Enter Sandman

I feel like a broken record by starting each bootcamp recap post by saying "last night was one of the hardest nights"...but each session seems to up the ante on difficulty level - so it's the only way for me to put it into words without starting each post with "last night SUCKED!!"  Last night, we didn't do anything that we haven't done before but my body was still so sore from Friday's torture and my very long day Saturday it felt like the night was never going to end.

The night started out with the usual burn-out.  I'm getting much better at push-ups and sit-ups, although I still have a LONG way to go with my pull-ups.  Calasthetics wouldn't of been so bad last night if half of the team hadn't forgotten their log book and/or dog tags - which lead to cals before cals.  Wait, who am I kidding - "Jillian" did cals last night...so they would still have been that hard.  It was then on to the obstacle course - a single run to start, followed by a double run with the usual cals in between.  I have gotten to where I actually like running the course - I can feel my strength improving while I'm running it.  Actually, I have to say I'm not the hugest fan of cals - but I get through them.  Circuits are hard - but I'm really getting better at those....I'm pretty much ok with everything we do at bootcamp, except one thing.  I have made my mind up that I absolutely, without a doubt, HATE sandbag drills!! 

Nothing pushes me to the verge of tears like toting around a 50lb sandbag for what seems like an eternity.  They leak, they're hard to hold, they are so freakin' heavy...they just SUCK!!  As you've probably figured out (with my catchy post title, I'm sure, you're welcome Metallica fans), last night we did sandbag drills.  I actually preferred the circuits we did Friday night over the everlasting torture we did last night.  We laid on our backs and did sandbag presses, then add some flutter kicks while doing that, then it was sandbag lunges, then back on the ground for more presses, then up and more lunges.  To get a mental picture of how it feels to do those exercises, get a bowl of Jell-O and then place a 50lb weight on top of it....that's how I felt last night.  It made me realize one thing, though...my upper body strength needs work - MAJOR work.  It appears I have no upper body strength..LOL

Ok, so I couldn't of been more happy when we were given the sweet release from the sandbags and informed that it was run time.  I was excited to run...yep, me, excited...funny, huh?  I was gonna be running in "Bob's" group - so I took my place at the start of the line (so I could keep the pace) and off we went.  "Bob" informed us that we'd be running for 20 minutes and there would be NO walking!!  BRING IT ON!!  We started the run, and I took it nice and slow.  We started singing some military cadence songs- and I tell you what...they made the run so much easier.  It was great to have something that took my mind off the running, but helped me keep a good pace.  Not once did I want to quit running...I just kept my slow and steady pace.  Even when it was time to sprint around the whole line of runners twice, I didn't falter.  My exercise high kicked in as we were coming to the end of the run - and off I went for a nice sprint to the end.  Even when "Bob" told us we were done, and that we could walk it off...I just wanted to keep running.  Now that is improvement!!  I finished the night out strong...just the way I like it!!

Today I have plans to try out my new Jillian Michaels Yoga DVD, do some weight work, and either go out and run tonight or hit the treadmill for a while.  There are only 6 sessions of bootcamp left, so it's time to really dig in and push myself.  I may not be able to move mountains- but I sure can learn to climb them.

Till next time.  ;) 

Now That That Don't Kill Me Can Only Make Me Stronger

Are you liking the titles for my last few blogs?  If you're a music fan - you should of noticed that I'm trying something new and using song titles/ lyrics...it's fun to come up with them to associate them to my life..LOL

Anywho - wow, what a day yesterday.  Today's title couldn't say it any better.  Just 2 measly months ago I ran my first 5K, and after it was all over with I spent the next 2 days on the couch barely able to move.  Yesterday, I went from a 5K race to walking around for 2 1/2 hours to more walking around for another hour to being out until after midnight with my honey.  I have no idea where I got all my energy yesterday...wait, yes I do: BOOTCAMP!!!

Yesterday really was a true testiment to how much stronger I have become since starting bootcamp.  In just 3 short weeks, I'm a totally different person.  I posted yesterday how great I felt after coming home from the race - but inside I was still a little nervous for the busy day that I had planned.  In the hour long car ride to Eureka Springs, my legs started to get a little sore.  I was certain that when it came time to get out of the car, I just wouldn't be able to do what I had planned on doing.  I was wrong! When we got to Eureka, we parked in our usual spot - the parking lot at the bottom of the hill.  I knew I was going to have to spend the first part of the afternoon walking all the way up hill (and it's not a slight hill, it's a BIG hill!!).  We started walking, and what I felt was...nothing.  We walked, we browsed in some stores, walked some more...no pain.  We stopped to eat lunch at a little outdoor grill.  I almost ordered a beer - but I didn't.  I opted for diet Pepsi.  I spent forever browsing the menu for something "healthy" - but no such luck...and then I thought, "hey I deserve a little reward for all the hard work I've done" so I ordered fish and chips.  I know, BAD food choice...but my first bad food choice in 3 weeks - so I'm not dwelling.  I will take my punishment on bootcamp on Monday if need be.  After a great lunch, all I could think about was working off the food I had just put in my mouth...so further up the hill we went.  For 2 more hours we walked, stopping a few times in some stores.  I really wanted to go to a small dress boutique that I visited the same time last year.  When I was there last year, I couldn't buy anything - because they didn't carry anything in "huge" size.  This year, I was able to buy a GORGEOUS dress...and I felt amazing.  The feeling of being able to buy a dress in a boutique was a high in itself..such a motivating moment.  We finished out our afternoon of walking around and decided to head on home.

When we got home, I freshened up, put on my new dress, a little make-up and we were back out the door again.  We headed to Fayetteville.  The plan was to meet a friend of mine at a club - but before that, we decided to head to the mall for an hour of walking around.  By this time, I had spent approximately 5 hours walking/running around throughout the day...what would one more hour hurt?? Not at all!!  After our little mall walk, we went on to the club.  I had originally planned on having a beer - but I had two.  I did opt for light beers - so I don't feel too bad about it. 

Overall, it was a FANTABULOUS day.  I had such a great time.  Today, is my rest day...and I'm gonna do exactly that before getting back into my routine of the week to come.

Till next time.  ;)

Give Me Fuel, Give Me Fire!!

Words can't express how amazing I feel right now.  I went through a night of hell last night at bootcamp, and then got up this morning and ran a 5K.....and I FEEL GREAT!!

I will start out with last night.  Wow, what a night.  Only 6 people showed up to bootcamp - I was really surprised.  We started out with our normal routine, and I'm proud to say that I'm back to doing pull-ups with no pain...that means I am now at 100% recovery!! Then the "fun" began.

I'm going to take a detour here in order to get my point across of how last night was.  For you Biggest Loser fans out there - how many of you have watched the show and said "man, I wish I could work out with Jillian and Bob?" Well, then get your butt to bootcamp - cause that's exactly how our instructors are.  "Jillian" is the one that yells "don't you quit", "come on" until you literally push yourself to the verge of puking.  "Bob" has a little more sensitivity, but he's not about to let you back down.  I have to admit, though, as much as "Jillian" makes me want to scream (and I do) I know I wouldn't push myself half as hard without her.  She has really helped me overcome my desire to just say "ok, I've had enough".  She finds that new level within me until she literally fuels my fire - and then comes the burst of energy that I need to get the job done.

So, back to hell night.  After "Jillian" style calasthetics - meaning flutter kicks, swimmers, jumping jacks, ski jumps, etc. - it was time for the obstacle course.  Last week, we got to do the course twice in a row...well, last night it was three times.  YAY!!!  No biggie, I did it - oh, yes I did.  Then, it was circuits.  Although I dread circuits - I would of gladly taken our normal circuits over the horrid 50lb sandbag circuits we did last night.  We did four circuits: flat pull-ups, sandbag lunges, sandbag bicep curls, and then push-ups.  My arms were screaming after the first circuit, but then it was on to the second, and then the third, and then the fourth...and then I lost count how many we did.  By the fourth one, "Jillian" was on me..."don't you quit" "COME ON, JOANNA!! YOU CAN DO THIS!!"  Again, the fire burned inside me - and I did another circuit...more push-ups, more pull-ups, more lunges, more curls.  After the last circuit I could barely move.  What a night - think it's over, right?? WRONG!!! What would hell night be without some sprints??  12 springs to be exact.  Six 25 yard sprints, four 50 yard sprints, and two 100 yard sprints.  Oh yeah, I was hurting...dying would be a better explanation...and I couldn't of been more happy to hear the sweet release of stretch time.  When I left last night, all I could think of was - "how the hell am I gonna be able to do a 5k race in the morning?"  Thus, we move on to part 2 of today's blog.

I woke up this morning at 6am.  My thighs hurt, my calfs hurt, my arms hurt, my ankle hurt...I considered for about 3 seconds to just get back into bed...but I didn't.  I got into my running clothes and took the drive to Springdale.  After registering, I took 15 minutes to warm-up.  I stretched, stretched, and stretched some more - hoping that the stiffness in my thighs and calfs would lift a little...no such luck.  The race got under way, and I decided to jog softly.  I jogged until the first hill - and then power walked up the hill, jogged down the hill, power walked up the hill.  The whole freakin' course seemed to be up hill - but I just kept a nice, brisk pace and decided to just do what I could.  My energy burst hit me a couple of times - and I jogged (or should I say bounced/walk).  By the last 1/2 a mile, my legs were really starting to feel it - but then the high kicked in and I jogged the rest of the way.  When the finish line was in sight - I took of...and sprinted across the finish line seeing 44:36 on the clock.  At first I was a little bummed that I had only shaved 4 minutes off my first 5K race in April - but then I thought "oh well, I did it".  I walked around for a while and then spent about 5 minutes stretching before heading home.  Overall, I'm happy with the time.  I think if I wasn't so sore I could of done better - heck, I took it pretty easy on myself and I know I could of pushed myself harder, but I didn't and I'm ok with that.  This afternoon, I will be spending time walking up and down hills around Eureka Springs so I really didn't want to be too sore to do that.

So, there ya have it...5K #2 is officially under my belt.  I shaved 4 minutes of the previous time..so there's only room for continued improvement. Now, I'm off to the shower and then out for a fun day with my honey.

Till next time.  ;)

While the Children are Away..Mommy Will Play (and workout)

Today is an exciting day for me - my kids are all going away for the weekend!!  Having a weekend alone is a very rare luxury for Steve and I, and this weekend will be far from quiet and relaxing.

Tonight is another bootcamp.  Tomorrow, my 5K at 8am followed by a day of shopping and walking around Eureka Springs, followed by an evening out with some friends.  Sunday will start out with some yoga and then FINALLY a little quiet time before heading out to pick the kids up.

I have to admit, I'm a little nervous with as much as we've got planned for tomorrow.  After my first 5K, I had to spend the day on the couch because I literally couldn't move from the pain.  Planning a day out walking up and down hills after this 5K hopefully won't be a disaster. 

Yesterday was a good day.  I took the kids swimming at the local pool.  It was nice to get into the water with my 2 year old - and amazing at how much I got to work out while having fun.  The pool has 2 huge water slides, and in order to ride them - you have to walk up 2 flights of stairs.  Well, that in itself becomes a good workout after the first half dozen times...but add in carrying a 35lb two year old up the stairs and the workout is increased 3 fold.  I carried her up the stairs about 10 times.  By the time we left, my legs felt like they do after bootcamp..LOL

When we got home we all needed a nap.  After waking up, eating dinner, and watching TV for a while I decided to go to Wal-Mart at 10pm.  My brother and I walked around Wal-Mart for a while, and I picked up Jillian Michael's Yoga DVD.  Being that I'm not going to be able to attend anymore yoga classes at 5am because of Steve working nights - I figured I'd do the next best thing and get a DVD.  My plan is that every morning, when I get up, I will start my day with a good yoga workout. 

Ok, so there's my plans for the weekend.  I will let you know how the 5K goes tomorrow.  Everyone send me good vibes that I not only get through the 5K in a better time than my first race, but also that I'm able to enjoy a good day out after I get through it.

Till next time.  ;)

Wanna Get Physical, Physical

While sitting in my office thinking about my blog post for the morning, I couldn't get the Olivia Newton John song out of my head - thus, our title for today.  It's appropriate though, cause after the night I had last night it's exactly how I feel today.

Last night's bootcamp was a wake-up call to how bad I want to change my mind, body, and life.  I've known since January 17th that losing weight was one of my top priorities, but now I know that it is my TOP priority.  Despite my busy and hectic life - I've made sure I stick with my healthy diet and working out.  Sure, I've had my "off days" (sometimes weeks) but I have been working at this longer than I have in my whole life!!  This isn't just about losing weight anymore - this is about losing weight, getting fit and healthy, staying that way, and being a postivie role-model to my children.  Some people may think that it's selfish to put my weight and fitness above everything else - but what good will I be if I die of a heart attack?  How can I raise and support my children if I'm not here?  In order to give my family the best possible life, I have to be in the best possible health. 

Ok - so how did this epiphany come to be?  It started out with a discussion with the bootcamp coordinator before bootcamp started last night.  He spoke to us about the importance of taking responsibility for everything that we put into our bodies and the way we treat out bodies.  The phrase "eat to live not live to eat" came up several times - and it really hit home to me.  Even since getting serious about my weight loss there has been more than enough times that I have opted to grab Domino's pizza as a quick meal, because we're too busy to cook.  This same experience happened Tuesday night - but this time, instead of opting for Domino's I told the family we were heading to Subway instead.  I had a 6" sub rather than my regular footlong.  I was acutally making conscience decisions about what I was going to put into my body.  Even though we were in a crunch for time, and didn't want to have to cook - I was able to make a healthy decision.  Then he talked about our fitness.  We go to bootcamp for a total of 4 1/2 hours a week - and there are 168 hours in a week.  That means we are working out less than 3% of the week.  That's definately better than nothing, but more can be done.  That made me think about preparing my home gym, going to yoga class, etc.  I, again, was realizing that I was already making the decision to up the amount I'm working out each week - regardless of time constraints.  If I'm willing to get up at 4am to go to a yoga class - I'm making that effort.  The talk was very informative, not just because of the tips he shared to help boost my weight loss - but to the fact that I'm already implementing the things he was suggesting.  I have officially made the step from trying to lose weight to changing my entire lifestyle.

Bootcamp started last night and all that kept running through my head was "no more stationary bike!"  If you remember, I've had to ride the stationary bike on a couple of occasions either because of my stomach injury (which now seems to be 100% healed by the way) or because I just couldn't do what everyone else was doing.  That happened Monday night when I wasn't able to run with my team because I was too tired from the relays that we had done prior.  Last night, just 2 days later I might add, I wasn't going to let that happen again.  We started out with the hardest calasthetics we've EVER done - 40 jumping jacks, 30 flutter kicks, 30 swimmers, and 30 lunges. I was exhausted just from doing that..LOL  We then moved on to circuits.  Ugh, I really don't care for circuits.  We did mule kicks, horizontal pull-ups, swimmers, burpees (push-up and then jump in the air), flutter kicks, and mountain climbers.  We started out with 70 second rotations, then did 50 seconds, then 30 seconds.  It was hard, but I did NO modifications.  After the circuits, it was time for a run.  My nerves kicked in - but I was DETERMINED that I was NOT going to do that bike!!  I was placed in the front of the line of 6 runners that were running in my group.  This put the pressure on, because I had to keep the pace.  We jogged the whole time, and every few minutes the back person came to the front of the line and then the second from last and so on until I had to sprint to the front of the line.  We didn't walk ONCE - and I DID IT!!!!  On top of that, when it came down to the last stretch of the run - I actually picked up the pace and sprinted to the end.  I felt a surge of adrenaline rush through me, and I literally felt like I could do the whole night over again.  I was later informed that I had experienced my first "exercise high".  Basically I got to the point where I just couldn't do anymore, pushed through it, and was given a burst of energy.  It felt SOOOOOO good!!!

It was such an amazing night for me.  I literally felt my life altering change set in.  I have one more bootcamp before my 5K run on Saturday - and I couldnt' be more excited.  I am stronger, healthier, and lighter than I have been in a long time - and it's only going to get better from here on out.

Till next time.  ;)

Weigh-In and Measurements Time

Yep, folks, it's that time of the week when I see how much my hard work is paying off (or not).  This morning has thrown me off a little because I left for yoga class at 4am.  I made sure to weigh before I left, though.

So, let's get right down to it.  This is my 3rd week of bootcamp.  I'm at the halfway mark, and can only hope my results get better in the next 3 weeks.  Before I post my weight, I will say that this week is a "hopeful thinking" kind of week.  Aunt Flo is here to visit this week, and that always means a weight gain for me.  My usual weight gain when she's here is 2lbs.  So...

This week's weight:  223lbs (-2lbs since last week).  That means if I'm carrying the usual 2lbs of bloat weight, that number could be quite a bit smaller next week...keep your fingers crossed.

This week's measurements:

Waist:  39 1/2" (-1")
Chest:  43"  (I'm an idiot and haven't been measuring my chest correctly.  I think I started out at 44" at  bootcamp)
Hips:  47" (no change)
Bicep: 15" (no change)
Thigh:  23" (no change)
Calf:  17" (no change)

So, this week's results aren't the greatest in the world - but I'm happy about another inch being gone from my waist.  The speculation I have from no change to my biceps, calfs, and thighs is the fact that I'm starting to tone muscle in those areas which is "replacing" the fat. 

Yesterday was a good day for me.  I managed to score a couple of extra additions for my home gym from Craigslist.  One of the items was a stair stepper.  The other is a full set of dumbells, a couple of rubber weights, and a set of push-up bars.  I'll post a pic of the stair stepper tomorrow (as it's not in my gym as of yet) but this is a pic of the weights:

I feel like I got a great bargain - cause I snagged all of this for $20!!  The guy also had a treadmill that I feel in love with.  It was top of the line with all the bells and whistles.  It retails for about $2000 and he was wanting $400.  I thought it was a great bargain, but just one that was a little out of my range - so I had to skip that great offer.  I already have a treadmill, so I should be greatful for the stuff I have.

I managed to pull myself out of bed this morning for another great yoga session.  It was much more difficult today, because I'm still "recouping" from Monday...but I got through it with not too many moderations.

Today, I'm going to reorganize my office/ gym so that I am able to use all of my new equipment - and the old stuff.  Tonight guarentees to be another hot and grueling night at bootcamp.  Before leaving the gym this morning, I saw the morning bootcamp doing circuits....I left feeling a little nervous.  Hopefully, I can suck it up and get through them.

Till next time.  ;)

Give Me Strength!!

Each bootcamp session seems to bring on new challenges...last night was no exception.  The evening started out rough just being out in the 92 degrees - but the evening that awaited us was nothing in comparison.

We started out with our usual burn-outs.  I am SOOOO proud to say that I managed to do 15 sit-ups without an ounce of pain from my stomach!!  I also managed to do 2 "real" pushups!!  That's a huge accomplishment for me, being that I couldn't do a single one just 3 weeks ago.  I am also able to do 20 "moderated" push-ups - where as my beginning amount was a measly 4.

After burn-outs, it was time for warm-ups.  Warm-ups consisted of push-ups (again), swimmers and flutter kicks - WHICH I DID again with no pain!! Last night, we weren't allowed to "rest" at any point, so in between exercises we did jogging in place, knee lifts, or footbal shuffles.  We started out with some relays.  The relays consisted of wheelbarrows, crab walks, bear crawls, bunny hops, and sand-bag sprints.  It was GRUELING - but I did them, and our team didn't come in last....in fact, I think we actually won a couple..LOL  After about 45 minutes of that punishment, it was announced we were going on a run.  My heart felt like it was already going to beat out of my chest, so I knew that the run was going to be difficult.  I managed to run for a while, but my heart rate got so high that I had to go inside and ride the stupid stationary bike.  I was so PISSED!!  There's nothing wrong with the stationary bike - it's not it's fault - but I feel like such a quitter when I have to go inside and ride it.  I did 3 miles on the bike, got my heart rate to a normal rate, and then went outside and joined my team mates once again.  I was able to run the last little bit, and then it was time for cool-downs. 

Overall, the night was SOOO tough - but I knew that I had worked my ass off by the time it was all over with.  I woke up this morning extremely sore - and extremely happy.  Soreness means that my body was pushed to the limits.

Tomorrow I plan on getting up at 4am to do yoga class, and then another grueling bootcamp session.  Tomorrow is also "weigh-in" day so I'm excited to see my results from this week.

I have to run, so that's why my post is extremely short and sweet today.

Till next time.  ;)