Welcoming 2013

Happy New Year! It's only noon on New Year's Eve, and I've been off from work for two weeks now hanging out with the kiddos on their Christmas break. It has been lovely, but I must prepare to go back on Wednesday. As I reflect on 2012, I have to say it was a really good year for my little family. It was the year I lost 46 pounds, after all :). I also managed to get my husband to take Crown Financial with me. My son blossomed in school, and my daughter found her sport (soccer). Despite all of the economic hardships going on all over the country, our family has (by the grace of God) managed to stay afloat and Corey and I have been blessed enough to keep our jobs. 

For 2013, my only resolution is to make my life more about HIM and less about me. As I began to lose weight, I grew in confidence, and I'd even go as far to say that I grew in selfishness. I became more concerned with the flesh than with the eternal. My hope is to return my focus to HIM but to maintain my physical accomplishments through working out and eating healthy. With that goal in mind, it would mean more time spent in God's word, more time passionately praying, more time spent teaching and talking to my children about God, more time at church, and less time engaging in distracting things like FACEBOOK :-P. I  am considering starting a devotional and keeping a blog to keep me in check throughout the year. The other thing  I'd like to work on is to explore my creative side again. I know it's in there; I used to be quite the artist, but my wonderfully chaotic life and career have smothered it into unconsciousness. 

My resolutions for my children are that they will keep their rooms clean and spend more time reading. I'm allowed to set resolutions for them, too, right? Well, those would be my suggestions to them. 

Anyone have fun plans for New Years? We're staying in, for the umpteenth year in a row, and my children have invited others over to spend the night and ring in the new year with us. My how times have changed since our college days :-P

New Testimony to Share :)

It's been awhile since I blogged! I've been maintaining my weight loss, and I've moved on to accomplishing other life goals. My husband and I started taking a course together back in September called Crown Financial Ministries. It is through our church. For those of you who are not familiar with Crown Financial, it is a bible-based course about handling your finances God's way. Going into the course, I already knew quite a bit about God's plan for our finances, because I read a book some years ago which was actually called 'God's Plan For Your Finances'. However, my practical application of God's plans for my finances had basically gone down the toilet. Though I've always been good with money (my father is a stock-broker, who always instilled the "pay yourself first" motto), I entered into a marriage with a shopaholic. After 12 years of marriage, I grew tired of butting heads and I think we've both kind of met somewhere in the middle with our attitudes about money. I went from being a complete tightwad to living this free-spirit, willy-nilly kind of lifestyle and very little regard to money. Since my husband and I both work, we check our balance frequently and it seems that there is always money there. We got into a really bad habit of spending it, though, before paying the bills :-0. Now I'm not a big spender, but I do buy my children whatever they need. And sometimes they 'need' things all at once, such as soccer dues (x2), uniforms, dance dues, lunch money, haircuts (x2), ... the list goes on and on, but you catch my drift. And another priority in our home is always groceries. I will say that I do and have always shopped at WalMart for groceries to save money, and I still believe that this is the most effective. I buy mostly WalMart brand products, which I find is cheaper than going to Kroger or Food Lion and using coupons. But our bills always came last. And when it was bill-time, we would get stuck picking and choosing (juggling) which ones to pay. We grew tired of living that way, because it was very stressful.
 
So... we made the decision to enter into this committment of taking the class together. I will admit that, at first, it was a bit of a pain... you know, ANOTHER thing we have to do during the week, another thing to add to our already over-loaded schedule.... And the homework for the class is no joke. You have to read the Bible, answer questions, and memorize Scripture. Most of the information started to come back to me as I began to do the work. What I had forgotten over the course of the past few years is that 100% of everything I have is GOD's and not mine. It's his money, and I am supposed to be a good steward of HIS money. Well, that was tough one to swallow, even though I'd heard it before, I'm not going to lie. I am also being very honest when I say that I've struggled with tithing throughout the years. I've done it inconsistently in the last year, even though I've experienced huge blessings from doing it consistently in the past. It's like that line in that Christian song, "I throw a 20 in the plate, but never give til it hurts" (Matthew West). After completing the lesson on tithing and giving, I felt really convicted to start tithing consistently again. As I said, I've done this in the past, and it was a real source of tension between my husband and I at the time. He has come a long way spiritually since then. So, with his blessing, I woke up that Monday morning (payday) and immediately got a money order for 10% of my income. My reason for getting a money order was so that I did not spend it and was not able to tear it up. I also wrote the name of the church on it so that I would not be able to cash it. I stuck it on our refrigerator for my husband and I to see and to pray about it.

Now I have to admit, I was not a happy camper. God says to give cheerfully, not begrudgingly. But I just kept looking at that money order, thinking, "that's grocery money", or "that would have paid such-n-such bill". I began to worry over it, which God says not to do. He wants us to trust Him. And to test Him. After taking that money out and setting it aside, I paid our bills like a responsible adult. The wee hours of the next morning, I was awakened by a bone-chilling nightmare about Satan. It was so real, and quite disturbing. As a matter of fact, it stuck with me for the entire day. The next day, we only had $66 left in our account. This was TWO days after I got paid! NOT COOL! I was used to having much more money (but what I didn't realize is that I was also used to not having the bills paid, either). That night, I went to my Crown Financial class and shared with my fellow classmates what I had done and how worried I was feeling. I told them about my nightmare, and they confirmed what I already thought; Satan was trying to attack me, because I was trying to obey the Lord. A classmate encouraged me to just Trust and Test the Lord, and that's what I decided to do. I figured, at least the bills are paid. We DO have money in savings, if I need to transfer that over to cover the low balance...

The following day, I had an appointment with one of my mentally ill clients. She happens to be bipolar and by far my most difficult client. I prayed in the car on the way to her house for God to give me the words and the wisdom to reach her that day. It ended up being one of the best sessions we have ever had. And i was able to reach my client with the gospel. I feel that that was God's blessing to me for being obedient to Him. This was Thursday, and we only had $46 left in our account. We had ourselves on a complete spending FREEZE. But I trusted God, and I also knew that my husband was getting paid the very next day, and we were going to be OK!

Now for the big praise report... Friday morning, I woke up and immediately checked our bank balance. I wanted to be SURE my husband's paycheck was in there! Imagine my surprise when I saw that there was nearly $6,000 in our checking account. Ok, so we went from $46 to $6,000 overnight?!?! I believe I started shaking, crying, and praising God so fast and hard some might say I was speaking in tongues . Not only had my husband gotten paid, he had also received a huge bonus. God knew that he needed to act, and fast... and that is exactly what He did. What is even more amazing is that my husband immediately agreed with me that this was an act of God and that we needed to tithe 10% of what He had provided for us.

My purpose of this story is not to be boastful or bragging, but to share that if you are faithful to the Lord, then He will be faithful to you. We put the bonus money into our savings account to help us pay for some major house repairs, nothing to be jealous of. We are just so thankful for the Lord's provision and His perfect timing. We continue to live paycheck to paycheck like most of the country. But I will tell you one thing, we will be tithing from now on, not to just receive blessings, but to give God a fraction of what is 100% His anyway, and to prove our faithfulness to Him. God is so good...

Super Excited!

I'm on my way to the gym, but just wanted to comment quickly that I found a box FULL of "skinny" clothes in my attic that I'd forgotten about (because it's been so long since I could wear any of them)! It was really exciting to go through them, because they're all super cute surf brands and I'm just so happy to have clothes that fit! THANK YOU, previously skinny self! That is all ;) 

122 pounds and STILL losing :)

Yes, I can disclose my weight now because I'm proud to be 122 pounds. I've never told my weight to anyone (other than my doctor, and against my will) I've lost 46 lbs, so you do the math. Let me just say, I'm enjoying this new, thinner me. I am now comfortable in a bikini and I wear them to the pool all the time! I've got a couple 'skinny' pics to post so you can see the results. I only wanted to get down to 125 lbs, but I'm still losing... I have a little flab here and there that I'd like to eliminate, so I guess I'll keep at it. Who knows, maybe I'll get down to 115...

 

40 lbs lost!

Hello all, the previous post, which I posted last night, was actually a draft from last week which wouldn't post for some odd reason. So it's now a week later, and I have to tell you... I am officially FORTY pounds lighter now than I was in January. I am only 4 lbs away from my ultimate goal, and honestly, I think I could stand to lose another 10 lbs. I now own 4 bikinis. Remember, I said I wanted my biggest problem to be, "What color bikini should I wear today?" I now own the hot pink one, a black one, a green and white polka dotted one, and  a reddish orange one with beading. Two of those are from many years ago; good thing I held onto them, huh?

I still struggle with self confidence while wearing them, though. It is like when obese ppl lose a bunch of weight and they still feel fat. I feel that way, not that I was ever really obese. I just struggle to feel comfortable in my new body. I think it's because I only see the 'trouble areas' and can't wrap my head around how much better I look than I used to. I need to think more positively. I'm also a very modest person, so I'm not one to strut around in a skimpy bikini. I sit in my chair at the pool as lonnnnnnnnnnnnng as I can stand it, and then I get up and jump in the water. Now that I've gotten a base tan and have had the bikini on a few times, I'm starting to feel a little more comfortable with the whole thing. It's just new. But exciting!

I worked out this morning- did my step aerobics class, and I'm about to go do some P90X Shoulders and Arms. One of my faves, because it's not too hard, but it really makes your arms look great! Also going to do Ab Ripper X, another one of my faves, because it's so short but so effective. Hope everyone else is doing well and enjoying their summer so far!

Skinny :)

Hello World! I have not had any time lately whatsoever to blog. I never posted about the final days of P90X, but I finished it up, and I've been enjoying my new body a LOT. I wore a bikini to the pool for the first time in 5 years... what a great feeling. Now i'm just trying to maintain my weight loss and I only have 5 lbs to go to get to the ultimate goal. 

Life has been extremely busy, like to the point that I can't catch my breath. Work is ever changing and I've been given a new case as well as a lot more paperwork to do. On top of that we had family visitors, my daughter's dance recital, and we adopted a new dog. Yes, I went for it! She is wonderfully sweet :) I am so worn out and ready for all the extracurricular activities to end so I can start to relax a little. I was literally grocery shopping in WalMart last night at 10:00 PM because it was the only time I had to do it. I had to shop for nearly 2 weeks worth of groceries, and we were out of EVERYTHING because I hadn't had time to go in so long. It was midnight by the time it was all said and done.

I don't remember life being this busy before, but I know it always has been. Well, maybe not quite this busy. 

This has been a nutty week. I've been working on arranging summer care for my children, something which is very important but very expensive. I am fortunate that I have a mother-in-law who lives right next door and only works part time. She watches them for free, and i just provide lunches and money for outings. I used to be able to be at home 2 days a week during the summer to take the kids to the pool, but my clientele and workload have both grown. Now I pay my friend Beth to keep them on those days, and her kids are my kids' best friends, so that works out great. I signed them up for VBS at our church and a week at an art day camp. They've been to both every year and love them. My work is also offering a summer camp which is pretty convenient because i can take them to work with me, have lunch with them, go on field trips with them, etc. Then there's my mom, who takes them for a couple different weeks each summer, to let them play and swim at Smith Mountain Lake. So, I guess I shouldn't be worried, because I seem to have a lot of different options. I shouldn't feel guilty, because they have a lot of fun. I do miss the days that I could stay at home with them. I did that while they were little and those days were precious, although financially difficult at times! I wish upon a star that I didn't have to be a working Mom, but that's just the way it is. It sucks to be smart sometimes. Stupid master's degree.

Hehe. Just kidding. I love my job, or at least I did love my job until very recently. I've been with the agency for a little over 3 years now, I just don't like change very much and kinda wish things would go back to the way they used to be when I worked 3 days a week as opposed to all the friggin time.

People just drain you, you know? Especially mentally ill people. And by that i don't necessarily mean the clients. Some of the agency staff are pretty mental, too. I hope they're not reading this. There are just a lot of different personalities and dynamics. The more I'm there, the more information I learn about others, and the less I want to know! I still mind my own business, do my job, and go home. Client work is actually my favorite. Today was a little rough, because my first appointment (new client) didn't want our time to end, or so it seemed. My second client was short and sweet. But then I had to take my third client to the doctor for a battery of tests because she's been very ill. COPD and a chain smoker-not good. That appointment ended up taking up hours of my time. Not that I mind, because she asks very little of me and gives a lot back in return, but it's just hard when you have a certain place to be at a certain time.

I know no one is reading this. It's just making me feel better to get my thoughts organized and out where I can see them. Things are a little jumbled up in my brain because there are so many different thoughts happening at the same time. 

Back to the topic of weight loss, I do feel awesome. I can tell that some of my muscle tone has faded, however, because I'm no longer doing the P90X workouts on a regular basis. I just haven't had much time for working out and so when i get to, I go to the gym and burn as many calories as I can that way. I'm doing great with my diet, and i think that's what is helping me to keep the weight down.

Good night world. I have to be up EARLY for another client visit, like super duper early, like I-never-get-up-this-early-for-anyone-but-I-will-for-you-this-once-since-you-are-a-new-client early!!!

P90X, Week 13, Days 1-4

P90X? What's that?! Nah, just kidding. I'm still alive and TRYING to stay on track, but I have gotten a bit distracted this week. I fell in love with a dog at the pound, and I'm in obsessed mode where all I can think about is this dog. She stood out to me because she looks like a blonde version of our Rottweiler Abby, who died in Sept. She was still at the pound as of 2:00 today, but someone else had an application to adopt her (which was approved), so I've been waiting it out to see if they're going to come get her or not. I don't want to get my hopes up too much.

So, I'm in the 13th and final week of P90X. This week is mostly about stretching and doing Yoga. I've been extremely lazy and when I have worked out, I've not stuck to the routine... I did step aerobics, Brazilian Butt Lift, Ab Ripper X, to name a few. I have also been on the eliptical. Anything to burn as many calories as I can in a short period of time. I'm just really over P90X, no offense to the company or to Tony Horton, or to anyone who loves the program, because it absolutely worked for me... but 13 weeks is a long time. I'm ready to move on and try other things. And I'll come back to the P90X videos now and again, working my favorites into my workout routine.  I miss going to the gym and being among my meathead people. i miss taking my headphones and watching movies and television while i burn close to 1000 calories.

That's about all the news. Hope everyone is doing great!

P90X, Week 12, Days 6 & 7

I wrote a really long blog earlier, but to my dismay, the computer cut itself off and I lost my entire entry. It does that sometimes :( Days 6 and 7 of Week 12 did happen, I just have been super busy and unable to blog about it. Day 7 was Rest and Stretch, so I opted for "Rest", but with this being dance recital weekend, I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off... not to mention everything else that has been going on lately, such as having a plumber come out for a major leak, having a new security system put into our house, and cleaning the whole house for my parents to come into town. The recital involved a long dress rehearsal Thurs night and 2 nights of back to back recitals. My daughter was in 5 numbers this year, and I was responsible for her 5 costumes, plus 5 more costumes for my best friend's daughter. My best friend was out of town on a business trip, so I offered to help out, not knowing what I was getting myself into... 2 girls, 10 costumes, five back to back dance numbers.... oh my. I am tired. I lost 3 pounds in 3 days due to all of the running around I had to do.

Week 13 should have started yesterday, but I am going to be getting a late start. I will hopefully get back on track tomorrow. I've lost 37 lbs since January 1, which is really hard for me to wrap my head around. I never knew I could lose that much weight, or that I needed to... I only have 6 more lbs to be at my goal weight. If I reach my goal weight, I'll re-evaluate my situation and see if I need to set a new goal. There are still some areas that I would like to work on.

Happy Mother's Day. Mine was very nice, with the recital and then church today with my mother. Both of my children sang today in church. Then my Mom took me out shopping for a new coffee pot--- mine has been broken for some time--- much to my surprise, she bought me a Keurig, which was pretty expensive. I've been wanting one for some time now, but never expected anyone to buy me one, especially not my mom, and especially not on Mother's Day! She also bought me a new clock for my kitchen and an oregano plant. I gave her a really cool, decorative hummingbird feeder. Hummingbirds are her favorite. I also got her some little Yankee candles. It was so nice just to see her and spend time with her on Mother's Day.  I feel very blessed to both have and be a mother. I couldn't ask for a better mom or for better children. I thank God for them every day.

P90X, Week 12, Day 5 (with the before and after pics everyone WANTS to see)

What a day! What a lonnnng day! Had I not laid in bed until 8:10 AM, I probably could've gotten up early and worked out, and then I could've gone to bed at a decent hour. Instead, I rushed to get the kids to school, rushed to get to work (no makeup on-had to apply that in the bathroom once I got there), work a full day there, rush to get back in time to get the kids from school, rush to fix supper, and rush to get the kids to church. My daughter has a speaking part in the upcoming musical, and she had to be there at 5 PM to rehearse for that. Then both of my children go to choir at 5:30 and then AWANA after that. I report to the church nursery at 5:30 and typically work with either the itty bitty babies or the 1 year olds. The 1 year olds are my favorite :) I get my baby fix, and then I get to give em back and go back to my life.

Wow, how'd I get so off track here... ok, so I got home from church around 9 PM, had to help my youngest with his homework, get them both showered and in pajamas, then put them to bed. THEN I finally got to work out. I opted for Plyometrics, which is a lot of jumping around. I gave it my all, except for the air guitar move, because that one has a very LOUD landing, and I didn't want to shake the whole house or make a lot of noise and wake up the kiddos. The workout was 60 minutes long and Tony Horton calls it "The Mother of all P90X workouts". It's actually NOT a part of the Lean Version of P90X, but I tried it a couple of weeks ago and discovered that it targets my butt, thighs, and legs, which is where I neeeed help. I was drenched in sweat afterwards, which is how I gauge a really good workout.

I got another compliment tonight. A friend told me I was looking really good. I love to receive compliments, especially after working so hard. There are days when I get so frustrated and just want to give up... but I have to remind myself of how far I've COME. Here are before and after pictures. No, I don't look perfect right now, but I've definitely made a lot of progress.

WEEK 1: Blue tankini, back view and front view:


Week 12: Hot pink string bikini, back view and front view.
Like I said, NOT perfect... definitely still some problem areas, but I can't let it get me down. I've come a long way :) I still have more work to do, but looking at these pictures does make me feel a little bit better about my little stomach pooch.

P90X, Week 12, Day 4

Okay, so Yoga X didn't happen, because now I have misplaced that disc as well :( grrr. But I did get up and go to my Step Aerobics class this morning and burned around 700 calories. I also lifted weights for about 30 minutes, walked with a client for about 20 minutes, and did Ab Ripper X. All total, I burned over 1000 calories again. I took some new bikini pictures tonight and I'm seeing my butt and thighs starting to get smaller; however, as I said last night, I need to crank up the cardio to get rid of the fat on the top of my belly and on my inner and outer thighs. I will try to post some pictures soon. I shared them with a couple of friends tonight and am getting more confident in doing so. 

P90X, Week 12, Day 3

Another P90X-less night. I tried to do my workout, which was Back & Biceps, but the DVD wouldn't work! It was the first time the program required me to do this workout, so I hadn't tried the disk out prior to tonight. I ended up going to the gym & burning over 1,000 calories doing cardio. I did the eliptical and the stationary bike again. The iPhone app that I use to track my calories says that I'll weigh 112 lbs in 5 weeks. Um, yeah right!!!!!

Skinny Girl :)

I had to take my son to Cub Scouts tonight, and TWO people called me "Skinny Girl". One was my friend Denise and the other was my friend Mike, both of whom go to my church and have sons in the same cub scout pack. And, of course, they are both Facebook friends, so they've seen my daily posts about doing P90X and could have just said it to be nice. My new nickname may not stick beyond, well.... tonight, but just hearing two people refer to ME as "Skinny Girl" has made me SO giddy, I can't begin to explain it! With that being said, it's time to go work out now :)

P90X, Week 12, Day 2

I probably shouldn't use P90X in the title of this entry, since I didn't actually DO P90X today. I was supposed to complete the Cardio X video, but it's lost somewhere... So, I went for a walk, then did the eliptical at the gym, and rode the exercise bike. I think I need to increase my cardio from this point on in order to get the last bit of fat off of my abs and lower body. I only have 20 days before the pool opens... 20 days!!! I've noticed a slight improvement in my lower body since I started using Brazil Butt Lift. I took comparison pics in my new bikini, and my butt is definitely firmer than it was before. So that's a good sign. My plan is to keep moving forward and finish up P90X, while cranking up the cardio, and then once I'm done (1 week 5 days), I will continue to crank up the cardio and get back to the gym 5-6 days/week. I've missed my meatheads.

P90X, Week 12, Day 1

Today is technically Week 12, Day 1, but I got off track there somewhere. I think it's because I skipped Rest and Stretch Day, which would've been yesterday. So, today I'm getting back on the schedule, and I did Ab Ripper X as well as Chest, Shoulders, and Triceps. I haven't done Chest/Shoulders/Triceps in awhile, and my strength and endurance were kind of poor. I did my best to "bring it", but I did feel a little weak. SO MANY PUSHUPS!

My lower body is sore from last night's workout, and I'm also sore in odd places, like my luv handles and my back. I'm not sure why that is, since I did Brazil Butt Lift and Kenpo X last night. Even though I've been working out the past couple of days, I still feel like a slacker for some reason; I guess because I've 'tweaked' the P90X program rather than follow it exactly. I have treid to focus more on lower body since I hadn't lost any inches or cellulite there. I feel kind of bad for straying from the program, and I hope I don't end up with poor results. I still have that little fat pooch that I can't get rid of, too. It's like a layer of fat over my abs that will not go away. I don't mean to complain. I've come a long way. And it probably doesn't help that my dinner tonight was a frosted donut from Dunkin Donuts. I had been doing pretty well with my nutrition, but my husband brought home a dozen donuts-all different and colorful- and I managed to stay away from them all day yesterday, but with it being 'that time', my body craved sweets today, and I HAD to have one!

Tomorrow's workout is Cardio X, and somewhere along the way, I've lost that DVD. I hope to find it tomorrow, but if I can't, I may go to the gym and burn a ton of calories on the eliptical. Or I may do plyometrics if I'm not too sore from yesterday's workouts.

P90X, Week 11, Days 6 & 7

First of all, let me just say... Rest in Peace, MCA from the Beastie Boys! How sad :( I grew up with the Beastie Boys, and was really into them in my high school years especially. I got to see them perform live nearly 4 years ago at a Rock the Vote concert, where they played with Sheryl Crow, Jack Johnson, Norah Jones, among others. It was awesome seeing them live. So, though I've outgrown some of their more outrageous lyrics, the MUSIC itself is still awesome. I always loved their instrumental stuff especially. I've moved on to Christian rock music, which glorifies God (can't really say that about the Beastie Boys), but there is still a part of me that totally digs the Beastie Boys. They were the first white boy rappers, c'mon now. And they were a bit punk rock too. I always had the biggest crush on Ad Rock. MCA was the taller, goofy looking one, but he had the best voice. It was low and cool and even.

With that being said, since I have slacked off the past couple of days, I tried to get a lot of exercise in today, which was supposed to be my "Rest and Stretch" day. I came home and went for a run after work. I was only able to run for about 20 minutes while the kids' dinner was cooking. Then I popped in Kenpo X because I wanted to do some cardio, but I wanted it to be FUN. After that, I did Brazil Butt Lift, the bum bum workout, which I find to be very difficult. I notice that I'm getting better with practice; however, I was drenched in sweat after 30 minutes (when it was over). I burned nearly 1100 calories doing all of that. I feel energized now, like I can do even more exercise, but the fam and I are going to wach "How to Train Your Dragon" in 3-D on our new TV! Whoop, whoop! I lost another pound this morning, and I'm down 17 lbs with P90X, for a total of 33 lbs since December. It is hard for me to believe that I let myself get that big. I would still like to lose around 10 more pounds from the butt/thighs/lower abdominal areas, which is why I'm doing Brazil Butt Lift in place of some of my workouts.

I had a meeting at work this morning and Corey did too. We were a little worried about his meeting, because his company has been sending sort of gloomy emails out about how the company is hurting financially. He had to account for all of his sales or lack thereof, and I admit, I was nervous for him. We've been through a layoff before, and it was stressful, even though he was able to find another job quickly. There's the whole process of getting different insurance, waiting on the first payday, and for him- learning a whole new job and fitting into a whole new company. But I prayed about this meeting last night and again this morning, and it turns out that it went very well. In fact, he said it went "Excellent". As did my own meeting. I was told that I am a LEADER due to my ethics, morals, and values. I was taken back by that a little bit, because I have never considered myself a leader, nor have I ever wanted to be one. Not that I wanted to be a follower, either, but a leader? Me?  I have always been extremely shy and soft spoken, but I find myself growing and changing the older I get. I seem to be becoming more outcoming and more comfortable in social situations. It's a good feeling. My point is that, God came through for us once again. Here I thought he'd lose his job, but his meeting went very well, and he is still employed. And I was praised for a job well done. I'm glad it's Friday and I'm gonna go hop in the shower now and spend quality time with the family :) Good night.

SLACKER!

Ok, so I've really slacked off for the past 2 days as far as exercise. I've been devoting most of my time to work- just the past 2 days, though. I needed to get my hours up. I worked about 14 hours today, between seeing my clients, doing my administrative work, and then doing paperwork at home. Last night, I worked all day, then went straight to my job at my church (working with 1 year olds :), which I love!). But once I got home last night, I literally just CRASHED. I fell asleep for about an hour, woke up, put the kids to bed, went back to sleep for a couple more hours, woke up again, piddled around, and then was out for the rest of the night. I don't want to get into TMI but it is 'that time' for me, and I think my body is just flat out exhausted. So no exercise for me last night, and only a short round of yoga for me tonight. I am wiped out and I have an early training in the morning because I'm taking on even more supervisory tasks at work. Work is still going well; I just hate it that one of my coworkers put in her notice a couple days ago- she is such an asset to the company and we've become good friends. I know that once she leaves, we can keep in touch, but it won't be the same. She is moving on to bigger and better things. Good for her. I'm content where I am for the moment, and the other 2 employers I was considering (in the back of my mind) have since closed their doors, so I'm happy to have a job. I absolutely LOVE my clients. Not many people can say that they love their jobs, but I can. My clients are what really makes it wonderful and worthwhile. The admin stuff- not so much. I was telling a coworker this, and he replied, "You showed them too many of your talents, Beth". I guess this is true... I wrote good notes and reports, they took notice, and put me in a writing role. That ended up earning me more $$$ but losing time for additional clients. Now I'm stuck in the office 3 days a week. Boo. There are so many different personalities I have to work with, too. I try to be nice to everyone and have a good rapport with them, but yesterday my supervisor (that's what I call her, though I've been told not to call her that... but that's really what she is... confusing, huh) told me that I'm too friendly with other counselors when i have to call them for information regarding PAs (which is what I write). This was coming from someone who does not have good rapport with quite a few people. I told her I was sorry she felt that way, but that I have good working relationships with everyone and this is how we communicate. Good grief... I can't stand being micromanaged like that. Too friendly, eh? It gets the job done, doesn't it? People appreciate someone NICE calling them for a change. I give a lot of praise, too, because people love that; it makes them feel good. Everyone loves a little ego stroking. A little bit of praise goes a long way. Whatever, "supervisor". Pfffft. :P

P90X, Week 11, Day 4

Hello! It has been a great day! I started my morning with my 60 minute step aerobic class, which is always a lot of fun. It was especially hard today, maybe because it was so warm outside today, and I got really hot really fast. I burned around 600 calories in the class. Then I came home and took the dog for a walk for about 30 minutes, which burned another 100 calories. Tonight was my night to do Yoga X; however, since it is 90 minutes long and I have a lot of paperwork to get done (plus showering 2 children/putting them to bed), I opted for Ab Ripper X, which is 16 minutes long and burns more calories than Yoga X. I will probably try to do Yoga X tomorrow, because my legs are already extremely sore from last night and today, and Yoga really helps. I'm always the 'sorest' on the second day, which will be tomorrow.

I... uh... went shopping again. I know, I KNOW! I went to Marshall's again, and I bought myself some workout clothes. This was following feeling overheated in Step class, mind you. I decided I needed some shorts and tank tops as opposed to t-shirts and workout pants. Problem is, the selection was so good, it was tough to narrow it down. I ended up getting 2 very cute workout tops and 3 black bottoms- one is a pair of running shorts, one is capri-length workout pants, and the other are knee length. I have buyer's remorse, but I only paid around $70 for all of that. I won't mention yesterday's purchases again :/ But that is IT for awhile- or at least until my next payday. It is just so much fun to buy new clothes once you lose weight.

This is a terrible picture, & yes it is sideways...but here is one of my new workout tops, worn with the knee length black pants I also purchased:  As you can see, I'm gonna need em... I still have quite a booty on me!

P90X, Week 11, Day 3 (substituted with Brazil Butt Lift)

I can't believe I survived two back to back Brazil Butt workouts. I had intended to do Ab Ripper X and ONE Brazil Butt workout. Unbeknownst to me, however, the first workout (called "Bum Bum Rapido") is only 10 minutes long. So I decided to do the next workout after that one as well, which was about 30 minutes long. I do not think that these workouts were nearly as difficult as the Bum Bum workout; however, I was covered in sweat head to toe when I finished, and I felt the burn in all the right places.

Exciting news.... my friend just sold me a TV/VCR/DVD combo which my husband REALLY didn't want me to get, because it's one of those big bulky box TV's... but I'm so psyched, because about a month ago I cleaned out my VHS tapes and found a ton of workout tapes that I forgot I even had. I'm going to do some Vintage workouts in the near future. lol. My VCR has been broken for years (thanks, kids) and I still have the entire Buns of Steel set, unopened. I bought the set at Big Lots about 10 years ago for around 50 cents per tape. Even then they were outdated! I was telling another friend of mine about it, and she was jealous, because she used to own Buns of Steel and said it had been taken off the market because people kept falling during one particular move. Then she saw it being used on "The Biggest Loser", which is as we know, a popular modern day weight loss show. I bet it sounds silly that I'm excited over a VCR, huh... Well, in addition to the Buns of Steel, I have some other workout videos like pilates, Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, among others.

Other exciting news... I got to go shopping again today. It's payday. I believe I have become a shopaholic. But it's SO FUN to buy smaller sizes and to try on clothes. When I look in the mirror, I still feel fat, but the clothes make me feel better once I put them on. Today I bought a cute orange'ish top and a long white hippie skirt. I can wear it to work and/or church and/or wherever.

Even more exciting news... My husband bought a new TV. It's a new chapter in our lives.. I remember the last time we purchased a family TV; It was right after Dylan was born, and it just kind of 'showed up' in my house. It was a 55 inch, Mitsubishi rear projection HDTV 1080. In other words, it was this humongous rectangular BOX with a speaker. I was NOT happy, because it was an expensive purchase and I was a stay at home mom, which means we had no money. He financed it, which made it even worse. I ended up paying the thing off with my short term disability check from work (I worked up until Dylan was born), and from then on I've referred to it as "MY" TV. Now we're tossing it aside. It's gotten old and none of the inputs work except for the digital cable, which means that you can't play video games or watch movies on it. It's also slow to start up sometimes. It's time :( So, we took our tax refund money and got a new TV. It's exciting, like having a new family member. I haven't had much time to check it out due to the above mentioned workouts, but it's a 3D Plasma Smart TV and it's like 100 inches or something... No, I'm exaggerating, but the thing is huge. I'm not even sure how many inches it is. I just asked my husband- it's 64 inches. He would know! It's like a giant computer... I mean, you can do anything on it. I just hope it lasts longer than the other TV did... Remember the olden days when the TVs lasted 20+ years?
With that being said, we are also getting our home alarm system updated. lol.
So, that's all the news... 2 new TVS... one super cool high tech one, and one super cool dinosaur age one, that I can watch Buns of Steel on. How ironic that seems.

P90X, Week 11, Day 2

Tonight, I did Shoulders and Arms again, and I am planning on doing Brazil Butt Lift, though I'm resting at the moment. It's getting late, and tomorrow is Monday. Eesh. I have paperwork to do as well. 2 things: I BROUGHT it tonight, and 2. My shoulders and arms are looking nice!

P90X, Week 11, Day 1

Okay, so I cleaned all day yesterday and missed Day 1 of Week 11. I'm not happy with myself, but I did have a good excuse: my sister in law came to visit! We had a great time. Today I'm getting back on track, and went to the gym earlier and burned 638 calories on the eliptical machine. Just finished Ab Ripper X as well, and that burns over 300 calories in just 15 minutes. My abs are coming right along :) Today I realized that I actually have 3 weeks left, not 2, because there is a week 13. In a way, it's a bummer, but in another wayit's a relief, because it gives me an extra week to get the pounds off. I didn't want to finish up feeling too disappointed.

It's really late, but I am thinking about doing the back, shoulder, & arms video also. That was what I was supposed to do for Week 11, Day 1, but I did the cardio to kind of make up for yesterday. Plus I just did my arms 2 days ago.  I need to have nice arms/shoulders for the dress I'm wearing to my friends' wedding in September. I will try to find a pic and post it later.

So, ppl are finally starting to notice I've lost weight. Today, a friend who didn't know I was dieting/exercising and isn't on facebook to see my daily updates, commented that I'd lost a lot of weight. She said, "What's your secret?" and I said, "Counting calories and working out every day". She replied, "Oh :( Don't you have any other secrets?" lol

P90X, Week 10, Day 7. JUST TWO MORE WEEKS!

So, today is Rest and Stretch Day! Unfortunately, I didn't really get to do either. I cleared my schedule so that I could work on cleaning my entire house, because my sister in law is coming to visit tomorrow. I'm super excited she's coming (she's never been here overnight), and I want my house to be presentable. As a full time working mama of 2 busy, busy kids, my house looks like a hoarder house about 85% of the time. Not only do I not have time to clean, I absolutely HATE to clean! It's something I really struggle with, and it's the only complaint my husband has about being married to me. I have suggested hiring a maid; I mean, c'mon, I am bringing home quite a lot of bacon, I deserve a break, too. But cleaning ladies are expensive, and my husband doesn't understand my need for one. "This is a very small house", he says, "It should be easy to keep clean". Well, he's right. But it's just not my strength, ya'll. I was trying to think about what my strengths are today, and sadly, I don't have many. lol. I'm good at writing, I'm good at mothering (not perfect, but good), and I'm really good at making money. I do not mean to sound like I'm bragging in any way by saying that; I just have this knack for landing good jobs, making good money, and also saving/investing/etc. Too bad I also really love to shop. I truely wish I had other talents besides making money. Like being clean & organized. Oh yeah~ I'm a GREAT cook, when I have time to actually cook! Lately it's been hard to even find the time to buy groceries TO cook.

Ok, enough complaining. I really went on a tangent there. My point is that I exercised by cleaning. I also did some calisthenics at home; some abs exercises, leg lifts, butt lifts, etc... that I just kind of made up on my own, to target my "problem areas". I only have 2 weeks left, and I don't mean to be negative, but I know I won't be where I want to be by then. I am still trying to decide what I will be doing next. Possibly Insanity, possibly just cranking up the cardio and using kettlebells, and possibly trying to run every morning. The third option makes me cringe, because I hate, hate, hate running with a passion. I just know that I need to tone up my upper thighs and my butt. And I still have my love handles to work on, too. 

I have to say, I have given this P90X program a good try. I wouldn't say I have given it 100%, but possibly 95%. I lost another lb today, so that's 15 lbs total doing P90X, and 32 overall since January. My clothes are all falling off of me, and I'm getting lots of compliments. I really cannot complain about it, you know? So what if I still have a little chub; I've still got a month to work on it before the pool opens, and 3 months to work on it before our family beach vacation. I know I can do this!!!

P90X, Week 10, Day 6

Today's workouts were Ab Ripper X and Shoulders and Arms. I had to wait until after 9:00 PM to start them, due to my long work day (day job + church job). I have to say, there are only a couple of workouts in the P90X program that make me feel like a complete bada$$, and Shoulders and Arms is one of them. I've definitely gotten stronger. I made it through the bonus round. Ab Ripper X was the same as always, 16 minutes of excruciating pain, but it's working... No pain, no gain, right?? My waist is sooo much smaller now; I just wish the flab on the front side would GO AWAY. I don't know much more that I can do other than to just step up the cardio.

Well, tomorrow is rest and stretch day, so as of tomorrow, I will be done with week 10. That means I only have 2 weeks left. I do not look like the people on the box OR in the videos, but I do look a lot better than I did 10 weeks ago :)

P90X, Week 10, Day 5

Well..... today I got up early and went to my Step Aerobics class, which was soo much fun. I was bouncing around so much and it's such a great feeling to look in the mirror and see my shirt gaping off of me where my big stomach used to be ;) Step Aerobics was an hour long, and I felt really energized afterwards. I wanted to keep working out, but I had to come home, shower, and go see my clients. I am about to do my shoulders and arms now. I am actually supposed to do Core Synergistics; however, my legs are pretty sore from Plyo, Yoga, and Step Aerobics, that I am going to let them rest for tonight. Core Synergistics involves quite a bit of legwork. Tonight I'll be focusing on upper body. Lemme go do that and I'll blog more once I'm done!

Sad :(

Lately, there has been an awful lot of drama in my life, and it's taken an emotional toll on me. I have always been a very introverted, quiet person, and I mostly stay to myself. A few months ago, someone started working with me at our church (I only work 1 night a week), and with her she brought a lot of drama. I thought she was super nice and I enjoyed working with her. Then, slowly, I started noticing that she was becoming closely intertwined into the lives of my coworkers at church. People there were having personal issues, as people do, and it just seemed as though she was very wrapped up into everyone else's lives. She appeared to be trying to help them in their different situations, yet she shared a lot of personal information about these people with me (and who knows who else). I kept quiet about it for a long time. Then, about a month ago, she let something very personal slip out about a coworker's child. This particular coworker was gesturing a finger gun to her head that night and was visibly upset. I approached said coworker after work hours to see if she was ok. We have been friends for 4 years now, after all. In doing so, I created a bit of a mess, because the coworker got upset with the person who told the "secret". I didn't realize it was a "secret" because she shared it with me and two other people who were in the room at that time. I honestly thought it was common knowledge at that point. Apparently the coworker got mad at the blabber, and told her off. I received a message from the one who blabbed, saying she thought she could trust me and talk to me safely. I apologized about 3x (via text message through a game we were playing), but she deleted me from the game and then from Facebook. That hurt me. I became angry and stayed upset for about 2 days. I talked with my coworker (the one whose son was talked about) and she said she was ok and to let the whole thing go. So I tried. 
Then I started thinking.... a lot... about all the things this person had shared with me about the coworker, and it upset me because I had been in the middle of this awkward situation for months and months. The person had been acting like the coworker's friend but blabbing all kinds of confidential information about the coworker's life to us. I became angry, and with some pushing from the coworker, I did reveal some of the things that the woman said about her. MY BAD. Well, since then, the coworker and I have been friends, and the person has not been back in the nursery working with us anymore. However, they've remained friends as well, and I'm cool with that. 

FRIDAY night, I took said coworker to a women's retreat held by my church. I sat next to another friend there who immediately got up in my face about the whole situation. I am guessing the Blabber must have told her this information. I was so upset, because all of this had happened over a month ago, and I'd really tried to let it go. I just wanted to go to this retreat and have a good time, and I brought said coworker there to have a nice time and thought it might influence her in a positive way. The in-my-face-friend basically accused me of being the problem, and said that as a Christian I should have confronted the Blabber and made peace with her. I explained that I tried to do that at first by apologizing 3 times, even though I did nothing wrong...This friend told me that Blabber had been talking about me and this friend remained up in my face, and made me feel really uncomfortable. no matter how much I tried to back away. What I really wanted to say is, it's none of your business, and get out of my face. Sidenote- the in my face friend happens to be a HUGE gossip, and no one really likes her for that reason. I just tend to root for the underdog and embrace the ppl no one else likes. l.ol. Maybe I need to stop doing that. I told her it had been dealt with and to let it go.

Today, I got a call from the staff at church wanting to bring me into a meeting with the Blabber and her husband (who I've never met before in my life; whats' that about?) I told her I would meet with the Blabber but that I didn't feel it was necessary to meet with her husband because he was not involved in any way; that would be like me bringing MY husband into this. I really feel this woman thrives on drama, and wants to involve as many people as possible. Apparently the Blabber now says that I have breached confidentiality within the church because my coworker was her family's "outreach project" (apparently so are all the other coworkers) and she is upset that I went back and told her all the nasty things she said about her. So why did she act like a friend to this girl's face, then talk smack about her behind her back & tell us all that she was being intimidated by her? I'm very confused.

So, my husband came home, and I told him the latest... that I have a lynching scheduled tomorrow with our 2 childrens church staff and with Blabber and her husband. He said, "I wouldn't do it", which is the same thing my friend Susan said to me. I contacted the staff member who called me, and I said, "My husband doesn't want me to do this", and she said, "That's fine, we can cancel the meeting if you want, but I encourage you to resolve this now". I am really unsure what to do. I can't deny that I did get angry and shared with my coworker what the Blabber said, but that was after Blabber didn't accept my apology and deleted me from facebook. I don't know why I was so hurt by that, but I was! So, I need to let her know what I'm going to do by tonight... Should I meet with them and say my peace? I'll admit that I made a mistake by getting angry and sharing the other things that Blabber said, but that I didn't realize my coworker (aka my friend) was her personal "outreach project". I never got the whole picture on that. I just thought she was a new lady stirring up some drama. 

I'm sure that was really hard to follow! Characters for this story are 1. Blabber-new lady that started working with us about 6 months ago, 2. Coworker- a girl I've worked with for 4 years now and never had a problem with until Blabber came into the picture, and 3. In-my-face-friend- I've been friends w/ her for several years now but she's got a reputation for being a gossip and no one likes her. She has ticked me off in the past, I confronted her about it, and we made up and moved on. She has "no couth" as people say.
As a Christian, I feel as though I did the right thing in the beginning by apologizing. But I know I didn't do the right thing acting out of anger and discussing the other things that were shared. I have different positions on this. First, the coworker is my friend, and I usually do tell my friends when ppl are saying unkind things about them. Second, I'm a counselor for a living- Coworker came to me for help and advice, and much of the info shared came out in a conversation between us in which she assured me she wouldn't blab to blabber. But she got angry and cussed Blabber out. Third, Blabber has never shared with me what her relationship was with my coworker. Had someone filled me in that she was trying to do an outreach, I might've better understood. I was never let in on what was going on. I thought she was being a friend to her face, but talking about her behind her back.

I am so unsure as to what to do and I've been praying about it. God knows my heart, and that I would not hurt anyone purposely. Any suggestions are welcome. 

P90X, Week 10, Day 4

I feel like I'm finally starting to get back on track with my dieting and exercise. I had a rough time adjusting from spring break and then the week following. This week, I'm off to a good start. Today's workout was Yoga X. While I normally dread Yoga X because it takes up 90 minutes of my day, I actually really enjoyed it tonight. My body was a little sore from Plyometrics last night; a little, not a lot, but the stretching really helped. I haven't done Yoga X in a while, especially not with full focus and energy. It left me feeling pretty great. My husband sat and watched me do most of it, which was a little awkward, but he was also on his laptop, and so I just pretended he wasn't there. He's been interested in trying Yoga, too, for his back problems. 


Now that I am back on track, I feel better. I want to stay on track for the next 2 weeks and 3 days. I also want to decide on my next exercise program. I will want to start another program right away to continue the progress I have already made. I might keep some of the P90X workouts in my program, such as Plyometrics and Kenpo X. However, I might search for a shorter (60 minute) yoga DVD. I think what I really need to focus on when I finish P90X is cardio so that I can lose the rest of this hard to reach flab. 


Tomorrow morning is my Step Aerobic class, and I'm excited about that. It's such a fun way to burn up a whole bunch of calories. 


I see that no one reads these blogs, but if anyone ever does, see you tomorrow ;)

P90X, Week TEN, Days 1, 2, & 3 !!!

Wow, I have been really bad about blogging! I just finished doing Plyometrics and Ab Ripper X. Plyometrics wasn't as hard for me this time around, because I did not combine it with Brazil Butt Lift. I learned my lesson the last time. Yesterday I did Kenpo Karate and took a long walk. The day before that was Rest and Stretch, and I opted to rest. I have gone wayyyyyyy over my calories this weekend. I've been faced with a lot of temptations. Obviously, I have given into those temptations or else I wouldn't have consumed so many calories :0 I have not been very proud of myself for this week or last week. I am looking into things to do following P90X, and a friend told me about Kettlebell training, which burns 1200 calories per hour! I am going to Target now and will price them.

One tidbit of good news.... I went shopping yesterday and bought around $100 in clothes... EVERYTHING was a size small! The dress I bought is a small, and it's almost too big~ I also got a black bikini, and a top and skirt (which I'm wearing to work tomorow). Though I still have a lot more work to do to get rid of this last bit of fat on my body, I am estatic to be fitting into small clothes and it makes shopping so much more fun!!!

P90X, Week 9, Day 7

REST & STRETCH DAY!!!!

P90X, Week 9, Day 6

Today's workout was Yoga X, which is 90 full minutes of yoga. It felt good to stretch out my sore muscles, though I have to admit that 90 minutes is a VERY long time, and time is very precious to me. In addition, I did another Ab Ripper X. I'm still working on the little pooch area on my belly. It doesn't seem to be going anywhere :( My legs were sore today, but probably not nearly as sore as they would have been had I not had a massage last night. I'm feeling very relaxed-exhausted actually- and need to get to bed. Good night!

P90X, Week 9, Day 5

Whoa. Burned a ton of calories today and am INCREDIBLY sore from yesterday's workout... sore in allll the right places! I still went to step aerobics, and I burned around 600 calories there. I walked the dog on my lunch break for 50 minutes and burned about 200 calories there. Then I came home after work and did the P90X Shoulders and Arms DVD. I just finished that up, and that burned around (I'm guessing) 185 calories. So, that's not a bad burn for today. However, I'm still so incredibly sore that I'm taking my friend up on an offer for a free massage. She is in massage therapy school. It is my leg muscles and my glutes, though I wouldn't ask anyone for a butt massage. Just quadriceps and hamstrings, and actually she said she'd do a "full body recovery massage", so that sounds good to me! I'm going to go eat my dinner and get a shower so I can go have a nice, relaxing massage!

Make Up Day :)

Well, today is a new day, and I'm using it to get caught up on my exercise. I will not give today a number, simply because I don't have to :P Tomorrow I will proceed with Day 5 of Week 9. I just finished doing Brazilian Butt Lift (Bum Bum), which kicked my BUTT, pun intended. I had to stop and rest quite often. It's very fast paced. Now I am debating on whether I should do Ab Ripper X next or do my Cardio workout. I plan to do both. I think I'll do Ab Ripper X first and get that one out of the way, because my hubby and kids will be home soon. I'll do Cardio X when the hubby leaves to go to the gym. Sorry, I'm thinking out loud here. I will post later.


...Later... Just finished Ab Ripper X.... 16 minutes of excruciating pain. LOL. But WELL worth it. My abs have improved so much with P90X.


I am trying to psych myself up for 1 more workout tonight... Thought about doing Plyo earlier, which I've never done while doing the Lean Version of P90X, but I heard that it is the best one of all. It involves a lot of jumping. I put it in earlier right after I ate dinner, and then Tony Horton said, "Don't eat for at least one hour prior to doing this workout", so that's when I cut it off and did Brazilian Butt Lift.


So once I'm done with my next workout, whatever that shall be, I'll post about it here. See you soon.

...Later, again... I just completed half of the Plyometrics DVD. I would  have finished it, but it is now 9:49 at night and I've been working out since about 7 PM. I need a break! I also have my high impact step aerobics class in the morning, so I don't want to overdo it. I probably just burned close to 400 calories doing Plyo, plus another 300 with Ab Ripper X, and 300 with Brazilian Butt Lift. Those are guestimates, but 1000 calories sounds about reasonable for the energy I just exerted, not to mention the sweat!
I'll sleep good tonight. See ya tomorrow.

P90X, Week 9, Day 4 Never Happened :(

Being out of town the past few days has taken its toll on my P90X workouts. I've slacked off due to time constraints. I started off strong in the early part of the week, but went downhill from there. It's tough when you haven't seen people for so long; you don't want to miss out on your time with them to go work out. I got home yesterday evening, and I fixed dinner for my family. From there, I had to do some paperwork and by the time I finished it, it was very late, and I did not feel like working out. I'm not sure if I should re-do week 9 in its entirety (my workouts were pretty shaky the past 3 days), or if I should just persevere, and make up for it the next 3 days. I can substitute my rest day with a ton of exercise. Any opinions are welcome.

P90X, Week 9, Day 3

I'm still out of town visiting my family and friends, so tonight I opted for a workout that did not require any equipment and didn't take as long as some of the others. I opted for Brazilian Butt Lift and P90X's Ab Ripper X. I figured I'd work the areas that need the most work since I did my upper body last night. I had a great workout and have stayed within my calorie limit over the past 3 days that I've been out of town. When I get home tomorrow, I hope to get on a more stable schedule with my workouts. I have done as best as I can with maintaining my workouts/diet while out of town. It is not the easiest thing in the world to do. I have been faced with many temptations. Luckily I had some calories left over at my mom's, and I was able to have an ice cream cone for dessert! 1/2 cup of ice cream was 120 calories, and the cone was only 20! I love it when I get to have a sweet treat that doesn't destroy my diet. Well, I'm off to hang out with my mom now; I don't get to see her very often, so I'll catch up with ya tomorrow.

P90X, Week 9, Day 1 & 2

I'm out of town visiting family and friends, but I brought my P90X with me. Last night I substituted Cardio X with Richard Simmons "Disco Sweat" because my friend Sally rented it from the library. She did it as a joke, of course, but do not think we didn't pop it in the DVD player and do it! Freakin hilarious. I don't think I got the best workout, but I needed the laugh. My kids joined in, and Sally (who just had a baby) said she could feel 'the burn'. Tonight's workout was Chest/Shoulders/Triceps, which I did very late, because I'm now at my brother's house. I did it, nevertheless. It's been hard traveling and having to rely on others to cook for me. Lucky for me, I use My Fitness Pal to track my calories, and that helps me to make good choices.

P90X, Week 8, Day 7

TODAY'S WORKOUT WAS REST & STRETCH. AHHHHH.

P90X, Week 8, Day 6 (Happy 30 lb weight loss to me!)

I've been so slack about posting during Spring Break. Last night, it got late, and I knew I needed to post, but my husband was using one computer and my kiddos were on the other. We have a third computer which is a "dinosaur" because it's so old. We haven't turned it on in 3 months since we got the laptops. But I was freshly showered, curled up in a cozy blanket on the couch, and watching a TV show, anyway. So yesterday's workout was Yoga X. 90 minutes long. It is really hard for me to find 90 minutes of the day to do yoga. I would love this workout if it was maybe 60 minutes long as opposed to 90. So, I got Yoga X out of the way in the morning, and I exercised more throughout the day. I took the dog for a walk for 45 minutes, and then I got on the eliptical machine at the gym last night and burned over 700 calories. With it being spring break, I've been sleeping in really late, and I totally missed my Step Aerobics class, which I am still bummed about. Oh well. I've managed to lose 2 lbs this week, which makes a total of 30 lbs lost since December! 13 of those pounds were lost using P90X and by counting calories. As I already mentioned, I'm down a dress/pants size, and I've lost about 2 inches in my neck, 2.5 inches in my waist, and 3 inches in my hips since I started P90X back in February. Exciting, but I still have more work to do. I need to lose around 10-15 more lbs and tone certain areas. The diet part has become like second nature to me; it's a breeze. Finding time to exercise has been the hard part, hence all of the late night workouts. 

P90X, Week 8, Day 5 (& an Easter picture :)

Whew, another late-night workout. Oh well, you do what you have to do! Tonight's workout was Cardio X, and though I'm covered in sweat, it felt like a breeze for some reason. Probably because I had a protein shake with dinner, which gives me extra energy and endurance.

Today was an interesting day. First of all, it was Spring Break. I was up so late last night, and my husband got me up around 6 AM to pack his lunch. Afterwards, I laid back down and the next thing I knew, I was waking up at 11:15 AM! My children were both awake and playing video games. MOTHER OF THE YEAR, right here! I have to admit, the extra sleep was nice. I never get to sleep in between work and the kids' soccer games and ballet lessons.

So, I had to take my daughter to the doctor for a persistant sore throat, and once that was over with, I decided to take them to the big McDonald's with the cool playground. On our way into the restaurant, we yielded to cars exiting the drive thru line in order to get into the front door. One car acted like it was stopping, so I grabbed my kids' hands and proceeded to walk forward. Then the car SPED UP and actually tried to hit us! I was griping and pushing my children in front of me out of harm's way. Once we reached the sidewalk, the car honked the horn shortly at us, and an old man popped his head out of the window. He said, "Come here, lady", to which I replied, "I don't think so". I could see he was an elderly man with a Handicapped sticker on his car, and he was enjoying a big vanilla ice cream cone in his 1970's car. He then stated, "I was just going to give you these coupons to Burger King, you stupid idiot". I think my jaw hit the sidewalk. Honestly, it was the highlight of my day though. I have been chuckling about it ever since. What a crabby old man. Hindsight is 20/20 as I think of all the unkind comebacks I could have said to him... but didn't.

So, from there we rented free movies from the library and came home. The kids watched a movie while I did some light cleaning around the house. I fixed supper and went to work around 6:00 just to see a client. Then I came home and hung out with my husband and children. That's when my husband informed me that he has a stalker. He takes some of his contractors out to lunch sometimes, and about 2 weeks ago, he took this woman to a very nice restaurant. He said she text-messaged him about 4 times to tell him what a nice time she had. Then, he said that she texted him last Friday and said, "Have a nice weekend with your beautiful family". While that sounds really nice to say, how did she know he has a family?? He never mentioned us to her. He also has his facebook set to private, and his profile pic is that of a dog. Then tonight, she texted him again, and ended the text with "(((HUGS)))". He doesn't typically get text messages from his contractors. So, as he was telling me, a twinge of jealousy ran through me... until he showed me her picture. Now I know I should not be shallow, but the woman is quite large and unattractive. I'm sure she is beautiful on the inside, and hopefully she has no plans to continue stalking my husband or our family. I hope I'm just reading more into it than there really is. My husband seems quite bothered by this woman, however, and said he will have a talk with her if the texts continue. Deep down, I am happy that she is not "hot". I know, I know... I need to go read my Bible now.

That is about all the news for the day. As I said, I worked out very late tonight. It still counts though. I continue to see progress in my body, mostly in how my clothes are fitting. My favorite pair of jeans (size 8) are now so big on me that the rear end just hangs off (I need a belt). I also have plenty of room in the legs. These same jeans used to be tight on me. I may have to go down to a size 6 before too much longer. VERY exciting :D Ok, I'm going to post some pics now. Good night all !

                                                                       Easter 2012

P90X, Week 8, Days 3 & 4

Oh my... I'm not going to lie, it's been really difficult finding the time to work out the past 2 days. Yesterday was spent on the soccer field, then at an Easter egg hunt, doing laundry, and later running out to purchase last minute Easter egg goodies. I worked at my church for a couple of hours, because we had a Saturday night service in case anyone wanted to attend. Then I came home and laid out everyone's church clothes for Sunday, ironed them, etc, so they'd be ready for today, and put out the baskets for the Easter Bunny. By the time I did all of that, it was really late, and I was too tired for a workout.

With that being said, today's workout was Rest or Stretch, so what I did was I did yesterday's workout instead. KenpoX. This was after I consumed well over my alloted 1200 calories on Easter candy, Homecooked goodness, and a bunny cake. I mean I piggged out. We had ham, homemade mashed potatoes, fruit salad, buttered rolls, macaroni and cheese, string beans, and goodness, I forget what else... but it was yummy. I tried to eat very small portions so that I could sample a little of everything :) But I came home, did the KenpoX, and threw in an extra Ab Ripper X, so I burned around 887 calories. I'm hoping that is enough to burn off all the sweet gooey rich chocolate I ate; I'm sure it's the stuff that's stuck to my abs and form the little circle of fat right around my belly button...

It was a great Easter, though. I will try to post a picture soon.

P90X, Week 8, Day 2/Brazilian Butt Lift Day 3

I tried Brazilian Butt Lift again today to give myself another lower body workout. It wasn't nearly as difficult the second time around, thank goodness. I wouldn't call it 'easy', either, though. I did that workout first, and later in the day I did my P90X workout, which was Core Synergistics. I've posted about this workout many times throughout the past 8 weeks; eight actually, because I've had to do it every single week. Core Synergistics obviously works your CORE- abs, lower back, hamstrings, glutes. I thought I did pretty well with the workout today. I was low energy most of the day because I'm on vacation and the kids and I slept in until 11:00! Then I was just tired all day and didn't have access to coffee. My coffee pot is broken and I was too lazy to go buy some. I didn't have my protein shake today, either, and I think that makes a huge difference in my energy and endurance.

Tomorrow's workout is KenpoX, which i'm a little excited about, because I can take out some of my frustrations through kicking and punching. I like to envision a certain someone's face while throwing punches. I know that is horrible; I swear I really am a good Christian girl. But sometimes there comes a point when enough is enough (of people's crap). I'm so tired of being dumped on. I pray that the Good Lord sends me a really good friend soon.

Good night all!

P90X, Week 8, Day 1

Wow... Week 8! Today is Day 1 of week 8, and again my workouts have switched up a bit. I am supposed to do Yoga again, which I haven't done yet... GASP... but I'm going to do it here in a sec. I did go walking today for about an hour, and then worked out at the gym on the eliptical for 50 minutes. I still have the events of last night on my mind, and I'm still quite upset about it.

P90X, Week 7, Day 7

Whooops! I can't believe i forgot to post last night! It was Rest and Stretch Day, so nothing too exciting. I had a rough night at work with drama between my coworkers and I have been upset about it ever since. I haven't been able to think or function too well today. Somehow I have been made out to be the bad guy in all of it :( I'm over the drama. Leave the drama to your mama.

P90X, Week 7, Day 6, AND Brazilian Butt Lift, Day 2

Today's P90X workout was Kenpo X, which is a mixture of karate punches, kicks, and blocks. This is by far my favorite of the P90X workouts. I like it because it feels as though it is over FAST (it's 60 minutes, but you are moving the whole time), and because I get my aggression out when I see a certain someone's face while practicing my kicks and punches. That someone shall remain nameless but has a little stalking problem.
Today was one of those days where I ate everything in sight. This is probably TMI, but it's "that time" for me, and I craved chocolate all day long. I burned a LOT of calories today between doing step aerobics, taking the dog for a hike, doing the Brazilian Butt Lift (Cardio Axe) and the "tummy tuck" (also by Brazilian Butt Lift). After i got the kids to bed tonight, I did the Kenpo X. All total, I burned 1646 calories today, which is great; but I also consumed 1634 calories, which is 434 over my goal! I couldn't say no to the sweets today. I had a couple chocolate and caramel covered cashew clusters and some girl scout cookies. Ohhh I love Thin Mints! I also ate a bag of peanut M&M's this morning for a snack. I hope I didn't sabotage myself and I REALLY hope I don't go up a pound or two tomorrow when I step on the scale. I noticed my stomach looks really big today. I guess I am probably just bloated. Sorry, I'm sure this is all TMI.

My new 'do

On Saturday, I got my hair chopped. I'm still getting used to it, but I do enjoy the cut. There are so many things I can do with it. I can curl it under, flip it out, straighten it, wear bangs in front, side bangs, pin bangs back, and even ponytail! In these pictures, it was my second day with the haircut and it had been straightened but flipped out a tad bit on the ends. I had just gotten home from church, and I'm posing in front of our pond with our dog, Coda :) He is 4 years old as of last month.

P90X, Week 7, Day 5

Today's workout should have been Legs and Back. However, my legs were SO incredibly sore after doing the Brazilian Butt Lift last night, that I decided to do another round of Yoga. Good call, because stretching out all those achey muscles really felt very nice. Tomorrow is my big calorie burning day with Step Aerobics at the gym, and P90X in the afternoon. I'll probably go ahead and do the Kenpo X like I'm supposed to, and make up Legs/Back on my "rest" day. I hate to mix it up like that, but I think there is something to be said for HOW sore I am after working out vigorously for the past 7, nearly 8 weeks... it tells me that I'm working the same muscles over and over, and that the ones that need attention aren't getting worked to their potential. I keep telling myself, "you still have time".... meaning I still have time to get into that swimsuit for the summer. As stubborn as I am about wanting to finish the P90X program, I can't settle for mediocre results when it's not what I expect and what I want. I've worked too hard to settle. So, whatever I have to add in here and ther, that's what I'm gonna do!

P90X, Week 7, Day 4/ Brazilian Butt Lift Day 1

Oh my... well, today I went a bit over my calorie intake because my daughter and I attended a birthday. I had to dig deep to find the willpower to resist the cake, which was neopolitan batter, so it was vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry marble swirl with vanilla buttercream icing. I can't even begin to tell you how much willpower it took to resist that. I love my sweets. I did partake in the food, however. She made a salad with smoked salmon, pasta salad with shrimp, some crackers and different types of dips (pimento cheese; crab dip; and something else), chicken curry salad, and lots and lots of sweet little treats... I tried to put very small portions on my plate and sampled a little of everything that was semi-healthy. I counted those calories as my "dinner" since the party was in the afternoon. By around 9 PM, however, I was starving, and my husband showed up with a small frosty from Wendy's. Those are 300 calories but I ate the heck out of it.

Today, my friend Heather also came by to bring me Brazilian Butt Lift, another DVD series made by BeachBody (same company as P90X). I thought maybe this program would help me to take care of my problem areas: butt & thighs. Well, I can tell you that it kicked my butt. It was only about 30 minutes long, but I sweat like a pig! It is very fast paced, and I had to keep pausing it to catch my breath, and rewinding it to get the jist of the exercises. I found it to be very difficult, and I only did it about halfa@@, but it nearly killed me.

My P90X workout was Yoga X- 90 full minutes of Yoga. Compared to the Brazilian Butt Lift, the 90 minutes of yoga felt like a breeze! Now I'm nice and relaxed and ready for bed. Good night friends!

P90X, Week 7, Day 3

Well, I'm terrible at Math, but I believe I'm 45 days into the program now, which means I'm halfway through it! Then who knows waht I will do, but I will have to find a way to keep my body active so I don't regain the weight. I notice my legs are starting to get thinner and more muscular, but the butt and thighs are still there... and that little "pooch" just below my belly button doesn't want to budge, either. It may be with me for the rest of my life?

Tonight's workout was Chest, Shoulders, and Triceps. Have I mentioned that I HATE pushups? 'Cause I do. Man oh man, this workout has sooo many pushups. I was super weak, yet again, probably because I have not had any protein shakes today. We are officially out of protein but will buy some tomorrow, as it is Gold Card week at GNC and you save 20%, which is a lot considering the price of the protein. In addition to the chest/shoulders/triceps workout, I had to do Ab Ripper X as well. That's become like second nature to me, because I do it so often. I like Ab Ripper X. It's over in 16 minutes :)

Other news... Today, my daughter and I went shopping for Easter dresses. I let her pick out her dress this year, and she kind of surprised me by her 3 choices. We had to narrow it down to one. She had picked a frilly pink dress, which really isn't her style, as well as a sparkly turquoise dress (gorgeous), and then a floral dress with blues and purples. She went with the floral dress. I was surprised because all along she ooh'ed and ahh'ed over the flashy turqoise dress. She said the floral dress was more "Easter'y". I guess that does make sense! I had picked out a beautiful dress in the store circular, but once we got to the store, it was nowhere to be found. So I did something very brave; I let my daughter choose some dresses for me to try on. I tried on three, and of the three, she liked a blue floral one the best. It has a ruffle and everything. Definitely not a dress I would have picked for myself, but it is very pretty. I just hope I don't regret the choice later. I have tried it on a couple of times, and each time I have a different reaction. I either love it or hate it. I either feel ultra-feminine and flirty in it, or I feel like Grandma's curtains. Hmmm.

I also got a haircut today. I went into the salon not having a clue as to what I wanted, other than the fact that I wanted all the scraggly stuff cut off. The young girl who cut my hair was very helpful and I picked a style out of a book. She copied it to a "T". I now have side swept bangs and a much shorter length. It's to my shoulders, with long layers. It's cute. I still want to grow it out long, but I want to do it right; I want it to be nice and healthy. So this go 'round I'll be sure to have it trimmed every 6 weeks. Since getting my hair cut, I feel a little chubbier, just because it kind of changed the proportions of my face and makes my belly/butt/thighs look bigger, at least in my mind. I always thought the longer hair kinda hid my fat. Mabye that was all in my head too. Ha.
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P90X, Week 7, Day 2

(GASP) I posted after midnight. That's because I started Cardio X at somewhere close to 11 PM. It just about killed me tonight, but I slugged through it. I was absolutely exhausted from hauling brush for 2 1/2 hours and burning it in a big bonfire with my family. It was fun, and i know I burned a lot of calories doing it. After finishing Cardio X, I hit a nice, hot shower... and here I am :)

Well, amazing news, I lost 2 more lbs this morning! I had to step on the scale 3x to actually believe it. I hope the weight doesn't go up and down on me; it will drive me insane. I'm getting better at this counting calories thing; I have more than enough to eat each day, and it's pretty well balanced. I had a hard boiled egg and banana for an early breakfast, then drank a protein shake around 11 AM. For lunch, I had a big green salad with lots of fresh veggies and fat free dressing. For dinner, we had pork tenderloin and another big, green salad with almonds on top and light italian house dressing. For snacks I had about a cup of fresh strawberries and later about 1/2 cup of cucumber slices. Like I said in my last blog, the nutritional part has become like a fun little game to me. I enjoy finding the healthiest foods with the lowest calories that still taste really, really good. My pork tenderloin, though it was baked, tasted like it had just come right off of the grill. It was amazing. And 4 oz was only 140 calories. 

My totals for today were: 
Food-1180 cals
Exercise-941 cals

Oh, and I'm starting to see defined leg muscles coming through the fat now. My legs are much thinner from about the knee to the hip. I still have cellulite and saddlebags (UGH), but my quadriceps are pretty cut. I really need to get a tan on this white body to show off my progress so far with P90X. I can't wait for the next 5 weeks to be over so I can see the final results!