Bootcamp - Day 2

My second bootcamp session was last night, and it went quite well. I hung in there like I normally do.

Keith makes us do a lot of different things, but I am going to try to remember everything that we did (in no particular order - and multiple sets of each here and there):

High-knees, side shuffles, push-ups, squats on the bosu, wall sits, reverse crunches, six inches, inch worms, some kind of jumping on and off the bosu thing, planks, suicides, walking lunges.

There is some kind of circuit going on, usually including suicides in between each exercise. I think the goal is to keep the heart rate high...and it does stay high since there's only about 10 seconds rest time ever. And just when you think you're almost done, there's a grand finale...with no rest times.

Ok. Other than that, eating has not been great, but it's been worse. Baby steps...

Personally, I'm feeling really good. I'm sure that regular exercise plays a part in this. I was starting to feel a little lumpy, and that makes me unhappy.

Greatest Decision Evah

I almost didn't make it, but I pulled it off at the last second. Back to bootcamp tonight. I feel fantastic again. All of a sudden, I want to eat healthy and get back on track with the working out. I'm back. It's true :)

Keith is in charge of all bootcamp sessions now, so it's only a matter of time before I see that 16% bf. Assessment time is Monday, so I think I'm going to be pretty focused this week. I might not see that 17.8% bf like I did the last time, but as long as I'm still in the 18% range, I'll be ok.

I'm also changing my diet strategy. I am going to be feeding my workouts. No more restrictions. Just fueling my body. This view helps to keep things in perspective. Obviously, there will be some restrictions, but I don't plan on looking at it that way. I'm just going to be evaluating whether or not something is going to be something my body would be able to use. This is what helped me lose weight in the first place...keeping empty calories to a minimum.

In more personal news, I finally feel that my dark cloud has lifted. I started to feel it on Saturday, but Sunday was even that much better. I think I just needed to cry it out.

Ok. I'll be writing more soon. Going to bed early tonight. Yeah right...I always say that and it never happens. This time I might actually do it though.

Rock Bottom

Things have continued to deteriorate for me this week. I've just not been in a good place emotionally basically. This morning was really bad, but I think that I finally got it all out. There will probably be some bad days ahead, but I kind of feel that I'm snapping out of it at least.

I have been a little better with my eating though. No more drive-thru breakfasts or mexican feasts. I did order pizza last night, but I stopped after 1 piece (granted, it was one of those mega-sized pizzas. still...). Back to the good ole SB breakfast bar and lean cuisine routine. This works for me.

I went to the gym once this week, and I did a short workout at home with dumbbells. I will most likely go to the gym tomorrow for cardio. I've pretty much decided to go back to bootcamp on Monday. Keith the Trainer is now in charge of all 3 weekly sessions, so I'm sure I'll be back to the old me very soon (or should I say...the new me).

I haven't weighed myself in a long time, and I probably won't for another week. I'm still in my 8's, but I noticed that my size PS top was a little snug yesterday. I wouldn't have worn it with the jacket unbuttoned. If I had to guess, I'd say I'm still under 137.

200th Post

Yes, I know I already wrote a blog today, but I had to get my 200th out there to fall in line with Brian and Billy. It's kind of an OCD-type thing. Couldn't have a 100 & a 300 without the 200.

Ok. Now I feel better.

See below for my real post...not that there's much there. I'll try to get back into this very soon.

Hello

Ok. I don't really want to get into where I've been. I'll just say it's not been a very good place. I wish I could say that I'm really back, but I don't know if I'd be telling the truth.

One fact is that I did go to the gym last night to run on the treadmill. Everything was fine, until that ankle pain started up again...this time at 1.73 miles. Not good. I decided today that I'll be visiting my doctor within the next week or so. No more running until then. Of course, this doesn't mean that I can't go do other things at the gym.

I did have some positive news today. I'm getting my bonus next Tuesday, and it's larger than I was expecting. I will be using some of this money to get back to bootcamp. I might also be looking to get some home fitness things...like maybe some more dumbbells or something equally exciting.

New Low - kinda

I got assessed at the gym tonight. I was hoping to earlier this week, but it never quite worked out. I'm very excited to say that I am at 17.8% body fat. My last assessment was in November, and it was 18.5% back then. It sure feels great to know that I came through the holidays pretty much unscathed.

Here's the quote from the printout:

"Kristen, your body fat percentage is in the Excellent range. This range is recommended for athletes.....By following the nutrition and exercise plan, you will reach your goal body fat of 15% and goal body weight of 134 in 5 weeks." I forgot to mention that the gym scale had me at 139 (5 lbs lower than my last weigh-in there).

There is also a little bar that has: Low, Optimal, Moderate, High, and Very High. I am at the very end of Low (<19.1)

I'm so geeked about the new eating and exercise plans now - targeting the last bit of fat that I want to lose. You'd think 5 lbs of fat loss would be pretty easy. We shall see...we shall see...

Tonight I completed Workout A again. OMG, was that tough to do 3 sets of 15 reps. Killer. Glad it's back to 5x5 on Thursday.

I am still eating according to plan. I've experienced essentially no cravings as of yet (except for the weekend). Today was day 6. I only have 8 more days left before I can start mixing in some carbs every couple of days. I'm very dedicated right now. I don't see that being too much of a problem. However, I don't see myself quite making my goal of being solidly in the 120's by Saturday. I've been averaging 132 on my scale every morning. That would require a pretty solid drop. Oh well, I'm still 17.8% BF.

Renewed vigor.

Not much to say today

My eating was spot on. In fact, I barely felt hungry all day. The routine of the workweek makes it much easier to stay on track. I pretty much have my set eating times, and before you know it, it's time for bed.

I didn't make it to the gym tonight. No biggie. I will be there tomorrow night for Workout A.

I still need to drink a bunch of water tonight. I also need to be in bed in about a half hour. One of my new years goals should have been to get 8 hrs of sleep a night. Last night I got about 10 hrs and it was heavenly.

I got an interesting comment about my weight today at work. This lady that works upstairs came down for a meeting, and she mentioned that I look different every time she sees me. My male co-worker that works directly with me looked at her questioningly...and then she looked at him like...You haven't noticed??? Then she started to say how "twiggy" I look (scroll down 2 posts). I think you'd all agree that I'm nowhere near twiggy. She is on the larger side, so I forgive her for her error. It's just funny once again how I really haven't lost that much weight, yet people keep noticing.

Fitness is key.

Workout B

Vince and I went to the gym tonight to take our first crack at Workout B. I'd say it went very well, but I wasn't able to complete 2c, because I am unable to do chin-ups without assistance. Other than that, it was a very good workout.

I've still been very good with my eating plan. I may have strayed a couple of times, but I don't think they are anything to worry about. I got cream in my coffee yesterday, and I had a sliver of fresh coconut tonight.

I did have a problem with cravings today, but that was all my fault. I didn't eat breakfast right away, and then I was hungry and I felt like I was playing catch-up all day. That won't be happening again. My breakfast and lunch for tomorrow are waiting for me in the refrigerator right now, and there is a lot of ready to prepare food in there too.

Now I have a question. I plan on going to the gym for cardio tomorrow night, but I don't want to crash and burn due to the low-carb thing. Would it be better for me to do steady-state cardio or should I continue with the HIIT?

In other shopping news. I know I mentioned this in my last post, but it was a late edit. I went to the mall yesterday and was able to put on 6's with little trouble. They aren't necessarily wearable yet, but I ended up buying a few things. I've also graduated to Small's on my shirts...this actually happened a few weeks ago, but I don't recall if I've mentioned it before now. The bottoms are a little tougher. I'm sure you've noticed, but I carry most of my weight downstairs (luckily my husband loves my ghetto booty).

Hmmm...what else? I've been drinking lots of water. It's amazing how it helps with the cravings.

Ya know...I felt like I had a lot to say today, but the words elude me. Good night.

NEW LOW!!!

Ok. So the eating plan works for sure. I soooo didn't expect to see such quick results though. I've only been doing this thing for 2 days now, and I'm already down to 130 lbs as of this morning. I was shocked when I weighed myself yesterday morning when I saw 134 even. That meant I'd actually lost weight (or maintained) during the holidays...even when I thought I'd been so bad. This is why muscle mass is so important. Up your muscle mass, burn more calories (duh, I know).

So - goal time. I have two things coming up in the near future that I'd like to attach goals to. Next weekend, my sister is coming down to visit us, and I'd like to be solidly in the 120's by then. In 2 weekends, another one of my sisters is coming to town, and I'd like to see 125 on the scale by then.

Of course, the real problem will be maintaining that after I stop the low carb thing. My plan is to reintroduce carbs slowly and go back to a lower carb lifestyle. I've veered from that lately. This is the jumpstart that I needed to get me back to appreciating the right kinds of carbs and avoiding the bad ones.

This might be exactly what I've needed to catapult me toward my final goal of 120 and size 6. hmmm....

*****Edit*****

I'm posting my Before pic below. I will follow up with this in 2 weeks with an After pic. Btw...the jeans in the pic are some 6's that I bought today. I went to the mall and had success with zipping up and buttoning 6's without too much muffin. I decided to buy some for goal clothes. I fully expect to be able to wear these out next weekend...even though they are a bit snug through the hips and thighs at the moment.

Continued Resolve

I don't really see much sense in me making any resolutions this time of year. I've just really been trying to do that consistently over the past year and a half. I will, however, regain focus right now. My eating has been pretty bad during the holidays, even though I've been good with my workouts.

Bad eating makes me feel ick. I don't like it one bit, and it's so not worth it. Today was the beginning of my 2 week eating plan that Marcol blogged about a while back. I followed through with it today - even said no to a super delicious looking peanut butter pie...and turtles...and other assorted goodies that everyone else is trying to rid themselves of at work. So, Day 1: not much of a problem. I can do this for a while I think...it's mostly about preparation. I also think that I'm better at saying NO than I am at moderation. It was actually a pretty easy day for eating.

I haven't done much with the workout plan we were doing earlier this week...only because we were out of town longer than expected. Vince and I are starting it over tomorrow. No biggie. I'm dedicated to it...just didn't quite work out the first time around...AND just because we didn't do our scheduled workout doesn't mean that we didn't workout at all. On Tuesday night, we ended up doing a bodyweight workout that was actually pretty exhausting. I was proud of what I put together :) Certain family members made fun of us, but whatevah...I felt much better for doing it. I do know that I wouldn't have done anything had Vince not suggested it though. This is definitely a good thing.

I hit the gym for cardio tonight. My ankle hurt a little last Thursday after my run, so I used the elliptical tonight. OMG, that kicked my butt. I think that the "no carb" thing today zapped my energy. Maybe I shouldn't have pushed myself so hard? I do know that after 30 minutes of HIIT on the elliptical, I could barely go 6.0 mph for 3 minutes on the treadmill. I felt like I was going to die. I dropped down to 3.0 for a minute, then bumped it back up to 6.0 for 3 more minutes. Too much. Wow. I haven't had trouble with 6.0 hardly at all for quite a while. It must have something to do with my diet today? Anyways, I did a couple minutes at 3.0 then finished off the last tenth of the mile at 7.0.

So, even though there are no new resolutions per se, I look forward to pushing myself harder than ever this year. I am definitely going to participate in some 5k's and maybe even a 10k. I'd like to get below 17% bf (preferably 14%). Size 6 sounds good to me (still). I want a sculpted upper body. I want to lose that belly fat that is still lingering. I'd like firm thighs that look nice in a swimsuit. Hmmm...what else? Ok...if I achieve all of these things this year, then next year I'd like to get a boob job.