A new chapter

I'm usually not the biggest fan of Mondays but today I'm feeling great. On Friday I met with a trainer who I immediately knew was the person for me. I'm starting today and I'm not even a little nervous because I'm SO ready to kick it up a notch.
I will work with her once a week, do yoga twice a week, and walk/run just about every day. I'm hoping by spring to be able to bike to my appointment with her. There is an ENORMOUS hill on the 2 mile route from my house to her studio which I WILL conquer one day... after the half marathon.
I think the hardest part will be keeping up with my cardio on days where I have my training or yoga. There aren't enough hours in the day as it is but I'm committed to keeping up this schedule.
The weather this weekend has a lot to do with my positive attitude. All it takes is a little sun and warmth to have me feeling energized and happy. My husband and I clocked 10 miles this weekend which put me over my goal of 15 for the week. I was sore but recovered really quickly every day. If I keep up my current pace, I should be able to complete the half marathon (running and walking) with about 45 minutes to spare in the 5 hour time limit. Not a lot of room for error but I'm a little less terrified now that I've picked up my pace just a little. I have to keep reminding myself that it's only 3/4 of one day of the 3-Day. I've done that 3 times. I've got this.

In case you missed it, here's a pic from Crys' blog. We went to Bikram together on Friday and it was a riot. Her post about it is worth a read!
Have an awesome week everyone.

wake-up call #3,756

I found out yesterday, unofficially, that I have asthma. I've been suffering from allergies (itching and wheezing) for a while now and yesterday saw a respiratory therapist and went through an hours worth of tests. He says I have it and is sure the pulmonologist will confirm it. Of course I asked the usual questions... Is it because I smoked a pack a week (cigarettes and otherwise) back in the day? Is it because I'm too fat? Yes and yes. He said that there are probably many reasons it's flared up recently but the weight is the main factor. He was no skinny thang himself so luckily was very understanding about how hard it can be.

As someone who doesn't sit around and feel sorry for myself, I'm doing something about it. I have exercised and ate well every day this week and in one hour, I'm meeting with someone who I think will be a perfect personal trainer. It will be hard to afford it with the yoga and gym but it will be cheaper than all this medication in the long run.

Going to yoga tonight with Crys. I'm super excited about that.

Oh and I lost 3 lbs. this week. Almost on to fresh pounds...

mid-week motivation

I feel about a million times better after finally getting back to my yoga class after a week off. It was a grueling one too. Our normally sweet instructor got all drill instructor on our asses last night. It was probably a good thing because mine needed a kickin'. At one point she said "if I don't hear sweat hitting the mats like rain it's not hot enough in here." I was warm from head to toe all night after that. Fabulous!

Today I owe myself 4 miles on the treadmill at a lunchtime workout. I've decided I'm not going to beat myself up for not doing cardio on my yoga days but I'm going to set a mileage goal for the week and stick to it. This week it's 15 miles. Next week will be a little more. This half marathon is coming up fast.

I started the day with a big bowl of steel cut oats, munching on an apple and string cheese before I workout at noon, then a light lunch of some vegetable soup. Big stir fry with a tiny bit of brown rice for dinner and that should do me for the day.

There's a new show on A&E that's based on Intervention called "HEAVY". It's Better than the Biggest Loser in my opinion. Mostly because there's more information and less selling of Biggest Loser products and product placement. It's on On Demand in some areas. I'm looking forward to watching the rest of them this season. Check it out if you need a little motivation.

Hope everyone is having a great week! As always I appreciate all the support!

How yoga is like gastric bypass...only more expensive

It's been about 6 months now since I started going to my hot yoga classes and y'all know how much I love it but there's an interesting thing happening with my eating patterns that I'm just starting to notice.

Because the room is 110 - 115 degrees and the class is such an intense workout, it's something I have to really prepare for. One of the instructors said that the day before the class is just as important as the day of. I'm always mindful of what I'm eating and drinking the day before and especially the day of. If I eat like crap I will throw up. Simple as that. Kinda like a gastric bypass.

I'm trying to figure if adding another day of class is worth it but it might be a band-aid on the real problem which is putting myself in that frame of mind EVERY DAY. I don't know where that desire to treat my body well goes on the other days. I'm still not getting enough cardio and even though I'd rather do yoga, I know I need to mix it up.

I heard that weird looking doctor say to one of the contestants on the Biggest Loser that she would have to work out 90 minutes a day, six days a week for the rest of her life to keep from gaining her weight back. That's what I did back when I lost 100 pounds. That's what it takes. I HAVE to get back there.

The road ahead

Life is still busy and about to get busier.

I promised myself that this year was going to be about progress not survival and that is taking much more work than I could have imagined.

I've been blessed with a new source of steady work that I will really enjoy doing and will finally give me the money I desperately need to fix some things around my house. The problem is I'm sacrificing every second of ME time, including working out. I've been getting up at 5:45, working until 8, going to my part time job, coming home at 1:00 and working until 7 or 8. My only option is to quit this ugly habit of working before sunrise and get back to going to the gym by 6. It's the only thing that's going to give me the energy to do all this work.

Last Monday I went to the doctor for what I think is an allergy (lots of itching and wheezing) and she drained a tiny cyst I had on my side that wasn't even bothering me in the slightest. Suddenly it became a raging infection and I ended up back in the office mid-week in serious pain. Luckily they fixed me up quickly and gave me some antibiotics but it's amazing how much that derailed me for the week. I wasn't able to bend at all so yoga was out and the little bit of sweating I did while vacuuming burned like crazy. Today is my last day of no exercise per doctors orders and I will not stop moving the rest of this week.

No exercise + winter = crazy

A week of reflection

Nothing gets your mind rolling like being stuck in your house for almost a week! I've gone out for food and that is all. I feel like a big. fat. blob.

I'm over the ice and snow. There has been no gym open. No yoga classes. Not even a prayer of being able to walk more than a few feet outside. Sure, I could have used my fancy elliptical trainer but instead I stuffed my face.

I am an addict.

I seriously used a snowstorm as an excuse to eat like a pig for more than 5 days in a row.

I could dwell on it all weekend and start again Monday but I'm picking myself back up today. Yoga studio is open and I'm going at 4:30. There is no more chocolate or potato chips in the house and it will stay that way.

Love from crazyland.

Gearing up

It's a crazy day here in the South gearing up for a really big winter storm.

We just got back from the grocery store (along with everyone else in the state) and got the supplies to make white chicken chili along with a loaf of Natures Own Double Fiber wheat bread. We're set!! We lose power so often in these situations and I didn't want to take the risk of not having anything we can heat up on the grill.

Things are going REALLY well over here. I'm happier than I've been in a while which I attribute to my fabulous friends and family, yoga and lots of paying work. I'm back to my pre-Christmas weight but I still need to get some running miles in. The half marathon is coming up quick and I'm still not going much further than a 5k.

Hoping everyone is doing well!