Checking In

Eeek! It's been a while again. Sorry about that. Post ideas are always swirling around in my brain but I never seem to get them to the blog. I will definitely be adding a blog related goal to the list for 2016.

But today I just want to check in and fill you in on a few things that have been going on.

The Christmas Fix Challenge :: I joined a challenge group hosted by Erica and we just wrapped up with that earlier in the week. I wasn't on my game the whole challenge but I do know I was much more aware of when I wasn't doing as well as I would like thanks to checking in daily. Accountability buddies are a huge help to me when it comes to making healthy choices. When others know I want to skip the soda or go to the gym on a certain day I've increased my chances of doing those things. No on wants to explain why they didn't when they said they would.

#letsbelivin :: I was featured on Lex Be Livin' the other week all for using the hashtag #letsbelivin on my Instagram posts.  You can check out the post I was featured in here. And if you want to learn more about the hashtag you can read all about it here.

Beyond the Scale :: Earlier this month Weight Watchers launched their new program, Beyond the Scale.  I'm still learning about the program and want to share my thoughts on it soon. But the main concept is that weight loss is about more than just the scale, it's about you as a whole. I love the idea of it and can't wait to really start working the program to reap the benefits of it.

But speaking of the scale, my weigh ins have been moving in the right direction again! Yay!

Starting Weight: 224.4

November 30: 221.0

December 4: 219.2 (1-.8)

December 11: 219.0 (-0.2)

December 18: 218.8 (-0.2)

Just one more day to make it through if you're like me and have to work Christmas Eve.  We can do it! Or at least that's what I'm telling myself every time I look at the clock.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Turkey Trot 5k Recap

Hi! Remember me? I know it's been a while again but I promise I haven't forgotten about this little space of mine in the blogging world.

The last time I was here I talked about how I was struggling.  I continued to struggle up until Thanksgiving Day.  I ran a Turkey Trot 5k that morning and since then have gotten up before 5am for my first Body Pump class in two months, had my butt kicked with a personal trainer, and actually went into a grocery store to buy ingredients to actually cook something. I think it's safe to say that I am officially off of the struggle bus!

But backing up to Thanksgiving... I completed my first 5k and in a tutu no less! The weather wasn't ideal as it was incredibly foggy and was misting the entire morning. I ran the first mile in 11:35 and then began my run/walk strategy which I really had no plan for. I slowed down to about 13 min/mile for the next two miles. Sure, it wasn't a superstar performance but for my first time I'm damn proud of what I accomplished. And the most important thing to me for this first race was to cross the finish line. But you can bet I have goals for a year from now when I plan to run this same race again. And when I say run I do mean run...the whole thing!

Turkey Trot 5k is in the books! 40:01 is the official time and a new PR for me. 😁 #turkeytrot #running #justdoit #5k

A photo posted by Amy (@lnlbyamy) on Nov 26, 2015 at 9:33am PST

My mom and some other awesome ladies walked (also in tutus) and I was able to cheer them on as they crossed the finish line. So despite the crappy weather it was a great way to start off turkey day.

Unfortunately, sometime after the race ended my Fitbit bit the dust and wouldn't light up at all when it wasn't on the charger despite being fully charged. Rather than worrying about it I chose to take advantage of Black Friday and splurge on myself by getting a new Charge + HR! I felt kind of naked without a Fitbit on my wrist and a challenge going for a couple of days. But I finally was able to pick it up today and I can't wait to put it to good use. I only wish I had been able to pick it up yesterday so that I could have used it to record my personal training session tonight.

I invested in myself by purchasing two one-on-one personal training sessions and tonight was my (second) first meeting with my trainer Chelsea. She definitely kicked my butt and I'm excited to put the information and routine I learned from her to good use. We even had a good chat while I was warming up on the treadmill and discussed some of the mental battles that come with making a lifestyle change. I am meeting with her again on the 16th and definitely want to be able to tell her that I did a good job with working out since she saw me last.

And real quick before this post gets too long... I joined a challenge group hosted by Erica to help with the accountability. It started Tuesday so I'm only two days into it but so far so good. I know it definitely helped get me to the gym Tuesday morning for Body Pump before work because I had told the whole group (plus my mom and friends) that I was going. No way do you want to check in at the end of the day and say that you didn't go.

Starting Weight: 224.4

October 16: no weigh in

October 23: 218.6 (+1.6)

October 30: 218.6

November 6: 215.2 (-3.4)

November 13: 218.2 (+3.0)

November 20: no weigh in

November 30: 221.0 (+2.8)

Struggling

I'm just going to jump right in and let you all know that I am struggling lately.  I set some goals for the month and so far I haven't really done anything to make progress on them.  But like Tammy Jo said today in her blog post while there are things I cannot change there are plenty that I can.

Honestly, I'm sick of repeating the same crap on here about how I'm struggling.  It's the same old crap every time and I am certain that you are sick of hearing it.  Time to pull on my big girl panties and deal with the crap that is what I have made of the healthy living part of my life and get my shit together.

I'm just going to end this here tonight because thinking about what I haven't been doing lately has made me rather grumpy.  So, this is me recommitting to my October goals which I know I won't fully achieve but I can give it my all with the time I have left.

And because yesterday was Wednesday here's my weigh in.

Starting Weight: 224.4

October 2: 220.2 (+2.4)

October 9: 217.0 (-3.2)

Total Loss: 7.4

October Goals

Not that I want to wish away time but gosh am I happy it's Wednesday.  Work has been kind of slow lately so the days seem to go by extra slow for me. But I know things will be picking up in the future so I just have to keep plugging away.

Even though I am glad we're halfway through the work week I cannot believe that it's the last day of September already. As an adult it seems that the months and years just fly by compared to when we were kids and only summer seemed to fly by.  With the end of the month comes the perfect time to set some goals for October.

- Finish the C25K program!  I had a slow start to my 5K training but since coming back from vacation I've been running every day that I'm supposed to.  And I've been enjoying my runs and feeling good on them!  I've started C25K multiple times but this time feels different, like it's finally my time.  To cap off the program I'll be running the I Ain't Afraid 5K on October 31st. And I'm following up my virtual 5K with a Turkey Trot 5K Thanksgiving morning!

- Track with Weight Watchers.  Since last week all I have been tracking on the WW app has been my workouts.  It is well past the time to get back to tracking my food.  The Weight Watchers program works for me, but only when I'm working the program.  By not tracking my food I am only hurting myself as proven by my weigh ins the past month or so.

- Drink 64oz of water a day.  I have been drinking more water this past week than I have in a long while but it still hasn't been consistent.  When I'm chugging water I don't have time to have a Mountain Dew and that is exactly what my body needs.

- Hit my step goal 4 days a week.  I should be running three days a week so it shouldn't be a problem to reach my 5,000 step goal on those days but that fourth day I will have to push myself.  It's time that I make it happen.

And before I forget, here's my weigh in from Friday.

Starting Weight: 224.4

September 11: 217.8 (+0.2)

Total Loss: 6.6

Where I've Been

The post it note this blog post is coming to you from is dated 8/26/15.  Yeah, I've been holding on to it for almost a month and am finally putting my fingers to the keys to share it.

The month of August was spent enjoying cold beer and seeing Tyler Farr perform at the fair, catching another cold (second one this summer, womp womp) and then being on vacation in the northwoods camping for a week.  All of that led to three weeks of no workouts, one week of horrible food choices (every. dang. meal.), no tracking, and no water (lots of Mountain Dew).

September has started off in much of the same way unfortunately.  I did get back to Body Pump and threw in a run here and there but did not get back to tracking or chugging water.  And last week I was in California visiting my girl Chelsea which was fantastic and much too short of a visit.

But now we're here, I'm home and it's time to get completely back on track!

I met with a personal trainer with my friend Flora (cheaper rate for a 2-on-1 appointment) at the end of August and was so sore!  Like, holy cow, never again will I double up personal training with Body Pump in one night.  I am looking forward to more appointments once Flora is back from vacation.

Speaking of Flora, we're going to be workout buddies!  Even when she can't make it due to work or what not it still pushes me to get to the gym because in a way I want her to have that fear of missing out.  I mean that in the best way possible of course. I want her to join me at the gym and make her fitness a priority in her life.  And I know she wants that too.

Three goals to focus on for the rest of the month.  1) 64oz of water a day!  2) Track with Weight Watchers!  3) Figure out a plan! How should I use my PP for the day?  What meals fit into that plan?  And GO TO THE GROCERY STORE!  (Still struggling with that, a lot!)

SW: 224.4

July 24: 214.6

July 31: 217.7 (+3.1)

August 7: ?? No weigh in

August 14: 217.0 (-0.7)

August 21: ?? No weigh in (Camping)

August 28: 218.2 (+1.2)

September 4: 217.2 (-1.0)

September 11: 217.6 (+0.4)

September 18: ?? No weigh in (California)

Those weigh ins certainly speak for themselves.  Not being focused on making healthy changes in my life has led to some weight gain.  Like I said earlier though, time to get back on track!!

I Ain't Afraid - Halloween 5K & 10K

How is it the last day of August already?  Time has just been flying by unless it's those eight hours I'm at work because those almost always seem to drag by.  I have plans to update you later this week on where I've been this past month and what I've been up to.  But today I have something exciting to share with you.

Lately I've been thinking about signing up for a 5K race in order to give myself something to focus on training for.  I was searching the Internet for one that would fit into my life and just could not find one that gave me enough time to train or wasn't months away.  Shannon from Tatlock's Truth came to my rescue and tweeted at me about doing a virtual race which we could both do and be accountable to each other.  They even mail you a medal!

Because we couldn't wait to get going we chose the I Ain't Afraid - Halloween 5K & 10K.  This race is going to celebrate Halloween AND bring awareness to Breast Cancer as October is also Breast Cancer Awareness month.  The great thing about virtual races is you can run it when it works with your schedule during the month of October and where ever you are (you choose the course)!  The registration cost is $18 which includes your medal and shipping.  Plus, at least $4 of every registration will go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Shannon and I didn't want to have all of the fun ourselves so we wanted to invite all of you to join us!  A closed group page has been created on Facebook so we can support one another, share training schedules, struggles, and a picture of ourselves at the completion of our run.  No matter your skill level we hope you join us!

I signed up to run the 5K and plan to follow the Couch to 5K program via the free app by Zenlabs.  This is an eight week program that I am beginning this week and will complete the last week of October.  I also plan to run my 5K during the last week of October, maybe even on Halloween.

Don't miss out on the fun, get signed up and join the Facebook page so we can get to training!

Weigh In Wednesday: July 29

SW: 224.4

July 17: 216.6 (-1.0)

July 24: 214.6

Change: -2.0

Total Loss: -9.8

So the scale has been moving in the right direction and I'm less than half a pound away from that ten pound loss mark again! I won't lie, it was a bit frustrating to have to lose the same old pounds that I lost once before. Now that I have them all lost again I hope to never find them ever again.

I've got a short list of things I want to share with you on this fine Wednesday night.

Failure to plan is planning to fail! I don't know how many times I see this while browsing Pinterest or how many times I've talked about this already on the blog but until I'm actually planning I will keep reminding myself about it.  It is a such a true statement.  Without a plan for what I will be eating for the week I tend to not even buy groceries which leads to poor choices like not eating much or choosing unhealthy foods.  To fix this issue I think I'm going to have to move my departure time up from my parents' house.  I've been staying there until 9pm on Sunday nights and I'm not in the mood to hit up the grocery store before returning to my apartment let alone cooking at 10pm or later. Even though grocery shopping and meal prepping on Monday nights works it leaves Monday morning and the midday to chance which isn't starting my week off on the right foot.

Weekends are tough.  I'm haven't been tracking on weekends and am much more relaxed with my food and drink choices.  Even though I've been seeing results on the scale I know that I cannot continue to only change my habits during the week if I want to continue to see results and be able to maintain a new lifestyle for the long term.  I am also very lazy on the weekends.  My step count suffers terribly Saturday and Sunday every week.  I need and want to work on being more active on the weekends.  Bo would love it if I took him for a walk or two or three/four so there is absolutely no excuse for my couch potato ways.

I've been bitten by the running bug.  I've been having the itch to run but haven't given in yet and scratched the itch.  I've even thought about signing up for a 5K in order to give myself something to train for. But how do I find a 5K race to sign up for?  Runners, I need you help!  What are your tips for finding races?

I'm loving Body Pump! I killed it at Body Pump tonight and I loved that feeling.  I'm looking forward to continuing on this Body Pump journey to see where it takes me and increasing the number of reps I complete and increasing my weights as well.

I will finally try RPM tomorrow. I am strangely excited to try this new form of torture called RPM (cycling).  Pray for me.

I joined a DietBet.  I joined Erin and signed up for a DietBet Sunday night.  I submitted my weight Sunday night and now have until August 23 to lose 4% of my weight.  For me, 4% comes out to be 8.8 pounds which would put me at 210 pounds.  You might be doing the math based on the weigh in I shared above and be thinking that I should have a goal weight less than that.  And you would be right, except I weighed in on Sunday night.  Strategy my friends, strategy.  It may not be the correct way to go about it buuut I'm running with it.  When I am ready to submit my final weight I will weigh in in the morning, much like I do for my Friday weigh ins.

How was your weigh in Wednesday?