The Upside of moving

Well, moving does have it's perks! I carried heavy boxes up the stairs. I used more calories than I took in. I hurt!!
I also have A LOT of cleaning to do. I will be scrubbing floors on hands and knees this week, and I'll be cleaning white tile counters with white grout. I'll be burning some major calories this week!
It also feels soooo good outside, I can hardly stand being indoors. I will be running! Oh, my new running shoes are calling my name.
Here's to a new city and a new start!

Also, I will try and make sure I do my Thursday post, but I'm having Internet problems, so we'll see if I can get on and get a post in. I'll sure try!

Thanks for all the comments I get, it sure makes me feel like I have some support!!

Stress

I have a weet bit o stress going on right now. *(We are moving Saturday to Henderson. Not a move I want to make.) So I was wondering how people deal with their stress. I deal with stress in the following ways:

1. I eat cookies
2. I eat cookie dough
3. I drink pop (which I normally don't like)
4. I want to sleep all the time
5. I don't do what I am supposed to be doing
6. I go and play with my friends.

I know, I really shouldn't do the first 3 things on my list, but I crave it!! So I resolve to go running Monday morning! I will give all my cookie dough away and share my cookies. I probably wont be sleeping much since my hubby will be working nights. And, I wont have any friends down there, so I wont have to worry about going and playing with friends instead of dealing with reality.
 I would love to hear how you deal with stress.

Engrish

Funny translations on our Schwinn bike motivate me, or just make me laugh.



This sign makes me laugh as well. On the bike, I love the line that says, "use your arms." Okay, you are on a stationary bike. Do you swing your arms? Is that how you use them? Haha! I love a good laugh. Especially since a laugh, a good one mind you, will burn a number of calories. I love to laugh ha ha ha!

What motivates you?

What motivates you to keep going at your work out? What keeps you doing it?

1. This blog! (It really does!)
2. My pants that are a little snug, but are my favorite pair of jeans.
3. Feeling good about myself.
4. Honestly, I LOVE it when people comment on my weight loss. It makes me feel good.

Now, what motivates you?!

Did you know?!

Did you know:

• That playing with your children on the floor burns 210 ckals per hour?
• Carrying your child burns 253 kcals per hour?
• Having "alone" time with your spouse burns 109 kcals per hour?
• Sleeping burns 75 kcals per hour?
• Grooming burns 168 kcals per hour?
• Playing the piano burns 210 kcals per hour? (playing the trombone burns 295!)
• Vacuuming  burns 278 ckals per hour!?

These are just a few of the activities you do every day. Think of all the calories you're burning doing the stuff you enjoy and some that you don't. It's amazing how staying busy during the day, even if you are just cleaning or playing with your kids, counts towards your calorie burning!

* I got all of these from caloriecount.com

The Non-funny Hours

I was watching a movie and working out on our stationary bike. I had just completed an hour of mediocre pedaling. I knew I could do better. I didn't know what my heart rate was, since our heart rate monitors malfunction, but I could feel it in my legs. I didn't ache enough (I thrive on 'feeling' my work out to know it was a successful workout). So, I decided that since the movie was still going - I would too. I decided to do the fitness test program on the bike. That was my first mistake.

The levels increased each minute until at 16 minutes I had maxed out at level 16. I kept pedaling. I knew that the time would come that this torture would end. My thighs were burning, I was short of breath, I was sucked back into high school memories of volleyball conditioning, I knew I just had to pedal one more time. . . after 15 minutes of this the pedaling became normal at the intense level. I continued to wonder "when is this test going to end? I want my score!" Second mistake.

Then I suddenly realized, "the heart monitor. It is broken! That is the problem! Oh my goodness! I can't believe I didn't realize this before!" 34 minutes ago when the 16th level began to be exact. Third mistake.
I felt sick. I could feel the blood pumping in my head. Later, when the sweat was washed off , my red flaming face had returned to my normal skin color after an hour of cooling down, and a ton of water drinking, I only feel elation.  I am elated that survived to tell the tale of burning 900 calories in a single night of bike riding.

Jump Roping

Here is a site that outlines a few techniques that I use when I jump rope. For now, I jump rope for 5 minutes. I include the following techniques:
Double foot jumping (regular jumping)
Half twist (twist half way, jump, twist other way)
Full twist (twist fully, jump, twist)
Boxer stance (legs out)
Criss cross, skiing (side to side jump)
Scissors (1 leg forward each jump)
Forward and back (jump in front then in back)
One foot jump, cardio jump (normal and as fast as I can)

So get a rope and jump right in the fun!

The Importance of Calorie Consumption

I know we are all trying to watch what we eat, but sometimes we can not get enough calories. I know, I often think that I should eat less then 1000 kcals a day, but I found out this weekend that we really do need to eat enough kcals! A little story:
 My little sister, Jillian, has been doing track at her high school this week. She is running at the least, 3 miles a day. On Friday, she ran and forgot to eat dinner before going to attend a basketball game. While she was at the basketball game, she passed out, twice! When she came too, she had tons of people asking to see if she was okay, and made quite the scene. (Jillian doesn't like being the center of attention like that!) She was figuring out how many kcals she had eaten that day and realized it wasn't enough.
 So, I know I'm always trying to find ways to cut out things to eat, but we really do need to remember to make sure that we are eating enough kcals to keep our bodies running right.

The fine line...

Do you ever wonder if you discuss weight too much? I sometimes wonder if that's the case for me. Then, as we were leaving a friends' house, Mily piped up from the back seat "Wow, I ate so much! I ate a WHOLE calorie!". There it was. I think that shows me that I'm talking too much about my calorie consumption! I work so hard to not let her think that she's fat or that she needs to change anything about herself, and here I am, working against myself with what I say. I guess it's being a hypocrite. It's hard finding the fine line between trying to be a good role model, and being an obsessive, over-weight, mother of three.

Rewards

I was having a low Saturday. I pushed myself hard on Thursday with extra weights, jump roping, and a long cardio workout, yet I still felt fat. My husband weighed himself and came in stating, "I'm dropping pounds and I don't know why!" I promptly told him to never say that again in the presence of a woman, especially one who has given birth.

Then he came up with an awesome reward system. Because we all want to be rewarded for our correct behaviors, right? I have a weak spot. I really really really want an iPod Touch, yet with our student income that is not a possibility. That doesn't mean I don't want one, so I certainly do like his plan.

The plan is to be paid for working out. I want to work out. I have consistently been working out, but this plan has helped me to have even more motivation. So here is our system at the moment: know that for each, I have to push myself hard. 10 minutes of bike riding = $.25. 1 hr = $.50. You may be thinking, well then who wouldn't do more 10 minute exercises? Exactly, I find that if I work out throughout the day and push myself in small increments, I work off more calories. Since I sprint for 30 seconds and then do a normal pedal job for 1 min and 30 seconds then sprint for 30 seconds. . . this works well for me.

Weights for 15 minutes = $.25. Kickboxing movie = $.50. Jump roping = $.25. If you are like my husband and thinking, Jump roping for 5 minutes? Come on! That's simple. Not the way I learned. I was a high school PE jump roping champ. So I will show you what 'true jump roping' is next week if you do not know. It is not the elementary school version of jump roping, I assure you.

This system was implemented yesterday, so it is certainly still a work in progress, but already, I am wanting to earn as much as I can each day to earn an iPod Touch and later on to earn and buy even more and I will weigh less!!! The possibilities are endless. I am hyped.

A challenge for you this week.

If you live in a cold weather area like me, going outside into the -5 air doesn't sound like such a good idea. So I've put together some workouts you can do in your home. I'm going to be doing this this week along with you!

•  50 squats
• 50 lunges
• 50 push ups
• 50 push downs (for this you need another person or a piece of furniture that wont move on you. You hold onto the persons legs or the furniture and you lay flat on your back. You take your legs off the ground and put them at a 90 angle and then put them down. Try not to touch the floor with your feet or legs while doing this.)
• 10 minutes of weight lifting for your arms... or play 10 minutes of boxing on the Wii! If you don't have any weights, use two bags of brown sugar. They weight 2 pounds so it should give you some good resistance.

I hope you all enjoy these workouts. I know it gets hard when you're in a funk with the same routine. Hopefully this will give you some new ideas.

January's Measurements

	1/6/11	12/7/10	11/1/10	10/4/10	Total
Neck	12.75	12.75	13	13.25	.75
Chest	39.5	39.5	40	40	.5
Right Arm	13	13	12.5	13	0
Left Arm	12.5	12.75	12.5	13	.5
Waist	45.5	45.5	45.25	46	.5
Hips	44	44	43	43.5	-.5
Right Thigh	22	22.25	22.75	24	2
Left Thigh	22	22	22.75	24	2
Right Calf	14.5	14.5	14.75	15	.5
Left Calf	14.5	14.5	14.75	15	.5
Total Loss					6.75

Well, it says I didn't lose any this month, but I have noticed a difference in my hips and thighs. My size 9 pants now fit. Granted they are very snug, but they fit and I can breath with them on! My pants that I've been wearing are too big and look bad on me, so I take that as success! My shirts have also been fitting me better, so I don't know if I'm just doing my measurements wrong, or what. So forget the numbers this month, my pants and shirts show the results!!

2011 Goals

I believe every goal should be measurable. I should be able to take inventory at the end of the day and ask, "did I achieve my goal?" It should be a yes/no answer. That being said, here are my physical goals for 2011 and beyond!
-Exercise at least 45 minutes every day (Mon-Sat). With weight action on Tues and Thurs.
-Stretch for 5 minutes at the beginning and the end of every day (Mon-Sat).
-View the fruit and veggie dish of any meal as the main course. This is measured by making sure there is always a fruit and/or vegetable for every meal which is then devoured by me.

My tummy measurements (inches):
October - 40
November - 39.5
December - 38
January - 38

New Year: New body!

I loved this article!! I hope you get as much out of it as I do. Here's to my new year and making my goals! I am so excited to becoming a better me!

OUR 25 BEST WEIGHT-LOSS TIPS FROM OVER THE YEARS

By Nanci Hellmich, USA TODAY

1. Set a realistic weight-loss goal. Most experts recommend aiming for half a pound to 2 pounds a week.

2. Keep track. Dieters who keep track of everything they eat lose twice as much weight as those who don't, research shows.

3. Motivate yourself. Get a pair of jeans or pants that are too tight and hang them in the kitchen instead of the closet to keep yourself inspired.

4. Get help from family and friends. Dieters who have support from a partner at home lose more weight than those who don't, studies show.

5. Move it to lose it. Research shows that people who do physical activities such as walking or biking for two to four hours a week during weight-loss efforts lose an extra 3 to 5 pounds over a year.

6. Pay attention to portions. A 3-ounce portion of meat, poultry or fish is about the size of the palm of your hand or a deck of cards; 1 teaspoon of butter or margarine, a standard postage stamp; a cup of cold cereal, berries or popcorn, a baseball; 4-inch pancake or waffle, the diameter of a CD.

7. Clean out your pantry and refrigerator. Get rid of the foods that sabotage your weight loss.

8. Create "a dinner deck." This would include 10 favorite quick and healthful dinners written on index cards. Each card should list the ingredients for the recipe on one side and directions for making it on the other.

9. Avoid hunger. Eat regular meals and snacks. Make sure you have some protein foods such as yogurt, tuna, beans or chicken for most meals. Some research suggests that protein helps you feel full longer.

10. Keep produce on hand. Place a bowl of vegetables such as broccoli, snap peas, cucumbers or carrot sticks in the refrigerator. You can eat them as a snack or when preparing meals to take the edge off your hunger.

11. Stock up on "impulse fruits." Keep things like grapes, clementines, small apples, small bananas and pears around the house. These foods are easy to eat without having to do much cutting and slicing.

12. Make some stealth changes. That will get everyone in the family eating healthier. Buy low-fat 1% or skim milk, low-fat cream cheese and reduced-fat cheese instead of the full-fat versions. Use them in recipes to cut the fat and calories.

13. Cut out liquid calories. Eliminate soda and sugary drinks such as sweetened iced tea, sports drinks and alcoholic beverages. Liven up the taste of water by adding lemon, lime, cucumber or mint. Choose skim and 1% milk.

14. Practice the "Rule of One." When it comes to high-calorie foods, you won't go wrong if you allow one small treat a day. That might be one cookie or a fun-sized candy bar.

15. Pace, don't race. Force yourself to eat more slowly and savor each bite.

16. Hydrate before meals. Drinking 16 ounces, or two glasses, of water before meals may help you eat less.

17. Downsize plates, bowls, glasses, silverware. Using smaller versions of your serving ware will help you eat less food naturally.

18. Adopt the motto "after 8 is too late" for snacks after dinner.

19. Buy a pedometer. Health experts recommend taking at least 10,000 steps a day, which is roughly 4 to 5 miles, depending on your stride length.

20. Treat yourself occasionally. If your chocolate craving is getting to you, try diet hot-chocolate packets. If you need a treat, go out for it or buy small prepackaged portions of ice cream bars. If you love chocolate, consider keeping bite-size pieces in the freezer.

21. Dine at a table. Eat from a plate while seated at a table. Don't eat while driving, lounging on the couch or standing at the fridge.

22. Dine out without pigging out. Figure out what you are going to eat in advance. Get salad dressing on the side. Restaurants usually put about one-quarter cup (4 tablespoons) of dressing on a salad, which is often too many calories. Best to stick with 1 to 2 tablespoons. Dip your fork into the dressing and then into the salad.

23. Get plenty of sleep. Scientists have found that sleep deprivation increases levels of a hunger hormone and decreases levels of a hormone that makes you feel full. The effects may lead to overeating and weight gain.

24. Weigh yourself regularly. That's what successful dieters and those who manage to maintain weight loss do. Some step on the scales once a week. Others do so daily.

25. Reward yourself. When you meet your incremental weight loss goals, say losing 5 pounds, treat yourself to something — but not food. Buy a CD or DVD you've been wanting or go out to a movie with a friend.