Let the Festivities...End

This may look like fireworks, but it's actually an action shot of me exploding after an abundance of celebrating.

I was doing okay until my grandmother trotted out homemade (still warm) banana pudding. You don't get an opportunity to have homemade (still warm) banana pudding every day. At least, I don't. Thank God. It was yummy, but it put me over the edge.

Thank goodness I got in an hour's walk early this a.m. I certainly wasn't fit for it after dinner.


Actually, this photo is one I snapped a couple decades ago (egads!) in a local celebration. The bridge you see, with lights vaguely forming an M for Memphis, crosses the Mississippi River. Tennessee is on the right; Arkansas is on the left. And that's it for the travelogue.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and/or Saturday! I certainly enjoyed mine, but it's back to business as usual tomorrow. I predict leafy green vegetables in abundance for me. :)

Reward Day by the Sea

Somewhere along the minus 30 pound mark, I realized that being smaller and more physically capable would enable me to do some of the things I'd always wanted to do but was too intimidated by or physically unable to do. Riding a jet ski was one of those things. It looked like so much fun, and I love the ocean so much...but I wasn't about to put on a swimsuit and deal with the anticipated embarrassment of going through the process. Right or wrong, that's where I was mentally and emotionally.

Not anymore.



As I was making my way slowly through the no wake zone, I took a moment or two to reflect on the goal, the journey, and the personal significance of the day. A moment of pride, a tear (maybe two), and then I was clear of the jetty and could open up the throttle. I haven't quit smiling since!

I can't tell you how much fun I had! Despite being more than a little nervous at the beginning, I was soon zipping up and down the coast like a seasoned pro. I lost my hat within 5 minutes, but in an amazing combination of technical and acrobatic skill, I leaned over and skimmmed it back onto the jet ski as I passed it on the turn around. I was only sorry I was so far from the coastline so that no one could see my skill and daring. :)

My friend S. also took a spin on the beast for her first jet ski experience. I was as thrilled for her as I was for me, because I knew she would have a great time. And she did! :)

Lunch was a celebration of losing our jet ski virginity. Nothing would do but a cheeseburger at a beach bar (grilled cheese with mushrooms and tomatoes for veggie S), and we even got a discount!

I told the helpful guys at Jack's Boat and Waverunner Rentals in Madeira Beach that I'd give them a shout-out for being so helpful to this newbie, not to mention supportive after they found out my motivation. They made the event so much more exciting and rewarding. (And they didn't even give me a price break or a free hour for saying that, though now seems like a good time to mention that I'm here for the rest of the week. *G*)

Perfect day, shared with a fantastic friend (who we can thank for the pictures!), and it's not even over yet!

Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend! (It is the weekend, isn't it? I'm losing track of days. LOL)

~

Saturday Catch-all Post

Despite being cool and rainy, this has been a fantastic Saturday! I hope yours was as well.

Quick reminder to enter the Look into Your Future giveaway from PictureYourselfThinner that I posted about on Friday. You have FIVE chances to win, and this could be your lucky day! Contest is open until latelatelate Monday night (midnight central) and is open to all Earth-bound residents.

Speaking of giveaways, few months ago the always wonderful MizFit had a giveaway featuring a Boston Locket from Elemental Memories Photo Tile Jewelry, and I won! My personalized locket arrived today:



I kind of like it. :) (That translates to "I'd do a backflip if I could.") It's absolutely beautiful! The etched cover slides off to reveal my choice of photo for the inside. If you squint really hard, and you've read here for a while, you'll recognize the photo as my "spokesmodel" photo. Along with it is a tiny scroll on which I can write a message. I can't make up my mind what will go on there, but I do know I'll be carrying this with me everywhere. It will be so wonderful to have a touchstone, of sorts, to remind me of the need for mindfulness and focus on fitness. Huuuge gratitude moment for MizFit and Elemental Memories.

It's kind of neat, I think, that my giveaway is an opportunity to glimpse into your potential future, and the giveaway I won allows me to reflect on my past. Funny how that (and the timing of it all) worked out. :)

In other news, I had a bit of a revelation yesterday. One of fatfightertv.com's "News Nuggets" this week linked to an article on how to measure the intensity of your walking pace. I considered my pace for most of my walk to be moderate, so I was curious to test myself to ensure I was getting the required 100 steps per minute.

Surprise! My "moderate" pace turns out to be about 150 steps a minute. My "cruising" pace (about what I'd use in Target or window shopping at the mall) is 110 steps a minute. Apparently, I'm quicker than I thought.

All those numbers have given me an idea to challenge myself with walking. I'm going to try to do 200 steps a minute and build to doing that for one out of five minutes. And then we'll see where to take it, if anywhere.

Since I tanked yesterday's strength training in favor of my walking test, I went to the gym today. No beefy boys in sight. I had a few guys for company in the free weight area, but they were mostly watching March Madness (NCAA basketball tournament for those not sports-aware) on the big screens. I was able to zip through my workout in good time. My weigh-in was okay, a little on the low side, but I'm sure I'll manage to wipe that out somehow. :)

Speaking of workouts, and then I swear I'll end this monstrosity of a post, if you're ever wanting a good workout resource, check out myFit.ca . They have workouts tailored for all sorts of needs, along with clips demonstrating how to do them properly. They also have trainer tips for each exercise, which I use to decide if the exercise is one I should try alone. (I doubt I'll ever get up enough nerve to ask one of the beefy boys to spot me. ::snerk!::)

Enough already! I need popcorn and lots of it. Hope you have a wonderful rest-of-the-weekend and will come back for Makeover Monday!

Red Friday Wrap-up

What a difference a week makes. Last Friday I was preparing for a colonoscopy. Today, I'm preparing for a warm, pre-spring weekend and lots of outdoors-y activities. It's kind of amazing how all my outdoor "to-do's" miraculously shot to the top of the priority list. So instead of the gym, I'll be raking and sweeping and bagging.

One of the most delightful surprises in becoming more fit is how much I've truly enjoyed incorporating "functional exercise" into my life. Raking leaves or sweeping is nothing more than a series of upright rows. Bagging leaves (done the Cammy way) involves full out squats, or if I'm feeling bored, moving the bag so that lunges are required. And don't even get me started on how happy it makes me to have my exercise requirement and my chore list rolled into one time slot. I feel so...efficient!

As promised, I'm posting my fabulicious-in-red photo today (you'll pardon the big swollen eyes--it was early). I'm thrilled with the participation at work. It's a SEA of red everywhere I look! Even some of our guys are sporting red shirts or sweaters today.

Let me know if you post a red-loving photo today!

I've become quite the red geek, haven't I? :)

Have a lovely, healthy, stupendous weekend, everyone!

Friday Drive-by

I'm on company time right now, so I'll be brief. With the economy being what it is right now, it's not surprising that several of us in fitness-blogging world have found ourselves jobless or soon-to-be-jobless. Scary times, these, and potentially dangerous to the evolving healthy eater.

But you know, it just doesn't have to be all gloom and doom. If you doubt that (and even I have my moments), check out Jonathan Fields's new e-book, The Fire Fly Manifesto. It's free and it's fantastic!

In other news, it's an exciting day in Cammyland! Remember the boots? Well, I'm finally wearing them (outside my house.)

From Blogger Pictures

It's a happy day! (Oh, and please don't pay attention to messy office. Or the messy hair, for that matter. *G*)

Happy Weekend!

Farewell to Austin

Fun things I never expected to do in Austin:

Improve my on-base percentage. Granted, I'm not actually playing on a softball team, but I figured it couldn't hurt to work on my swing. I played on several teams about 20 years ago, and I was a decent player. After Saturday's practice session, I'm happy to report that the girl's still got it! (The same girl that's still feeling it three days later!)

Compete in my own special Olympics. "Sports" I'm good at: mini-golf, basketball, skeeball. The not-so-great: driving for Nascar, air hockey, any game involving a gun. Morgan, on the other hand, scared me a little with her shooting prowess. Especially with the automatic weapons.

Ride a bike for three hours. Austin has amazing bike trails. We rode and rode and rode and rode, and we covered only a fraction of what was available. We probably would have done better if we hadn't discovered SoCo and it's fun and funky shops.

I had such a blast on this trip, in part because of the great company, but also because of the joy of being ACTIVE all weekend. The bike ride, especially, wouldn't have happened last year.

Oh, there was also the joy of scoring a Fossil handbag for $10 at the factory outlet store and going for scrumptious Tex-Mex after all that exercise.

Life is so good!

HYC Follow-up

Well, I'm all packed and ready to go. I've already had my workout (yaay for 24-hr gym), and now that I've loaded the car, all that I'm missing is breakfast. Before I set off, I wanted to post a couple of follow-up items...

Thank you all for the lovely comments on my brief, but entirely enjoyable, size 4 experience. I still have issues with posting photos, but I do it to show those of you who are where I was (or beyond) that it IS entirely possible for us to beat this ugly weight monster. Plus, I thought my butt looked good. :) (You'll note the face doesn't show in that photo. That's due to the Sunday morning justgonnaruntoTargetforaminute lack of makeup or hairstyle. LOL)

Anyway, whether it's a size 4 or a size 14, we CAN get to AND STAY AT (that last bit's especially for me) a healthier weight!

Okay, and speaking of photos, some folks asked about my before photos. If you follow the "photos" category link on my sidebar, you'll get all my posts that have photos in them. There are some "before" and "during" photos scattered throughout.

Just_Kelly asked about my eating plan. Thanks for the question, Kelly. I started with sparkpeople.com, using their food logging feature to record what I ate. I also used their calorie guideline, which was 1300-1500 calorie per day in the beginning. Initially, I set goals of eating lean protein, 5-7 fruits and veggie servings, and whole grains. By recording and studying the numbers, I was able to figure out that when you're eating good-for-you foods, 1300 calories a day is A LOT!

Now I record only sporadically, and then I use an index card I keep in my purse. Mostly I just eat the same things a lot. Since I exercise so much, my view of food has changed (mostly) to getting the most fuel out of any meal.

I also set up room for splurges. I have Cake Day, which is a piece of cake for every 500 minutes of exercise. It's temporarily suspended during the vacation season, since vacations are MADE for splurging. A monthly splurge meal has also been part of my plan. One meal, anything I want. It starts when I sit down at the table and ends when I stand up. (Prevents one of those all day splurges. *g*)

I'm not sure if this answers your question. If not, feel free to let me know. (I'm posting inahurry.)

Kelly's question reminded me of another question that was asked while I was on my previous vacation. Several people asked about the stair-climbing challenge I'm leading at work, and I apologize for forgetting to respond to it. How rude!
Click here to find a description of the plan. Most of us are somewhere in the Grand Canyon right now. :)

Gotta run!

HYC Check in Week 37

Another Kevin-less workout.... I suppose it was a good workout anyway, just different. Oh well, onward and upward.

The mysterious 3-lb bounce from midweek last week is gone, so I'm basically right where I was last Monday. Or maybe not. Take a look at this:

Sunday morning (9/14/08) Target dressing room: my happy butt in a pair of size 4 jeans. Stretchy size 4's, and I couldn't have sat down in them without hurting something essential, but by golly, that tag running down the leg says 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 .

I didn't buy them, because as you can see the fit is poor, but I wanted to capture the moment for posterity. When you start out in a size 22, a size 4 (even a stretchy one) is a definite photo op. I'm not likely to see a non-stretchy size 4--ever. It's not even a goal. It's enough to have worn them for even a minute!

Tops are still mostly size large, if you were wondering, with a couple of mediums among newer purchases. That's a size L t-shirt I'm wearing in the picture.

And that, my friends, is my victory of the week. Nothing from the scale, and yet I am content.

I head out tomorrow for my Texas road trip. I'll be attempting to connect from the road, but you know how that works out sometimes. Before I leave, I want to share two good links from yahoo!:

Excellent link here on reasons we regain lost weight. I've not only bookmarked it; I've printed it and posted it on my bulletin board.

And another one of those superfood articles. This one reminded me to explore the wonderful world of quinoa.

Hope you all are having a great week so far!

And if you have a few spare dollars hanging about, please consider sponsoring me in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's walk on October 4th!

Daredevil Fitness - The Results

I did it! I exercised in Manville in my spiffy sports tank, and this photo is proof.

It's also proof that I need to continue exercising regularly, especially that pesky midsection, but that's kind of the whole point. And finally, it's proof that I've come a long, long way.

There was almost no one in the gym for the duration of the workout. One guy was in Manville, and he was mostly watching TV. Every now and then he'd lumber over to a weight rack and lift a gazillion pound barbell a couple of times, then he'd go stand in front of the television again. I really don't understand the rationale behind that method, but lots of guys do it and what do I care anyway? It's only the ones who scream while they're lifting that bug me.

But thank goodness for ESPN and plasma tv's on every wall. My chubby bellied-sports tank and I were way under the radar.

I had a good workout that lasted about as long as the trainers' workouts with me. Not surprising, considering I patterned it after Trainer Kevin's workouts, which I enjoy immensely. The goal was a full body workout, and I think I got there. Mostly.

Here's what I did:
Warm up (straight from Kevin's workouts):
wall sit - 30 seconds
wall pushups - 12
body weight squats - 12
wall pushups (close hands) - 12
front-to-back lunges - 5 each leg

Then the workout (3 sets of each, with reps x weight, or count, listed)

Lunges with weights (split between static, front, and back lunges) - 10x10, 10x12.5, 8x12.5 (I tried 15 on the last bit, but...no.)
Shoulder presses - 12x12.5, 10x15, 10x15
Jumping Jacks - 30 each round

Rest 90 seconds (jumping jacks wear me out)

Squat Curls - 10x12.5 3 times
Lat Pull downs - 12 x25, 6.x40, 12x25 (there was nothing between 25 and 40, so I thought I'd give it a try. Too much.)
Incline Flys - 12x12.5 3 times

Rest two minutes, but I spent most of it walking around trying to find a pull-up place. I did!

Hanging leg raises - 8, 8, 10
Pull-ups - 8, 8, 10
One-arm rows - 10x20, 10x25, 8x30

Rest 90 seconds

Face pulls - 12x15, 12x20, 12x25 (double-handled rope on pulley, right up to the face, arms up high)
Situps on the ball - 20, 3 times

Some stretching, a bathroom break, more water, and then 11 minutes of elliptical.

And that was my workout. According to my heart rate monitor, I burned about the same number of calories as a trainer workout, so I was pleased. I felt tired, but I wasn't exhausted at the end. I think maybe I was a little too careful, but I definitely didn't want to try to blaze new trails my first time out. Survival was the biggest goal. :)

I'm also not sure about the mix of exercises, which ones it's better to group together. That was another reason I didn't want to push too hard: what if I had some toxic mix of chest and bicep exercises that would paralyze me or something? I'll show this to the trainers on Monday and see how they grade it. (I'm going with a B+ myself.) Your input is welcome as well.

Besides working 10 hours, that's how I spent my 4th. I hope you had a wonderful day!

HYC Follow-Up and Class Mini-Report

You all sure know how to make a girl's heart sing! Thanks for the great feedback on this week's check-in! Following up on a few items...

Val, I think you might be on to something. It is probably that I'm doing it "the easy way"--proper portions, healthy foods, and exercise--which I didn't really think would work this well. :)

Katy and Skinny Inside, I wish I knew the final magic number--the weight charts are all over the place. My BMI is under 20 (still waiting for final assessment results), and I'm not sure what that means, if anything, in determining my ideal weight. At least a dozen people have told me not to lose anymore weight, but I still see the flabby stuff and can't help but wonder if it's possible to lose some of that flab if I lose a few more pounds. I just don't know what's the right thing to do. That's why I'm going to play around with setting my own goals (kind of try them on for size, if you will) but to be honest, if I don't lose another pound from what I weigh now, I'll still be satisfied with my results. For fun and entertainment, though, I've decided that I might be about 7.4 pounds from goal #1, 12.4 pounds from goal #2, and 17.4 pounds from goal #3.

It would be soooo cool to reach one of these goals, decide I'm too thin, and then have to actively try to GAIN weight. Something tells me it wouldn't be that difficult. :) Well, unless I was all healthy about it.

In case anyone has ever wondered why I don't post my actual weight on my blog when I have posted it in comments on your blogs, it's because I let some folks at work in on my blog link, and while I think I trust them, I'm a bit anxious that somehow the link might get spread around. I really don't want to sit across from a bunch of folks at a meeting and have them know what I weigh at any given moment. I'm not trying to hide anything here, so if you think it would help you to know where I started and where I am now, or if you're just plain ol' curious, drop me an email at cammysaid (at) gmail (dot)com and I'll spill. (There will, of course, be a slight charge for the information. Just to cover shipping and handling, you know.)

Deborah, you flatter me! You're also afraid of me and know that if you drop it all now, I'll just hop in my car and come to the mountainside. :) Seriously, you've come so far (over halfway to your goal). You're in it to win it, as they say, and I truly don't think there's anything that can stop you.

Pattie - I thank you for the offer of construction assistance, and while I hope I don't need the help, I'm awfully grateful it's there! Thank you.

Grumpy Chair - I haven't read Thin for Life, but I added it to my reading list tonight. The instructor in my nutrition class (more about that in a minute) recommended it. Two recs in one day will probably get it boosted up in the order. Thanks!

Those of you who commented about reaching goal range, well, let's just commit to sticking together on this thing. There's safety in numbers, or so I hear. :)

Thanks again for the wonderful comments!

On to the class! Who can guess what's unique about this picture? Besides the subject. (tee-hee!)


Give up? Okay, I'll tell you. When I walked into the room and saw these chairs, my first thought was, "Oh, shit." (Sorry for the language, but it's what I thought.) Many a miserable hour of my life has been spent crammed into one of these things. I used to pray for a lecture-style classroom with regular tables and chairs and would always cringe (and head for the back of the room) when I discovered this sort of classroom setup.

But that's over. For the first time in 30 years, I fit in a classroom chair. No spillage, no squished bits, I could even turn around and look behind me. I could freaking breathe. I was so excited that I asked a nice lady named Eileen to snap a photo to commemorate the occasion. ::is a nerd:: Besides, I needed a new photo to go with my new bling, which I forgot to update until midday. ::is a scatterbrained nerd:: Anyway, this is my -92.6 lbs picture to go with my new bling.

Now are we ready to talk about the class? Well, no, not really, because the instructor didn't cover much we don't already know. As a nutritionist, she follows a middle-of-the-road approach, especially with a diverse audience like a classroom setting, and pretty much follows the standard food guide for us average bears. She's also a bit of a Vitamin D freak, believing that we don't get nearly enough. I'll find out more about that next week. Tonight she mainly covered macronutrients (carbs, protein, fats) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and how our bodies use them. I did take notes and will try to get them transcribed and posted later in the week for discussion and debate. I'm out of time for now.

Hope you're all having a great week!

HYC Update - Week 18

The extra two days until weigh-in paid off! Can you believe this?

Surprise Bling!!!

I stepped on the scale tonight and could NOT believe my eyes. Minus 1.7 pounds for a total of 85 lbs.! Talk about your "something wonderful". LOL

At some point over the past few months, I decided new bling equals new photo, so here we go:

This is Christmas 2004 compared to last week. I don't mind sharing with you that this one hurts a little.

Okay, a lot.

But that's the way it was. I have to quit thinking of that self as a failure and remember that she was simply someone who hadn't found her way yet. She didn't quit trying, even when she wasn't successful. And she had a nice smile. :)

Someday I'm going to have to deal with all that, but for tonight, I'm tapping into my inner Scarlett and pushing it off until another day.

Yet another wonderful thing that happened was that yesterday's post brought some new visitors to my blog! I thank you for stopping by, and I'm very much looking forward to checking out your blogs!

And for you "old regulars", I hope you know I adore each and every one of you! Your support and enthusiasm and good humor are the best bling of all!

I hope you're all having a wickedly wonderful week! I'm trying to catch up on the check in, so please forgive me if I haven't checked you out yet. I'll be there eventually! :)

~

Healthy You Challenge Update Week 14

It was a little bit of a deja vu moment. When I stepped on the scale tonight, I went through the exact thought process I did on Friday night. Stared down at the result and then thought, Nothing to do now but keep on doing what I'm doing. I actually appreciate the sameness--the routineness--of it. Consistency, that's the word I'm looking for.


Well, okay, tonight there was one difference. I showed a 1.4 pound loss from last Monday! You know what that means, don't you? BLING!! I earned my 80 pound badge!


While I did take a moment to savor it, I had to hustle out to my workout. Consistency. I've never had a lot of that before. :)


To commemorate this auspicious occasion, I offer a glimpse at the difference 80 lbs makes:

These are head shots for my work profile, so you'll understand why I'm not at my best. :) The photo on the right was taken a couple of weeks ago, just after I'd finished leading a workshop all morning (to explain the somewhat washed-out look *G*). The photo on the left is somewhat embarrassing, but I try to focus on my smile and remember that I was (and am) a mostly good person no matter the size.

(edited to fix photo size)
I thank ALL of you so very much for your amazing support, always, but especially these past few weeks while I truly tippy-toed my way to new bling. We can all exhale now; I think the next one will be a while coming. And that's okay. Nothing to do but keep on doing what I'm doing. :)

Also a thank you for the well wishes on the dental dilemma. My dentist called in an antibiotic today, and I'm already feeling much relief! I may even sleep!

Fingers crossed that everyone had a successful week, on the scale or beside it!

Go Tigers!

~

A Picture's Worth a Thousand Memories

The lovely Eva asked about progress pictures. As in, where are they? Good question.

The problem is that I don't have many before pictures. I didn't hide from the camera; I fought like a wild cat on crack to avoid having my photo taken. It would be a permanent record of my failure, you see, captured for eternity for all to see my shame and misery.

But then a very wise woman--thankfully, a friend of mine--wrote a beautiful little post in a forum we belong to, about mourning the loss of a friend, a large woman who never allowed her picture to be taken. My friend was so sad not to have a single photograph from all the wonderful times they'd shared. I've almost forgotten her beautiful smile, she wrote, and the way her eyes sparkled when she laughed.

Her sorrow was profound, and it made me realize how very selfish I had been. I was all wrapped up in what I saw and felt; I never considered what my family and friends saw when they looked at my photo. Sure, there might be an odd thought or two about my size, or an observation of a particularly bad hair day or unfortunate choice of blouse, but those would be wrapped in love and compassion and good memories.

Because the people who love us, love us for our hearts and minds and smiles. Our outer selves aren't as important as the good memories photographs evoke. And the people who don't love us...well, what they think doesn't really matter, especially if all they're going to see is a size.

I'll honor my friend by encouraging anyone who's hiding from the camera to give the gift of memories to your loved ones. Have your photo taken and smile like you're happy you're alive, like you're someone who's loved, like you love yourself. The people who love you deserve to see that. (You do, too!)

I'm a little better about photos now, but only a little. It's all a process, and I'm making progress. I have a few pictures here and there, and no recent ones. But when I win my January challenge and go for a makeover, I'll tote my camera with me and see what I can do. :) Meanwhile, here's a before and during:



The one on the left was a couple of years ago, and the one on the right was last October. I was somewhere around the 45 lb. mark, I think, and wearing a "before" shirt. I don't see a huge difference, except in the size of my smile. :)

I'll probably always be self-conscious when I have my picture taken, but I'm beyond the avoidance stage now. I yam what I yam, as Popeye said, and I want the people I love to remember me, especially my smile.