Week Ten

Monday, July 9, 2012

Week Ten

Well, we have had quite the time here at home.  We had a huge storm (a Derecho) that produces some extremely damaging winds.  We lost about 40 trees on our property (10 were across the driveway).  I haven't been to the gym in over a week, but I have absolutely gotten my workouts in.  Hauling brush and stacking wood is a killer workout!

My race is in less than 2 weeks and I have got to log some miles this week.

Week ten of my Body For Life program: July 4-11, 2012.

Weight: 181.2# 
-4.2 pounds in the last 3 weeks/ -18.6 pounds total
Waist: 36"
-1" in the last 3 weeks/ -3.75" total
Hips: 41.75"
.5 in the last 3 weeks/ -2.75" total

Read More

Workout Improv

Monday, June 25, 2012

Workout Improv

I realized I wasn't going to make it to the gym this morning, so I was forced to think outside the box. I stuck the kids (all 70 pounds of them) in the wheelbarrow and jogged my driveway while pushing them.  Down and back, the driveway is 1 mile with big hills.  It was intense!  The kids laughed the whole time!

Read More

Week Seven

Monday, June 18, 2012

Week Seven

Week seven of my Body For Life program: June 12-18, 2012.

Weight: 185.4# 
-.2 pounds for the week/ -14.6 pounds total
Waist: 37"
-.25" for the week/ -2.75" total
Hips: 42.2"
-no change for the week/ -2.25" total


I am late posting this week.  I have been suffering from discouragement about the lack of scale progress for the past 3 weeks.  It has been tough to write when there isn't really any progress to report.  Less than 1/2 pound in 3 weeks when I hope for 1-2 pounds per week!  It is discouraging when you are working so hard and the tangible results aren't there.  Sure, I can look at the pictures, remind myself that I am in better shape than I have been in for 6 years and think about the long term.  This is a lifestyle change I am making, not a quick fix!


The bottom line is, not seeing the scale move sucks!


Anyway, as promised, I had my body fat percentage measured last week.  The results of that were astonishing!  Back in week one, on May 1, 2012, my body fat was 44.8% (measured with calipers).  On June 15th (week seven) My body fat percentage was down to 36.3%!  What does that mean?


May 1: 44.8% body fat
This means that of my 194#, 44.8% (87#/ yes, you are reading that correctly, EIGHTY-SEVEN POUNDS) is fat and 107# is my Lean Body Mass.  LBM is the sum of the weight of your bones, muscles and organs (everything in your body other than fat). 
June 15: 36.3%
This means that of my 185.4#, 36.3% (67#) is fat and 118# is Lean Body Mass.


In other words, in 7 weeks I have lost 9 pounds on the scale, but that isn't telling the whole story!  I have actually, in 7 weeks, lost 20# of pure fat and gained 11# of pure muscle!!  


So, I am choosing today, to see this healthy lifestyle thing as a direction, not a destination.  I just need to keep moving in the direction of health and fitness and forget the dumb scale!

Read More

Week Six

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Week Six

Week six of my Body For Life program: June 5-11, 2012.

Weight: 185.6# 
-.2 pounds for the week/ -14.4 pounds total
Waist: 37.25"
-.25" for the week/ -2.5" total
Hips: 42.2"
-.50" for the week/ -2.25" total


Tomorrow I am going to have my body fat percentage measured again.  I'll post that when I can.


I took progress photos today.  I am so thrilled with what I see that I am going to post them here.  This is so far out of my comfort zone that I may come back and take it down.  *hides under a table*

I am most pleased with my back!  The rolls are gone!  I can't wait to see what the next 48 days hold for me!

Read More

Mindful Eating

Friday, June 1, 2012

Mindful Eating

I have given you a bit of insight into the exercise portion of my program, but I haven't said much about how my eating habits have changed.

Honestly, I haven't changed what I am eating that much.  What has changed (drastically) is the volume of food I am eating.  Meal times don't look much different for me except that my portion is smaller and I don't finish the kid's leftovers for them.

Another thing that has had to change is the number of times I eat during the day.  The way I am able to cut my portions drastically is by keeping my belly satisfied by snacking all day.  It weighs out to be 5 or 6 small meals per day.

Remembering the phrase "If you bite it, write it!" has been helpful, too.  I log everything that I eat.  Accountability is the biggest help to me.  I have online group of friends at My Fitness Pal that can see my food diary and how many calories I ate (and burned through exercise).  I log my food on MFP when I am home and when I am out, I use the iPhone app to log food.

Body For Life has a pretty easy to follow food plan if you are someone who cooks a lot or eats a real food diet.  Honestly, if you can stay away from the processed stuff it is pretty easy.  I am the main food shopper and preparer in our home.  My husband isn't really on board and he still has his stash of processed food, but really those things (chips and crackers mostly) hold very little appeal to me.  My downfall is ice cream and eating out.  I am learning how to eat real food when out and there seem to be good options everywhere I go!

So, here is the approved food list while on Body For Life:

Food List

Protein Chicken breast Turkey breast Lean ground turkey Swordfish Orange roughy Haddock Salmon Tuna Crab Lobster Shrimp Top round steak Top sirloin steak Lean ground beef Buffalo Lean ham Egg whites or substitutes Trout Low-fat cottage cheese Wild-game meat Turkey Bacon Complex Carbohydrates Potato Sweet potato Yams Squash Pumpkin Steamed brown rice Steamed wild rice Lentils Couscous Kashi Bulgur Whole-wheat pasta Oatmeal Barley Beans (black, kidney) Corn Strawberries Melon Apple Orange Fat-free yogurt Fat-free milk Whole-wheat bread High-fiber cereal Whole-wheat tortilla Whole-wheat pita bread Whole grains

Vegetables Broccoli Asparagus Lettuce Carrots Cauliflower Green beans Green peppers Mushrooms Spinach Tomato Peas Brussels sprouts Artichoke Cabbage Celery Zucchini Cucumber Onion Vegetable Proteins Tempeh Seitan Tofu Texturized vegetable protein Soy foods Veggie burgers Healthy Fats Avocado Sunflower seeds Pumpkin seeds Cold-water fish Natural peanut butter Low-fat cheese Low-sodium nuts Olives and olive oil Safflower oil Canola oil Sunflower oil Flax seed oil

What Not to Eat on Body-for-LIFE (except on your Free Day) Protein Pork bacon Deep-fried meat such as fried chicken, chicken fingers, fish sticks, Buffalo wings, etc. Hamburgers and fatty cuts of beef Hot dogs Simple Carbs Cookies Cake White rice White bread Crackers Candy French Fries Chips Doughnuts Soda Unhealthy Fats Butter Lard Mayonnaise Coconut oil Cream-based sauces Full-fat dairy products

One part of the Body For Life nutrition plan that I do not follow is the use of nutritional supplements and protein bars.  I prefer eating real food that I prepare here at home.  When something has 50 ingredients and I can pronounce half of them, I am not interested.

I may expand on this another day to let you see what a day of eating actually looks like for me.

Read More

Week Five

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Week Five

Week five of my Body For Life program: May 29- June 4, 2012.

Weight: 185.8# 
-2.2 pounds for the week/ -14.2 pounds total
Waist: 37.5"
-.5" for the week/ -2.25" total
Hips: 42.75"
-.50" for the week/ -1.75" total


Looking back over the last 4 weeks, I am proud to report that in May,  I ran 36 miles, lost 8.2 pounds and the best news was that from my allergist!


Remember what got me really started on this journey?  The asthma diagnosis.  Last week I had a followup appointment with the allergist to recheck things.  My pulmonary function test was much improved (the allergist agrees it is likely due to running), I got to go completely off of one medication and he cut the second med in half!  In only one month I changed my future!  If that isn't motivation to keep it up, I don't know what is.

Read More

Week Four

Week Four

Week four of my Body For Life program: May 22-28, 2012.

Weight: 188# 
-2 pounds for the week/ -12 pounds total
Waist: 38"
-0" for the week/ -1.75" total
Hips: 43.25"
-.50" for the week/ -1.25" total


I missed a day of C25K in week 3.  I still decided to start the week 4 schedule.  It didn't turn out to be too much.  I also made the decision to sign up for a 5K!  I will be participating in Color Me Rad on July 21st. That puts me in good shape to finish the C25K program a few weeks before the race.


One of the steps in the Body For Life program is to practice the universal law of reciprocation by giving unselfishly.  I will be putting this into practice by raising money for the Special Olympics of VA.  Go to my fundraising page by clicking on the link to your right in my sidebar.

Read More

Week Three

Week Three

This week was spent in recovery from a stomach virus.  I didn't take measurements and my weight was 185 pounds.  This was not at all accurate as I had just spent 2 days vomiting and ate under 1000 calories for 4 days.

http://whatareyoudoingitfor.tumblr.com/post/21808601989

Read More

Week Two Update

Week Two Update

On Saturday of this week I was headed home from a bridal shower and was hit hard with the need to vomit.  I pulled over in a church parking lot about a mile from my house and proceeded to ruin my shoes.  It was bad.  My pants legs were covered, so right there in the parking lot, I took them off and drove home bottomless.  I continued to vomit for around 36 hours.  That was some serious dehydration from which I had to recover.

In the past, I have let the inevitable setback derail me completely.  Not this time.  I was determined to stay on track.

Wednesday was the first morning I felt kind-of normal.  I still felt really weak, so I walked instead of my C25K.  My online friends at My Fitness Pal gave me the encouragement I needed and the accountability to keep me going.

If you are someone like me who needs the accountability of calorie and exercise tracking and if you need friends to keep you going, then you have to check out My Fitness Pal.  There is an online version and mobile app for many of the smart phones out there.  Friend me there!  My name is herwitsend.

Read More

Week Two

Week Two

Week two of my Body For Life program: May 8-14, 2012.

Weight: 190# 
-4 pounds for the week/ -10 pounds total
Waist: 38"
-1.5" for the week/ -1.5" total
Hips: 43.75"
-.25" for the week/ -.25" total


Some thoughts from mid-week (day 10 of the BFL program):

I hate every step of running.

I am so glad I have an iPhone (I run with Justin Timberlake- or I pretend to).

The trainer I was randomly assigned to at my gym doesn't "get" what I'm doing (switch?).

It is not that hard to eat right if you are paying attention.

I am really fat (SW= 200 and I am 5'4") and I wasn't really seeing it until I took underwear photos.

I cried after I had my body fat percentage measured and found out that I was carrying around over 70 pounds of fat.

I also have 122# of lean body mass (that I intend to not only keep but add to by building more muscle).

I can do this. There is no reason why I can't be a smoking hot hardbody (or close) by this time next year.

I feel so glad that my kids will have a healthy mama. 

http://www.paranoias.org/2011/05/quotes-posters/

Read More