My Benefits of a Exercise Lifestyle
Hello Gals, thought that I'd share with you my success story. Yesterday was a gorgeous day in sunny So. Cal. and I had the choice: do housework and be a good domestic goddess OR go for a walk and enjoy the weather while it lasts. I chose to go for a walk and made it fun, so I didn't feel guilty for not doing my chores. Lissette and I got the stroller and went to Kmart. We parked there and walked the streets of downtown Tehachapi searching all the thrift stores and antique stores for treasures. Here's what we found: a dutch oven for cooking beans, a calendar of interesting Tehachapi facts (for Michael), a carrot rattle that Lissette loved (good propaganda for eating right), some scrapbooking stickers, a salt & pepper shaker set on a silver tray, and a Yosemite trivet. We also bought some violets for the springtime, which will be soon for Tehachapi. All this for $20 and a lot of leg action!
I really need a new camera, I wish that you girls were there with me! It was the funnest workout I've had in a while. I need to thank you gals for inspiring me to do this, because I thought of you and it motivated me to walk. I figured that if you could reach me you'd kick me in the shins for not going for a walk in such beautiful weather.
Lisa, just keep trying to get your exercise where you can while vacationing. Walk on the beach if you get a chance, for me... Also park out far and walk to stores, and other places, don't go for the closest parking space. Everylittle bit of exercise helps! And go to the grocery store and buy snacks for your trip. It's cheaper and healthier. I love to get any fresh fruit, and baby carrots. It's a good way to get fiber, which will fill you up and help move the fat from your bloodstream! Good luck, I'll be praying for you!
Yea!!! GO APRIL!!!
Hey April,
Just want to say I'm proud of you! Keep it up! ...note to self... avoid salt like the plague...
Anyway, I would have gone to the gym yesterday morning like normal, but I'd been up all night with a toddler who had the flu. He was up every 20 minutes or so throwing up on me, the bed, himself, his pillows, etc. until about 4 am. So I got about 3 hrs sleep, and didn't feel like doing much of anything yesterday! Last night I went to bed at 8 and slept until 7! So I didn't hit the gym again this morning. I may go tomorrow, and I may not; we're leaving tomorrow afternoon for Florida! I know this trip isn't going to do much for my diet! Aaah! But I'm just going to try to eat healthy snacks and make good choices at fast food places. I am not looking forward to getting on the scales when I get back, and I haven't even left yet!
I am really looking forward to coming out west, but I still don't have the money issues worked out yet. We'll be in Indiana tomorrow night, so hopefully all their concerns and what nots will be talked out and Colby says if I need to I can buy my ticket while we're in Florida. So I'm looking forward to having a date to plan for coming out there!
I am keeping track of all our info in a spreadsheet, and so I'd like to have regular weigh ins (once a week) and measurements (once a month). So I need a weigh in from Lisa and Mom for this week. Also, I need Lisa's height. I guessed at 5'5" but I'm not sure. I went to this site: www.nhlbisupport.com/bmi/ and plugged in our numbers to find our BMIs. That was kind of depressing. I have to say, though, kudos to Lisa A for being the only one of us that fits into the "normal weight" range! The rest of us are officially "overweight". Yuck! That info probably couuld have been done without, huh? But let's just look at it as more motivation to do something about it!! At least no one is in the "obese" category, and good for us for making some healthy changes so we can keep it that way! I remember when I was in college my mind was so warped that I thought I was obese because my BMI wasn't quite in the "underweight" category where I thought it should be. Good grief! Now I'd just be glad to be back down in the normal weight range! LOL!
BTW, April's weight loss took her BMI down by .7!!!
How is everyone else doing?
Below 160!
This morning I woke up and weighed myself and was surprised to find that I'm 159 lbs. !!!!! That means I lost 6 lbs. in a week, which I think is completely impossible if you're burning fat. I think I just dumped 6 lbs. of water weight, but I'm glad to dump any pound I have, water, fat, brain...ha ha!
I've been exercizing at least every other day. Yesterday I did 20 minutes of my Core Secrets video, I can feel the burn still this morning, but I hope that it'll tone up my tummy.
Am I alone in this freakish misery or did you girls have a stomach that resembled something like a pound of bread dough sagging from your mid-section? I feel like a freak!! I'm really targeting that area of my body!!! I totally understand women who get a tummy tuck after having their kids. It's not only reasonable, but almost neccesary!
Thank you so much Lisa for this great idea. It has been sooooo helpful to me to have you girls to report to on my progress!
If you've noticed, I haven't posted my measurements. I've been terrified. But I must post them, I must be brave!!!!
Bust: 41"
Waist: 32"
Abdomen: 40"
Hips: 41"
Thigh: 22"
Arm: 12"
There I did it. Hopefully these numbers will go down drastically over the next few months and then I'll post newer, smaller numbers!!!
Oh, BTW, I posted before that I'm a size 10, hah! I went to the store and there was one pair of jeans that fit me in a size 10, (which I bought!) and the average was a 12, there were even a couple of 14's. UGH! I have no idea what dress size I am. Haven't worn a dress since I started breast-feeding.
As far as what style dresses I like well...
Necklines: scoop, boat, or V neck.
Sleeves: a must have! no spaghetti strap, or sleeveless. Short sleeve works year round in Tehachapi, but I prefer 3/4 sleeve on my shirts. Sleeves need to be forgiving because I have inherited wings on my upper arms.
Bodice: tailored, but no button-down styles, they rarely cut them for women with boobs.
Dress line: mid length, below the knee, about mid calf or longer. I like them swooshie, not fit tight. My favorite dressline would be one, where I twirled and it does too, but nothing like a square dancing outfit, uck!
Fabric: something cotton mixed, linen is great, no completely rayon/poly fabrics.
Colors: I look best in a blue-green tealish sort of color, more blue than green and sort of dark. Others I like are: black, any blue, burgundy. No: pink unless it's kind of mauve or peachy, or yellow.
There, Lisa, you wanted our opinions, you should know better than to ask me my opinion, you'll get a book. Good luck finding a dress I'll like, I'm darn picky, but if anyone could find it, it'd probably be you or Michael.
I GAINED a pound?
Okay, something just isn't adding up here! I got up this morning and went to the gym, unpacked my new digital scales, stepped on.... and I weighed 147 ?!?!?! So, here's how this has gone for me. My home scales say 138. At my 6 week PP check-up, I weighed 143. At the gym in town their scales said 146. Now I get these and they say 147. Good Grief! This is depressing. All I can say is that they were all different scales. Hopefully this trend will STOP now that I will have one scale to compare with from week to week.
On the other hand, when I look in those mirrors at the gym, I think I look better than I did last week! LOL! Maybe it's just my mind playing tricks on me, but at least I perceive something as changing for the better!
I'll bet it was the pizza...
Lisa J.
journeyof4moms
It's Thursday, and so far I've exercised 3 times this week, and I'm feeling better. I went to Curves today for my orientation and signed up, but tonight I'm thinking about the cost and considering undoing it and just using the equipment and videos I have at home. You girls have provided me with more motivation and accountability, so I may not need Curves. On the other hand...I didn't get here by being diligent about working out at home. I can't decide tonight, let me know what you girls think. I've got three days to cancel. My first workout at Curves will be next Thursday, because they want a Dr.'s waiver saying that I can workout with my back problems. I've been having a lot of hip pain, due to hoisting my 20 lb. little bug around and damage from delivery. I weighed in at 165 lbs. UGH! I'm trying to lose and it seems like I'm only gaining more weight. I was 157 before Christmas and soooooo happy. I tried on jeans today and I went back up a pant size. I'm officially a size 12, again.
I'm trying. Today I did 20 minutes of Latin Dancing. Yesterday I did 30 minutes of Core Secrets, that is sure to tone me up! Monday we went for a walk, 2.7 miles.
Keep up the good work gals, and lets hear some more of you post!
One week!
Here's a picture of the gym I go to! LOL! I tried to post this through my other picture host and it ended up on my other blog! Ooops! I'm just glad I wasn't trying to post BEFORE pictures of me in a bathing suit!!!
Well, it has been a week now since we started this up. I went to the gym yesterday and stayed on the stairmaster for about 20 minutes! I have to tell myself it's okay to start out slow; this morning I was so tired but felt really guilty for the pizza we ate last night, so I was going to go to the gym anyway, but Colby reminded me not to push too hard too fast. So I slept for about 20 more minutes before my little girl woke me up anyway! Oh well, it was good to rest! Tomorrow I'll be back at it! It does feel really good to get my body moving again! I really miss being active like I was before I had kids.
I got myself a digital scale! It cost a little more than the 5 dollar one we have here already, but I'm sure it will be more accurate! And since I'm not going up to the gym at Kalkaska anymore, I didn't have a way to weigh myself. So we'll see what it says tomorrow, I'm going to take it with me to the gym in Rapid City. I think I'll do a weigh in every week, but only do measurements once a month or so, that way I'm more likely to see some actual change, instead of a hair here and a fraction there!
Sounds like you all are really enjoying Curves! I wouldn't mind joining myself, but since this gym is open to me for free I can't really pass it up! Keep me posted on how that is going for you all, and tell me about what activities you do - maybe I could do some on my own!
Lisa J.
I finally logged on and read the posts. Today I had wonderful intentions, but spent all my time on the computer or doing housework. So......I'm getting off of here and doing a work out NOW. I'll post more later.
Monday!
Yep, it's Monday. And yes, I did get up early again (5:30) and head out in the 27 degree darkness to get my butt to the gym. And boy does my butt need it! I realized I had a few more measurements to do after I read Mom's post, so I measured my hips and bust. Whew! Not a pretty sight! So I'll repost my stats later...
This morning I stayed on the Stairmaster 4000 for 15 minutes instead of 5! Yea! I figured out how to slow it down a little so I can stay on long enough to work up a sweat and not just make my legs burn like crazy! The treadmill is still broken, but maybe by the time it's fixed I'll have legs like Jessica Simpson! And I can really feel the stomach exercises that I've been doing. After 2 babies, I can really feel how much core strength I've lost, and I think it will help my back a lot to regain that strength.
So here's my stats for 2nd week of January, 2006:
Lisa J:
Weight: 146 on gym scales
Height: 5'2"
Waist: 34
Bust: 41
Hips: 40
Thighs: 23.5
Arms: 10.5
Weight Lost: 0 lbs so far!
I got one of the dresses in the mail this weekend, and it was so exciting! It is pale green silk, very simple, but elegant. I tried it on (size 8) and there is no way I'm fitting into it for a while! But mostly that's because of my nursing-mommy boobs! But even so, it gave me something pretty and tangible to reach for, and that helped me get out of bed this morning! So, but the rest of you haven't said anything about preferences for these dresses. I'm still looking around, but you might end up with something you don't really like unless you tell me!
I've been thinking a lot about the reasons I want to lose weight and get in shape, and there are many, but it has taken me a long time to get rid of the wrong reasons that keep crowding my mind in order to better see the right reasons. At Weimar one of the reasons I was vegan and very restrictive with my diet was because it was a status symbol. The more restrictive you were with your diet (which was termed "being temperate") and the smaller your chest, the more righteous you were. Or I should say the more righteous you seemed. That was not a good reason to be vegan! This time around I want to do it for my health, I want my body to feel good to me, not just like a lump that carries out its basic functions.
So I got out my trusty Newstart cookbook and started thumbing through the pages. Do you all know what NEWSTART stands for?
N = Nutrition ~ The NEWSTART diet is plant-based, free of all animal products, and emphasizes whole, natural foods. It is naturally high in fiber, low in fat, and cholesterol-free.
E = Exercise ~ We are designed to be physically active. Regular exercise is very effective in combating many health problems, both physical and mental. It strengthens the immune system, improves circulation, and reduces stress.
W = Water ~ Our bodies are composed mostly of water and virtually every body function is dependent upon water. Six to eight glasses per day are recommended for the average person. Water on the outside of the body may be used to treat pain and infection, and is vital for cleansing the skin.
S = Sunshine ~ Sunlight is one of the healing agents of nature, and is necessary for strong bones. Just 15 minutes of sunlight can provide the daily requirement of Vitamin D. Moderation is the key, avoiding sunburn.
T = Temperance ~ Temperance is having a healthful balance in every area of life. It involves avoiding that which is harmful and moderation in that which is good.
A = Air ~ Air is the body's most frequently needed resource. Living in an environment where the air quality is good greatly enhances our ability to fight disease. Breathing deeply of fresh, outdoor air promotes good oxygen supply for the body cells.
R = Rest ~ With proper rest, productivity and disease resistance is increased. Rest is the great rejuvenator. We need quiet physical relaxation after active work, vigorous exercise after mental work, and deep restorative sleep.
T = Trust ~ Trust in God is the most important healing component in the NEWSTART Lifestyle Program. Stress, fear, and anxiety affect the chemistry and function of every body system. Becoming acquainted with and learning to trust the Creator God, enhances physical, emotional, and spiritual healing.
{Quoted from Weimar Institute's Newstart Lifestyle Cookbook}
Now, I don't know if I'm ready to go vegan, but I'd like to put more emphasis on learning to cook whole foods and following some better health principles than I have been. I know April has expressed desire for this, too, so maybe some or all of us can make some steps together in this area. I'm not trying to be pushy! I'm talking myself through this and into this as much as I am you, so just tell me if I need to back off!
Good Luck everyone with your fitness goals this week!
Oh, and a little sidenote: I put on my ring last night! After a while my finger started turning purple though... Guess I'll have to give it a few more weeks!
Lisa J
Hey I think I might have done something right.. I have not done as good as Lisa J. She is more motivated than I have been this week. I did make it to Curves yesterday, but after finding out how much it would cost, I decided to try and do it at home. I purchased a DVD at Wal-Mart, and with conviction, I will do my best. I hope to go out for a walk every day, and watch what I eat. Here are my stats..
Weight- 141
Height- 5'2'
Bust-40"
Waist-36"
Hips-38"
Arms-11"
Thighs-21"
I feel that I am not porportioned right. I'm top heavy, and my legs are tiny. My goal is to loose 25lbs, I would like to tone up my arms and sholders, and loose inches in my bust, and waist. And look and feel more energetic. I still feel young at heart, and I want to look it. I also want to do this for my health. Especially since heart disease runs in my family. I'm a young 50, and I want to enjoy my life with health, and energy. And I want to feel good about myself with more confidence.
The journey begins!
Hey girls,
I loved April's idea of having blog to post updates on how we are all doing and what is working for us! I'll try and get some cool things posted on here to help us keep track and stay focused!
As for before/after pictures, if you aren't able to post them on here, send them to me and I'll post them!
Today I got up at 6 and went down to the gym in Rapid City. The owners go to our church and he owns another business that does business with Colby a lot, so they gave us access to their gym for free! Right now the treadmill doesn't work and the only other cardio machine is a stair-climber. I did the stair-climber for about 5 minutes before my legs were burning! So I didn't do that for long, and spent the rest of my 35 min. cardio time power walking in circles around the room! After that I did a few of the weight machines and some crunches. So for me, I went to the gym twice this week. I feel pretty good about that, but of course I'm impatient also, and wish I could see results now! The gym I went to this morning had too many mirrors, and I could really see how much I've gained. It was really depressing!
Anyway, just got to keep at it if I want to see something different in the mirror!!
One thing I've found about working out: since I'm breastfeeding, I need to drink a lot of water the day I go to the gym and sweat a lot otherwise I get dehydrated and get a bad headache. So my goal is to get in the habit of drinking 3 quarts of water a day. That will also help with craving food and sugar and drinking pop!
Beginning stats: Lisa J.
Weight: 146 on gym scales
Waist: 34
Thighs: 23.5
Arms: 10.5
Weight Lost: 0
Next week I'll measure up again! I know one thing for sure, I'm not losing it as quickly as I did with Joshua!
Good Luck to all of you!
Lisa
