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Apr 18, 2011

Stalled

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On Saturday my trainer put our class through a workout so intense that we wondered what had happened to put her in such a mood. She made me use 10lb weights this time, really drilled us for proper form, and for some of the advanced people in the class, made them wear weighted vests and during push ups placed 20lb dumbbells on their backs.

It was crazy. But I survived and even felt pretty good at the end. (OK, truthfully I felt beat up. But after a protein shake and some rest I felt pretty good.)

What I didn’t like was my weigh-in. The scale is stubbornly holding on, refusing to move any lower. Expressing my frustration, I whined that I was upset in seeing roughly the same number for the last month. My trainer then suggested I do a three-day diet to “shock” my body back into losing weight.

The three-day diet is a plan the gym suggests to clients who need a little kick in the metabolism. It involves eating a little bit of grains and a heck of a lot of fruits and vegetables over a three day period and nothing else. Fats during that time come only from olive oil used on salads. Protein is next to nothing, which is the complete opposite of the high-protein diet they recommend most of the time.

Honestly? I’m tempted to try it. It’s insane that my weight is stalling out so close to 170. Many years ago, when I lost nearly 80 lb the first time, this was the point I stalled out. The lowest number I ever remember seeing was 168 and that was short-lived. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t because I liked what I was seeing and got too comfortable – I remember trying to lose more and getting nowhere. It was as if I was at war with my body, and it was stubbornly hanging on to everything it had.

But I also know that I feel ridiculous for even thinking of trying it. Sure, it would be great to get more fruits and veggies in my diet, but I know that it’s likely just three days of very low calories. Anyone would lose weight like that, right? Also, what are my chances of following it precisely for three days? It’s amazing how long three days can feel when you stare at your dinner of steamed mixed veggies and salad.

I can’t decide if I should try it or not. I did take my measurements and compared them to my earlier measurements, and haven’t really lost much in inches, either. I don’t know if I can squeeze any more time out of my schedule to workout more. So at this point I’m open to trying nearly anything different to force my body to melt some fat, even if it is digging into some farmer’s market produce for three days.

Filed Under: weigh-in · Tagged:


Mar 28, 2011

A Great Getaway, Thanks To A Little Planning

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This is a sponsored review from BlogHer and Slim·Fast.

March eighth was my wedding anniversary – my eighth, to be exact. Because our anniversary is in March, we often do very little for Valentine’s Day and instead go all out for our anniversary. This year we visited Great Wolf Lodge, an indoor waterpark resort, for a pseudo-tropical vacation close to home. We’ve gone there a few times, and while it’s fun with kids, it’s also just as fun for two adults looking to get away and relax together.

And this year, I decided I wasn’t wearing a bathing suit with a skirt. Ever since I became a mom, my hips and thighs have been given as much coverage as possible under loose fabric during any bathing suit occasion. Let’s be honest, though: skirted suits are a pain. I mean, it’s OK if you’re just planning to sit in a lounge chair and read a book, but they’re completely uncomfortable if you have any plans of stepping foot in the water. The wet fabric clings and bunches when you get out of the water, generally destroying any chance at looking good as you continuously peel the cold, damp fabric from your legs. The minute you take a step, the we fabric latches on to your thighs again, and the peel and stick cycle continues for every step.

To prepare for our anniversary, I stepped up my plan to shape up, lose weight, and improve my health. In January, I left behind the sweets and baked goods of the holiday season and once again embraced healthy eating: tracking my calories each day, eating regular meals and small snacks between meals, and focusing on the nutritional value of what I eat. I journal everything I eat each day using an iPhone app, finding it makes me more honest with myself and less likely to overeat.

I’ve also starting exercising more regularly, including signing up for a series of group “bootcamp” classes in February. Group exercise generally makes me sweat without even working out, as I often compare myself to others around me and worry that I’m the weakest link in the class. But I also know that in a group setting I’m more likely to give 100% because of that same worry, so I’m stepping out of my comfort zone to make sure I get the most from my exercise.

I wanted to feel good about my body when I put on a bathing suit in the store, and even better when I wore it on our anniversary. I’ve lost ten pounds since January, and I’m starting to see muscle tone developing beneath the fat. I like what I’m seeing. When I bought my bathing suit, I declared my anniversary-prep a success, and I couldn’t wait for my husband to see me in that suit.

To be clear: I did this both for me and as a gift for him, but my husband certainly isn’t expecting me to be a certain size. Many years ago, when we first met, he saw me at my highest weight ever. More than when I was 9 months pregnant, even. He loved me at my highest weight, and he loves me now, when I’m nearing my lowest weight. Do I want him to be proud of the woman in the bathing suit next to him? Absolutely. But feeling proud of myself is just as important to me.

The results? Well, check out the photo to the left. Never before now would I even think of posting a photo of myself in a bathing suit on the internet, but I’m proud of how far I’ve come. I’m at the same weight I was when we married. I’m three pounds away from the lowest weight in my adult life. Making the commitment to change the way you eat and exercise is hard, but the payoff of looking better, feeling better, and knowing that I’m improving my health is worth the hard work. I’m worth the hard work.

We had a fantastic time on our anniversary, and all of the preparation and work was worth it. Setting goals for myself helped me get even more excited about our trip, and meeting those goals made me feel fantastic. Having confidence in that bathing suit was my greatest reward as we walked around the waterpark for our anniversary, and that confidence hid any flaws far better than a little skirt would.

Best anniversary yet!

What event are you preparing for?

Now it’s your turn – tell me what big event in your life you’re preparing for, and what you’re doing to prepare for it. It can be anything: wedding, birthday party, moving to a new city, a vacation, etc. Are you shopping for new clothing? Scouting for the best coffee in a new city?

Leave me a comment below sharing how you’re preparing for the next big event in your life (and what that event is!), and you can be entered to win a Slim-Fast gift pack worth $100! Sweepstakes dates are 3/28-4/20.

Visit the BlogHer Promotions & Prizes section for more chances to win as well! And don’t forget to visit the official Slim-Fast site for more information on their products.
Rules:

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a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post

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c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a separate comment on this post

d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older

Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.

You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.

Full disclosure: I did receive compensation in exchange for writing this post and hosting this giveaway for BlogHer and Slim-Fast. 

Filed Under: success · Tagged: ,


Mar 28, 2011

As Good As It Can Get?

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Saturday at my boot camp class I stepped on the scale expecting to see no change again. After all, this past week hadn’t been the best: I’d had deep dish pizza one night, ate several small bites of sweets, and other than my Tuesday and Saturday boot camp classes, my butt had been firmly parked in a chair. Even on weeks when I’ve put in extra effort for the gold star, the scale has rarely given me more than a quarter or half pound loss.

So I was a little surprised when the scale showed I had lost three pounds in a week.

My current weight is 171 pounds. That means in the last seven weeks I’ve lost ten pounds. I’m so very, very close to the magical 160’s. Why magical? Because I’ve only seen the 160’s once in my adult life, and it was for a very brief moment in 2002, when the scale went no lower than 168 in my quest to look good for my early 2003 wedding. Back then, I considered that just about as good as it could get.

But that’s not as good as it can get. I’m going to reach 168 soon, and then I’m going to pass it. The BMI charts recommend a weight of no more than 158 pounds for someone my height, and I’m not stopping until I’m no longer considered “overweight” by the medical community. I’ve gone from obese to overweight, so I know I can do this as well.

Let’s review for some motivation, shall we?

Highest weight post-kids, BlogHer06:

(On the left, obviously. Note: NOT my highest weight ever!)

How I looked when I first made the decision to turn this ship around, March 2009:

And now me in a bathing suit, March 2011:

(And I’m surprised I’m not bursting into flames from embarrassment right now!)
I’d call that progress. I still won’t be winning any awards in a bathing suit at the moment, but I’ve graduated away from the bathing suit dress at least. I can look at that photo and see a lot of hard work accomplished, while also still seeing a lot of potential for the future.
I’m starting to feel semi-comfortable in my own body, and it’s a nice feeling. Too bad it took me 34 years to get there.  
Filed Under: success, weigh-in · Tagged:


Mar 1, 2011

Weigh-In

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I stepped on the scale on Saturday morning, and was greeted with a number I haven’t seen in a long time: 175.

The last time I was 175 pounds, I was a newlywed. I looked like this:

(Honeymoon at Disney, 2003)

Although now my body doesn’t look the same at 175 pounds as it did then. (New photo coming soon, I promise!) Stretch marks, loose skin, more fat – not exactly the body I thought I’d be seeing at this weight.

Some of that may be in my mind, too. Because when I went shopping this weekend, I was thrilled to slip on a pair of size 10 Lee jeans. I haven’t worn size 10, since…well…since I was 175 pounds. So even though I feel like my body is bigger than it was before at this weight, apparently the clothing still fits.

Since starting my bootcamp classes four weeks ago, I’m down six pounds. I often feel like it’s not going fast enough, but I know these things take time. I’m within 20 pounds of my goal weight now, so naturally it’s going to get harder to lose each pound. But I’ve already stripped away almost 8 years of weight, so I know I’m on the right track and need to fight off feelings of discouragement.

Filed Under: success, weigh-in ·


Feb 14, 2011

My Week In Hell (Er, Bootcamp)

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So…bootcamp.

Yeah. Wow.

I knew going in that it wasn’t going to be easy. And for a program designed for people to lose weight, I was a little intimidated by all of the thin young women I saw in the class. But I showed up for my first class, took my place (in the back of the class) and was determined to do my best.

It was hard, but it wasn’t impossible. The instructor started off with some basic cardio moves involving the step, and I easily followed along. It wasn’t until near the end, when we began switching into more strength moves that I started to struggle a little. Still, I finished strong, and not once did I feel any lightheadedness or urge to vomit.

Actually, all urges to vomit came the next night, when a stomach virus hit me out of nowhere. Ugh. Once again, I’ll say a stomach virus might just be the quickest way to lose weight, but certainly not the most pleasant or one I’d recommend.

By Thursday night (24 hours later) I was able to stomach some solid food again, and by Friday I was nearly back to normal. Which is good, because my second day of bootcamp was Saturday morning.

This particular program features 2 classes a week. One class is the traditional “bootcamp” with a mix of cardio and strength training. The second is what they call QVR (for quick, visible results), which is completely a strength training class with weights. I had been warned by a certain someone that QVR was harder than bootcamp, so I was prepared for the worst when I arrived on Saturday.

It was crowded when I arrived. Due to the success of the Groupon deal, they had more new recruits than they could handle. So they had to split the class into two. I was a little disappointed, because I’ve never worked with a weight bench and really wanted to, but my class was sent to the other room to work with free weights.

The instructor asked everyone to get a dumbbell, but she chose the weight for us. When it was my turn, I flashed my best pathetic smile and said, “Hi, I’m a newbie and a weakling,” as I eyed the 5lb weights. She took a hard look at me and handed me a 10lb weight. I tried to argue, but she was already on to the next person. Huh, maybe she knows something about me that I don’t, I thought.

The class started with lower body strength training and it didn’t take long before I broke a sweat. Lunges holding the weight, wide-leg squats dangling the weight, calf raises, dead lifts…they were difficult but not impossible. But that 10lb weight…it was getting heavy already.

When we moved into upper body routines, I started to lose any confidence I had. I normally use a 3lb weight for videos, and a 10lb weight felt damn near impossible at times. My arms trembled, I had trouble even lifting the weight from starting position at times, and I didn’t do nearly as many reps as the instructor was counting out. I was panting, grunting, whining, and my shirt was completely damp from sweat. A 10lb weight was WAY too hard for me.

For the last 15 minutes of class, I kept noticing the lights flickering in the room. That’s odd, I thought, why do the lights keep flickering? I finally asked the woman next to me, who confirmed that no, the lights weren’t flickering at all. Ah. So this is what it feels like when you’re close to passing out.

I grabbed my Gatorade and tried to give my body a little sugar to help with the stress I was putting it through. It gave me just enough energy to finish. In the cooldown, I was hit with nausea, but I focused on my breathing and it passed after a few minutes. I barely had the energy to haul my sorry self off the floor and put my hated 10lb weight back on the rack.

I left feeling broken. My arms felt like limp spaghetti, my legs ached. But an hour or so later I felt…good. Energized. Powerful. I was tired, but it was an exhaustion from solid work.

Yesterday? Oh, I hurt. A lot. And I still let out a small groan when I sit down sometimes. But I’m totally going back this week. If they can force me to work harder than I usually do, then I expect some awesome results when it’s over in 11 more weeks.

Oh, and current weight: 177. Lowest I’ve seen in a while!

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