Bootcamp: Day 17

It was a beautiful day today. The sun was shining and because of the time change on Sunday, we actually got to work out in it. It was a novel experience. Up until now, I've always associated Bootcamp with the cold and the dark.

As the weeks have passed, participants have come and gone, but mostly gone. We were down to five tonight, including me.

To warm up, we had to run back and forth between two stations and jump rope. There was a bit of a race at the end between me and one of the guys. He beat me at the last second when I messed up on the last repetition, hehe. Ah well, it was all in good fun.

We went for a run as usual. It was so nice to be running in the sunshine. It felt like winter was making way for spring.

The rest of the evening was spent focusing on upper body work and using the wobble boards. Speaking of which, something happened that has never happened before. All of us were on the wobble boards, doing squats, when suddenly everyone realized (all at once) that we weren't sucking at it.

Normally when we're on wobble boards, there's lots of scraping sounds as the edges grind against the pavement. If you're proficient at it, the edge doesn't scrape. Needless to say, that rarely happens. But there we were, squatting, and doing tricep curls with weights, without making a noise. Somehow, all of us had found an inner well of balance. It was so awesome, it was kinda creepy.

When it was time to cool down, we did it outside under the darkening sky. As we stretched, cold air fell down all around us. It was literally flowing down from the sky. Together with the moon, it was very peaceful. I left feeling more refreshed than I had in weeks. I'm starting to feel sad that Bootcamp is coming to an end.

Play Along at Home: Wobble boards aren't just for standing on. Try using it as a platform to do push-ups on. Alternatively, assume the plank position and press on one side and then the other. It really works your core!

Duration: 01:14, Calories: 505, HR Average: 71%

I’m so behind

Sorry everyone. I'm still kicking. I'm really behind on posting a lot of things – Bootcamps and my most recent weigh-in for starts!

But I can breathe a bit easier now on the work front at least. I just finished with a particularly challenging job this afternoon. I still have lots of other projects on the go, but that one was a real monkey. I'm trying hard not to celebrate with a packet of Mini-Eggs. Oh you little sugar-coated temptations of bliss!

EDIT1: Okay, I've got the weigh-in posted. Now onto Bootcamps!
EDIT2: Bootcamp Day 13 is now ready.
EDIT3: Bootcamp Day 14 is also ready.
EDIT4: I'm on a roll. Bootcamp Day 15 is ready.
EDIT5: And finally, Bootcamp Day 16 is done.

Fifty-seventh Weigh-in

There you have it. Proof that wearing lucky socks really works. I did not wear them today. I gained .6 lbs. Coincidence? I think not.

But seriously, I was expecting that and was surprised it wasn't more. Up until now I've never had to deal with water retention during that time of the month. Since I went off birth control pills a few months ago, my period has gradually returned to that "joyous" (and I use the term loosely) occurrence it used to be. It started the day before weigh-in and I've been puffed up like a balloon ever since. Blech.

Notice how I'm blaming it mostly on water retention? No, I didn't forget about last weekend's eating spree. But when I sat down and really thought about it, it wasn't all that bad. At least that's what I'm telling myself.

Plus, water retention segues nicely into one of the meeting topics we discussed today. Our leader wrote up a small chart comparing the sodium levels in processed food with those in unprocessed food. It was a real eye opener to see just how much extra sodium we're consuming for the sake of convenience.

Instant oatmeal was the biggest shocker. For the pre-packaged kind, it can have anywhere between 80 mg and 270 mg of sodium in it. But if you make it the old-fashioned way, it has less than 5 mg per serving. Unbelievable, eh?

Even still, I'm not going to give up entirely on convenience foods. However, it's sure going to make me think twice about it. And maybe I'll try to make extra time to cook from scratch even more than I already do.

Bootcamp: Day 16

Considering Tuesday's Bootcamp, this one wasn't all that memorable. There was some spicy girl talk as is wont to happen when there's no guys around. But the exercises were pretty much the same.

To warm up, we had to throw our exercise balls against the wall really hard. I enjoyed this more than I should have. I was really whipping it because the instructor said we could imagine "anyone we wanted" standing against the wall. So what if maybe a client or two kept popping into my head? ;)

After that, we went on another field trip to the playground again. This time, we were only there to do some laps around it - backwards (that isn't a typo). Running backwards is a lot harder than it sounds because it works different muscles. After one lap, my shins were screaming at me to stop. So I walked backwards for the rest of it instead of running.

After the playground trip, we went back to base for more mat work. It was a duplicate workout from one of the earliest Bootcamps, so it wasn't all that new and exciting. But, as the instructor said, without duplication, you won't strengthen the muscles.

I can't believe there's only two weeks left. Time flies when you're in pain having fun.

Play Along at Home: Mix it up and walk (or run) backwards for a stretch. Also try walking up a hill sideways, switching the leading leg about half-way through so that you work both sides of your body.

Duration: 01:15, Calories: 475, HR Average: 68%

Bootcamp: Day 15

Again, because I'm writing this a week after the fact, my memory is a bit fuzzy on this one. It's funny how quickly the memory of pain and suffering leaves your brain so quickly.

We went on a long endurance run for starters. Normally, we go on relatively quick ones. But for this evening at least, we had to run and run some more. I calculated it later at 2.5 kilometers.

When we came back, it was to do some crawling around in the grass with weights. Holding our weights, we had to assume the plank position and then "walk" ourselves in that position with our hands and legs along a length of grass. The instructor "helpfully" lent me bigger weights so that I wouldn't squoosh my hands. Gee, thanks.

We also had to do some crab walking with a 10 lb ball weight in our laps. And then there was doing the wheelbarrow with a partner (man, was that hard). Followed with more exercises involving our exercise balls and mats.

But the best part of the evening came at the end. The instructor had a big pair of homemade dice. One die had exercise types on it and the other had repetitions. When both were tossed, you had to do the given exercise for X amount of repetitions. And, if that wasn't enough, if you were finished first, you had to get up and run to the end of the parking lot and back again. We did four rounds of this and it was fun and exhausting at the same time. I even managed to do 30 push-ups in one go!

At the end of the evening I smelled like grass and my bum was covered in mud. Bootcamp is fun, really it is!

Play Along at Home: Go for a longer run or walk than you would normally do. You'll build up endurance. Bonus points if you come home smelling like nature.

Duration: 01:23, Calories: 612, HR Average: 74%

Steering the boat

Just a quick note for today. I'm still hanging in there and going through ups and downs with this "bump." Bumps make life hard to manage. Sometimes I think I can do it, sometimes I can't. And sometimes I'm just holding on.

After my stellar loss on Saturday, I had less than a stellar weekend eating wise. I gave in to some emotional eating a number of times because of having to write my victim impact statement. I just wanted to cocoon or eat. Since I couldn't cocoon because of prior commitments, I wound up making a lot of poor food choices instead.

But I'm allowed and it's okay. Of all times, this is not the time to be hard on myself. I just need to get through this month, one day at a time. So last night I wrote down everything that I did right health-wise over the weekend and found I still made good choices when I was able to. It's never too late to steer the boat back on course or, at the very least, somewhat in the general direction.

As always, thanks everyone for your support during my highs and lows. I'll catch up with y'all soon, I promise.

Fifth-sixth Weigh-in

Boom, baby, boom! Guess who lost 3 lbs this week and is now a) in the 140s, b) skinnier than her husband and c) the proud recipient of a new 5 lb star? Oooooooh yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I knew it was going to be big, but didn't think it'd be that big. In fact, it's my biggest loss ever on the plan. And it wasn't due to illness, fudging, wearing lighter clothes, or anything like that. It was all due to Wendie, the encouragement/tips from everyone else to keep going, and (it has to be mentioned) my lucky socks.

Did you know? I have lucky socks. I've been wearing them since my 1.4 lb loss a few weeks ago. Ever since I started wearing them, I've shown a loss. I highly recommend finding a pair yourself; the power of exceptionally gifted socks can never be underestimated.



I've never been nearer my goal. I'm so freaking excited that it killed me not to be able to post this until now.

THREE POUNDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!