PIVOT!

My Fitbit goal is 10,000 steps a day. Some days that’s hard to reach when you’re sitting at a computer on meetings for 8-9 hours. But I’ve been crushing it this week. I had 56,994 steps Sunday-Tuesday. Yesterday, I wanted to take it over 20K. My arms were pretty sore when I woke up from various H.I.I.T, kickboxing and Tabata workouts I’d been doing the last couple days so I decided I’d take my new Asics to the gym and do a 5K on the treadmill.

I know new shoes aren’t always like walking on a cloud but this was terrible. I only lasted 30 minutes and I had to jump off. I went into the locker room and my heels were raw and red. Say what? I always buy Asics for my workout shoes. It’s the only shoe I’ll work out in. It hurt so bad I took them off in the car and walked across the driveway and into the house in my socks, even though it was 35 degrees and drizzling out. I’ll spare you the pictures of the nasty blisters that formed in the next few hours.

Anyway, I got some stuff done around the house and went in the kitchen to make dinner. My plan was to warm up a hamburger I had grilled the night before and to make some sweet potato fries. But alas, my sweet potato had gone bad. So asparagus and roasted carrots in the air fryer to the rescue.

When I finished dinner I started flipping through Youtube and different workout channels on my Roku trying to figure out what I was going to do to make up for the treadmill 5K that I couldn’t complete. I bet I flipped past 70-80 different workouts in that 15 minutes. Nothing sounded good. It was beginning to stress me out. For once, I listened to my achy, tired body and laid on the couch. I turned on some music and just laid there breathing and listening to music and not thinking about much of anything else. And apparently, I fell asleep.

I woke up on the couch at 7:30 and do you know which workout I ended up doing? NONE! I worked on a project for my friend’s birthday. I reminded myself that my step goal was 10K and I was over 16K. I told myself this is a marathon, not a race. There is no actual prize if I win the Fitbit challenge for steps every day, besides my foolish pride and competitive nature. My body needed a night to recover. So I did a 10 minute stretch before bed, barefoot, and called it a day. And that’s A-O-K!!

Days don’t always go the way we plan them. Meetings get moved. Tiny work crisis’s pop up out of nowhere and demand your attention. Workout intentions get foiled. Your body fights back. Food goes bad. Friends or family call and need to talk. But we’ve gotta roll with it. We gotta be flexible. We gotta pivot. Give yourself some grace. Get up the next day and give it your best. That’s all.

P.S. I hope someone reading this saw "pivot" and thought of the Friends episode when Ross buys the couch and is trying to move it up the stairs. 😄

3000 miles

Remember how I said I wanted to "walk" from Iowa to California on my fitbit?  Well hooray for me! Got my 3000 mile badge yesterday.  No wonder my feet hurt.  Wasn't there a terrible Nicholas Cage movie in the early 2000's called "3000 Miles to Graceland"?

Been putting the finishing touches on my home gym the last few days.  It's coming together pretty well. I have a stepper, agility ladder, kickboxing bag, jump rope, free weights, stability ball, medicine ball and yoga mats for crunches, squat stations and so on.  I think it's going to be awesome.

Airplane victories

There was a time when I flew a lot and I hated it.  If you've ever been overweight and traveling on a plane, you can surely relate.  If you haven't been, rejoice in that.  Airplane aisles are tiny.  Even "normal" size people often have to turn sideways to make their way down them.  Seats are piled on top of each other and a person that is overweight can't help but "spill" onto the people next to them.  Middle seats suck the worst, then aisle.  I always requested a window seat if I had a choice.  Also, there is the issue of seat belts.  It wasn't that long ago that I found myself in tears on a plane, literally shoving and willing my fat to jiggle into a mold that would allow the seat belt to fit without requesting an extension.  I believe it is one of the most humiliating things one can go through. Or worse, if they charge you for two seats on a place because you are too big.  I never had to pay for two seats but I did have many times where I could barely buckle my belt.  I remember once having a snarky size 2 stewardess tell me very loudly that she could go get me an extension. The other passengers watched me, some with pity, some with disgusts as I jammed myself into that seat belt, barely able to breath. I refused to get an extension.  Even though I'm over 100 pounds smaller now, I still feel that anxiety when I go to get on a plane.  Old habits die hard, I guess.  When I left for my work trip on Monday, I was very pleasantly surprised when I went to buckle up for safety.  It not only fit, but the excess seat belt flowed to my knee.  I had a good 6 or so inches of seat belt left over.  It was an amazing feeling.  

While away for work I was sure to work every day on getting my steps.  Monday night it was storming and I was 1500 short so I walked in place in my hotel room until I got my 10,000 steps and then did some crunches before bed.  Tuesday I did one of my afternoon conference calls from the treadmill in the hotel gym.  I walked to and from dinner. I walked around the building on breaks. And then, IT happened. My fitbit battery died!  Yes, it died and I forgot to pack my charger with me.  Oh the horror, right?  It died at 9371 steps for the day.  So even though I know I got well over 10,000 steps yesterday, it will not show it in my app or on the leader board. And today will be a big fat zero.  Yes, I'm obsessed with my fitbit.  And yes, there are worse obsessions I could have.  I will make sure not to travel without packing my charger again, that's for sure.  And hopefully next time I travel, I won't feel like I'm battling pneumonia.  

As I sit here in the airport, I don't have anxiety about boarding the plane to go home.  I know the seat belt will fit fine.  And my body will be comfortable in the seat.  I can't wait to get home and back to my routine, work, workouts, preparing my own food, walking with my friends and sleeping in my own bed.  Is it heaven? No, it's Iowa.  And there's no place like home.  

Flattery will get you everywhere

Had a pretty active week and was pleased with my fitbit numbers and the numbers on the scale.  I love being able to get outside, walk with my friends and enjoy the weather.  For the first time since I met my husband 5 years ago, I weigh less than him. May sound odd but it's a major milestone for me since he's always been very fit.

I had a funny thing happen to me last night at the Y when I was shooting hoops.  A lady in her late 50's was watching her granddaughter play ball with her friends.  I was having a night where I couldn't miss a shot. As she was gathering her granddaughter she approached me with a smile. I took out my headphones and she asked if I played basketball for Simpson.  I laughed but she was serious.  I said, "no ma'am, I'm about to turn 38 years old."  The granddaughter piped up, "are you a coach?"  I told her no and I just like to play. She told me I should be a coach because I'm really good.  I talked with them a few minutes, took a few shots with the little girl and they went on their way.  But that was way cooler than being carded for alcohol.  Even though they were a bit delusional on the level of my skills it was awesome to be mistaken for much younger than I really am.  And the fact that I'm short and stout which is not the ideal body for a college athlete. Regardless, it gave me a warm fuzzy and lifted my spirits after a rough day.  

This weekend I will be joining my family for the annual "Alive & Running" race in Dunkerton for suicide prevention, in honor of Kirk.  It's always one of my favorite weekends of the year.  There are tears but there is also laughter and reminiscing and bonding together of those that gather. I can't wait to see my family on Friday.

Owww

Sometimes a good sign that your strength training for the night has come to an end is when you slip off the stability ball and drop the weight on your toe. 

Does anyone use myfitnesspal with fitbit? After the updates this week, MFP now instantly uploads your fitbit steps if you have them synced. So, my question is, should I still be inputting my activity in MFP like I've always done? It only uploads steps but what if was going to enter cardio for running/walking for half an hour? I don't want it to double up or do anything funky like skew my calorie burn for the day. Thoughts on this? Anyone, anyone, Bueller? 

Back in Action

I spent a few days in Chicago last week for work. To say that wreaked havoc on my normal workout and eating schedule would be a drastic understatement.  It rained the entire time I was there so I couldn’t really go walk around and explore the city.  Plus, it was dark by the time I got out of my conferences each day.  Such a bummer.  They don’t tend to cater in healthy lunches and snacks at these events.  I really missed having a kitchen. Luckily I had taken some of my P3 packs with me to eat during plane rides and avoid fast food at the airport.  This turned out to be a really good move since my flights were delayed both ways and I spent a lot of time chilling in the terminals and smelling the aroma of dangerous foods.

But on a good note, my replacement fitbit was waiting for me when I returned home late Thursday night.  So now I can work hard to catch up with the girls on steps for the week.  I was lost without it. 

I’m debating signing up for a bootcamp at the Y for the next 5 weeks.  I have to check the schedule and make sure it doesn’t start today though.  Procrastinate much, Lyndee? 

This weekend I will be going home to celebrate Mother's Day and my darling nephews 1st birthday.  Is he not the cutest thing you have ever seen in your life?!?!?! He melts my heart.  Not that I'm biased or anything...

It's a man's world? Oh please.

So I guess I was pretty active last week. I think it was the joy of the sunshine and 70 degree temps. Yes, it snowed again yesterday but I'm totally trying to block that out of my memory.  I finally broke 100,000 steps for a week and it felt great!

What's even better about it? Kara and Melody are breathing down my neck and bringing their best step game as well. They are neck in neck and closing in on me with a vengeance! I love it! I'm going to have to be super focused the rest of this week if I want to come in first again.  I leave for C-town tomorrow after work and will be home for 5 days.  Yes, 5 days in my danger zone.  Thursday I'll be sitting at Mayo Clinic all day with the family.  Maybe I can walk some laps on the hour? Friday is open so I can go up to the fitness center in town or hit the trails if it's nice.  Saturday and Sunday we have Easter at each of the Grandma's and we are also squeezing in a birthday party for Michael and maybe a dinner with my favorite preggo cousin, BT. It will be a busy few days, surrounded by tasty but terrible food choices and I will be out of my element.  I won't be doing my lunch walks with Melody or my nightly workout routines at the YMCA. I am packing some snacks and my vitamins to take with me. I will try desperately to get in at least 10,000 steps every day and just do the best I can on food choices.  That's all a girl can do.

Speaking of being a girl...I've noticed when it comes to the basketball court at the Y, it's a man's world.  One of the front desk workers commented the other night how I am often the only female in the gym shooting hoops.  She said it like it would bother her and could possibly be the reason that more women aren't in there. It doesn't phase me at all.  I'm surrounded by adolescent boys and sweaty men trying to relive their glory days in a pick up game with their buddies.  More than once they've tried to "run me off the court" but I always stand my ground. There's 6 hoops in here people, you can play on the other 5.  I just need my one. And if you ever want to play me for my hoop, bring it on. I can play horse with the best of them and love some competition.  I appreciate my parents raising me to be blind to societies idea of gender roles not only in sports, but in life. There is not much of anything you can tell me I can't do because I'm a woman.  Except pee standing up. I've tried it, it's not for me.  Men, I will give you that one. I wish the lady at the front desk and more females would come in and play in the gym.  And I love seeing when young girls come in once and awhile with their friends.  I always make sure to encourage their good shots or hustle.  But most days I just put on my headphones and ignore the testosterone that surrounds me. I'm not there to socialize. I'm there to get my sweat on and sink basket after basket and find my happy meditation zone.

True

Yesterday was one of those crazy days that just made my head spin. I could've easily opted out of a workout. I was almost at my 10,000 steps by the time I got home from work and there was so much to do and take care of at home, I debated not going. BUT I knew it wasn't all about steps on a fitbit monitor.  It was about feeling better, finding some down time to focus on me and getting my active on.  So I went to the Y and wouldn't you know it, I felt tons better once I was done. It really is the worlds best stress relief.  I saw this sign while I was there.

It made me feel even better about my decision to to squeeze in a workout. I'm working for my "it" every day and it's paying off. And this sign isn't just about workouts my friend. It's about everything in life we want. Nothing comes cheap or easy.  You've gotta work your little tail off to get anywhere worth going.  Can I get a hell yeah?

Absolutely loving my Fitbit Flex still. The ease of the system syncing to my phone makes me giddy. When you're a bit obsessed with metrics and possibly have a slight competitive streak, the Fitbit brings many smiles throughout the day and helps me push on and step up my game when needed. I gave Sissy my Fitbit Ultra to try out for a few weeks. Hopefully she can get as much use out of it as I did. It's such a fun tool.

Kara and I started our new 30 day ab and squat challenge. Day 1 done yesterday. You should join us! It's only a few minutes out of your day. And you have nothing to lose, except unwanted cellulite and inches, of course.

We're also doing an Advocare cleanse. Can I just say how much I LOVE their Spark energy drink? Holy cow, I'm a total addict. Energy and focus is up but it doesn't keep me awake all night. And I find I'm not nearly as hungry throughout the day either.  Woo hoo! 

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Ok, I don’t really have seasonal affective disorder but this snow and nasty winter is making me down right crabby! If I hear the word polar vortex one more time, I might lose my mind.  I long to walk around Gray’s lake, play outside with the boys and sniff the fresh spring air.  Our new house is right by the trails that run through town and I can’t wait to explore them. Why oh why are they still covered in snow and ice?

Last night the snow had me feeling restless.  I did my 2 miles at the Y, did Day 5 of my guns, buns and abs challenge and then did an arm workout during commercials watching The Voice.  I cleaned. I folded some laundry. I ran errands.  I couldn’t sit still. And I couldn’t sleep either.  It stunk watching the clock tick tock all night and only getting about 4 hours of sleep.  No wonder I have a massive headache today. 

I’ve been super excited to buy the new Fitbit Force.  Sunday morning I went online to order my newest fitness toy and found terrible news! Fitbit has recalled one of the most popular fitness gadgets on the market because it was causing rash and skin irritation on 1.7% of the people that wore it. What’s odd is the band is the same material, as far as I can tell, that the Fitbit Flex has and they haven’t recalled that.  So now my dilemma is do I go ahead and order the Flex or wait for them to fix/revamp the Force.  It could take months or longer and I’m not sure I can wait that long but I was really looking forward to the digital display on my wrist.  I think I will have to go with the Flex because I’m impatient and it will sync with my iphone so I can check that whenever I want. Plus it’s waterproof so you can wear it in the shower, doing dishes, etc. 

Speaking of Fitbit, I think it’s safe to say I straight up dominated last week! I have upped my steps again! My highest week ever in steps and miles.  It will take a lot of work to top this week but that’s what I will try to do for next week.  That’s the key.  Keep setting that bar high and when you reach it, set it a little higher again.  Complacency is the killer of healthy living. 

I have to give mad props to Kara for sticking with me in the guns, buns and abs challenge.  It's only day 5 but it's wicked hard and every night we check in with each other when we've completed it.  Great motivation. It's so important to surround yourself with positive people.  I saw this last night on Pinterest and it totally struck a cord with me so I thought I would share.  Have a super week! 

Olympic Gold

It's a new week! Hooray for that.  And it's supposed to be in the 40's a few days this week so double hooray for some sunshine and decent weather.  I hope you can get out and enjoy it.  I continue to do well in the step challenge. My fitbit stats were down slightly this week but still good.

I've been watching a lot of Olympics this week.  And it's helped my motivation.  No, I'll never snowboard a half pipe or attempt to break my leg by lacing up ice skates, but I love to watch these athletes. I think about all the sacrifice and dedication they have put in for years for these small moments in time and a chance at glory. It's magnificent and inspiring to me. I adore Lolo Jones. She is strong, real and resilient and a fighter with such heart and bravery. And if you follow her on Twitter, you know she's pretty dang funny too.  I realize Olympians train for this as a job but it really puts things into perspective as far as workouts go.  To hear someone say they can't find 30 or 60 minutes a day to workout, fight for their health and be the best that they can be is sad to me.  I hear it all too often how people don't have time.  Be honest when you make that statement: you don't MAKE time.  I know that sounds harsh but it is the cold hard truth. I've been there. There are plenty of days it would be easier to sit on the couch and watch TV. But I view TV as a luxury, not a necessity.  Once I have completed my tasks for the day- work, cleaning, workouts, errands, whatever it may be, then I will reward myself with some time to sit and relax.

Before you start making any other excuses...it doesn't matter if you have a gym membership, walking outside is free.  Running stairs in your house, doing wall squats and shadowboxing is free. I know very few people that don't have a gaming system of some sort. There are plenty of workout games or at home DVD's or workout ideas on Pinterest and all over the internet you can do from the comfort of your living room. Just stop making excuses.

If you're not committed to being healthy, that's fine too. But admit that.  Don't fool yourself or others around you into thinking that this is important to you if it's not.  Just be honest. Don't waste your money on the gimmicks or your breath on excuses.  Some days will be easier than others. Some days will down right suck. But the feeling of accomplishment and pride once you have committed will carry you through the crappy days.

Lame class, Biggest Loser and a great step challenge week

So there I was, super excited that I could get back to my gym schedule because wrestling season is over for the boys.  I haven’t been to a Monday night swim class since October! I went to the Y, got my 2 miles of cardio on the treadmill then headed down to the pool.  I swam laps for 20 minutes in the warm rec pool before I headed over to the competitive pool for class.  I recognized the teacher and vaguely remembered that I thought her class was fun.  Well, it used to be fun.  When I first started up with pool class jump roping a noodle and sprinting across the pool was a workout.  But not anymore.  She didn’t do tabata, I didn’t break a sweat and it was freezing cold because we weren’t moving enough to keep warm.  There was only so much of this I could stand.  Half an hour into class I left.  It was a waste of my time and I had workouts at home that would be much more challenging.  I’m glad to see that my body and abilities have advanced but I was very disappointed.  I will remember not to go to that class again.  Luckily, I have Tuesday-Saturday classes that will keep my butt. 

I’ve heard a lot of rumblings about the Biggest Loser finale this week.  Did any of you watch it?  If not, I've linked to a picture. What was your opinion of the winner, Rachel?  I will admit, when she first walked out I gasped in horror.  I thought it was terrible, but mostly I thought it was sad.  I thought she looked like Karen Carpenter. I was sad for the way America was so quick to rip her apart for doing exactly what she was brought to the show to do; lose the most weight and take home $250,000.  She did that. I’m not condoning it or supporting it, just saying, she did her “job” and used the tools at hand.  What would you do to win a quarter of a million dollars?  I sincerely hope that she only did it to win and has not developed an eating disorder or anything else equally as tragic.  I hope that she puts on 20 pounds and tones up and lives a wonderfully healthy and beautiful life.  I hope she is happier than she’s ever been.  I hope she is strong enough to ignore the people that will never be satisfied and always looking for something to criticize.  She was too fat in America’s eyes when she started and she ended up being too skinny in the end.  I’m sure she feels like she just can’t win.

I did pretty well in the step challenge last week.  My numbers are up in every category.  Woo hoo! 87,914 steps! Over 38 miles walked for last week and 123 floors climbed. I got a new badge from fitbit that I’ve climbed over 4000 flights of stairs which is something about being as high as a 747 jumbo jet.  I didn’t really get it but I do love badges.  I’ve walked 107.68 in three weeks which would be the equivalent of walking to Coralville (109 miles) from Des Moines.  By the end of this week I should be past Iowa City and to my brothers in West Liberty.  Of course, if my goal for the year is to walk to Los Angeles, that would totally be heading the wrong direction.  J

Steps, superbowl and upcoming events

Well, I won last week’s step challenge…barely! These ladies are really “stepping up” their game.  And I had two days where steps weren’t quite to 10,000.  When you’re in a car for 7 hours it’s tough to get steps! So far for this week I’m in 3^rd place so I gotta get moving.  My 17,633 steps yesterday should’ve helped but I will have to keep my numbers high all week.  Only 3000 steps separate the three of us so it’s anybody’s game. 

Sunday night a bunch of our friends and kiddos came over to the watch the Superbowl.  Since that was a boring blowout we ended up talking in the dining room with the TV merely on for background noise. I had went to the gym in the morning because I knew it was going to be a crazy day. So thankful I did.  I barely cleared my 10,000 steps for the day.  And we spent part of our time walking back and forth in the kitchen to get our steps together.  Ha! I love my friends.  They are awesome.  Everyone else was looking at us like we were lunatics but, hey, that’s not breaking news at all.  Snacks and tempting food were abundant at the party.  I tried to be as good as I could but I did find myself grazing time and again.  Grr.  Although, it appears I could’ve just licked a salt block all night because man, was I swollen on Monday.  Still retaining some serious water today yet.  Yikes! At least all the birthday cake is finally out of the house! That should help.  Oh how I love me some Costco sheet cake.

I’m hoping the snow storm that has begun doesn’t end up cancelling pool class tonight.  Looking forward to some tabata in the pool and then kickboxing tabata when I get home.  A friend sent me an at home workout she tried that looks really interesting.  She did it up the ladder and back down.  1-12 and 12-1. Props to you, AW!! That’s awesome! I’m going to give it a try soon and thought I would share it in case anyone else is looking to shake things up a bit. 

Only 20 weeks until we go to Vegas and I will definitely be rocking a swimsuit at the pool at the end of June. Plus, my 20 year, no, that’s not a typo, my 20 year class reunion is this year as well.  Gulp.  When the hell did I get so old?  Anyway, two big events to keep me on track to my goals. Let’s shock the crap out of some people I haven’t seen in a while.  

A stellar week!

Our step competition has really got me focused and on the ball.  I love it.  I won this week’s challenge by logging 84,212 steps! That’s an average of 5.25 miles a day.  I had one day that I walked 8.12 miles.  Yes, I’m patting myself on the back a bit here but I’m really proud of myself.  It’s going in my victory journal.  Last week I walked a total of 36.78 miles.  If I average 35 miles a week that would be 1820 miles in a year and would definitely get me to Los Angeles (1700 miles away).  Hopefully each week I can get my mileage number to rise higher and higher.  Pair that with pool class and my tabata kick boxing and hooray for losing 5 pounds this week.  Wrestling will be done for the boys in March which means I will have my nights back to do my workouts instead of finding workouts to do while I wait for them to get done with practice.  Yippee!

I have a goal weight in mind by February 6^th and I’m working hard to get to it.  I have the magic number plastered in important places where I will see it constantly.  I’m not going to be obsessed or upset if I don’t hit it and spiral into a fit of depression but it would be a super cool milestone so I’m trying with all my might.  This weekend wasn’t easy. I was surrounded by temptation at every turn.  Pizza, breadsticks, wings, birthday cake galore…but I came through pretty well and just keep plugging away.  High protein, low carbs, wise choices, portion control.  All keys to success and part of my 2014 resolutions.  I hope your resolutions are still in play and you are working to make this a wonderful year.  And if you fell off the wagon, it’s ok.  Just climb back on.  Don’t wait until Monday or next month or the summer.  Do it now.  You will be glad you did.  Every day is a new chance.  

Fitbit Fun

Fitbit. I love it.  Let’s be honest, I’m a bit obsessed with my gadget.  I have been since the I got it a year and a half ago. It tracks my steps, flights of stairs climbed, sleep, calories burned and activity level. It has a barcode scanner to input food and the app is free, unlike bodybugg.  My ultra tracker is a bit battered and bruised and I’m hoping to upgrade to the Force model soon so I can wear it on my wrist instead of in my bra. 

The other day I got an email from Fitbit with a quick summary of my 2013 Fitbit activity.  It was kind of fun to see.  I walked 1270 miles which is longer than the Tigris River or the equivalent of walking from my house to Hartford, Connecticut. I’d say that’s some decent mileage.   As you can see below it also broke down my most active weekday (Mondays), my most active month (January) and my most active day of the year (August 26^th).  The month of November and Fridays were my least active.  Nothing earth shattering but kind of fun to see.  Maybe in 2014 I can walk my way back to Los Angeles (1700 miles).  So far I’m on track for a great year.  Last week alone I walked 35.77 miles.  That’s definitely upping my average.  I credit my increased steps/mileage to my step challenge I have going on with Melody and Kara.  Love those ladies and the way they inspire me.  I worked hard to win last week’s challenge and will continue to do so in upcoming weeks.   

Tabata

Have you heard of Tabata training? It’s not a new idea in the world of fitness but it’s new to me.  We’ve been doing it in pool class and I love it.  The Tabata workout only lasts four minutes per segment, but it is grueling! The structure of the program is: Workout hard for 20 seconds, rest for 10 seconds.  

Doesn’t sound bad, right? Except you do it for 8 rounds.  And then you start again with 8 rounds of a different exercise.  For example in pool class we do 20 seconds of push-throughs, jumping jacks or running (in the deep end of the pool).  Our 10 second “rest” is a flutter kick and then right back at it.  We do multiple sets of 8 with different exercises and rest movements each time.  It’s awesome.  When you’re sweating in the pool, you know that you are working it in a great way. I’ve heard they are starting to use the same theory in some of the spin and body pump classes too but I haven’t tried those lately.  For now I’m just enjoying having burning abs and legs every time I leave pool class. 

I’m closing the gap on Kara and Melody on steps.  I was nine shy of 16,000 on Monday night which was 7.5 miles according to my fitbit. Yesterday I had 12,300.  I’ve gotta keep busting my booty so that I can take the #1 spot this week.  Lyndee loves a little friendly competition!