Geronimo!

Way back at the beginning of the year, one of my resolutions was to complete an obstacle course in the trees. The weather finally cooperated and I was able to achieve my goal over the weekend.

Before I go too much farther, let's dive back in time. In 2006, I went to the obstacle course park but didn't particpate. The truth was, I had the athletic prowess of a potato. I also didn't want to face the embarrassment of not being able to haul my large bum around in the trees. So all that really remains of that trip is this photo of me at the park, trying to look happy about not participating.



Fast forward two years and 70 lbs later, I came back to the park on Saturday and completed the entire course, all the way up to and including the black level. My body has changed, there's no doubt. But my mind's changed, too. I could've done that course at any weight. I wasn't too heavy; my belief in myself was too light.

At any rate, here are the pics of my adventure. My apologies to dial-up users :)


You want me to go where?



Soon enough, I was swinging through the trees. Literally.



DontlookdowndontlookdownDONTlookdown!



Hey, I can see light through my thighs!



If you look carefully, you can see the white-knuckled holy-crap grip I have on the rope. Swinging logs = not my friend.



Just to give you an idea of how high up I was...



Zip lines are so freaking fun!



Climbing down towards the end.



Finally, me on the same bridge as in 2006. This time, 70 lbs lighter and 100% geekier in a climbing harness.

New year, new goals

This being the first day of 2008, I've been thinking a lot about all the new things I'd like to try and all the goals I'd like to accomplish this year.

So, in no particular order, here's my top ten list of health and fitness goals I'd like to achieve this year:

1. Get to my goal weight
2. Take a spinnning class
3. Run a 10k
4. Take a yoga class
5. Take a step class
   
6. Go on a treeGO obstacle course
7. Be able to complete one or more chinups*
8. Do a bootcamp
   
9. Better my walking time in the half-marathon
10. Swim lots! And without embarrassment!
    

So far, I've already decided to sign-up for a few classes this January: a learn-to-spin class (thanks for the inspiration, Ro!) and a 10k running clinic. I'd be signed up now if it weren't for the stat holiday.

Needless to say, 2008 is looking great and I'm excited to see what new things I can accomplish. So Happy New Year everyone! Let's get out there and achieve our goals. We can do it!


* My husband has a chinup bar. As of this writing, the most I can do is grasp the handles and go purple in the face. I'm still working on that whole "lifting yourself up off the ground" thing. Apparently, it's necessary in order to do this thing called a "chin up."

Thirty-fourth Weigh-in

It's funny how when I have an awesome weigh-in, I post it right away instead of getting around to it on Sunday. Yes, it was a great weigh-in. I'm down 1.6 lbs this week. This means I've earned another star AND I've lost over 40 lbs!! I was so excited and in such a happy daze that it took the receptionist's gentle reminder that I still had to give her my weigh-in booklet and coupon. This means I've also met my mini goal of 164lbs and have lost over 40% of my starting weight. Whoohoo! I still don't know what to do with myself other than order another charm for my bracelet and set another goal.

The meeting itself was very fun. I'll be posting more about that later with a fun exercise everyone can do.

40lbs!!! :) :) :) :)

Thirty-second Weigh-in

This is also known as the "Getting Serious" weigh-in. I'm up .2 lbs and I deserved it. I deserved it big time. In fact, it could've been worse, so I should also count my blessings.

As the scant number of posts alludes to, I've been super busy with work. A big project, a big deadline, and little time to do much else. I've eaten out more times than I can count these past few weeks. I haven't exercised at all. Not even a half-marathon training walk. Basically, I've been using work as an excuse to let everything slide when I know in my head and heart that I could do much better regardless.

Needless to say, I've been feeling crappy because of the poor nutrition and lack of exercise. My lower back problem came back and I've been wandering around feeling foggy, achy and tired.

When I admitted to what an awful week I had to the Receptionist at the meeting, she asked me what I was going to do about it this week. I knew the answer right away. Recommit and plan, plan, plan. Exercise is top priority. It eases my lower back and gives me the energy I need to get through a long day at work. Having easy-to-prepare food is also priority. I'll be less likely to eat junk if I have something I can pull out of the freezer to heat up at work.

So, today I've sat down and made out a meal plan for the week and have committed to getting my exercise in every day. In fact, it's been a long time since I've set a mini-goal, so I'm setting it now. This week I will earn 20 Activity Points which is what I typically earn. As a reward, I will buy myself a snazzy looking umbrella I've been wanting.

I'll close with a promise I wrote to myself while I was waiting for the meeting to start.

This week I promise to take better care of myself. I will make sure I have healthy, easy-to-prepare food and snacks available. I will exercise more, aiming to get activity in each day of the week. Lastly, I will forgive myself and remember that each choice is a new opportunity.

Twenty-ninth Weigh-in

Another weigh-in under my belt and yet another .8 lbs lost. That's three weeks in a row! I'd say it was a trend, but the last time I said that, the trend changed completely. Regardless, this means I've lost another five pounds AND I've met my mini-goal of reducing my BMI to 29.9! Officially, I am no longer obese. I'm now just "overweight." Hehe, it's funny that I'm so excited about that! This also means it's charm time. I've already ordered one for this latest 5lbs and another for achieving my mini-goal.

The meeting itself was good. We did a little exercise by closing our eyes and imagining a time in our lives that required patience and persistence to overcome. We then imagined the feelings from that time applying to our weight loss efforts. Finally, we replaced the image by seeing ourselves at goal. Like the goofy girl I am, I started smiling at that point :)

After the meeting, I was approached by another member who asked how much I had lost as she didn't quite catch it when I received my star. She then congratulated me on my loss and said that she had been keeping an eye on me and watching me get thinner and thinner. That was super duper awesome. So much so, I really must approach someone else at the meeting and compliment them, too. I'm shy in real life, but this feeling deserves passing along to someone else despite my wallflower-ness!

I'll close with a great quote our leader gave us. It really is true. The great mountain that's ahead of us can be crossed one pebble at a time.

Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain.” – Unknown

Finally got to Curves

Boy have I been slacking lately. I haven't been to Curves in over two weeks! But I got my bum in gear last night and finally went. I didn't want to go; I was in that its-been-so-long-why-bother? funk. As always, I'm glad I showed up. There had been some minor changes to the circuit which made it a refreshing go 'round. They were also playing music I hadn't heard before which is always a plus. And lastly, the good employee was there. She's the one that's genuinely friendly, but not pushy or condescending. The bad employee was there, too, but she was cleaning so I managed to avoid her.

This week I've again pledged to get to Curves three times. I know there's at least one busy night this week so I'm planning around it by going again tonight. Although they say you should wait a day between strength training, I've used that excuse too much to avoid going. Better to go than not go, right? I've got my gym stuff laid out so I can nip out the door with little fuss when I get home.

As finances are a little tight these days, my reward will require no money - I'll take an afternoon for myself this weekend so that I can work on some needlework.

BMI: Obese versus Overweight

I've been thinking a lot about my BMI these days. It's another figure that I keep an eye on, just like I do inches and pounds. I started out at 36.1 and have since dropped down to 31.7. A BMI above 30 means you are classed as "obese" (or a variant thereof depending on the chart*). It's not terrifically lovely to call oneself obese, but there you have it. A spade is a spade after all.

The reason why I've been thinking a lot about my BMI is because I'm getting close to dropping down into the next category – "overweight." Still, not a lovely descriptor, but I like it better than "obese" when thinking about myself. I'll need to be 169 lbs in order to cross the divide. I think I'll celebrate it with an Italian charm.

* The Heart and Stroke Foundation tactfully describes it as "Zone D"

Calculate your BMI

Half-marathon

Oh, did I mention? I signed up to do a half-marathon walk in October. I'll repeat that again because I'm having a hard time believing it. A. Half. Marathon. 21 kilometres. Of walking. All at once. And I signed up for it.

I still haven't gotten over wanting to hurl in the corner.

Strangely, the rest of my walking buddies have signed up, too. Misery loves company! We'll be training over the summer with other walking events and just getting out there. I'll post more about it once I get my training plan solidified.

Now what?

After the glow of accomplishment started to fade, I was left with a feeling of "now what?" Even though I know it's an expected emotion, I've been a bit mopey this weekend past. And I'll let you in on a little secret – Saturday, the day I achieved my 10% goal was the worst day of eating I've had since being on plan. How does this happen?

Well, not planning for one thing and not having a goal to focus on. I thought I'd coast this week on setting my next milestone, but after the near disaster of this weekend, I need to set one right now. 20 lbs worked well for me, so that will be the next target I will work towards. 164 lbs, here I come!

100 km!

I reached the 100 km mark this morning on my exercise bike. That didn't take long at all! It's amazing how far you can go in 45 minutes. I clocked 14.65 km this morning alone.

I've decided my reward will be....more activity points! I ordered a 10 Minute Solution: Blast Off Belly Fat DVD from Amazon. Although I know that you can't spot reduce specific areas, I ordered it because I really haven't been exercising the ol' abdominal muscles. I figured 10 minutes of ab work after every exercise bike workout will be the perfect combination. My muscles will be warmed up from biking and then I can hit the mat and start strengthening that stomach of mine!

My next goal on the bike will be to reach 1000 kilometres. As a reward, I'll get a pedicure since my feet will have done most of the work.

Eighth Weigh-in

Whoohoo! I'm down 1.2 lbs this week for a total of 10.6 lbs lost. I'm now over the half-way mark to my 10% goal! I received another 5lbs sticker and immediately stuck it to my bookmark.

Note for next week: sit on the right side of the meeting. That's where I usually sit but today I had to bail early.

The left side lacks some serious enthusiasm. Where the right side folks were giving serious kudos and claps during all the sticker handouts, the left side was barely moving. Most didn't clap and the few that did, looked like they were dabbing hand lotion on or something.

So, I took up the cause and clapped as loud and as enthusiastically as I could. I swear, some folks on the left side mentally nudged their chairs away from me. Ha! Well, next time I'll go back to sitting on the right side. We know how to party on the right side!

PS
I've already planned my 10lb reward. I can't say what it is only that I've decided to treat my ninja husband at the same time. He knows we have a date next week, he just doesn't know what for!

Activity Point Update - I did it!

But I think I might've overdid it. Earning 10 points a week for two weeks was pretty easy, but check out my AP chart:



20 points for last week alone! Although that's great, I was feeling excessively hungry and my legs were tired by Friday. Although ramping up is great, I think ramping up so quickly isn't the best thing to do. I'll be sure to be more careful this coming week.

For now, I'm going to enjoy my reward - Leslie Sansone's 30 Minute Walk video. Whoo!

Mini-goal Monday

I'm on-track for meeting my mini-goal that I set last Monday – get 10 activity points each week for two weeks. One week down, one more to go!

Despite fighting this cold-like thing for the past few days, I'm not finding it hard. I even made a spreadsheet last night with my point break down to see where my activity was coming from. Interestingly enough I see my points from walking is slacking off. I gotta get on that if I'm to survive the 10k coming up! I'll post the graph later on tonight if I remember.

As for my reward, I'm starting to think I really need to get my WATP fix in or I'll wind up with a library of "as seen on TV" fitness videos by the time my order arrives from Amazon. So, I've decided to get the 30-minute WATP video from Future Shop on Saturday as my reward.

And, because it was a hard-won battle, I'm going to reward those 5lbs lost with some nice hand-lotion from the Body Shop.

Mini-goal Monday

I was able to get 13 activity points last week and I'm inspired to keep that trend up. For the next two weeks my goal is to get at least 10 activity points per week. At the end of these two weeks, my reward will be something inexpensive from the Body Shop, Aveda, or even from my favourite tea shop. We'll see which one I'm leaning towards in a week's time.

I've also been giving some thought on how to celebrate my 10% goal. It's been hard trying to think of something that's special but not too special! I've almost decided on a French manicure; I love the look of them but have only had two in my lifetime. Again, we'll see how I feel closer to goal :)

Sudsy Prune

Mini-goal achieved. I got in a whopping 11 activity points this week! That was a lot easier than I expected. I celebrated by having a nice long cocunut bubble bath.

What should my next feat be? I'll have to think about that. Bungy jumping is definitely out though.

And then there were six...

While we were at Tim Horton's last night (only 3 Timbits for me, thank you very much), my husband mentioned to our friends that we had signed up for a 10k. One offered right quick to be a walking buddy with us and that she knew great places to walk. Another said that we should make a team. I said, "why don't we all do it together?"

Strangely, they agreed. So two became six and we're all going to train together, too. Nothing like training buddies to keep you in line!

Goals

I keep seeing this quote crop up quite a bit:

Goals don’t achieve themselves.

And it's got me thinking – goals don't set themselves either. If I don't set them to begin with, I'll never achieve them. It's too easy to say "I should really..." and then not follow through.

So this week, I'm going to start setting realistic mini-goals. My first mini-goal has been one I've kept in the back of my mind since yesterday morning: get 7 activity points this week. Easy enough right? Especially because right now I have 5 activity points under my belt already and will get at least one more this evening.

As part of setting goals, I'm going to set rewards, too. When I achieve my 7 points this week, I will buy a nice sudsing bath product from the Body Shop. I will bathe in aforementioned sudsing bath product until I am a sudsy prune.

Like exercise, goals ain't so bad if there's a loofah dangling in front of me.

Ten year 10k

Yesterday afternoon I signed my husband and I up to walk a 10k in April. The last time we did this 10k was exactly ten years ago! It was such a wonderful feeling of accomplishment getting across that line after training for months that I want to capture that feeling again. I hope I'm not going through a mid-30s crisis! Regardless, it will be good to start training as it'll fit well with this whole getting healthy and exercise thing.

Plan-wise, things have been going pretty good. I had a rough couple of days earlier this week – I was feeling ill on Monday and consequently didn't eat enough points for that day. The following day was tough because I couldn't seem to do much progress on the "health checks" (6 glasses of water, 2 servings of milk, 5 servings vegetables/fruits, etc. etc. etc.).

But, I've been doing pretty good since then. Next we'll see if I can manage to start walking on my lunch hour again!