summary sunday [on a monday, no less]

monday:  pure barre
tuesday:  ran 3.5 miles
wednesday:  rest
thursday:  pure barre
friday:  rest
saturday:  cherokee harvest 5k
sunday:  rest

this is after class on thursday with my awesome friend/pb instructor lindsay. Pure Barre is hosting a challenge this month on FB and everyday they give you a prompt for a photo. this was for PBFF.

i picked up an extra shift this week so between working 50 hours and preparing for a visit from the in-laws, i was pooped.

i had a mixed experience at my WW weigh in this week, that i have to share with you all. okay so i go to weigh in and i lost another 4 pounds. of course i was ecstatic but the person weighing me was not. she gave me a very long talk and explained that if i had another week like this i'd have to get a doctor's note. i'm trying to be objective, but i'm not really sure what to think of this. here are some of the thoughts i'm having...

• yes the program is designed for 1/2 to 2 pound weight loss per week but it even says in the getting started book, that it might be more during your first 3 weeks (this was my second week). 
• my first week i did not eat all my extra weekly points (they encourage you to), but the second week i did (anniversary dinner, ate out a couple of times, etc.) so i'm following the program. 
• WW gives 5 pound stickers out for every 5 pounds you lose, she didn't give me my sticker :(
• now i'm scared to death to go weigh in next week. i've OBVIOUSLY still got weight to lose but i don't want to get scolded again. part of me wants to weigh myself during the week to make sure i haven't lost too much. but that's just dumb, i'm following the program and weighing myself everyday is not good for me. 

what do you all think? 

i still went to get a celebratory diet coke afterwards!

why i decided to head back to weight watchers and a bit of background on my weight loss battle

so as i mentioned yesterday, i rejoined weight watchers last week. i put a lot of thought into this decision and i really do think it's the best one for me.

some background... i have fought to control my weight for pretty much my whole life, but seriously after i graduated high school. i did weight watchers the summer before i started pharmacy school and had a lot of success. unfortunately, when i went to school i quit going to meetings (i'd been going with my mom and grandmother at home), so i never got lifetime status, and i gained back the weight. i've done various things between then and now and i'd definitely classify myself as a yo-yo dieter. food is my achilles heel for sure.

as i shared on here last year, i worked with a guy who made a workout plan and an eating plan for me. it helped me to lose a little more than 20 pounds. for reasons that i don't really want to get into right now, i gained pretty much all the weight back.

so here we are again. i did a lot of thinking and spent some time trying to figure out what's important to me. i kept coming back to weight watchers.

here are the major reasons why i chose weight watchers over all the other options:

• it's tried and true. they've been around for 50 years and they're constantly updating the program to incorporate new research. they know what they're doing. i have personally done weight watchers twice before (here's hoping the whole 'third time's a charm' thing rings true here also) and when i work the program, it works for me. 
• i am sick of being so extremely restricted in what i can and cannot eat. while i had great success losing weight with the clean eating approach i followed last year, maintenance was very hard for me. i mean, i couldn't eat a peach for goodness sakes. and unfortunately, i'm very much the type who thinks once i eat one thing that's not on the plan i've messed up the whole day, week, etc. i'm not saying it makes sense or is rational, i'm just saying that because of that, my previous plan was no longer an option. plus the guy who made my plans had no idea how to help me fuel to run. NONE. 
• i like the accountability of weight watchers [weekly weigh ins + going to meetings with friends]. 
• my OCD self loves tracking points and looking at spreadsheets/charts (WW has seriously stepped up their online tool game). 
• i want something that helps me to keep the weight off, instead of abandoning me when i've worked so hard to lose the weight. 
• i want something live-able. 
• i enjoy cooking, and i really like that i can try new dishes and cook some!

anyways, i just wanted to share. i'll keep you all updated!

.: 2013 goals :.

.: running :.

• finish a 30k to celebrate turning the dirty thirty
• run a sub 2 hour half marathon
• run a sub hour 10k
• finish a full marathon
• maintain my mileage around 15-20 miles per week after the full. 

.: weight training :.

• after the marathon, get back to a full out finess poynters plan [i've been doing a modified plan while my mileage has been increasing].
• i don't really care about lifting PRs, i mostly want to get back to the consistent schedule that i was in before i started bumping up my mileage. 

.: reading :.

• read at least 12 books from  the Modern Library's Top 100 Novels list.
• finish reading the Bible (i'm in Song of Songs right now). 
• read at least 10 non fiction books. 

.: spiritual :.

• join a connect group at chuch [sunday school class]
• finish beth moore's 'john:  90 days with the beloved disciple' 
• pay more attention to where God's leading me. 

.: everything else :.

• limit computer time to 30 minutes a day on work days, an hour on any other days.
• lose the last 5 pounds... then MAINTAIN. 

that's a LOT of goals! but you know what?

Fitness Poynters Extreme Fat Destruction::::Recap & Review

In January of this year I started a weight loss journey [for what seems like the millionth time]. I checked in with you all and also competed in a challenge at the gym. I did extremely well until May, having lost 18 pounds total. At this point the dreaded plateau crept up on me and I did what any completely irrational person would do... I gave up.

When the going got tough, I crumbled. I often found myself saying, "There just must be something wrong with me, because I'm doing all the work and it's not coming off." So after about a week or two of the same number on the scale, I started to back slide. 

I gained back 7 of the pounds I'd worked so hard to lose. And I'm talking QUICK. 

Then came vacation. Honestly vacation had been a huge motivator for me. I didn't want to feel self conscious all week, I wanted to enjoy it. But I was already in the negative mind set so not only was I self conscious all week, I sabotaged myself even more. Eating and drinking what I wanted. 

The one good thing [health-wise] I did was I did something active almost every day: running while my mom biked, biking with her, WOD with my brother, or stand up paddle boarding. But that was apparently beside the point. I really just used it to fuel the thoughts that I worked hard so I deserved to play hard also. 

When all was said and done, I gained back the complete 18 pounds, plus two more. It only took two months to completely undo what had taken me 5 months to do. Needless to say I was in a horrible place. I talked to my brother and he encouraged me to get in touch with Steve Poynter of Fitness Poynters. Matthew had worked with Steve a year or so ago when he decided to transition out of power lifting into a more lean muscle build. He spoke positively of his experience and I thought, well what do I have to lose. I knew I had to do something. 

I got in touch with Steve and he sent me a questionnaire asking my fitness goals. I was completely honest with him about my struggles and what I wanted. I want to lose weight, but I also want lean muscle mass. I don't want to be a twig, I want muscle! 

Steve had my plan to me within the week [He is extremely timely.... Any email I sent him was answered within a day, but very often it was much sooner]. I chose the Extreme Fat Destruction Plan ($64.99*), which comes with a workout plan and a meal plan. 

My first impressions::::

• I would need to plan ahead. I ended up grocery shopping on Sundays then making everything I'd need for the week. I made a lot of turkey burgers, Brad grilled chicken for me, I steamed huge amounts of green veggies. 
• Wow, I can actually eat carbs.
• I loved how everything was spelled out exactly for me. Yes there were places that I had options as to what to eat, but it wasn't overwhelming. 
• I'm going to be living in the gym. 

How it actually went::::

• I do really well with strict directions. I'm a people pleaser and I didn't want to check in with Steve and have to tell him I cheated [which in case you're wondering, I did cheat some, but I was honest with Steve about it. and he didn't sugar coat it for me]. 
• The meals filled me up. During the first few weeks I was stuffed, which was VERY different from any other meal plan I'd used previously. 
• The workouts didn't actually take as long as I thought. I got into a good routine of getting up before work to get my workouts in. 

The Results::::

• I've lost 20 pounds in 12 weeks. 
• I really wish I'd done measurements before, but I didn't. But I can tell a HUGE difference in how my clothes fit. When I lost the 18 pounds earlier this year, a lot of my smaller clothes were starting to fit. Now they're big on me. So I know I've gained lean muscle in the process, which makes me so happy. 
• Because I did so well, Steve is doing my next plan for free. He told me to take this week off [from lifting, I'm still eating clean] and we'll start it again next week. I'm so excited to continue this journey with him! 

And I'm beyond mortified to put this picture out there, but I feel like I need to. Please be nice! 

If you have any questions about Fitness Poynters, please let me know! Check out their site and testimonies, they're amazing!

*I received a discounted rate in exchange for blogging about my experience. All opinions are my own. 

rear view mirror:::: september 2012

running::::
after a slow two months, i picked it up [a little]. finished with 38 miles for the month, but more important than the numbers, i finished my first half since july. i was beyond worried that i would struggle [new meal plan, new workout plan, etc] but as Jill mentioned to me, apparently cross training suits me! 

i finished the cherokee harvest half marathon, which was number 7 of 12 in 2012. it really hit me this month (the one year anniversary of my first half marathon) how far i've come. this time last year i'd just finished my first half and who knew i'd have finished 8 total now! it really is proof that you can do what you want. i used to think running a half was crazy talk. now i've signed up for my first full [and that IS crazy talk! lol]

weight training::::
september wrapped up my 11th week of my new training plan. i am losing the weight slowly but surely. it's crazy how strong i feel though! i really wish i had one of those things to measure body fat percentage... I think it'd be very interesting to see how much that has changed. another interesting thing, i actually weighed what i do right now around april of this year [then managed to gain back the 18 pounds i'd lost plus some] but my clothes fit SO differently from how they did then. i put on a pair of capris yesterday and they literally almost fell off. it was awesome! so even though the scale might be moving a little slower than i'd like, i know i'm gaining lean muscle in the process and that's VERY important to me!

reading::::

crossed:  i am really enjoying this series but unfortunately the last book doesn't come out until november. it's a cross between the hunger games and the maze runner series. set in the future where the government has decided that we are overstimulated and it keeps us from reaching our full potential. so they get rid of so much  art, writings, etc and leave them with the 100 paintings, 100 songs, so on and so forth. they also match them with their mates and kill the citizens on their 70th birthdays. but there is an uprising and a love story involved. 

this is why you're fat: i downloaded this book while i was in tybee in june. i was out of books and i was also mad at myself for how i'd let all the weight i'd lost come right back. i quit reading it when i decided to try the fitness poynters plan. i went back and finished it when i realized that the third book in the crossed series wasn't out yet! it all made a lot of sense, but i didn't agree with everything in it. her meal plan is pretty good though. if you want it though, i'd recommend getting it in printed form vs. the digital copy. it's a book you'd need readily available and want to be able to flip through it. 

left behind & tribulation force: i am really enjoying this series. i'd started reading it a few years back [my mom had read them and recommended them] but honestly they scared me and i wasn't ready to read them. now i can't put them down but when i do it's mostly to spend more time reading the Bible. i know they're just one person's interpretation of the end of times, but i've really enjoyed them and they've helped me to become more focused on my walk with God. 

life::::

• my best friend got married last month! we traveled to ky for the beautiful ceremony which was in a vineyard. it was so wonderful to celebrate with friends that have become family over the years.
• we were able to drive up to cincinnati after the wedding and watch the reds play with brad's parents. they're in the playoffs so brad's pretty pumped. 
• i held a bridal shower at my house for another one of my friends that's getting married. it was the first thing like that i've ever hosted and i was pretty pleased with how it turned out. 
• i got to drive home and see my family and also my sweet aunt who is battling breast cancer. i always love time with the fam and it was especially great to see sherri. she's an amazing person who's fighting a battle right now. it would mean the world to me if you all would keep her in your prayers.
• brad took me to the pumpkin patch (my favorite fall activity)!

Rear View Mirror::: June 2012

running:::
i finished June strong with 52 miles. when i looked at my daily mile total on the 22nd i realized i'd only ran 28 miles so far. it was the smack in the face i needed to get going. honestly i don't know if this is just what happens in life or what but i feel like i turn around and then i realize i haven't ran in 4-5 days. it's crazy and i don't realize it. 


i haven't strictly followed a training plan since my first half and i have really enjoyed running when i want, how much i want. i've managed to keep a comfortable base that has allowed me to concentrate on weight training three times a week but also keep working towards my goal of 12 half marathons for the year.


i ran one half this month, downhill at dawn and it was a new PR for me!






weight training:::
i am still weight training three times weekly. this month i started following stage 1 of the New Rules of Lifting For Women. i am really enjoying the workouts, although i sometimes feel like i'm not doing enough. the authors mention this and encourage you to trust the program and not add to it. i'm trying to do that. i am continuing to run, which the author does not recommend in the first stage. 


reading::::
this month i finished two books:

the latest sookie stackhouse book came out in may and i've been saving it for an easy beach read. quick tangent:  i just got into these books last summer and i read them straight through. of course i was addicted and had to watch all the true blood episodes. now i'm so confused as to what's happened in the show vs. the books (the show just started back a few weeks ago too). this drives me crazy. end tangent. the book was kinda boring. 

i cannot even describe to you how amazing this book is. seriously, it's the first (non-running/workout) book i've recommended in a LONG time. the author has a wonderful way with words and the book is truly inspiring. basically, he does humanitarian work during his undergraduate and post grad work (he was a Rhodes scholar!) but realizes that you have to be willing to fight for what you believe in and he believed in helping and protecting others. so after he finished his PhD program at Oxford he enlists in the Navy and becomes a SEAL. i can't say enough about this book. read it and you'll understand. you'll highlight it and recommend it to everyone. 


weight:::
i'm just going to be honest... I literally just got back from a week of vacation and i have no idea how much i weigh. when i left i was sitting at -11 since January. we're going to go with that. i ate what i wanted and i'll get back to it this week (i also exercised more than i ever have on vacation so to me that's progress). i have joined up with Run With Jess to lose a marathon so hopefully that will provide me with the motivation i seem to have lost since the challenge at my gym has ended. 

life:::
i just got back from a family vacation in tybee island, georgia. it was an amazing week! brad and i and my family (mom, dad, brother, and brother's gf) all drove down on sunday and brad's fam (his mom and dad and brother and brother's gf) joined us on wednesday. i'll definitely do a post or two about the week, but i couldn't have asked for a better week. so great to see the fam, i miss them. 

Rearview Mirror: April 2012

running and training:  I'm not sure what the heck happened to my mileage this month (41 miles), but it plummeted. I think this was a weird month for me because I didn't have anything super challenging coming up. After the Spartan Sprint then the two halves in one weekend, it was hard to take training for the Pig seriously. For May I really hope to get my mileage back up in the 60+ range. 


This month I got three strength training workouts in each week. I was really happy with that and will definitely continue. I have fallen in love with strength training. I love feeling strong!


races:  The only race I did this month was on April 1st, the Knoxville Covenant Health Half Marathon. 

blogging:  If any of you are going to be in Cincinnati for the Flying Pig let me know if you'd like to meet up before the race or something! Also the blog makeover is coming up soon, right in time for my one year blogiversary!


reading: 

• Dune Road by Jane Green - definitely not my favorite book of hers. Boring, all over the place, and pretty predictable. I don't recommend it. 
• Fifty Shades of Grey series - I finished books 1 and 2. OMG. I had no idea what I was getting myself into! Definitely not the Hunger Games, but still fun to read. I'm in the middle of the last book now. 

weight loss journey:

So i hit the dreaded plateau this month. I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later... but YUCK. I don't feel like I'm close enough to my goal weight to hit the big P, but here I am. I ended up gaining a half a pound this month (-16 pounds total since January). I started the month well, but then gained and lost the same 5 pounds at least twice. I'm not going to lie, I'm FRUSTRATED. But I'm sticking with it. Hopefully I'll have a big loss next month!

have you ever hit a weight loss plateau? how did you get through it?

What the heck?

Holy crap, what's this new blogger setup? I just jumped on to do a quick post and I have no idea where anything is! Interesting...

So what have y'all been up to? I've been running and training and working and traveling.

I completed a 12 week challenge at the gym which consisted of weekly weigh ins and measurements and monthly fitness assessments (timed plank, wall sit, and half mile run, and push ups to failure). Here were my results:

Weight:  -13.2 pounds
Body Fat:  - 3.1%
Chest:  - 4 inches
Rt. Arm:  -0.75 inches
Waist:  -4.25 inches
Hips:  -4 inches

I am beyond thrilled with these results. I also met all of my goals for the fitness assessment (2:30 plank!!!). A trainer at my gym did this completely on her own time for school project. She was amazing. Our school gym did things like this all the time and I really don't understand why my current gym never does. We got points for various things, and I came in second place! I won 6 personal training sessions with Jessica (the trainer who put all this together). I'm mostly excited but a little nervous for these sessions!

The challenge ended Wednesday and I pretty much took a week off from tracking my food. I kept working out  (because I've gotten to where I feel like crap if I don't) but I wanted to give myself a break from the calorie counting. I've hit a little plateau and I wanted to get my mind right before starting back hardcore. Today was my first day back counting.

I trained legs this morning and then did Ab Ribber X tonight with a little bit of yoga.

I do love me some two a days.

We went to KY this weekend because one of Brad's cousins was getting married. I got up Saturday morning to go get my LR done and realized I'd packed everything but a sports bra, which unfortunately is a deal breaker for me. So we had to pick a new one up at Dicks and I ended up running 7 miles on Sunday morning instead.

What did you do this weekend? 
Do you ever do two a days? How often?

The Resolution for Women - A Preview!

On Wednesday I started reading a new book called 'The Resolution for Women,' by Priscilla Shirer. I'm only a few pages in but I really think it's going to be a really great book. I just have to share a few excerpts with you guys, because it really encouraged me and  I hope it'll do the same for you:

The book is obviously about making resolutions, more specifically the resolutions that God has for you. The author starts by saying that she wasn't much for resolutions and said the word even disturbs her a little.

"...I've made so many of these goals and promises before and haven't always followed through..."

"Fail enough times and you don't feel like trying again."

"Some of us, for our own varied reasons, ultimately decide they're not worth the effort."

These statements, especially the last one, really stuck with me and I spent a lot of the day going over it in my mind. I can really identify with that feeling of thinking you aren't worth the effort.

In January I was in a really crappy place as far as my weight went. I'd been there for awhile and unfortunately it had become the norm. I was running a lot, but I wasn't making the effort to clean up my diet. In my mind, I wasn't ready to make that commitment to change. 

"Right now - whether you realize it or not - you're choosing to treat people a certain way, to stay committed to certain activities, to live a certain life, to be a certain kind of person, to not be a certain kind of person. Either way, you've made a decision."

It's funny how right she is! I never though about it that way, but I was actively choosing to disregard my body.  Making a decision that I wasn't worth the work. I was afraid to make the decision to care because I didn't want to fail again.

If you want to do something, make the decision to DO IT rather than making the decision to not.You have to make a decision either way, why not make the one that ultimately makes you happy and a better person?

Do the work. You're worth it.

I'll share more as I continue to read :) Thanks for all your all's awesome encouragement throughout my weight loss journey so far, it really means the world for me!

 

 

 

Pink Elephant In the Room... Or that's what it feels like at least.

After I finished work on Friday, Brad and I packed up to go to Kentucky. One of his cousins was getting married so it was kind of a like a mini family reunion for his side of the family. It was a really nice wedding and great to see everyone.

He cleans up nice doesn't he?

I've been in a crap mood since Friday. I'm not sure what's up with that. I think a huge part of it (no pun intended) is my current weight situation. I've been trying to figure out how to attack it, and as I mentioned here I plan on resuming weekly weigh ins.

But even during last week I found myself making poor food decisions. I wasn't committed yet.

I have this horrible mentality when it comes to dieting... All or nothing. I know how problematic this mentality can be. Trust me. But I've never had successful weight loss without hitting rock bottom (or an all time high on the scale), then making a conscious decision to make hard core changes.

I (like most everyone else) like to see results quickly and those results are what motivate me to continue. But then I look back over the past 10 years of my life (dang, really 10 years?!?) and I see how I've yo-yo dieted throughout. Honestly, it pisses me off. A lot.

I'm sick of being self conscious.
I'm sick of not being able to wear the clothes I want to wear and be confident in them.
I'm tired of being embarrassed to walk into a running store (seriously I am).

I hesitate to say these things, because once I hit publish it's out there for good. I'm afraid to fail. But I cannot keep doing this to myself over and over. I feel like I've missed out on so much because I've been too worried about my weight.

I hope that I can work on this over the next few months as racing winds down. Then hopefully come spring my running will reap the rewards of me being at least 20-25 pounds lighter. I hope that I can conquer this nagging problem that I have let beat me so many times.

And trust me I know that it doesn't stop once you get to where you want. I've lost the weight twice and gained it back. (Once right before pharmacy school started and again before the wedding, although I didn't get back as low as I'd have liked for the wedding). So here I am again, hoping that the third time really is a charm.

Sorry for the rambling, woe is me post. I try not to be Debbie Downer, especially about situations that I've brought upon myself. I just felt like I needed to get it off my chest. So no more excuses, it's on like Donkey Kong :)

What's your best healthy eating tip?