Thursday, August 31, 2006

I'm Wowin' them at work!

I haven't seen all my co-workers yet but the one's I've seen have been really impressed with my weight loss. If this is your first time reading my blog (thank you) and feel free to take a look at my before and after photos. I owe everything to Leanness Lifestyle and if you've never heard of it and want to get in shape click on the link and learn all about it. It was absolutely the best fitness move I ever made. I'll warn you that there is not magic pill - you will have to work you butt off (literally and figuratively) but it is worth every ounce of effort you put into it.

OK, now to my workout. Today I set out to do 6 X 800 intervals. Unfortunately, due to bathroom stops I was only able to do 4 of the 6. They were good quality efforts though. I don't have my split times as I write this but I know that they were all pretty much in the time zones that I was shooting for. So, I'm pleased with the overall outcome of today. One thing is for sure though - I'm going to have to start getting up earlier on these workout days!!!

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Wednesday's Thoughts

Boy have I been tired this week! I'm in the process of trying to get my classroom ready for the start of school. I'm spending the morning in the room, cleaning, throwing out old stuff, putting things on shelves etc and then coming home to finish my workouts and do some cleaning. It has really worn me down but I can't imagine how tired I would be if I hadn't gotten in such great shape with Leanness Lifestyle. As you can see from my previous post it has done amazing things for the way I look. But it is the inside stuff that amazes me the most. Not only am I able to do more but I also feel powerful both mentally and physically. It is truly an amazing feeling. I never really felt this way with BFL. Yes, I felt good but not like I do now. It's just AWESOME!

But, because I was so tired, I didn't do my speed workout this morning. I decided to do it tomorrow instead. I just couldn't get my butt out the door this morning. I was dressed and everything but just couldn't do it. I did however, get my LBWO done this evening and even jumped on the stationary bike for 30 minutes. Overall, I'm pleased with my workouts for the day.

nutritionally, it is a different story. The day started off bad - because I was tired I went for a lower nutritional choice because it was convenient. I can't allow myself to fall into that trap because it ends up messing up my whole day. Then, we (the kids and I) went into school and I stayed way passed lunch time so I ended up taking the kids to a fast food place and again made a bad choice. I feel like kicking myself because I know better. But the good news is that I turned the day around from there and the rest of my day was good. Tomorrow I will start the day off better and as a result the rest of my will be better as a result.

Thanks to everyone who has commented on how impressive my before and after pictures are. I look back at those pictures and remember how awful I felt. I feel and look like a new person and I owe it to LL. If anyone out there is on the fence about this program - get off because it is great! You definitely have to do the work, there is no magic pill. If you are willing to work though, awesome results await!

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Sunday, August 27, 2006

Before and Afters







I finally took my after photos last night. The before pictures are from the beginning of my journey in 2004 and were taken right before I started back into BFL (after having my 2 children). I did pretty well with BFL but decided I needed something a bit more intense, so in April of this year I started The Leanness Lifestyle and there has been no looking back!

Saturday, August 26, 2006

4 Mile Run

My plan called for a 4 mile run today (it is a step-back week for me) and I'm happy to say that I was able to complete the run with hardly any pain in my foot. In fact, there was only 1 small twinge that lasted only a couple of seconds and then it felt good. I did not push my pace at all - I don't even know what it was yet. All I really wanted was a pain-free run. I will continue to ice and hope for the best. I just wish I knew what the cause was!!!

Onto better news......I'm officially in a maintenance phase on my weight loss. I have reached my goal of 133 (now I can get myself a new watch - YEAH!!)!! I decided to not worry about anymore weight loss until after my race. Even then I'm not sure I'll jump right back into it. My weight right now is slightly lower than it was when I was in college and high school (my weight stayed the same in college but I changed the composition greatly - played 2 collegiate sports so I was in really good shape). I'm not sure what my calorie intake will be like - I have a note into coach but I'll just have to wait until he gets back to me. I have to say that I'm looking forward to not stressing about the weight loss for a while though. I know I'll still have to be careful so that I don't gain a bunch back but it will be nice to have some increased calories without stressing about whether I'll reach my goal for the week. New territory and I'm excited!!!

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Friday, August 25, 2006

Busy, busy, busy!

This week has been crazy! I don't feel like I stopped all week. School will be starting soon and as a first year teacher, I have a lot to do to get not only myself ready but the room also. I finally got a look at my class list and I have 16 kids in my M,W,F class and 5 in my T,R class. There is still a lot of work to do in the classroom because there is a lot of "crap" leftover in the room. It is going to so much better after we sift through everything and get the rest organized.

I think all the work at school is rubbing off here at home too. Today was the only day all week that I was able to stay at home and get things done. I worked my butt off here today. Unfortunately no one seemed to notice (at least they didn't say anything). Anyway, I'm thrilled with my production today even if no one else is impressed.

My workout wasn't so hot this morning - 2 mile run that I walked a good portion of because my foot started to hurt. This is really the first time I've experience it during a run. I've been having some occasional pain on the top of my right foot. I'm not sure what is causing it and I would be lying if I said that it doesn't concern me. It doesn't have the symptoms of a stress fracture so I'm happy about that! It starts to bother me when I get up on my toes - so I've been trying to avoid that position. I don't think it is my mileage increases because there hasn't been any huge increases (following a Hal Higdon plan) and I have over 120 miles on my current running shoes so it isn't from a sudden change in shoes.

I've decided to just wait it out a bit. I'm trying to ice 3-4 times a day. There is no visible swelling or bruising so I'm not taking any meds. I'll give the ice some time to do it's thing and go from there. I pray that it isn't anything serious and that it won't affect my race.

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Monday, August 21, 2006

Awesome day!

Today has been great! I got all my workouts finished - 3 mile run, LB workout and an extra 25 min bike on the trainer. I also drank all my water which hasn't always been completed. But, best of all, I was able to stick to my nutrition plan all day. I didn't give in to any stress eating and I feel really good about everything.

I'm looking forward to sticking to my plan tomorrow too. It is Bill's birthday tomorrow so I may have one small bite of cupcake but other than that I'm going to stick to my plan. I can't wait to give Bill is present. I've saved so long for this and I can't wait to see his face - I really hope he likes it!!! Just in case Bill reads this (I don't even think he knows about this blog but I'm going to be careful anyway) I'm not going to write what the present is but I think he is going to love it.

Well, it has been a long day and I still have some prep work to do for tomorrow.

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Sunday, August 20, 2006

It feels like forever since my last posting.

I think my brain is on overload lately. Mentally I think I'm wearing down - the weight loss and the training for the 15K is taking it's toll. I realized the other day that I've been really concentrating on the weight loss since April. I'm wondering if the trouble I've been having lately is because it has been so long non-stop. Add on to that all the training I've been doing and I just think it is starting to wear me down. Physically I still feel great! My training has been going well and I'm still not only having fun with it but also looking forward to the workouts.

This week is my goal week for reaching my 133# goal weight. If I really focus on what I need to do, I will reach my goal and be able to go into a maintenance phase until after my race is over. I wake up every morning with my goals set and my nutrition plan made but for some reason, during the past few weeks, I've been having a really hard time sticking to my plans. The past 2 days I haven't even done my journal writings (the place where I list my goals, plans, meals etc).

I also took a day off on Friday. I didn't get on the computer or do any exercising. I was hoping that the break would refresh the entire system. It didn't seem to work because my eating plan went right out the window on Saturday. My run Saturday morning was great though! I'm always really hungry on Saturdays because it is my long run day. It is also my higher calorie day because of that but yesterday I went way over board. It reminded me of when I was doing BFL and would have my "Free Day" instead of my splurge meal. It still makes me scratch my head when I look back and I would wonder why I wasn't losing much weight. My free days were killing all my weekly progress.

Today has been pretty good. I have still had some "extras" (off my meal plan) but it is much better that it has been. I consider it a step in the right direction. I will have to do much better this week to reach my goal though.

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

What a Workout!!

Today was my speedwork day. The workout consisted of a 5 min. warm-up, 1 mile jog, 5 X 800 repeats (1/4 mile in between each 800) and then a 5 min. cool-down. My goal is to run the 800s in about 3:30 (7 min/mile pace). My times were as follows: 3:35 (not bad); 3:37 (pretty close); 3:29 (right on); 3:27 (right on); 2:57 (WHAT WAS I THINKING!). I'm not sure what happened on that last one but boy did it kick my butt. I am so glad it was the last one because after running that pace I'm not sure I would have been able to do many more. I just remember thinking to myself that I have to push through this last one. I use my Forerunner and it beeps when you go either too fast or too slow but does tell you what the pace is (or at least I haven't figured out how to find that number). I knew I was going faster than my target pace but I had no idea that I was going that much faster than my target pace. The thing that really blows my mind is that people run at this pace for entire marathons - WOW!!!

I still have to do my upper body lifting routine later today. I still have to figure out exactly what weights I'm going to use but I will do that as soon as I'm done here. I have not been as excited about my lifting sessions as my running sessions. I seem to go through phases during the year. At some points I am really focused on the lifting aspect and at other times I am really focused on the aerobic portion. I never stop either one but I really notice a difference in my excitement level as I approach the workout. I wonder if that is normal for most people???

We are also planning of going to Bike and Hike tonight. I think I am going to try and have Ally ride her bike with me running next to her. Bill can ride my bike with Will in the bike seat. They will obviously ride on ahead and go back and forth while I stick with Ally. I'm not sure how far we will be able to go but I'm really looking forward to it.

My nutrition has been really good the past couple of days and I'm well on my way to making today another great day. My weight has gotten down to 135.5# so know I only have 1 more pound to lose in order to reach my leverage goal. I am so close to my ultimate goal of 133! I really need to just buckle down and go for the goal!

Work hard, eat right & reach for your goals!!!

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Bit Of A Blunder This Morning

I got up this morning all psyched to do my 5 mile run. I got out of bed nice and early, got dressed and was out the door by 5:01 am. I was running a new route and I think that was part of the excitement. It was pretty warm and humid (75 degrees & 81% humidity) this morning. Made me realize just how cool it had been the past few days.

Anyway, I get out there and I felt pretty good. My pace was around 8:30 for the 5 miles. Everything is good right? That was until I looked at my training schedule and realized that I should have run 6 miles! I know it is not going to make any difference what-so-ever but it still frustrates me that I wasn't paying enough attention to my program!!!

On the positive side, my eating has been right on the past 2 days. Yesterday was perfect and as of lunch today is as well. I even kept myself strong today when this yummy pastry smell made its way past me. It smell sooooooo good but I just stopped, thought about my goals and stayed away. I have to say that I was quite proud of myself!

Lately, I've been really interested in triathlons. I just recently finished a book, I think it was called "Be IronFit" (or something similar) and I really enjoyed it. Last night I got a book called "Your First Triathlon". I've not read much of it but it seems interesting. I don't belong to a pool so I won't be training for a triathlon any time in the near future but I hope to some day. I'm trying to talk Bill into joining the Y - not only would it be cool for me but I think it would be good for the kids too. They could get swim lessons as well as all the other activities they could participate in. I'm not sure if it is in the budget but hopefully we will be able to make it work. I'm not real sure Bill wants to even think about it either. I guess I'll just have to wait. I'll enjoy all the reading in the meantime.

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Monday, August 14, 2006

Today was a Great Day!

I'm really happy with the way today went. I had a good 3 mile run this morning and a challenging lifting session this afternoon. I also kept my eating clean and drank plenty of water. It has been quite some time since I've been able to put all 3 parts together like I did today.

I'm also looking forward to tomorrow because we are going to have lunch with some friends that we haven't seen in a couple of months. They may also be moving to Germany at the beginning of next year so we really want to spend as much time as we can with them.

Well, it's starting to get late and I need to get ready for tomorrow. Then off to a peaceful night sleep - hopefully!

Work hard, eat right & reach for your goals!

Sunday, August 13, 2006

I'm Stoked!!!

I tried on 2 articles of clothing today, that I haven't been able to wear in probably a decade. I was able to fit into both of them. One was quite tight but I don't care - I was able to fasten the button!!!

I also had a really good workout this morning. It was my 60 min. cross-training day. I got out on my bike and rode about 11.5 miles. I haven't done a long ride like that in a long time. In the back of my mind, doing a triathlon is still lurking. So, each time I do something like today's ride it just flares those thoughts up even more.

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Feeling good today!

Last night, I fell asleep at 6:30 pm and slept until 8 pm. I didn't really intend to fall asleep but it sure did feel good! I felt good this morning too. I'm not sure if it was the extra sleep or not but I'll take what I can get!

I had a 7 mile run scheduled and I ran it over at Delcastle. Actually, I ran around the neighborhood surrounding the park. It turned out to be about a 3.5 mile loop (so I ran it twice). I had to stop for the bathroom twice (very unusual) and my stomach, at times, felt a tiny bit crampy. I think I'm going to try eating a bagel or something before I run to see how my stomach react to that - especially on Saturdays when I do my long run. I really enjoyed the different scenery. It just felt good to get away from the same old path I usually run.

Other than the stomach and bathroom "problems" the run felt pretty good. My pace was right around 9 min/mile. I'm unsure whether I should be trying to run my longer runs at a faster pace or whether the one day per week, of tempo and speedwork, will be sufficient to hit my target pace. I'm not sure who to ask - maybe I'll try some running message boards.

The day is winding down - I think I might go for an easy spin on the bike trainer.

Work hard, eat right and reach your goals!

Thursday, August 10, 2006

What A Crazy Week!

Where has this week gone? Things have been so busy and so jam-packed with classes and appointments that I can't believe that tomorrow is Friday already. Things don't let up tomorrow either.

On Tuesday, I had a Gyn. Appointment and then took the kids swimming at my parent's club pool. On Wednesday, I spent time at school trying to figure out what is going to happen once school starts. This being my first year as a teacher, I'm nervous about the upcoming year and not knowing what is actually in the room makes it that much worse. Today was physical day - for me, Ally and Will. The plus side was that everybody is healthy. The kids are growing well (Will grew 4 inches this past year and Ally grew 3/4 of an inch) and didn't need any shots. The doctor was also thrilled with the weight that I lost and my good cholesterol screening. We discussed the "off" thyroid hormone and have concluded that my normal just isn't "textbook normal". There is no way that I would have been able to lose 30 pounds with and under-active thyroid. Tomorrow is my first mamogram - getting a baseline screening. Then the week is finally finished. Hopefully, I will be able to catch my breathe over the weekend.

My training has been going very well. I've been getting out every day - often multiple times per day. My biggest problem has been my eating. I've been having trouble with the mental aspect of eating. I was thinking about it today - I think part of the problem is that my initial goal was to get to 135# (the weight I was in high school and college). I reset that goal to 133# and I think my brain hasn't made the transition - I am so close and I need to honor the promise I made myself to get to 133#! Tomorrow is a new day and I will make a fresh start!!

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Monday, August 07, 2006

Where did the weekend go?

WOW - Monday already! I had a great weekend but it went by really quickly. My workouts were great and best of all my weight dropped to 136 pounds! That means I'm only 3 pounds away from my goal!

I also got some really great news in the mail the other day. I had some blood work done a week or so ago. My physical is this week and I wanted to have the results done in time for that visit. The doctors office sent the results to my house. My TC is 156; my TG are 91; my HDL is 45; & my LDL is 93. The HDL came down a little from my last results but everything else is significantly better than it was in January. In reality, my January results scared me just a touch. They weren't really "bad" but they were high enough that I realized I wasn't immune to poor health. The one thing that surprised me was that my HDL went from 52 to 45 - exercise has a big impact on this value and I'm doing a boat load of exercise. I'll take the exchange though!

I woke up to rain this morning so I did a bike workout instead of a run. I also completed an upper body lifting routine today. I decided to go high reps today (3 X 25). It gave a great pump to my upper body.

Work hard, eat right & reach for your goals!

Friday, August 04, 2006

Exercise and Meeting with Friends

I have finally made a decision concerning my extra exercise sessions and my lack of weight loss. I found out that by dropping the extra sessions I was losing around 2500 calories burned - no wonder I wasn't losing weight anymore. This becomes a no brainer - I'm adding the bike back into my workouts on days that I'm not already doing 2 sessions. This coupled with a more strict nutrition plan should have those last 5 pounds gone in no time!

Today's sessions were really good. I got up this morning and did my Leg-Biceps workout. Then I got some extra work in by cutting the grass - not really counting that but it does get the sweat pouring off me! After the grass, I jumped on the bike for a good 30 minute ride. I even wore my HR monitor to see where I was exercising. I kept my HR between 65 - 80% of max. My nutrition has also been very good today. My real test comes tonight during dinner.

Tonight my friend Judy and her family are driving through the area on the way to there family vacation spot. We are meeting them for dinner at a steakhouse. I've pulled up there menu on the internet and I think I have found some items I can have. I just need to keep my portions in check.

Work hard, eat well & reach for your goals!

Thursday, August 03, 2006

Rambling Thoughts

Nice and easy were the words of the day for my run this morning. I got up at my normal early morning time and out the door I went for an easy 2 mile run. It's funny that not too long ago, my long runs weren't much farther than that. Now, I almost feel like I haven't done anything when I run that distance.

Before April of this year, I was following Body for Life (BFL) which called for interval aerobic sessions that lasted about 20 minutes each and lifting sessions that lasted 45 - 60 minutes each. Don't get me wrong, I still think it is a decent program. But, since finding The Leanness Lifestyle (LL), I must admit that I have found a few things that were causing me to stumble. I still follow many of the basic principles from BFL but LL has given me so much more. My nutrition is much better because I limit myself to 1-2 splurge meals per week instead of an entire day of eating anything and everything I can get my hands on. Now I know why I wasn't losing much weight - duh! I also do so much more exercising now and love every single minute of it. Hence the above paragraph - I used to cover a little over 2 miles during the 20 minute aerobic sessions and now I'm running 7 miles in one outing. I feel awesome, healthy and strong!

My current dilemma is trying to balance my race training and my weight lose. I've noticed that over the past week, my total exercise minutes have decreased. This is due to the fact that I've cut out my afternoon stationary bike rides. I've not been doing the extra bike sessions because I've been afraid that it would effect my runs the next morning. Because of this drop in exercise, I've been finding it very hard to drop those last few pounds that I want to lose. I've been talking to David Greenwalt and I'm hoping to be able to figure out a compromise - increasing the exercise without overtraining or messing up my run training. I also need to tighten up on the nutrition especially if my exercise minutes are less than they used to be. Any little slip in my nutrition is really going to make a big difference. As David said, nutrition is 70% of the battle and I should treat it that way.

I should be able to find a way to balance all this out! The men and women who run the ultra distances as well as triathletes do multiple sessions each day and do just fine. As I write this, I feel silly that I haven't kept up with the extra sessions. I think I just figured out what I'm going to do. I'm adding the bike rides back in, at least on the days that I don't do RT. That will give me double sessions each training day. If I feel tired, I'll not do the 2nd session.

Work hard, eat right and reach for your goals!

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

Speedwork & Lifting

Today was another hot and humid day. At 5:15 am it was already 80 degrees and 86% humidity. When I stepped out the door I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to complete the workout. I really felt like it took my breathe away when I stepped out the door. But I don't give up that easily and I went out and hit the roads.

The workout called for 4 X 800 in 3:27 each. After a nice warm-up, although I didn't feel like I needed much of one this morning, I started the session. My times were: 3:08/3:11/3:26/3:24. I felt like I had a better handle on what speed I needed to be at on the last 2 repeats as it shows in the times. The heat definitely made it a very challenging but my legs felt really good today.

After a few hours of recovery, I completed my lifting session (chest/back/shlds/triceps). Especially on the chest exercises, but on all of the rest to some extent, I've been feeling a bit weaker during my lifting sessions. There is an obvious drain after the early morning run. I'm OK with that though because the main focus has to be on the running right now. I don't want to do light weights for millions of reps, so I just need to accept the fact that if I do the lifting after my running I may not be able to do quite as much weight.

Overall the plan is going great. I've also been doing well with my nutrition. I'm down to 137.5. I've added more fruit to my diet by using smoothes (protein powder, fruit, splash of milk and OJ and ice). They are tasting really great right now because of the heat - nice and cold!

We may be doing Bike and Hike tonight but with the heat I'm not sure. If we do, it will be a nice leisurely family walk. It is right by a river so it is usually a bit cooler there. If we don't go that will be OK too because my legs probably wouldn't mind the break.

Work hard, eat well and reach for your goals!

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Boy, Am I Tired!

Yesterday really took a toll on me. I woke up this morning tired and I didn't seem to sleep as well as I thought I would either. But, even though I was tired, I dragged my sorry butt out the door to run my 4 miles. Not only did I make the whole 4 miles but I was able to run it at a slightly faster pace than I was aiming for. My pace was 7:52 per mile - it was a struggle but I'm so glad I went ahead with the run and that I pushed myself.

Tomorrow is my first speed workout (4 X 800 @ 5K pace). I'm really looking forward to the challenge. I've been doing intervals, during my workouts, for quite some time. But, this will be the first time in a long time for a workout of this type. I made a program for my Forerunner so that it will tell me when it is time to speed up and when it is time to slow down. I just hope my legs have a bit more energy tomorrow than they did today.

Work hard, eat well and reach your goals!