Workout & Free Day for Me!

This week has been my favorite (and sorest!) week of working out with Amy. I am on Phase 3 and so I do varying activities for multiple muscles at once. My favorite new exercise is Kick-Boxing. I only did the punching part, but it was a GREAT way to release some tension!

Today is my free day and I am going to the Barnstormer's game tonight to cheer on some of our patients as they crush their opponents. We are going out to dinner before the game, so I am planning on have fajitas AND chips & salsa. And probably an adult drink at the game. (I can't go to a live sports event and drink water...) 

I've already got my jog in for the morning and I am up to 16 1/2 minutes of non-stop jogging. If I could run only downhill, I'd be set. I am very proud of myself for working really hard on my at-home workouts. I wouldn't have to go running--anything that is cardio counts, but I am super motivated right now to jog/run. And I like looking at how people have done their landscaping because I can get some good (or bad) ideas that way. 

My Goal---MEDITATION. MEDITATION. MEDITATION.

Week 1 Weigh In

I apologize for not getting this posted yesterday. I spent last evening doing my other passion, which was being a Doula for a fantastic mom-to-be. 

Ok...Week 1 was officially done and I had my weigh in at the office yesterday. While I don't necessarily have a weight loss goal and my main goal is to lose body fat and inches, my weight is definitely an indicator of both right now. 

In Week 1, I lost SEVEN (7!) pounds and I am thrilled! I am now down to Will's pre-baby weight. I know this week won't be as dramatic since I am eating a more balanced diet, but I  am still hoping to lose 1-2 pounds a week for the remainder of the program.

Week 2 is going great so far. I enjoyed some strawberries for dinner, Kashi Go Lean for breakfast, and a quick bite of a banana at breakfast (along with other things). It's so nice to be able to eat the foods my family is eating as well. It was hard to cook and prepare dinners last week where my guys got to eat something, and I had to say no.  In addition to eating a better variety of foods, my workouts with Amy got tougher as well. I know they are getting more challenging when I can no longer sing along to the music in the gym. I'm secretly wondering if that's how she knows to push me harder, or if that's her way of getting me to stop singing out loud!

I ate a salad at Palmer's Deli yesterday and had them check their dressings. As far as the label goes, the No-Fat Italian also had carbs within the limit--just watch your toppings. No croutons, roll, or Nieman Marcus cookie either! 

My Heart Beeps

Part of the requirements for participating in the 8WW program is using a heart rate monitor during workouts. I just got mine this morning and WOW! It really made a difference. 

I was walking/jogging with Barkley this week and thought I was getting a pretty good workout. I was wrong. Amy gave me my list of "target heart rates" for various parts of my workout so I know how hard I should be working. It turns out that I have to jog to get my heart rate up high enough to be burning fat.

What I most surprised was how much further I could run while doing an 8WW-style cardio workout. If I just set out jogging from my house, I would be keeled over & panting like a dog two blocks away. With this workout, I ran at least DOUBLE what I normally can and it felt great! The only down-side is that the monitor beeps loudly whenever it gets too high, which makes the neighbors laugh as I come beeping down the street. Oh well! I won't leave home without it again!

Cadio Companion

Today's biggest challenge was motivating myself to do 20-30 minutes of cardio. I purposely got dressed in my workout clothes so I would be more likely to get the exercising done for the day. It was a beautiful Iowa day with a pretty strong breeze, so it made sense for me to take our dog for a walk/jog.

Our 110 pound labradoodle, Barkley, has three speeds--Fast, Faster, and Off. Today's cardio consisted of Barkley walking so fast that I was practically jogging followed by me jogging and Barkley taking off in a sprint. We had to look silly because we didn't have any sort of pace for awhile. Combine that with his two favorite sports of worm hunting and goose chasing, and we had quite a workout!

Barkley After Swimming in the Pond Last Fall

Barkley's OFF Speed

Today's Highlights

• Accomplishing my workout!
• Not having to cook dinner (Panchero's salad with lettuce, grilled chicken, a little cheese, and salsa=YUM!)
• The Best--My ONE HOUR MASSAGE with Vanessa! I feel so relaxed! This is by far my favorite part of 8WW!

Today's Not as Great Highlights

• I am craving fruit. Actually, craving is an understatement. Our organic delivery brought the best looking apples, pears, bananas, and raspberries this week. (I snuck the raspberries into the freezer for next week, though!)
• I am getting pretty tired. I feel like I am losing energy but I've been told this will come back soon.

Teacher Jiggle

Did you ever have a teacher whose arms jiggled as they wrote on the chalkboard? That was one of my biggest fears when I was teaching! I taught 5th grade for the last 8 years and am now staying at home with our boys 5 days a week, and working at the office 2 days. (If you know of a good way to do three full time jobs in two office days, let me know!) 

I can safely say that after working my upper body so hard today with Amy that I should never have to worry about "teacher jiggle" again. It felt so good to be moving my muscles today (it's been a few months since I've worked out). One of my favorite parts about working out at Waukee Wellness is that I am not intimidated by the equipment at all. When I've worked out at the Y or Anytime Fitness, I am always too embarrassed to try the machines because I don't want to look like an idiot. Now that I know how the machines work, I will have more confidence in working out on my "off" days.

I am only a little bit sore tonight. Nothing a cup of hot tea and a hot shower can't fix! 

Lastly, my favorite food of today was my hard-boiled eggs. They are somewhat tasty, especially with mustard, but I loved that we dyed them first for our Easter Eggs. Just adding a little fun to an otherwise "boring" food! (Make sure you remember to buy WHITE eggs and not the organic brown ones like we did the first time!)