey, and finished my exercises. He laid there quietly and let me finish (such a little sweetie).

I am so excited for tomorrow. I said earlier in the week (maybe last week) that I was going to wait until tomorrow to tell you, but I have TWO things to mention now! So I think I will mention one of them now, so that tomorrow's blog entry isn't super huge.

I think I gave away the first one, in the blog, but it isn't as big as this one.

I am super excited!

My second mentioning is pictured below. Please ignore the ugly/chipped toe nails (lmao). If I had known this was going to be a "moment," I would have better prepared for it lol. Please don't mind the incorrect date on the scale either--I never fixed it after we moved (lol).


Do you see that? 200.4 lbs!!! I finally reached my 1st long term weight loss goal! I took this picture yesterday (I know, some of you are thinking, "what the heck are you doing on the scale girl??" I know--I'm working on it lol) :).

A few years ago, at my heaviest 240 lbs--I have a picture, but it's framed not in the computer, so I need to see if I can find it on a memory card somewhere to post here--I created some weight loss goals. I can't remember if I mentioned them here or not--maybe not, because I don't want this website to be about losing weight, but about being active (as I mentioned in my introduction).

1) 200 lbs
2) 180 lbs (my pre-pregnancy weight)
3) 150
and from there I haven't decided yet.

I guess I can check number one off of my list now! Yaay!

I am so excited to see that number! I'm just so excited and I'm glad I can share this moment with you guys!

See you tomorrow for the new picture and measurements! My other mentionable will be in the picture for April 2009 (it's not as exciting as today's though :)), but I will mention it, just in case you don't notice :).

Have a great workout and a great day! Smile! It's contagious!

I can do this. I am a star!

day 119 (day 7 / week 17)

Today I had my interview. I got there an hour early (lol) and sat in my car for a 1/2 hour and then went into the building and sat on the couch in front of the HR office until they were ready for me.

I don't know how the interview went, but I was honest, and I believe I would do this job well. Hopefully they will see this too. I will find out in "a few weeks" their decision. I don't even know if it's dayshift or at night but they are 12 hour shifts, so I guess I don't really care. I will probably end up exercising after work, if I work the night shift though.

Today I did the 20 minute workout (turbo jam) and was glad that I only had to do 20 minutes.

I have a lot of stuff to do, so I will see you guys tomorrow! Hope you have a great workout!

(can't wait to share my measurements with you on friday! yaay!)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 118 (day 6 / week 17)

Today I feel much better. Got enough sleep, I ate and I'm not cranky and/or whining :).

I just finished Turbo Jam's Turbo Sculpt (39 minutes) and I'm glad I did. I was a bit hesitant at the beginning, but once I started to get into it, I found myself in the right state of mind :). Later this afternoon when I put the Monkey Boy down for his nap, I will do the 2nd part of what the workout schedule told me to do today--Ab Jam (19 minutes).

I can't believe that I am going into 5 months already (on Friday will start the 5th month). This year is going by too fast for me, and I am still a little sad that I haven't lost many pounds, but I really do need to get over it. I'm wearing clothes now that I haven't worn in 3 years (that's enough to turn my frown upside down). Anyway, if you are sitting on the fence or putting off until tomorrow what you can do today, just do it! Tomorrow will be here and gone before you know it! You'll feel much better if you just do it today. Now. Once you get it over with, it's done! Then you just start over again tomorrow :). You can do it! You are my stars that shine bright when I am in the darkness!

See you tomorrow and I hope you all feel as blessed as I do!

I can do this. I am a star too!

day 117 (day 5 / week 17)

Today is a (non)rest day.

I got home not too long ago from running all over town, just to hand in 1 application (for an AMR dispatch position--I have NO experience lol). I drove to the other side of town to drop Logan off at my hubby's parent's house, then drove about 10 miles into N. LV, to take a typing test (71wpm, 0 errors--yaay!). After that I hopped back into the car and drove to a different super busy part of town, to drop off the application. Then had to drive the close to 20 miles back to pick Logan at Papa's and then drive back home. (It feels like I'm whining. waah.).

Anyway I got home, put Logan down for a SUPER late nap, and then started to exercise (Turbo Jam's Cardio Party). Like 5 minutes into my workout, I got a phone call from AMR asking me to come in for an interview this Wednesday at 9am. She said they were "squeezing me in" because her boss is impressed with my typing certificate (lol). I told my hubby, then got back to exercising. I only did 10 minutes more, so all together 15 minutes of exercise today. of 43. I am just exhausted, and honestly I am pretty happy with myself for doing 15 minutes.

I'm tired and need a nap. I got up early to exercise, but my mom brought her drama my way again and so I never got a chance. It has drained me and I am cranky. waah. (lol).



Hopefully tomorrow will better.
no.
I KNOW tomorrow will be better.

Hope you guys are well and are getting your exercise in! Your body will thank you in the long run (and so will your kids/family/loved ones!).

I can do this. I am a star.

day 116 (day 4 / week 17)

This morning I went and took the initial class (again) to get my CPR certification (I let it expire...oopse!). I woke up early, so that I could exercise before the class, but my workout today was almost an hour long, and I futzed around too much before before starting.

The class only took 3 hours long, and the compressions were a HUGE workout (with the dummies)! I know I will feel it in my lats tomorrow. I got home and immediately exercised, which I am so proud that I did!

I did Punch, Kick and Jam (Turbo Jam--48 minutes) and feel great! I also added a supplement to my diet--Omega 3-6-9 which my MIL swears by although I have the less expensive version AND I am only taking the softgels (not the oil). She says the oils (Udo Oil, more specifically) give you better health benefits all around, including weight loss (she was introduced to it when she was doing the Prism diet--which she also swears by). I'm a little skeptical, but I love her and trust her (not necessarily this diet) so I will try it, for her :). I am still doing my research on it as well (cause that's just what I do) :).

I hope you all have a great Sunday!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 115 (day 3 / week 17)

My hubby made turkey bacon while I was working out, and that is all I smell now lol. I'm gonna make this quick...bacon here I come!

I exercised somewhat early today. I am going to do like Ellie suggested and make waking up early a goal. I was a little turned off by the idea because I feel like I'm being a (bacon) goal whore! I think it's sad that I have to make a goal in order to do something. It's sad but true (I heart bacon) so I'm holding to it, and I created another goal on sparkpeople and made "waking up early" a goal. Seeing a box unchecked should be enough motivation for me to wake up early (and eat bacon) (lol so sad but true--I have to make a game out of it lol).

Anyway I (smell bacon) did Cardio Party Mix 1 today (43 minutes). I thought it was pretty funny that Chalene's sister (forgot her name), who is in the Turbo Jam video's that I do, and happens to workout in WOWY --I see her in there from time to time (when I'm not thinking about bacon), well she won the prize yesterday--$300 cash! I don't know if I mentioned that about WOWY--it's called the million dollar body game and when you workout in a live WOWY session, you are entered into the contest. I was in WOWY with her yesterday--she finished 2 people ahead of me, and was in there 1 person ahead of me. Anyway I thought it was funny :).

Ok enough of that. I want bacon. I also have a ton of energy from exercising. I put a ton of energy into it and feel great :).

Hope you guys have a great weekend!

bacon. turkey bacon.

I can do this. I am a (bacon monger) star!

day 114 (day 2 / week 17)

I've learned something about myself. The longer I wait in the day to exercise, the harder that it is for me. I start procrastinating and get easily distracted. For me, afternoon exercising happens during Logan's naps (as I have often mentioned). The only other option I have to exercise, in my eyes (I don't like doing more than 20 minutes when he is awake) is in the morning.

Logan spoils me. He sleeps until I wake him up (usually the case for his naps as well). I don't know what happened, but after moving, it's just been really hard for me to get my butt up before 7:45 am. It was difficult in Sparks, but I was able to push through it.

Today was a late day. We went and visited my mom's dog, Guinness, then I hand-washed my car (I forgot how difficult that was to do in Vegas) and put Logan down for a nap. I logged onto www.wowy.com (my virtual beachbody gym) and then looked at some of the people's profiles who were in WOWY with me. I snapped out of it and got ready to exercise. Somehow I started thinking about what I was going to wear after I took a shower, and then it snowballed from there.

More than an hour later, after throwing a load of laundry in the washer (exciting news, but I will wait until the 1st :)) and before I was about to jump in the shower, I realized I still hadn't exercised lol. I went and logged out of WOWY (it said I was finished exercising anyway) and then I got distracted here, on blogger, catching up on blogs for the day. I blurted outloud, "come on! why do you keep doing this??" and I ran into my exercise room and completed my workout (what the schedule thing told me to).

Today I did the 20 minute workout and Ab Jam. It took me close to 3 hours to do 39 minutes of exercise. oye.

I drank 12 glasses of water though...

Moral of the story? I think so. I need to get over it and just wake up early. Waah. (more complaining for you Jen lol)

I hope you all have a Fun Friday!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 113 (day 1 / week 17)

Today is starting off extremely busy so I have to make this short. I have to go take a shower and get ready, then get the baby doll up, dressed and fed and get in the car by 8:30am. Then we have to go to Henderson for a WIC appointment, which my hubby estimates will take about an hour with traffic. I have never been there before so I really hope I am not late.

Today I did Cardio Party, like the schedule told me to, but I didn't finish--I did only 35 minutes (of 43 so that's not bad). I just have to get going and take a shower. I have also had 32oz of water so far today lol.

During Logan's nap, I am going to do my Love Handler--I finally found the DVD that came with it. Logan stashed it in a shoe box that I found yesterday lol.

Hope everyone has a great day!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 112 (day 7 / week 16)

I have to say that I am extremely pumped right now. I didn't start off this way. In fact, I had a mini tantrum before I exercised, because I REALLY didn't want to.

I had a lot on my plate, as far as exercise. Yesterday I did 43 minutes. Today I was scheduled to do practically an hour--58 minutes to be exact! In exercise years, that's a big difference! (lol I'm such a douche).

This is how you are supposed to feel after you exercise. For the last--I don't know--really ever since I started doing my own thing with Turbo Jam, I have been tired. Last week or the week before I started doing what it told me to do, and I feel great. Have you ever had that moment where you just kicked yourself and said "Why didn't I just do that to begin with?" (that's my life in a nutshell--I always have to learn the hard way).

Anyway, today I did Turbo Sculpt (39 minutes) and Ab Jam (19 minutes). On top of this huge accomplishment (yes, it is, because I REALLY didn't want to exercise today) I got in my 8 glasses of water!

I have to tell you guys about this stuff that makes me suck down my water like I should have been, the entire time. It started because our "bottled water" is tap water. Well, it's tap water in a 5 gallon jug and my mom's hubby refuses to believe he's being ripped off lol. It's free for us so I'm not complaining (really, I'm not. kekeke). Anyway, I have been drinking my 8 8-oz glasses of water a day for over a month now, but I struggle with it. Now with this new and improved tap water, I have been drinking literally twice as much (is it healthy to get in OVER 12-8 oz glasses of water a day??). We buy it at the dollar store (the 99 cent only store--blue and pink). It's called South Beach, Living on the go, Tide Me Over (strawberry banana) by Kraft. It's AWESOME because:

#1 it's sugar free. There is aspartame--as long as I don't grow a tail I'm ok with it lol.
#2 it has a whopping 5 grams of fiber... and
#3 there are 3 grams of protein in it!!!
It's 30 calories per packet, and there is 10 packets in the box (I know this pic says 7 packets but mine says 10 :)).

My reusable water bottle is 32 oz big, so I dump in 1/2 of the packet, and it's perfect. No minerally/stale taste, that the nasty vegas tap water tastes like. I was using orange slices, and strawberry slices, but it just doesn't help me suck it down like this stuff.

Anyway that's it. Sorry for the long post, but I have a ton of energy (I told you!)

Hope you guys have an awesome day and workout! If you struggle with your water intake, try those packets. They do wonders for me, although I'm in the bathroom all day because of it lol.

I can do this. I am a star.

day 111 (day 6 / week 16)

It's getting hot here, so I'm making more of an effort to exercise earlier than later, because in the mid-afternoon, it just gets too hot.

Today I did Cardio Party Mix 1 (Turbo Jam) and I still feel my abs--they aren't so much sore, as I can just feel the muscles. I LOVE that! Tomorrow I think I do Ab Jam again, and I'm so excited to!

Logan woke up early this morning so he was up when I was exercising. It is difficult, but so sweet on the other hand, that he wants to give me hugs and kisses while I'm exercising. He also tried to tickle the TV (well the girls on the TV--he's such a flirt lol). So sweet.

I feel better today, so whatever I had, it lasted for 2 days (maybe 3?) and was super whimpy lol.

Tonight I am making the Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Stew that I posted about before. My in-laws are coming over for dinner, and I wanted to share with you a recipe I want to make for dessert that I saw on the Create channel on a show called Fast Food My Way (Jacques Pepin). It's sugar free, and sounds so delish! I couldn't find the recipe anywhere, so I will post it tomorrow after I get it all typed out, and enter it into sparkpeople, so I can have the calorie count and stuff for you guys :). It's a Cream Cheese and Fruit Medley and you can see a video clip of it here. It's at the end of the episode :). It's really easy to make.

I hope you guys have a good day! Make it count :).

I can do this. I am a star.

day 110 (day 5 / week 16)

Today I feel better than yesterday. Boy, this sure is a whimpy cold. I can feel that I have a cold, but it's not kicking my butt. At all. (which is a good thing!). Very easy to ignore :). I'm just gonna do like Ellie said, and just sweat it out :) (it's hot enough outside where it can easily be done!).

Today I did the 20 Minute workout and Ab Jam, because my workout schedule thing told me to. This is what my week will look like:

Mon: 20 minute workout + Ab Jam (done)
Tue: Cardio Party
Wed: Turbo Sculpt + Ab Jam
Thu: Cardio Party
Fri: 20 minute workout + Ab Jam
Sat: (rest day) Cardio Party
Sun: Punch, Kick & Jam

They gave me Saturday as a rest day but I will do Cardio Party if I am not out with the family somewhere. Usually when we go out we do A LOT of walking. I don't know if I ever mentioned this, but I am a speed walker by nature (I am always having to remind myself to slow down when I am with other people). I think it's because of college--having to trek across campus to make my next class. Anyway I mention that, because with my speed walking, I always know that I get exercise when I walk (whether I consider it exercise or not).

My mid-section is really sore today (good sore), and I'm assuming it's because of the raking I did yesterday. Great workout! It's always a treat to feel sore muscles (for me) because I know that I worked them to fatigue :).

My blisters hurt still. I should take a picture of them to show, but that's just gross. and mean. lol. I can't keep bandaids on them (awkward place), but I will get over it. I just hope they go away sooner than later :). Picking up Logan, and his stupid juice cups make them hurt even more. Stupid blisters. Stupid rake.

I planted some flowers this morning too (seeds from the 99 cent store lol), so if they come up, I will take a picture and share :).

Hope you all have a great day and a great workout! Happy Monday! (How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory and Heroes are on tonight! I love those shows!)

I can do this. I am a star!
stupid blisters.

day 109 (day 4 / week 16)

I am definitely getting sick again :(. I wonder if it may be from over training--I read somewhere that getting sick and being tired a lot could be a sign (my FIL was also recently sick, so it could be his fault too lol muahaha). Anyway with that in mind, I tried to take it easy today--but didn't, but it wasn't my fault lol. My intentions were good. I swear.

A bad rake + a yard with a ton of pine needles/dead grass = awesome workout (the baking sun probably helps too). lol. I went out there at 11:07 am and came back in at 12noon (53 minutes of raking isn't bad stuff!).

I had no idea that I would have worked that hard. The only thing I can compare it to is splitting wood--it felt a lot like that. I wore gardening gloves, but I still got blisters in between the webbing of my thumb and index fingers--on both hands. They really sting but I'll get over it :).

Although I'm getting sick, I'd like to believe that hard work is good for a cold. Feed a fever, work a cold. lol. wait. that's how I probably got into this mess to begin with! Oh well, I'll take it easy for the rest of the day. We were considering going over to the pound to get a dog, but then my mother kindly (not so much) pointed out all of the monthly expenses that goes into having a dog, and the lack of independence we will have bla-bla-bla, and that we won't be able to afford it so, that idea is ixnayed.

Hope you all have a great Sunday! See you all tomorrow :)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 108 (day 3 / week 16)

My husband let me sleep in late today. I'm not complaining, it's just that when I get up late, it's hard to "exercise early" lol.

We went to the Las Vegas Scottish Festival today, and we did A LOT of walking (we have been gone all day). My feet are sore and my legs (thighs mostly) are sore from pushing the stroller up and down the mini hills in the park (off-roading it in the stroller lol), on the way to the festival. After that we walked around the festival a lot (we were there for four hours) but I don't really consider that exercise, because it's just like everyday walking. I would say that we walked for a good hour today (maybe a 30 min/mile--definitely no less), where I was huffing and puffing, but my husband says it's more. I am exhausted from the sun and walking, so I will definitely count this as my exercise for today.

Tomorrow, I will get up early to "exercise early" (God and my husband willing lol).

I hope everyone had a great Saturday. We had fun :). It was nice to see the origin of my family names (Bruce and MacMillian) and see all of the Scottsman and women in their kilts with bagpipes and drums (and the drum major competition).

I feel like I might be getting sick, but it could just be from being in the sun for so long (I have sun allergies). Keep your fingers crossed and please pray with me that I'm not getting sick!
Sick + exercise = icky! icky! icky!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 107 (day 2 / week 16)

I did not want to exercise today. *shrug*

I sat here (playing bejeweled blitz on facebook) trying to think of something that I could do, like raking, that doesn't seem like exercise, but is. Then I remembered that I had already said that I was going to do the 20 minute workout today (because the workout schedule told me to), so I got off of my bottom, and went and did it.

To think that I just sat there wasting time thinking about something that I could just get over and done with, if I would just get up to do it (tisk tisk). It's only 20 minutes.

I'm glad I did. Now I can say that I exercised for the day, and I don't have to worry about doing anything more until tomorrow, and I don't have to think about it anymore.

I probably will still go rake though...it needs to be done lol.

Hope you all have a fun Friday!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 106 (day 1 / week 16)

Thank you for all of your comments on yesterday's post. Inspiration, motivation and support really is a full circle thing. You guys help me and I help you (it's such a blessing to know this)! I am just so grateful and blessed--you guys really don't know!

Today I did the 20 minute workout and Ab Jam (because my workout schedule thingy told me to), but not in that order. Five minutes to the end of the 20 minute workout (I did this one last), I started to feel really icky again, almost nauseous, and I thought, "this feels like the other day when I didn't eat before I exercised, but today I.....oh. I guess I didn't eat this morning, did I?" I was thinking of yesterday morning, when I ate. Such a douche. So I did 15 minutes of the 20 minute workout (that bugs me that I forget).

I stopped using my sculpting gloves, and will bring them back into my workout next week. I think I might have been over training with them because every time I try to use them, I get extremely tired (that's not supposed to happen--exercise should give you energy!).

Today is going to be a super busy day (it's Lyric's 6th birthday), so off to start it! Hope you guys have a wonderful day and a great workout!

We can do this. We are stars!

day 105 (day 7 / week 15)

Today while I was exercising (Turbo Jam's Cardio Party Mix 1--I woke up early to do this btw) I was thinking about how lucky I am to have all of your help and support, and how much of a blessing each one of you are in my life.

So many of you have helped to change my life, to make better decisions and to give me the tools to do so. I have new friends and get to read your blogs, and enjoy them so much, from the penny pinching tips, recipes, cleaning tips, to the shared struggles, goals, laughs and slug love. Your comments ALWAYS keep me pumped, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart, for lifting me up (even when you don't know it!)

You guys have introduced me to sparkpeople.com, which I thought off the bat was a God thing, because I lived in Sparks, NV at the time (see the similarity?). I don't think you guys ever knew that :). It was meant for me to join just because of that reason! I realized that my knees didn't hurt today, and that again is because of you guys reminding me about the glucosamine.

I hope all of you guys know (even you lurkers!) know how much I appreciate you. I hope that God's joy engulfs you as you read this, because when I think about how blessed I am to have you guys help keep me accountable to this goal, God's joy overcomes me.

Thank you! thank you! thank you! You are my stars!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 104 (day 6 / week 15)

I don't think I mentioned this, but I started over my Turbo Jam program. For the past few weeks, I have just been doing whatever Turbo Jam workout out of the Maximum Results program, that my little heart desired. I decided last week (I know I did mention this) that I wanted to start doing what it told me to. Well it's been over a month since I started, so I was at the end of the workout schedule provided, so I decided to just start over (in week 2 so that I can skip all of the "learn and burn" stuff, since I have already learned all of the moves).

Today I did the 20 minute workout and ab jam. This is what my current week will look like according to the workout schedule provided:

Mon: 20 minute workout (done)
Tue: 20 minute workout + Ab Jam (done)
Wed: Cardio Party
Thu: 20 minute workout + Ab Jam
Fri: 20 minute workout
Sat: (rest day) Cardio Party
Sun: (rest day) Cardio Party

You all know I don't have rest days so on Saturday and Sunday I will do "cardio party."

I am waiting for my mom's hubby to stop by (if he remembers) to bring me a rake. The one that belongs here was taken by the previous tenants lol. Yesterday we fixed and adjusted the sprinklers in the front yard, so that the grass will grow properly. Since my hubby is allergic to grass, I get to take care of it. I am totally happy about this because "raking" and "mowing the lawn" with both a gas powered mower or a push mower, are considered exercise in sparkpeople.com, that I can actually enter. Yaay! More (non)exercise! That's exercise that doesn't feel like exercise to me--kind of like walking lol.

Anyway if Dave brings me the rake so I can get the pine needles and pine cones out of the yard today (w/out breaking my back), then I will do more (non)exercise today (despite how windy it is)!

Maybe I should save it for a day when I don't want to exercise, but have no choice...hmmm...

Hope everyone is well and feeling great! Exercise'll do that to ya :). I forgot to mention that I didn't do anything more after Lyric left and I put Logan down for a nap. I did my exercise for the day and wanted to rest :).

I can do this. I am a star.

day 103 (day 5 / week 15)

Today my niece Lyric is here playing with Logan. Logan hasn't taken a nap yet. I don't know if he will. lol. (more of a cry, not a laugh).

I just did the Turbo Jam's 20 Minute Workout. After Lyric leaves and Logan goes down for a nap *fingers crossed*, I might do more. I don't know. It all depends on him :).

Hope everyone is having a good Monday!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 102 (day 4 / week 15)

Happy Easter! I am so excited for when my son gets old enough to tell him the story behind today. It has amazed me since I was a small child and still does as an adult!

Today I got up "early" (not as early as I was getting up in Reno, but not as late as I have been getting up lately lol) to exercise, so that we make our schedule for today.

I put in Punch, Kick and Jam and about 20 minutes into it, I started to feel icky. I pushed through it and even got a boost of energy, but the feeling stayed. About 10 minutes later I started feeling pretty nauseous so I stopped for a few and tried to start up again, but I stopped because my body was obviously trying to tell me something (duh). I didn't eat anything before I exercised so I'm sure that was the problem. It has been such a long time since I exercised early that I forgot my routine (I usually have some yogurt beforehand), and eating just slipped my mind (I know, kind of stupid). Anyway 30 minutes is fine with me. It's better than nothing, and I will get plenty of exercise throughout the day.

Hope you all have a blessed Easter! Stay active :).

I can do this. I am a star.

day 101 (day 3 / week 15)

Today was a good day. I was still a little sore so I decided to make it a (non)rest day and take it easy today. My hubby, Logan and I went to one of the malls here (the one we used to hang out at as teenagers lol) and we walked around it a few times for about an hour. I think giving my body a rest from turbo jam for a day will be a good thing.

Today was very exciting. I always have a hard time trying to find something to wear out in public. This is mostly due to the fact that I am in between sizes. I have been wearing my super-fat clothes just because I didn't fit into anything else, and they have gotten pretty big. Just for kicks I pulled out what I call my "semi-fat clothes"--clothes that are smaller than the ones I am wearing now, but they aren't my skinny clothes (the ones I wore around the time I got married 3 years ago--the pants are mostly 3x's). I was about 180lbs when I was wearing these clothes. Anyway, I put on my pants, totally thinking that I couldn't get them over my butt and they did! Then I thought I won't be able to fasten them, and I did! I was so excited, I did a happy dance and had my 2 year old doing one with me. They were a little tight, and I had a slight muffin top, but they fit! I took them off and tried another pair--a pair that said they were a 2x (even smaller!). They fit even better! I think my sizes are wonky--but they are a different manufacturer. I wore the 2nd pair that I tried on today, and they felt great. I even had to wear a belt.

What a great day!

Hope you all are having a great weekend! The weather is so nice, go take a walk! so beautimus! :)

I can do this. I am a star.

day 100 (day 2 / week 15)

Today's post is brought to you by the word "procrastination" and the number 100.

Today is the 100th day of my New Years Resolution. Yaay!

Today, because the Turbo Jam journal told me to, I did The 20 Minute Workout and Ab Jam. I am sore. Not from today. Maybe a little from yesterday (although I totally futzed around), but still from Turbo Sculpt (I think 3 days ago?). My bottom is still sore (good sore not bad). I am just totally aware of my butt 24/7.

lol.

Also today, God has also been talking to me--in the way that He does. I am a procrastination monger. I do it all the time--especially if my hubby is around (I really don't know why he provokes it). Anyway, I put Logan down, and knew "it's exercise time" but just procrastinated. I went online, and read a sparkspeople article about procrastination and close to the end it said:

Right now – before you read the next paragraph – go do something you put off earlier today…There, doesn’t that feel better? Remember and cherish that feeling.

lol. I was like "awe man!" so I got up, before reading the next paragraph (I still haven't read it) and went and did Ab Jam. After Ab Jam was over, I was switching out my DVD (I hate that ab jam and cardio party are on a separate disk from the rest of the turbo jam workouts) and I just procrastinated... a little. Instead of pushing the disk into the player, so that it automatically starts, I left it there and watched a little bit of, "The Doctors" (a TV show). Like 2 minutes into my watching it, one of the doctors said something about procrastinating and I just gave up and pushed in the DVD. I think God is trying to tell me something, but He isn't saying it loud enough...lol (j/k).

I should go take a shower now. I'm sure I'll use that article to procrastinate a little more, or find something else. No. No I wont.

I can do this! I am a star!

day 99 (day 1 / week 15)

I noticed today that I have had 100 posts (i had an intro) on my blog, and couldn't figure out why I had that today was day 98. I went back and checked and repeated day 86, so I had 2 of them, and kept going (go figure--day 1 of moving lol). I thought something was wrong, because I had always remembered my day 1 of the week being on a Thursday, but for the past 2 thursdays it has been on a friday (sounds funny but totally makes sense to me lol). Anyway I fixed it, so I apologize if it shows 10+ posts today in your blogger feed thing, if you subscribe to my blog. I don't know what it looks like on your side when I edit a post and republish it, so I just hope that I didn't annoy anyone (sorry!).

I exercised late today because Logan just barely went down for his nap. I wanted to post this now, because my hubby will be home from work as soon as I am done exercising, and it annoys him when I am on the computer, and he is home.

I am about to go do Cardio Party mix 1 (turbo jam) because that's what the journal-thingy told me to do. I really wanted to do the 20 minute workout, but I committed to the journal yesterday, or the day before, so I am not going to punk out on it (I don't usually stick to my original plan of things and I want to change this bad habbit). It's 43 minutes long.

My butt is sore today from the traveling lunges and squats I did in Turbo Sculpt yesterday so this will be fun :). thank goodness there isn't any in Cardio Party!

I hope you all have a great workout and a great day! Woo hoo! tomorrow is day 100! only 256 more days left after that!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 98 (day 7 / week 14)

It feels really good to be back. I included a recipe today at the end of my post! So yummy!

Today I followed the manual thingy that Turbo Jam provided to me. Yesterday I did Cardio Party, so today it told me to do Turbo Sculpt (39 mins) and Ab Jam (19 mins). I really didn't want to do Ab Jam, but because I had already programed it into my WOWY, I did it anyway--talk about oxymoronic laziness (I just made that up lol). I was too lazy to just walk into the other room to cancel my WOWY session for Ab Jam, that I just did it anyways lol (too lazy to be lazy lol).

Tonight I am making Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Stew, a recipe that I found on Sparkpeople.com, and I wanted to share the recipe with you guys. It's low in calories, and I have all the nutritional info to go with it--cause I'm anal like that!

a serving is 3/4 cup.

This is a copy/paste from the site:

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped 1 16-oz can black beans 1 16-oz can kidney beans 1 16-oz can corn (drained) 1 8-oz can tomato sauce 2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies 1 1.25-oz packet taco seasoning 1-2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Directions

Mix everything together in a slow cooker except chicken. Lay chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. 30 minutes before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. This is good eaten with cheese, sour cream, or tortilla chips.

Number of Servings: 14

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user GINGERFISH.
Number of Servings: 14

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 14
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 115.8

• Total Fat: 0.8 g
• Cholesterol: 7.9 mg
• Sodium: 782.8 mg
• Total Carbs: 17.9 g
• Dietary Fiber: 5.4 g
• Protein: 7.8 g
  
  
  Ingredients Used For Nutrition Calculations:
  Here are the foods from our food nutrition database that were used for the nutrition calculations of this recipe.
  
  Number of Servings: 14
  • Onions, raw, 1.00 medium (2-1/2" dia)
  • Del Monte Whole Kernel Corn, 1.75 cup
  • Great Value Light Red Kidney Beans, 1.75 cup
  • Great Value Black Beans, 1.75 cup
  • Great Value Taco Seasoning, 12.00 tsp
  • Great Value Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, 2.50 cup
  • Great Value Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets (Frozen), 8.00 oz
  • Great Value Tomato Sauce, no salt added, 0.88 cup

This is Melissa talking now--I rinse and drain everything--corn, tomatoes (I use just plain diced tomatoes btw), beans--everything but the chicken, taco seasoning and tomato sauce (which would just be dumping that down the sink lol). It's better the 2nd day when the flavors have been able to meddle! I never challenged the nutritional info, because everything going in is healthy, so I don't care. Can't be much more than what it says it is :). For me, it varies with the chicken--how heavy my breasts are (LMAO!!!) or if I use chicken tenders instead.

I eat it with a salad (no dressing--still not a fan of it lol) and my multi-grain LIGHT Thomas english muffins that are 100 calories per muffin. So delish!! So yummy! So yummy! There's a party in my tummy! So yummy! so yummy!

Off to take a shower. Hope you guys enjoy the recipe :).

I can do this. I am a star.

day 97 (day 6 / week 14)

Yaay!!!! I have internet now!!! My hubby did get internet hooked up yesterday so I can log in to WOWY now and can log onto my blog regularly again. I can catch up on all of my blogs and see how all of you are doing, and that makes me very happy.

Today I did Cardio Party Mix 1.

We drink a lot of bottled water, and to cut costs, we bought reusable water bottles that we are filling up with from 5 gal jugs of water, that my mom left here for us. The one I have says that it's 32 ozs but I don't believe it. It's more like 27 (that's 3 cups of water, right? 1.5 bottles of water--I tested it). So I have had to had MANY potty breaks today--2x while I was exercising and 3x's just sitting here updating my blog lol. I am able to easily get in my 8-8oz cups of water though, in fact, when I finish this, it will be 12! Hubby can't take me anywhere though, because I am in the bathroom every 20 mins lol. My bladder will increase though, so it won't be so bad soon.

Yaay! I am so glad to be back online. My hubby got a lame-o job working for a company that placed him in the warehouse of t-mobile. It doesn't pay much, but it's more than we are making now. He also has a lead with another company that contracts for the gov working in janitoral services as a lead worker but we have to pray for that. He would be a good fit and would pay more so that I can focus on finishing school :).

Ironically, I am going to apply to work at the company my hubby worked at in Reno. He refuses to work there because he doesn't liek the people in the Vegas branch (he's not a people person, so it sounds worse than it is lol).

I hope everyone is well! I am going to go catch up and reply to comments now.

I can do this. I am a star!

day 96 (day 5 / week 14)

Monday 4/6/06

My hubby is talking about getting internet service so I am so excited! Hopefully we will have it soon. Getting to the parking lot across the street, is a huge pain, so I am just typing this like a journal entry and then will copy/paste it to my dashboard publisher thing.

Today I did 10 minutes of Ab Jam (the floor portion) and we did a lot of walking, that I am not going to include (I forgot to clock it so I don't know how long we were out for--oh well).

I hope everyone is having a good time and a great workout!

*fingers crossed* about getting internet soon!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 95 (day 4 / week 14)

Sunday 4/5/09

Today I unpacked more boxes in the kitchen and then danced (mostly hopped) around with my 25lb son to make him happy for about 15 minutes. We danced because music was on pretty loud and that's not a common thing for us, always living in an apartment. He has been such a trooper in this move, both leaving and arriving and I am so proud of him. It's nice that we can just rock out like that. I was out of breath after bouncing him around and just pooped. I exhausted him too which takes a lot lol. We danced hard and had fun, and I held him the entire time, so I definitely got some exercise in. My stomach muscles are sore also, from yesterday's workout, which I love--such a great feeling!

During Logan's nap I did Cardio Party Mix 1 (Turbo Jam) again. I enjoy it and I am seeing great results, so it makes me happy to turn on :). I just really need to clean the carpets because they are just...they don't look gross because they are speckled but they feel gross to me. It's burber (? is that how you say/spell it?) and blends the previous renter and my mom's dogs hair in and the dirt/dust, and we are realizing that a lot needs to be cleaned. Anyway enough of that, despite all of my complaining, it's such a blessing to be in a house now, rent free no less (although my mom was just laid off in the management cuts at the Palazzo (?? A casino in vegas) so this will probably change very soon). Such a blessing to just be around family again though :).

On my hubby's cell phone, where I was entering some of my posts at the hotel and in Sparks before we left, I couldn't respond to comments because his phone is funny--it doesn't show all the links available--that I know are usually there. I would only be able to read them through my email as my blog is too large for the phone to load, and that was only if I was able to spot them in all of the daily mailers that sparkpeople sends me (i really need to dump some groups and change some settings lol). Normally, this is how I read the comments and usually I can click on the day in the email that someone left a comment on, and it takes me straight to the post so I can respond to a comment, but his phone doesn't show the link so I can't go directly to the single entry to respond. Incidentally, our cell phone service is horrible here in Vegas--I can't post at the house with his phone anymore because the service isn't that great there, which is why I am in this parking lot right now. When I did this the other day, I was on my laptop, and it doesn't hold a charge for very long so I wasn't able to respond then (I had to pee really bad too lol). It died on me almost immediately after I got the confirmation page that the last blog post had been published *whew*.

Hope you have a great day and an awesome workout!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 94 (day 3 / week 14)

Saturday 4/4/09

Today I went for a walk for about an hour and did the floor portion of Ab Jam (Turbo Jam). Man! I could feel stomach muscles that I haven't felt in a LONG time. It felt good and I am sure that my abs will be sore tomorrow (good sore of course) :).

I hope everyone is having a good weekend and has had great workouts! I know you are there with me, I am just sorry that I haven't been able to catch up on blogs and read about your experiences. I will be able to once we have an internet connection...whenever that is. Despite what you might think, parking lot blogging is not much fun at all, lol, especially with a toddler in the back seat...bless his little spongebob loving heart lol. I updated my blog from april 1st (day 90) and added my measurements if you want to scroll down and see what those are. I lost a total of 12.75" and 6.2 lbs in March! Yaay!

I can do this. I am a star!

day 93 (day 2 / week 14)

Today I did Turbo Jam's, Cardio Party Mix 1 (I think that's what it's called). I haven't done it in a while and it was so much fun! I used my sculpting gloves for 20 minutes and then took them off, cause I wasn't having much fun lol.

My laptop is going to die so I have to get off. Hopefully I will be able to get on tomorrow to update, but if not, this is how I will be doing it until we get an internet connection at home. We are still looking for jobs so it won't be any time soon unfortunately :-/.

Hope everyone is well! I dont have the memory to check my email/respond to comments so I hope you all are well! You are stars!

We can do this. We are stars!

day 92 (day 1 / week 14)

Thursday 4/2/09

It's really nice to have my own exercise room. It's pretty empty, except for a book shelf, a TV on a stand and my love handler.

Today I did the Turbo Jam 20 minute workout. I was so happy to do it! I missed Turbo Jam. :) So much fun!

I hope everyone is well and is exercising!

I can do this. I am a star.

day 91 (day 7 / week 13)

Wednesday 4/1/08

Today is the first and my hubby surprised me this morning by having our extra room cleared out so that I could make it my exercise room.

I set up my "Love Handler" that my hubby bought for me over a year ago, and did that today for about 10 minutes. It works your mid section and is pretty fun :).

I have a picture of me for April 1st, but I forgot my measurements at home. I will update them here later.

I weighed 203.6! yaay! I am really happy to see the numbers drop.

When I have more time I will come back and edit this post to have the rest of the before/after pictures, and measurements. You can click on the label "Measurements" to see my other pictures, to compare the before an after, until I update this.

UPDATE (typed on 4/4/09)

These are my measurements from April 1st as promised. It has been 4 days since I took them, and I haven't been able to compare last month's measurements until now so it was pretty exciting to see the differences. Usually I have them sitting in front of me when I do them, but I don't have the internet access at home to pull up the page to immediately compare. Yaay!

Measurements: (day 90 / day 60 / day 30 / day 10) (- "/# lost in current month)

Wt: 203.6 / 209.8 / 213.4 / 215 (-6.2#) (total lost 11.4#)
Chest: 41" / 42.5" / 43.5" / 43.75"(-1.5") (total lost -2.75")
Waist: 36" / 37.25" / 39" / 41.5" (-1.25") (total lost -5.5")
Hips: 45.5" / 47" / 47.75" / 47.75" (-1.5") (total lost -2.25"
Neck: 13.75" / 13.75" / 14.25" (-0.0") (total lost -0.5")
Under bust: 34.25 / 35" / 36.75" (-0.75") (total lost -2.5")
1" below belly button: 43.25" / 45" / 47.5" (-1.75") (total lost -4.5")
below my bottom (above my thigh): 42" / 42.5" / 44" (-0.5") (total lost -2.0")
R Thigh: 20.5" / 22.5" / 27" (-2.0") (total lost -6.5")
L Thigh: 20.5" / 22.25" / 27.5" (-1.75") (total lost -7.0")
R Calf: 14" / 14" / 14.5" (-0.0") (total lost -0.5")
L Calf: 14.5" / 14.75" / 15.5" (-0.25") (total lost -1.0")
R upper Arm: 11.25" / 12.25" / 14" (-1.0") (total lost -2.75")
L upper Arm: 11.5" / 12" / 13.5" (-0.5") (total lost -2.0")
R wrist: 6" / 6" / 6.25" (-0.0") (total lost -0.25")
L wrist: 6" / 6" /6.25" (-0.0") (total lost -0.25")

In March I lost 6.2 lbs! It's about time! lol I have lost a total of 11.4 lbs since January and I can't complain, especially since the inches are melting off :). What a blessing!!!

In March I lost 12.75" over my entire body combined for a grand total of 40.25" overall throughout my body since January.

This really wants to make me cry, fall on my knees and praise God. I would definitely not be this strong if it weren't for Him. I wouldn't be this consistant if it weren't for Him. I know that I am on my way to a healthier temple for Him and I won't ever have to look back again. I can't believe how far I have come since I started, and it just makes me want to cry (happy tears of course).

Thank you to everyone who is following my transformation. You help me to be accountable and help to keep me on track because I know that there is someone else out there, besides myself that is watching and rooting for me. I really hope it inspires those of you that need it and I just hope that you know that if I can do this, you can too. Just take one day at a time and make it count! Can you imagine where we will be in 3 more months??? How exciting and such a blessing to think about!

We can do this! We are stars!!!! :D :D :D :D :D

Jan 2009

Feb 2009

March 2009

April 1, 2009

I can do this. I am a star.

day 90 (day 6 / week 13)

Tuesday 3/31/08

Today I cleaned the last bathroom--the messiest and hardest to clean. I still need to go back and re-scrub the bathtub and shower area, because it's pretty gross.

I counted this hour of cleaning the bathroom as "heavy cleaning" for exercise, because I was beat red and sore from cleaning. I definitely got a good workout.

Right now I am in a parking lot using a starbucks wireless connection to enter the next few days. We still don't have a connection at home, but I am fine with driving to this parking lot for now. I am still exercising so that's all that matters :).

I can do this. I am a star.