Sunshine on my face

So as I mentioned before, I decided that I'm going to focus on wogging (walk/jogging) & get really good at that without concerning myself with the classes. It was just way too much. I decided to take my ambitions outside because it's starting to get nice here. I have my running play lists that I made for my iPod & I have my watch for timing myself. That's how the C25K program works. It's a 9 week program designed to get you running a 5K in 9 weeks. I have some doubts for myself. I've never been a runner. Ever. It's hard for me & I keep trying. I decided for outside, to actually download the FREE podcasts itunes has for your iPod for the C25K program done by Robert Ullrey. I took the time to get all 9 weeks. I've already completed Weeks 1 & 2 several times over the last 3 months (like I said, I'm not a runner, it's very hard for me) & would be starting on Week 3. Every time I've tried the C25K program I've never gotten to Week 3. I always stopped. So the fact that I was starting Week 3 is huge for me. So I start listening to the podcast as I'm out there with my friend Elysia. She also has the C25K podcasts too. The way Week 3 is structured you walk briskly for 5 minutes as a warm up then you jog 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds, jog 3 minutes, walk 3 minutes, jog 90 seconds, walk 90 seconds, jog 3 minutes & then you walk another 5 to cool down. 3 minutes of jogging. I was already ready to quit. I didn't know how I was going to do it. One foot in front of the other I guess. Anyway, I'm listening & the music isn't exactly to my liking. Think Erotic Spa music. I'm walking along & Robert comes on & tells you to get ready because your first jog is coming up & when to start. So I start. Then he tells me to walk. Then to jog and so on. Wow!!! For me, it made the process much easier. I didn't have to watch the timer on the treadmill because let me tell you, any amount of seconds of running feel like FOREVER when you're on the treadmill. I didn't have to watch the timer, pay attention to my stride & my breathing. I only had to pay attention to my stride & breathing. It was so much easier for me. Well, the first day it was very breezy & it seemed like I was jogging up hill into the wind but I did it. Which, the treadmill doesn't have hills. As I told my friend Amy, you know Amy, the triathlete, before I even jogged outside that the hills would be my friend because they are what is going to make my ass look good. I've decided that the podcasts are what is going to help me be successful with this whole running thing. Having never run before, I have to develop the skill. If I just worry about my breathing & stride & someone else watches the time for me, that is a huge help. I can follow along until I become stronger & more confident. The podcasts are such a great learning tool. If you'd like to get them for yourself you can click here and just read up to get them. If you want to read up about C25K you can go here, you can even print the running plan. I'm actually excited & want to get really good at this. It finally feels like something I can do, in my own time, as long as I keep trying. Life is a journey, right?? In other news, I was doing awesome tracking & counting my points. Yesterday was awesome (I was also down 3.8lbs since my Monday weigh in, all that fiber.....) until I got my delivery of Gertrude Hawk Toasted Coconut Clusters. I haven't tracked a single one. Bad, bad Elizabeth. They are my most favorite coconut clusters, ever. I only get them once a year. They also complimented my breakfast nicely this morning!!! Hahaha, anyway, the rest of the day is available to be on track & I have a big pot of Lentil Soup simmering away on the stove. I am going to be adding the recipe to my WW so I can figure out the points for it. Saturday is my next planned jogging day. I'm really glad I decided to start doing this outside. I felt strong & healthy & it was great to have the sunshine on my face. :)

I'm Still Awesome

I'm happy to report that I squeaked out a 3.3lb loss this week. I think it's mostly from Friday-Sunday since I've eaten a lot of fresh fruits & vegetables & the fiber has kicked in.....several times. I didn't want to get out of bed this morning. I was awake for a while around 4am. Thinking. This not having a job thing is really taking it's toll on me. On April 5th, next Tuesday, I will be unemployed for 8 months. Yes, 8 Months. As I've been told in the computer lab, that's not so bad, there are people that have been unemployed for 2 years. As if that is supposed to make me feel better, but it doesn't. I'm to the point with money now that I hope to have a few sheckles left over after bills get paid to get a few groceries. Granted, I don't write this for pity, I'm trying to explain & work through my funk. I have a budget spreadsheet & bills are accounted for first, then some gas for my car, then food. As I've mentioned, it's much easier & cost effective to but frozen & processed meals. Because my budget is so tight, I'm noticing the prices going up. Take milk for instance. On sale it's $2.89 (I buy 1%). Costco's regular price for the same thing is $2.72. Milk not on sale is about $3.79, give or take. How do people with kids do it? I asked Jay to help me & he got me milk & an ass load of raisin bran from Costco. And all those fruits & vegetables I've been munching on. So with that, I worry constantly about money, that everything is budgeted right. I apply for jobs & don't hear back from anyone. The thing is, I am awesome, as I mentioned in my last post. I, for the life of me, can't figure out why someone wouldn't hire me. I'd be a great asset to any business. I'm smart, a good problem solver, great at multi-tasking, I have initiative, I'm a people person with superb people skills, you name it, I have it. I suppose the right thing will come along, when it's right. I'm thinking I should stop worrying about what's not happening & focus more on getting better at this running thing. I've planned my 3 running days this week for the C25K program. I will be meeting up with my friend Elysia to work that program outside. Even in the cold. It's not butt cold like my friend Amy is running 8 miles or more in, but it's still cold. So I will be adhering to my pact with Leah of working C25K. Running outside is much harder on a treadmill. I don't know why, but it is. Either way, I'm moving forward with that. Here's to being focused & succeeding at being awesome! :)

Awesome

As I mentioned, I made a pact with my friend Leah. I have to apologize to her. I haven't been good at keeping the pact. I set myself up for failure.



She left me a comment: I don't know how you can run & do the cardio sculpt and all that crazy intense stuff you do - - You're like Wonder Woman!!!



I can't do all of that stuff. It was too much, way too much. I was left unable to form words & able to keep my eyes open. Really. Then I didn't want to do anything because I couldn't do it all. So I didn't do anything. I haven't done anything. What a moron I can be. I can't do everything, so I won't do anything. Who gets the Asshole Award this week?? I do!!!



Then I tweeted I was scared to try W3D1 of the C25K program, because I am. There will be 3 straight minutes of jogging twice within a 25 minute period. Add in 90 seconds of jogging as well. THAT I know I can do. But 3 minutes? No effing way!! My friend Amy, the triathlete, tweeted in response: Keep trying. Keep showing up. If it were easy everyone would do it. The hard part is what makes you stronger in many ways.



Of course I responded that I'm disappointed in myself. Amy told me to try to avoid disappointment, that I have a certain focus & that my energy is in run right now & I should own it. Well, I'm owning it.



At this moment in time I can't be successful at running & classes. I have to pick one thing & be good at that before moving on to something else. I've chosen the whole running thing for a couple of reasons. First, the classes are during the day which means if/when I get a job, I will have to stop taking them. Second, the running I can do anytime anywhere. Third, I've been trying this whole running thing longer than taking the classes, so I am going to stick with what I started first & get really good at it.



Twice this week, friends, childhood friends, Heather & Amy both told me I am awesome. They are pretty awesome themselves. Leah thinks I'm Wonder Woman. Maybe I should try seeing myself as others see me instead of seeing myself the way I typically do. I bet I might be more successful at running, eating right, being healthy. It's time to start formulating different thoughts in my head & believing them.



I'm lucky to have such smart, great, wonderful & awesome people in my life. I think things would a whole lot worse if I didn't.



Awesomely yours,



Elizabeth

Oy

I'm up 3.7lbs. Could it be the monthly womanly thing?? Could it be the corned beef & cabbage dinner (SALT)??? Could it be the chips, pretzels & cookies I had again this week??? Maybe it's a combo.



I am at a point where money is so tight that I am going to have to start choosing, not budgeting, what I get. This might sound weird but when I stop at the store to get bananas or some other fruit, I pick something else on it & then end up binging. I think this is happening for a couple of reasons: I don't want to have to limit my budget. The worst/most striking observation is I have this fear of having nothing so I have to have it all, now. I'm pretty sure that is why I have been having trouble the last couple of weeks.



Soo.....



If anyone has EXTREME budget tips they can offer me I welcome every single one of them. If you don't want to post them as a comment, you can send it to me in an e-mail. Since I haven't figured out how to create a link to post my email right to the blog you can get it by viewing my complete profile.

Now that I'm aware of what the problem is, I will be more conscious of it. I have to. We will see how this week goes....

:)

Working at it

I'm having some struggles. It's not the typical struggles you think, well for me. They are different.

I'm very physically sore. I tried a Cardio Sculpt class twice this week. Twice, I have been rendered incapable of formulating words, sentences or conversations. On top of the classes, I made a pact with my friend Leah.

You all know Leah. She is a childhood friend of mine and also a blogger. She writes The Storybook Ranch, her crafty home improvement/vintage/thrifty blog and she writes Being Vegan Again, her path back to a vegan lifestyle, which, to me, is extremely informative & has caused me to ask her more questions as well as thinking about making some changes as well. Anyway, Leah & I made a pact last week to run (think wun/wog for me as I, again, am working the C25K program) & to honestly report to each other. The reason we are reporting and being honest is because we are going to do the Tunnel to Towers 5K in September. Yes, I need that much time to get ready for a 5k.

So, I did my C25K before Cardio Sculpt. That is approximately 85 minutes of cardio. It's a lot. I'm guzzling water, sweating like a pig (I weighed myself before & after & I lost 3 lbs in that time!!) My ass hurts, big time. The outside of my cheeks down the backs of my legs. My hip muscles hurt, the tiny muscles at the tops of my thighs right next to my gini hurt. I know it's from my exercising. I didn't take Cardio Pump yesterday because I was so sore. I contemplated not even going to Cardio Sculpt because I was still sore. But I went & I did my C25K before hand. Why? I don't want to fail. I want to succeed, I want it all to get easier, because I know if I keep at it, it will. For the Cardio Pump & Sculpt classes & for the C25K. I just have to keep plugging along. What I like with the classes is that they show you how to modify the moves for your skill level. That gives me hope.

I'm also struggling with my blood sugar. I'm having troubles keeping it in the normal range. I am running on the low side where I get shaky, bad shaky. Shaky in my chest, like a fluttering. When I eat well, I don't have blood sugar spikes, but I take medication to control my blood sugar. I know I need a meds check but I don't have any health insurance, I lost that when I lost my job. I don't have any extra cash to use that to pay for a doctor's visit. I'm stressed over what to do. I know everything has a way of working out, or I figure out a solution, but I'm having trouble with this one.

Tomorrow is going to be another rest day. I can feel it already. Even sitting hurts. This is the third day it hurts to sit. Friday will be C25K & Triple Threat. I know at some point this "stuff" that I'm doing will be come easier, but until then I will continue to work at it.

:)

Get a Grip....

I wanted to put a bad word (asshole) in my title, but I didn't. Also, the asshole I am referring to is myself.

I had a rough day Friday. The short of it: On my way to my Triple Threat class, which I ended up not going to I grabbed my mail. I saw the distinctive envelopes from my bank signifying a problem with my checking account. Stuff bounced because of an error someone else made causing me to be out of money I don't have & that had already pre-budgeted because I'm so poor that's how life is for me. I had to come inside and figure out the exact problem. I did. Nothing I can do to fix it. I'm ass out. Needless to say, I coped & coped hard with some chips, dip & a bag of chips ahoy cookies.

That was pretty much my diet for 24 hours. Awesome, right? By Saturday afternoon I felt calm & had a talk with myself. None of it made me feel better. I just needed to do things my way at that time. It doesn't make it right or better. It's just what happened. Being on such a tight budget always weighs on my mind. Struggling to find a job weighs on me. Add to that that I have trouble sleeping at night because I re-think, over think, pre-think, you name it. I can't change the past, I can't control things people have said/may say/are saying, I can't control certain things in my life only how I react to them. I didn't do so well over the weekend. Maybe it was a reminder that I don't have to do that. I don't know. It was back on the WW wagon today though.

Speaking of WW, somehow my weight is down an even 2lbs for a total (from my re-start) of 10.5lbs. Granted, that doesn't mean I can have a bender like I did regularly, it just means I need to work harder at finding an alternative.

Today I took a Cardio Step class, after I started the C25k program again today. With the C25k I didn't go back to week 1, I started back at week 2. It was a struggle for me but it went better than I expected. After that I took Cardio Step class for an hour. It was much harder than Cardio Pump & Triple Threat. It was mostly a step class, learning a new routine with a little strength training incorporated. The other 2 classes concentrate on a larger amount of strength training. There was a lot of up & over the step, pivoting, ponies, grapevines, kicks, power moves, you name it. I spent a lot of time trying not to bust my ass too!!

I had a good workout today....so good I have been EXHAUSTED all day long. Unable to keep my eyes open, just want to sleep kind of workout. That's awesome!!! I'm sure some of my exhaustion has a little to do with my womanly time embarking upon me as well. As I get older, it really is beginning to take it's toll on me. Anyway.....

That's where I'm at: a bender, a loss & a good workout!

:)

Stuff

I have a bunch of stuff to share. Bear with me, there might be a lot of information involved.

I believe I discovered to cause of the extreme swelling of my ankles, my right one more so than my left. My right one swells more in general due to the damage. We will get to that in a bit.

About 2 weeks ago when I started taking the classes at the Y, I asked Jay to get me some pain reliever. I didn't have anything but Excedrin Migraine, nothing for muscle pain. He grabbed me some Aleve. I didn't think anything of it & stated popping them, taking 2 at a time. I didn't realize until 5am this morning, 2 isn't a dose, it's 1, whoops!! So I was looking at the bottle & it said "Naproxen Sodium Tablets". My thought was "sodium, salt, water retention". So when I got up this morning I looked it up. Guess what I discovered??? Visible water retention & water retention in general are common & severe side effects of naproxen sodium tablets. I won't be taking any more Aleve, time to get my good old standby of Aspirin!!

So the reason I was up taking some Aleve at 5am is because my ankle (the one I shattered) is bothering me. I never complain about it, ever. I never let it hinder me or any physical activity I do. I'm not supposed to do weight bearing exercise & do it at my own risk. My orthopaedic & I had a discussion about it. Let me recap: 10 years ago I shattered both of my leg bones at the ankle joint in a car accident. I also broke my 3 middle toes in that accident. To fix my ankle I had 2 wires & screws put in on the inside of my ankle & on the outside of my ankle I had a bone graft (from a cadaver) a plate & 5 more screws. I've since had the hardware removed. Shortly after, about 3 years after my accident, it was determined that arthritis had already started on the inside of my ankle & at 27 I was deemed a candidate for an ankle replacement, I'm just to young for it to be done. On top of that, there is a "bone bridge" fusing my leg bones together so I will ultimately lose the independent movement each leg bone has. My toes constantly feel as though a sock is bunched up under them & the muscles become very tight at night when I sleep. Yeah, there is a lot going on in there, but yet I don't let it stop me.

Last night, while sitting on the couch putting lotion on my feet, my ankle was making weird noises as I moved it around. It kept cracking & making popping/grinding noises. Gross. Usually I want the joint to crack to feel some relief but it's very painful, almost feels like it's hooked up on something. Nasty. To let my foot hang in a rest position is causing some discomfort. I think it's all from a combination of the rainy weather & my body (ankle) adjusting to the cardio/sculpting classes. I didn't make it to the Y yesterday I was very busy & today I wanted to just give my ankle a little break.

So enough about all that gross stuff......

On Tuesday, in Cardio Pump we were handed Gliding Discs so we could glide. Click here to find out what Gliding is. You would think it wouldn't be a great workout, but it was awesome!! I could really feel it in my thighs (fronts & backs) & hips! We didn't do anything at a fast pace, everything was slow enough to maintain control. I loved it.

The one thing I love about the Cardio Pump classes is that they are never the same. It's always different. There isn't any time for muscle memory. I feel like I get a good workout every time, I mean, I am gross & sweaty when I'm finished. I think Monday I'm going to start taking the Cardio Step class that is offered twice a week. Why not? The classes are part of my membership, I'm trying new active things & I'm challenging myself.

Oh, by the way, my weight happens to be down about 3lbs right now, probably since I haven't had any Aleve in the last couple of days with the exception of this morning.

Have a great day!!

Up

As I mentioned yesterday, I knew I'd be up. A whole 2.6 pounds. My tongue still feels bloated. I've started drinking (guzzling) my water. I even have my travel bottle chilling in the fridge to take with me today to my computer classes at the career center. So I'm prepared & I get hydrated. I'm also going to bring a banana & some almonds with me too.

The class is only 3 hours but I'm used to grazing throughout the day. I don't want to be starving & get home & eat something out of starvation.

Since I'm up, my daily points went up, again. I'm good like that ;)

That is pretty much all I have for now.

Have a great day.

:)

Salty Goodness

It's no secret I have a love of all things salty. I love chips, cheese, crackers, popcorn, hot sauce, dips you name it. Some where during this week, I found a salt lick & it's now resting in my body. I have gone through my food tracker, because I tracked really well this week but I can't quite determine where it's from.

I had a good week tracking & eating this week, so I shouldn't be up by the pounds (yes, I said pounds) that I am showing. I have been drinking my water but not expelling it, apparently. I feel dehydrated, my tongue feels huge & I feel the cramps in my feet. I couldn't possibly have had THAT much salt to feel that way. I think it has to do with the classes I've taken.

I've consistently had muscle soreness since last Sunday. I love the classes because they incorporate strength training. My soreness hasn't been to the point of me walking like Frankenstein, just discomfort and not unbearable.

I know, from my many conversations with Donna, that as muscles repair themselves they will hold onto water. So add that to my love of salt & there is where my gain is coming from.

I'm not concerned about it. I know that if I keep tracking & exercising it will all balance itself out.

Onward & upward!!!

:)

Classes

Well, fiber & I are still battling. I had delicious homemade mashed potatoes with dinner tonight, the only food item all week I haven't accounted for. They were soooo good too.....yum!!!

I survived 3 classes at the Y. Two Cardio Pump classes & Triple Threat today. I had an epiphany during the agility portion of today's class: I can't wait to keep taking this to see how far I can improve. Yes. That's right. I said it. I'm looking forward to developing more strength & stamina to use heavier weights, higher steps & bands with more tension. I've really enjoyed the classes this week.

I spoke with the teacher today, her name is Patti. She taught the Cardio Pump class I took last Sunday. She teaches a Cardio Step class on Monday's & Wednesday's. One of the sections we did today, cardio (see the class gets broken down into 10 activities & chosen by class members, it's different every week) was a step routine that everyone else knew. After class she told me they had been working on it for a few weeks in the Cardio Step class. I didn't even try it. There was a good chance I would have busted my ass & it wouldn't have been pretty. Anyway, she invited me to come to the Cardio Step this Monday. She said it's the last day for this routine & on 3/14 they will be starting a new one. I think I'm going to have to join in.

Now I have a PSA. If you have a YMCA near you please consider checking it out & possibly becoming a member. The people I have met & talked with are wonderful. There are a lot of great programs & activities to be a part of. I was a member of a gym. For the same price I get a lot more at the YMCA. It's just a much better experience & I couldn't be happier.

:)