Hello out there fitness nation! I realize it has been quite some time since I have updated you all with the shenanigans of my life.I have joined Gold's Gym's national 12 week challenge (that chooses 3 winners from each gym to compete nationally) and I have been working hard for that since you all last read! Since I have to work harder, I decided that 2014 was the year of branching out for me. I have been solo in this journey thusfar, and it does get lonely! I started by dedicating my cardio time to the classes that they offer in the gym (which explains my silly title.) I have learned a few things about each and I wanted to fill you in on the deets. :)
Spin class!
I am going to be honest here, spin class burns a TON of calories, has great music, awesome instructors, and goes by fast! What could possibly go wrong in a class so perfect right? Wrong. I did my very first spin class a few weeks ago and spent most of the class adjusting my butt on the bike seat to avoid that terrible awkward pain you get when you are new to the class. I survived however, and was proud, but I spent the next 5 days feeling like my inner thigh/crotch area had been beaten with a steel bat. You shouldve seen me trying to sit down, it was quite comical (unless you were me of course, that shit hurt!) After a few times going back, the pain subsided and now it doesnt hurt to do spin class, but newbies, prepare yourself, and dont give up!
Zumba class!!
I honestly expected zumba to be this big dance party that I would love and rock at. I was expecting latin glitter to fly off of me as I shimmied and mumbled spanish songs (without knowing what I was mumbling.) I was having fun, feeling like Shakira until I looked in the mirror and saw how UNCOORDINATED I looked. Ha! It's amazing I had no idea I was that aweful until I watched myself, and then I realized that zumba is harder than it looks! Hips dont lie? No sweetheart, my hips DID lie, because had I known I was dancing like a cat on catnip I wouldve stopped lol.
Body pump class!
I have a hard time getting over to the weights section of the gym because of the "big-scary-gym" factor (see previous blog titled "big scary gym.) I decided that body pump class would be a good alternative to that, since it is done with weights and an instructor. I must have underestimated the amount of work that is done in that hour, because the next day, I could barely move. HOLY FREAKIN SORE BATMAN. Have you ever dropped something on the floor when youre sore and had to have your kid pick it up for you because you felt like your muscles just went through a meat grinder? Yeah, that was me! VERY EFFECTIVE class, thats for sure, and I will be attending it 3x a week from now on!
Sh'Bam class!!!!!!!!!!
There is a reason I have Sh'Bam listed last, and there is a reason that it has so many exclamation marks. This is single handedly the most fun I have EVER had in a class before. I showed up to this class to find 3 instructors dressed in capes, masks, and tights - I was already sold before we even started dancing!! Sh'Bam is easier than zumba, and the moves are bigger and more fun to do. I am pretty sure Im going to show up in a mask and a cape at some point too at this rate! I always leave that class with an enormous smile (borderline creeper smile actually, with the really wide eyes and full teeth showing) and in a great mood! I decided that 2015 would be my year to become a certified Les Mills instructor for Sh'Bam class because I have never felt such a passion for anything like I have for that class. Do it!!!
I have many more classes to try out, but for now, I am enjoying the time I have spent in these ones. Between the creepy smile, the sore crotch, and the inability to move, these classes have made my life just like a sit com for the people who get to watch. I am loving trying new things, and I have learned that with every thing in life, there is good, and there is bad. You get to decide whether the bad outweighs the good, or whether the good outweighs the bad. Have a good week peeps, and as always, GO HARD OR GO HOME!
Monday, January 27, 2014
Friday, December 20, 2013
Really, Cheese?
Good morning fitness nation!
I had a bit of a restless night last night for reasons I am completely unaware of. Here's how it went: I stayed up until midnight playing with my blog, Facebook, and myfitnesspal (because even after hours of everyone else my age already being asleep I felt cool staying up late.) At midnight, I decided I really should go to bed since I wanted to be in the gym by about 9am. With kids, that meant getting out of the house by 8:30am, and having them up and dressed and fed by 7:30. This means I have to be up at 7:00 to get myself ready so that by 7:30am I can focus on them and their tantrums, and getting them fed without a food fight.
I had packaged up a few letters for my husband, that I would drop into the mailbox in the early morning. I try to write him every night while he is in basic training, because I miss him as badly as I miss eating doughnuts on a daily basis. I got undressed, (im an underwear sleeper) I turned all 3 fans on, (I swear I'm not menopausal, but I cant sleep without an arctic BLAST) and laid in bed to drift away. I started thinking about something nice. It was something with beautiful shape, beautiful color, and something so rich and savory. Wait, really........cheese? I have no explanation as to why every time I thought about something desirable to dream about, it would revert its self back to cheese within 5 minutes.
I even tried thinking sexy thoughts about my husband, hoping that would keep my mind from running like crazy so that I could fall asleep. The time was now 1:30am, and the cheese would not leave me alone. I got up to tend to my 2 year old son who had started fussing, and I swear I must have been taking my sweet time because when I laid back down, it was 2:00am. I am a mom folks, I don't get to nap in the middle of the day if I am tired anymore, so these hours of sleep were a precious loss to me. I kept thinking about how my night's sleep was going from 8 hours, down to slowly 5 hours, and maybe less if I couldn't get a handle on this cheese situation.
I was low on my calories for that day, because it was my first day after having the stomach flu and I didnt really want to push it and piss it off again. Let's face it, I would've rather given birth again than gone through that stomach flu again. At that point, my stomach was viciously GROWLING at me and I couldnt ignore it. The time was not 3:00am and I was absolutely FED up. I stormed into the kitchen like a 4 year old with an attitude problem, I snatched 2 slices of cheese from my fridge and I marched back to bed with them. I stuffed them in my mouth, chewed, swallowed and closed my eyes.
I guess I learned the hard way last night. Just listen to your body folks, because it will let you know what it needs. If you can't trust your body to tell you, why could you trust some online calculator? Don't get me wrong, I use myfitnesspal as badly as a gold digger uses a rich man, because I NEED that accuracy. I have decided though, that its time to listen to my body FIRST, and THEN any outside source. The last thing I want is another war with myself over sleep at night. Keep up the motivation folks, and listen to your bodies! Your body will let you know when you need something, if youre pushing too hard, if youre dehydrated and many other things. It is designed to do that, and it does it better than any online calculator ever could. <3
I had a bit of a restless night last night for reasons I am completely unaware of. Here's how it went: I stayed up until midnight playing with my blog, Facebook, and myfitnesspal (because even after hours of everyone else my age already being asleep I felt cool staying up late.) At midnight, I decided I really should go to bed since I wanted to be in the gym by about 9am. With kids, that meant getting out of the house by 8:30am, and having them up and dressed and fed by 7:30. This means I have to be up at 7:00 to get myself ready so that by 7:30am I can focus on them and their tantrums, and getting them fed without a food fight.
I had packaged up a few letters for my husband, that I would drop into the mailbox in the early morning. I try to write him every night while he is in basic training, because I miss him as badly as I miss eating doughnuts on a daily basis. I got undressed, (im an underwear sleeper) I turned all 3 fans on, (I swear I'm not menopausal, but I cant sleep without an arctic BLAST) and laid in bed to drift away. I started thinking about something nice. It was something with beautiful shape, beautiful color, and something so rich and savory. Wait, really........cheese? I have no explanation as to why every time I thought about something desirable to dream about, it would revert its self back to cheese within 5 minutes.
I even tried thinking sexy thoughts about my husband, hoping that would keep my mind from running like crazy so that I could fall asleep. The time was now 1:30am, and the cheese would not leave me alone. I got up to tend to my 2 year old son who had started fussing, and I swear I must have been taking my sweet time because when I laid back down, it was 2:00am. I am a mom folks, I don't get to nap in the middle of the day if I am tired anymore, so these hours of sleep were a precious loss to me. I kept thinking about how my night's sleep was going from 8 hours, down to slowly 5 hours, and maybe less if I couldn't get a handle on this cheese situation.
I was low on my calories for that day, because it was my first day after having the stomach flu and I didnt really want to push it and piss it off again. Let's face it, I would've rather given birth again than gone through that stomach flu again. At that point, my stomach was viciously GROWLING at me and I couldnt ignore it. The time was not 3:00am and I was absolutely FED up. I stormed into the kitchen like a 4 year old with an attitude problem, I snatched 2 slices of cheese from my fridge and I marched back to bed with them. I stuffed them in my mouth, chewed, swallowed and closed my eyes.
I guess I learned the hard way last night. Just listen to your body folks, because it will let you know what it needs. If you can't trust your body to tell you, why could you trust some online calculator? Don't get me wrong, I use myfitnesspal as badly as a gold digger uses a rich man, because I NEED that accuracy. I have decided though, that its time to listen to my body FIRST, and THEN any outside source. The last thing I want is another war with myself over sleep at night. Keep up the motivation folks, and listen to your bodies! Your body will let you know when you need something, if youre pushing too hard, if youre dehydrated and many other things. It is designed to do that, and it does it better than any online calculator ever could. <3
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Half naked women on my facebook
Hi again fit-peeps!
I noticed something today on my Facebook that I thought was a bit funny. In my journey to losing weight, I had "liked" so many other fitness motivation pages, that my news feed is literally covered with half naked women at all times of the day. The occasional half naked men are popping up as well, but it is mostly women as they apply to my goals (obviously lol.) I decided to challenge this for a second and scroll down my news feed for 1 minute and count how many half-naked bodies I pass in that time frame. I passed 57 half naked bodies, and none of them were from my "friends list." <--thank gosh, that might cross "the line."
It occurred to me, that this was somehow a double standard. If my husband's feed were covered in half naked women, well I might get a little jealous (I might also think it was cool, but I havent been put in this situation before.) On the other hand, if his feed were covered in half naked men, well I would start to worry that he was not interested in my....um...anatomy, anymore. (and that would be bad, because my anatomy looks better now that I have lost weight.)
Back to my news feed though, I have like 130 something friends on facebook, and yet 90% of the updates I see come from these fitness pages. I have either liked wayyyyyyyyyyy too many pages and become obsessed causing it to drown out the everyday drama of the friends list, or everyone has stopped updating their status. I spend almost the entirety of my day doing something fitness related, whether I am at the gym, cooking healthy, posting in a motivational group, coaching someone else who asks for help, or writting a blog about my fitness journey. Is that obsessed? Is that normal?
Personally, this works for me. My news feed will continue to be covered in overly perfect half naked women, because it reminds me why I started - to be a role model (not to be confused with an actual model, lets be realistic here.) If you are motivated by something, embrace it. I see no reason to be ashamed of my weird news feed, even though others see it as overly obsessed. This is what works for me, and I am clearly doing something right. Find what works for you, and cling to it, because your life DOES depend on it. I want to live to be 100 without a walker, and without a heart transplant and hip replacements, don't you? I leave you with this for tonight: “Get going. Move forward. Aim High. Plan a takeoff. Don't just sit on the runway and hope someone will come along and push the airplane. It simply won't happen. Change your attitude and gain some altitude. Believe me, you'll love it up here.” -Donald Trump
I noticed something today on my Facebook that I thought was a bit funny. In my journey to losing weight, I had "liked" so many other fitness motivation pages, that my news feed is literally covered with half naked women at all times of the day. The occasional half naked men are popping up as well, but it is mostly women as they apply to my goals (obviously lol.) I decided to challenge this for a second and scroll down my news feed for 1 minute and count how many half-naked bodies I pass in that time frame. I passed 57 half naked bodies, and none of them were from my "friends list." <--thank gosh, that might cross "the line."
It occurred to me, that this was somehow a double standard. If my husband's feed were covered in half naked women, well I might get a little jealous (I might also think it was cool, but I havent been put in this situation before.) On the other hand, if his feed were covered in half naked men, well I would start to worry that he was not interested in my....um...anatomy, anymore. (and that would be bad, because my anatomy looks better now that I have lost weight.)
Back to my news feed though, I have like 130 something friends on facebook, and yet 90% of the updates I see come from these fitness pages. I have either liked wayyyyyyyyyyy too many pages and become obsessed causing it to drown out the everyday drama of the friends list, or everyone has stopped updating their status. I spend almost the entirety of my day doing something fitness related, whether I am at the gym, cooking healthy, posting in a motivational group, coaching someone else who asks for help, or writting a blog about my fitness journey. Is that obsessed? Is that normal?
Personally, this works for me. My news feed will continue to be covered in overly perfect half naked women, because it reminds me why I started - to be a role model (not to be confused with an actual model, lets be realistic here.) If you are motivated by something, embrace it. I see no reason to be ashamed of my weird news feed, even though others see it as overly obsessed. This is what works for me, and I am clearly doing something right. Find what works for you, and cling to it, because your life DOES depend on it. I want to live to be 100 without a walker, and without a heart transplant and hip replacements, don't you? I leave you with this for tonight: “Get going. Move forward. Aim High. Plan a takeoff. Don't just sit on the runway and hope someone will come along and push the airplane. It simply won't happen. Change your attitude and gain some altitude. Believe me, you'll love it up here.” -Donald Trump
Are you checking me out? Oh wait, thats ME checking me out.
Hey there fitness nation!
Let's be honest here for a minute ok? Have you ever walked past a mirror and checked yourself out? I mean, like, walked past one, and looked over at your reflection as you passed by, just to see your reflection. Ever done that? I have a bad habit of checking myself out, and I try to be discreet about it, but hey, I have lost a lot of weight, I like what I see now! If you are anything like me, you probably do this too.
So here is how it usually happens, I might stop to wash my hands while at the gym, and while washing, I am likely looking at myself in the mirror. I then walk out towards the doorway that enters the gym, (which is lined with mirrors) and I will look into the mirrors to check out my ass, at least once. All over the gym, there are mirrors, and you can bet, if I pass by one of them, I am probably admiring my progress!
That's not even the worst part. I do this at home too, less discreetly. I try on new clothes, I take them off. I stand backwards to see if my butt has lifted any higher, and I examine the backs of my thighs. I turn sideways, I flex, I push out my chest, and I tuck it back in. I pose, I smile, I pop out one hip and stand with attitude. I hold my arms out and shake my "wings" that are a lot less fatty than they were before. If people watched me do this, they would think I was crazy (That may be true though.)
Tonight, I was rubbing my shoulder with my hand and noticed they were a lot more bony than I remember them. I sat there with my arms crossed, feeling my shoulders up for like 15 minutes, as if I were reunited with my long lost shoulder bones. I am sure it looked silly, but I havent been thin enough to feel bones in quite some time (I prefer the muscle feel, but that part of a woman's shoulder is almost always bony) and it was exhilarating! This provoked me to start feeling the rest of my body just in case there were other changes I had missed.
So as I was sitting there, rubbing my arms, legs, midsection, back, and butt, my daughter walks in and asks me what the heck I was doing... Well, I didnt really know what to tell her, so I said I was dancing. Friends, do NOT tell your kids that you are dancing if you are caught in that situation, because when they do it, you will have a lot of explaining to do later. I had to tell my 4 year old daughter that this was a mommy-only dance and that she wasnt allowed to try that until she was older. Naturally, she thought it was funny, and got her little brother to do it too. So now both of my kids are in my living room, rubbing their arms and legs and backs and bellies and giggling, and I feel like a total idiot haha.
But lets be honest here, we all catch ourselves admiring or observing that hottie in the mirror, right? I personally, dont think its anything to be ashamed of (unless your kids start making a dance out of it) because we are all looking for progress, and when we get it, we want to see it. You should be PROUD of your progress, and even if no one else sees it yet, keep looking at it with your own eyes because it will keep you on track.
Eyes on the prize, right? Your body is your prize, and you should always treat it as such :)
Let's be honest here for a minute ok? Have you ever walked past a mirror and checked yourself out? I mean, like, walked past one, and looked over at your reflection as you passed by, just to see your reflection. Ever done that? I have a bad habit of checking myself out, and I try to be discreet about it, but hey, I have lost a lot of weight, I like what I see now! If you are anything like me, you probably do this too.
So here is how it usually happens, I might stop to wash my hands while at the gym, and while washing, I am likely looking at myself in the mirror. I then walk out towards the doorway that enters the gym, (which is lined with mirrors) and I will look into the mirrors to check out my ass, at least once. All over the gym, there are mirrors, and you can bet, if I pass by one of them, I am probably admiring my progress!
That's not even the worst part. I do this at home too, less discreetly. I try on new clothes, I take them off. I stand backwards to see if my butt has lifted any higher, and I examine the backs of my thighs. I turn sideways, I flex, I push out my chest, and I tuck it back in. I pose, I smile, I pop out one hip and stand with attitude. I hold my arms out and shake my "wings" that are a lot less fatty than they were before. If people watched me do this, they would think I was crazy (That may be true though.)
Tonight, I was rubbing my shoulder with my hand and noticed they were a lot more bony than I remember them. I sat there with my arms crossed, feeling my shoulders up for like 15 minutes, as if I were reunited with my long lost shoulder bones. I am sure it looked silly, but I havent been thin enough to feel bones in quite some time (I prefer the muscle feel, but that part of a woman's shoulder is almost always bony) and it was exhilarating! This provoked me to start feeling the rest of my body just in case there were other changes I had missed.
So as I was sitting there, rubbing my arms, legs, midsection, back, and butt, my daughter walks in and asks me what the heck I was doing... Well, I didnt really know what to tell her, so I said I was dancing. Friends, do NOT tell your kids that you are dancing if you are caught in that situation, because when they do it, you will have a lot of explaining to do later. I had to tell my 4 year old daughter that this was a mommy-only dance and that she wasnt allowed to try that until she was older. Naturally, she thought it was funny, and got her little brother to do it too. So now both of my kids are in my living room, rubbing their arms and legs and backs and bellies and giggling, and I feel like a total idiot haha.
But lets be honest here, we all catch ourselves admiring or observing that hottie in the mirror, right? I personally, dont think its anything to be ashamed of (unless your kids start making a dance out of it) because we are all looking for progress, and when we get it, we want to see it. You should be PROUD of your progress, and even if no one else sees it yet, keep looking at it with your own eyes because it will keep you on track.
Eyes on the prize, right? Your body is your prize, and you should always treat it as such :)
That Cardio Wedgie
Good afternoon everyone!
I recently got over the stomach flu so I was MIA at the gym for a few days. I had it bad too, I was sick from both ends and weak and dizzy. Trust me - the last thing I wanted was to go to the gym, and face a sudden "urge" on one of the machines, and thats from EITHER end! So I played it safe and stayed home. Call me a nervous nelly, but it was the safest route!
So I have one question, have you ever gone to the gym, and gotten a wedgie during cardio, and if so, What do you do? I was on the treadmill (or elliptical, or stair climber, etc) and I have my pace set. I'm working up a sweat, and I'm aweful proud of my pace, and then it hits me... I start to feel a creeping movement from my underwear, and I know whats about to happen. I look around, and there are just too many people around for me to reach back and prevent, so I ignore it for a bit. The creeping gets worse, and soon I have a full blown wedgie that pulls with every movement I make. This makes cardio REALLY REALLY uncomfortable and hard to ignore. Suddenly I cant just listen to my music and let 45 minutes fly by because my brain is thinking "INTRUDER ALERT!! INTRUDER ALERT!!"
I try to make different movements, hoping it might help get the underwear out of my grand canyon, like moving my hips to one side or the other, and squatting just a tad bit. As expected, it doesnt help, and I knew it wouldnt. I usually just finish up my time, uncomfortable, and then head to the locker room to pick that monster. Since then, I dont usually wear anything but the "no wedgie guaranteed" underwear to the gym, or I go without (especially in yoga pants... you do NOT wear underwear in yoga pants.) So far, that has been an ok solution.
There are all kinds of things that we worry so much about that get in the way of our progress. We cant let a wedgie, or the urge to let one rip, or badly fitting sweat pants get in the way of our progress. In the end, these things really were nothing more than a funny story to look back on. Lets remember that today while we are doing our thing, so that nothing short of an emergency blowout can lessen our intensity. We are strong, and honestly, I would rather have the wedgie than have all of that weight back. :)
I recently got over the stomach flu so I was MIA at the gym for a few days. I had it bad too, I was sick from both ends and weak and dizzy. Trust me - the last thing I wanted was to go to the gym, and face a sudden "urge" on one of the machines, and thats from EITHER end! So I played it safe and stayed home. Call me a nervous nelly, but it was the safest route!
So I have one question, have you ever gone to the gym, and gotten a wedgie during cardio, and if so, What do you do? I was on the treadmill (or elliptical, or stair climber, etc) and I have my pace set. I'm working up a sweat, and I'm aweful proud of my pace, and then it hits me... I start to feel a creeping movement from my underwear, and I know whats about to happen. I look around, and there are just too many people around for me to reach back and prevent, so I ignore it for a bit. The creeping gets worse, and soon I have a full blown wedgie that pulls with every movement I make. This makes cardio REALLY REALLY uncomfortable and hard to ignore. Suddenly I cant just listen to my music and let 45 minutes fly by because my brain is thinking "INTRUDER ALERT!! INTRUDER ALERT!!"
I try to make different movements, hoping it might help get the underwear out of my grand canyon, like moving my hips to one side or the other, and squatting just a tad bit. As expected, it doesnt help, and I knew it wouldnt. I usually just finish up my time, uncomfortable, and then head to the locker room to pick that monster. Since then, I dont usually wear anything but the "no wedgie guaranteed" underwear to the gym, or I go without (especially in yoga pants... you do NOT wear underwear in yoga pants.) So far, that has been an ok solution.
There are all kinds of things that we worry so much about that get in the way of our progress. We cant let a wedgie, or the urge to let one rip, or badly fitting sweat pants get in the way of our progress. In the end, these things really were nothing more than a funny story to look back on. Lets remember that today while we are doing our thing, so that nothing short of an emergency blowout can lessen our intensity. We are strong, and honestly, I would rather have the wedgie than have all of that weight back. :)
Big Scary Gym
Hey there fitness fanatics!!
Do you have a gym membership? I had a gym membership with Gold's Gym (before we moved), because I wanted to be able to keep putting 100% into my workouts. You see, my husband is in the military, and he is away for a while, and my 2 kids are far from self sufficient. I cant seem to workout at home without having to play referee every 5 minutes. The gym was my answer. They have a daycare, so my kids can be refereed by someone else, and mommy gets her 2 hours to sweat like miss piggy - But let's be real for a second....
The gym is intimidating, have you ever noticed that? You walk in, and immediately you see all of the super fit staff, the pictures of super fit people on the walls, the people on the cardio machines who look like they own the place, and the big buff dudes pumping iron. No one talks, because they all have headphones in, so you cant break the awkward ice. You feel like the whole place is watching you walk from the front door, to the locker room, right? It's like the first day of school all over again, only its everyday. It's totally intimidating walking over to the weights section and having 10 hulks watch your every repetition, your every set, and your every mistake. Everyone looks like they know exactly what theyre doing, and you feel a little lost. I know that feeling!
I learned a few things about the gym though over time. First of all, the dudes in the weights section are NOT watching your reps. Honestly, if they even look over at you, they are impressed that you aren't the "cardio only" type of person that they often joke about. Second, all of the people on the treadmills and ellipticals who look like they own the place, are probably too distracted by their music with their headphones on to even notice you are there, let alone judge you. Lastly, everyone who walks into the gym has to make that walk from the front door to the locker room. Everyone has to face that nerve wrecking feeling of others who look like they are doing it better. Chances are, 90% of the people in the gym have that same intimidated feeling, but they cover it up with headphones and a good routine.
You really get used to the place after a while, and it stops feeling so intimidating, I promise. I cant promise thay people will become more social there, but you learn to not be so worried about that. My point is, stick with it! Your results do not depend on others, and should not be hindered by others. Everything is scary at first, and ultimately, you learn to face your fears and spread your wings. Step out of your comfort zone mama! I love my gym, because I get to remember why I love my body when I'm there. I'm reminded just how strong I am, and I learn that I am a little stronger than I thought, everyday. It's not scary if you are ready, and no one there wants to see you fail. Everyone there has the same goal as you, to lower their body fat percentage, and to look good, and to have awesome health.
Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will. Remember that, and see you at the gym!
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