I'm a Superhero!!!

Something strange is happening!!  Hopefully this isn't just another phase but I have exercised one way or another 4 days in a row!!  As I believe I mentioned our family joined the Y this past weekend and we have all been very excited about it.  Anna loves the "Busy Buds" program, Christina loves the Play Centre and the adults love everything else. 

I love going so much that some of the exercises I have always seen as hard and annoying are actually fun and exciting.  If you'll remember a couple of weeks ago I had to figure out how many push ups I can do.  I didn't want to do the girly ones because I'm "too cool" for that.  I could only do 3 regular push ups:(  Yesterday I did my 35 minutes on the elliptical then wanted to do some upper body work but had over done some of the weight stuff on Monday so decided I would head up to the top level and do some ab work and play around with the balance ball.  Well there was a mat set up in the corner with a balance ball right there beside it.  I couldn't help but try push ups again but decided it would be ok to do girly ones.  I DID 30!!!  It amazed me how much easier it was!!!  I was so happy that I then decided I was a superhero and did some planks.  We do planks as part of our warm up at running and everyone moans and groans the whole time.  I decided that they weren't so bad and actually did four:)  I made my own little routine doing push ups, planks and ab stuff on the balance ball.  I alternated between the things and it was fun!!! 

Tonight should have been a run but it was yucky out and I'm a big baby sometimes and didn't really feel like getting soggy.  I have been feeling a bit guilty about it so I think I'll pull out the Wii Fit or the dreaded Jillian Michaels game after Anna goes to bed in a few minutes. 

This is a whole new experience for me and it's going to be a wild ride but I'm loving every minute of it!  As I said a few months ago I have started going to the gym and exercising several times over but this time just feels right.  I've been really conscious of what I am putting in my body and not eating the things that I know will create a downward spiral.  I'm not depriving myself either.  I'm making smart choices and it feels great!  The kids are happy, I'm happy and that means everyone else will be happy too!!  It's a good life:)

Better late than never:)

So I said I would post this last night after my run but by the time I got home I just didn't feel like blogging!

I went for my run which was nice but odd.  I felt strange the whole time I was out there.  I may have been over heating or may have not eaten enough good food during the day but after about 3.5k I knew I needed to just stop and walk.  I could breath fine and my legs felt great but my head felt like I was going to float away at any point.  Someone actually passed me and asked if I was ok because I was weaving back and forth. 

I then went for coffee with a friend and enjoyed every minute of it.  It was a friend that I have known for about 12 years and love spending time with her.  We laugh, we cry and we just have fun:)

So here is the picture!!  It's not a huge loss but considering I was sick and didn't move much last week at all I will take it:)

Phase 2?

Yesterday marked a new and hopefully wonderful stage in our lives.  We got a family membership at the YMCA!!  I have had memberships before but was never really dedicated.  I always made excuses not to go and just didn't.  This time is going to be different for several reasons.  The first and probably most important is Anna.  She loved the group that she went to today and as soon as we left asked when we were going back.  I love that she was that excited about it.  It makes me feel better about leaving her for the couple of hours while I work out and it makes me happy that she is getting to do something she loves.  The other reason I think it will be different this time is that I feel good being there:)  My favorite thing at the gym is the elliptical machine.  I get a good workout on it and feel great afterward.  The really cool part this time is that I got on yesterday and set the time for half an hour thinking that would kill me.  To my surprise I got to the end and almost felt like it wasn't enough!!!  That alone will keep me going.  I have come so far over the last 16 months and this is just the next step on the road to becoming a healthy momma!!!

Tonight I headed back and Anna went to her class, Christina went to the daycare centre and I worked out blissfully!!  I felt great at the end and was so very happy to pick smiling little girls up!  This is going to mean a bit less family time but I think it will also make the time we spend together that much better!

Sorry I don't have a picture today:(  I had to charge my phone last night and it was in the kitchen this morning.  I got dressed and had breakfast before I realized I hadn't taken my scale picture.  I'll get one in the morning and post it tomorrow after I run.

A little rest goes a long way!

As I mentioned Monday I have a cold.  It started Sunday and by Monday morning I felt like I might die!  Ok that's a bit dramatic but it was bad enough that I decided to take the day off.  Tuesday I had my annual physical booked in the morning so I decided to wait until after my appointment to go into work.  I was still feeling pretty awful and my lungs were burning so I decided to stay home again and not annoy the asthma gods.  I got lots of rest and today I couldn't believe the difference!!  I never, ever take two days off for a cold but figured I had the sick time and may as well use it!  I also have a co-worker leaving for Costa Rica and the last thing she needs is my cold for her trip.  The two days off seems to have been one of the best decisions I have made in a very long time.  I'm not 100% but probably about 75% which is good enough for me!  I did some light exercise tonight and if my breathing isn't horrible tomorrow I might actually try to run.  If I do I will likely stick close to home and pick a route that I can expand depending on how I feel.  I expect that Saturday I will be able to do my planned 8k.  That makes me one happy girl!

Short and Sweet

Today's post will be short and sweet because I'm not feeling really well.  I caught a cold from Christina and have spent the day on the couch trying to sleep off and on.  I've also been watching The Next Great Baker which is really not a good choice but since I don't really eat much when I have a cold it's ok.  I also had some birthday cake yesterday and there is some left so I won't eat everything else in the house trying to fill a void.  So here's todays weigh in photo.  I'm very happy with the way things are going and since my goal this month was to be down 7lbs by the end of the month I am confident that I will get there:)

The flash reflected badly off the screen but it's still readable!!

Week three of the Do Life Challenge starts today and it's a good old fashioned scavenger hunt!  It should be  a really fun week!

Lonely Run:(

Tonight I decided to run right away when I got home from work instead of waiting to run with the group at Runners' Edge.  Adrian was going out and I thought it would be best to get it done so that my Mom didn't have to worry about putting the girls to bed.  It was an ok run but it was lonely.  The interesting part of that was that when I do run with the group I don't actually run with anyone.  I'm much slower than everyone else so I end up pretty far behind the pack and alone for most of the time.  The difference, I guess, is that I know there are people out there and that those people will pass me on the way back which then gives the sense of not being alone.

The alone time was good as well tonight because I was very stressed after work.  We had a team meeting and we're going through some changes that are freaking people out.  Everyone deals with this kind of thing differently and I'm usually pretty laid back about things.  The problem is when other people get stressed about it and get upset I tend to get frustrated with it.  Unfortunately there were just one too many negative comments today and I snapped at someone.  I didn't mean to be rude or to upset anyone but I did.  I apologized later and I think everything is ok but I felt horrible.  The run tonight was just what I needed to deal with some of that frustration.  I cam home feeling much more refreshed and was able to think things through.  Now I get to enjoy my Birthday weekend:)   It's going to be a good one!!!

Oh and I also came home from my run to find this waiting for me!!  You have to love the silliness:)

Yummy:)

Much Better!

Sunday afternoon I decided to bust out a new game on the Wii and oh boy did it kill me!  It's the Jillian Michaels Ultimatum 2011 game and I never in my life thought I could be in so much pain from a video game!  It has training mode then you can unlock mission mode.  I got through the first three exercises of the mission but the forth was a big fail.  It was swing squats and the idea is that you have to swing the remote up and down while you do 10 squats.  If you don't do it right you have to try again.  If you try four times and don't do it right you get sent back to the beginning of the mission.  I got sent back to the beginning 3 times.  That makes about 120 squats plus other exercises before I decided enough was enough and quit.  For the past three days I have hobbled around.  My upper legs have been so very sore.  The whole thing, not just one isolated muscle but pretty much everything above the knee.  Today it is finally bearable so I did some light exercise and hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to run.  I wanted to run yesterday but when I tried to just run from a store to my car I thought I was going to throw up so decided trying to run 5k or more wasn't the best idea.  I've been eating well though so hopefully the lack of exercise won't be to detrimental. 

I've gotten back into making Green Monsters pretty much every morning and love them!  They just give that bit of a boost that carries me through the day.  If you haven't tried one I highly recommend you check them out.  Don't let the green part scare you away.  I was sceptical at first too but oh boy am I glad I tried them.  Tonight I also made some fresh juice!  I'm not a big juice drinker.  I would rather eat fruit and veggies but we got a Bullet Express and it has a juicer attachment so I tried it out and if I'm going to drink juice it may as well be the real deal.  I need to look up some juice recipes though and find some really good ones that are packed with good for you stuff.  Adrian made me a big batch of broccoli soup tonight too!  I love soup and much prefer the homemade kind.  It's so much better when you know exactly what's in it!

Tomorrow is my Friday and the weekend is going to be packed with fun!  I will start with a run tomorrow night followed by a nice relaxing day on Friday.  Anna has her first Hip Hop class Friday evening and I am going to take her to see Beauty and the Beast after that.  Saturday is my birthday and I plan to start it with a 6 to 8k run and then we are heading out to a Buffalo Bandits game in the evening.  Sunday is family time and Clifton Hill in Niagara Falls has a great residents special that we are going to take advantage of.  I am so looking forward to this weekend:)

Anyone out there have good juice recipes or recommendations for websites???