Wednesday, April 29, 2009

I lost 2.8 this week!!
Headed to the chiro! Boy I need it!

Another one in the books!

     I had another Orchard Grade walk for lunch today :) I took my coat, but then definitely didn't need it.
     Such a nice break during the day :)
     I will try to update tonight after I weigh in!
Happy Hump Day! Anyone else feel like this week has already been 15 days??? I rode the recumbent at 5 am this morning cuz I have a meeting at 7!!

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Nice walk!

     So, it wasn't nice in the weather department, as I headed out, rather blustery, even sprinkling, and definite jacket-necessary- temperature!
     I still had a good walk. I went to the post office and sent off Cody's birthday cards. This is the first time that he is out of country on his birthday. Last year, I couldn't see him either, but I was able to send him a delivery.
     I did order him a present and sent it off, so hopefully it will reach in time! And, I also sent the monthly care package off, so he should be set!!
     I did see a funny thing on my walk that made me laugh. I saw this big dog in the backseat of a compact car. He had half his body in the back window and half his body standing on the backseat!! It was super cute!!
     I also got a postcard (to add to my gi-normous collection) today, so that was a pleasant surprise, too.
     Good lunch.

That's life!

     I am so stinking proud of myself and the effort I have towards working out!!
     I had a string of 7 mornings in a row on the recumbent bike (THANK YOU DVR!).
     Then Saturday we had to make a quick and unexpected trip to Ellensburg. This meant getting up at 4:10 a.m., and then heading back to the double-header baseball games.
     I was absolutely exhausted by 4:30 in the afternoon, and I went home and took a nap before we headed out to visit our good friends, the Lockwoods, up in Conconully.
     So, for the first time this month, I did not exercise at all on Saturday. And, I was mildly disappointed, but in the big scheme of things, I am OK with it. That’s life.
     Sunday I walked Robinson Canyon. I walked 3.4 miles all together, and I did not stop when I was trucking it up that hill. In addition, I also jogged for .4 of that total (on flat ground), but I don’t know that I will be doing that again because although my heart could handle it, I felt like the pavement was a bit tough on my shins, and I don’t want to risk any injuries right now.
     Monday my bumper muscles and calves were aburning! THANK goodness for a LONG soak last night in the hot tub, and today I feel super!
     I did still ride the bike for 45 minutes yesterday morning and walk the Orchard Grade yesterday during my lunch, which by the way I have faithfully walked during my lunch for three weeks, only missing one day because of a lunch meeting.
     I also walked an additional mile on the treadmill after school and then lifted weights, too.
     Today I logged in another 45 minutes on the bike! I was a blubbering fool because I was watching the end of last week’s Biggest Loser, and it was so sad that Kristin was sent home! I could SOOO relate to her! I loved the follow-up, and all of the people she is inspiring!!
     I will squeeze in a walk today for lunch, although I have errands to run (OK, errands to walk), so I am skipping the hill today. Then today after school we have a hair appointment, so I am going to either go for a horse ride (depending on the wind) or else jump on the bike to watch last week’s episode of Survivor.
     My eating has been improved this week, as besides yesterday I have been writing down everything. I need to figure out the lasagna that I made last night…and the portion that I ate (too big).
     Tomorrow is weigh-in, and I will ride my bike in the morning, too. I have been getting up at 5:30 this week!! Plus I will walk at lunch.
     That's it. That's life lately!

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Just walked up Robinson Canyon AGAINST the wind!!

Friday, April 24, 2009

You know your pants are just too big when you can pull them on and off without even unbuttoning them! Not bad considering they were tight...
Just got a killer walk in at my lunch up to Parks Place on Orchard Grade. Wish I had longer than a thirty minute lunch!

Learning some stuff about myself

     OK, so on Wednesday I went to WWers, as you already know, and I gained .04.
     To say I was peeved would be an understatement. I was exceptionally mad, and all pouty because I really felt that all of that exercise should count for something!
     I had over 30 exercise points racked up, and then I had a gain. Grrr.
     To top it off, since I only lost .04 the previous week, and then you add in the .04 gain this week, it feels like I was basically in limbo for TWO weeks!!!!!!!!
     Are you kidding me? Does anyone else feel this way?!
     I keep having to remind myself to look at the big picture. Yes, my clothes feel more loose. I don't know my measurements, as I have not taken them, but I know there is a change. I do feel stronger, and I am very proud for how long I have been working out.
     I know that I have not been tracking in the evening, and I know that my portions at dinner are too big.
     I have not been eating bad foods, by any means, but too much of a good thing can be just that.
     I have not been snacking at all. Or, eating anything bad, and to be TOTALLY honest, I have this righteous feeling that if I am exercising as much as I am, then I shouldn't have to watch how much I eat for dinner.
     But, obviously reality (AKA the scale) bit me in the butt.
     So, for the last two days, I have been totally on track in the tracking department! I am eating under my daily points, and I may use up some of my weekly flex points because I may want to eat tonight at the auction :)
     I still can't believe how FOCUSED I am in the exercise department!!!
     This morning I again rode my recumbent bike for 45 minutes, and that makes SEVEN days in a row of doing that.
     Here is something great! Yesterday I could not go for a walk because I had a lunch meeting with my National Honor Society kids to plan our upcoming Relay for Life activities.
     I was actually pretty grumpy about not being able to go for my daily lunch walk. I was surprised at how much I really wanted/needed to go! That's a good thing, right??!!
     I did go and workout after school, which I now affectionately call GYMING :) I ran on the elliptical for a mile, and then lifted weights.
     So, with riding the bike yesterday and then working out after school, it's not like I was a slacker or anything, but BOY I am looking forward to my walk up Orchard Grade today for lunch!!

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Going GYMING!!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

I gained the .4 I lost last week. I need to be more faithful in my tracking especially in the evening. I have to make all this exercise worth it!
What a crazy good lunch walk up Orchard Grade!

Good (OK, great!) and still working on it...

     Yesterday I ran on the elliptical for a mile. Is it called running? IDK
     But, nonetheless, I "ran" on the elliptical for a mile in UNDER 13 minutes!! It was my goal, and I did it! I was so stoked!
     I felt like I was on a mammoth exercise high for most of the night.
     I wonder what a realistic goal would be for me to get a mile out...I don't know, but I have cut 2 minutes off my previous miles.
     This morning I finished watching The Biggest Loser, and I rode for 45 minutes, 9 miles, 450 calories!
     That makes five days in a row on the bike.
     I don't think I have lost much weight this week, at least that's my guess before I weigh-in tonight, and I will be frustrated because I have been ON FIRE in the exercise department.
     I am drinking all my water, and I am eating GREAT all day (even tracking) until night. Now, at night I am not snacking, but I am eating too much dinner, I think. I am not paying attention to dinner portions, and I am not tracking it. I need to get on that.
     But, you would think with ALL the exercising that I would have some big results. SIGH.
     I will definitely update what the scale says this evening.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Just made and ate the most scrumptious salad!
I love the after exercise high!

Yeah for the sunshine

yeah for Tuesday
yeah for hot weather
yeah for yet another super walk at lunch
yeah for Cody calling while I was out walking
yeah

I love my exercise bike!

     So, for the past four days in a row, I have rode my recumbent bike for 45 minutes, 500 calories, and 9-10 miles :)
     I just realized this morning that I have basically rode all the way to Brewster!
     That makes me actually want to get my real bike a tune-up, which I still have not done!! Then I can get out and ride it around, too.
     I did enjoy watching The Biggest Loser while I was riding this morning! It was VERY inspiring, and I actually rode harder today.
     I am really into the swing of things with exercising! I am so proud of myself, as I have not missed a day of walking at lunch during the work week, with this being the third week in a row!
     I actually have done some form of exercise, with the minimum being a one-mile walk, every single day of April so far!!!!!
     Yeah!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Fabulous lunch walk today! I walked up Orchard Grade.

DVR, Oh How I Love You

     LOL!
     I thought about writing an ode to my DVR, but then thought that was definitely over-the-top in the cheese department.
     I have a new tradition going, and that is riding my recumbent bike on Saturday mornings and watching Survivor.
     This equals a forty-five minute ride (with fast forwarding through the commercials)!
     I also did a repeat of this on Sunday, watching The Real Housewives of Orange County (and the New Jersey preview), and then this morning I watched the reunion show of Rock of Love.
     Now, I don't feel so guilty watching those stupid shows when I am riding the bike!!!
     Also on the exercise front, we headed out for a ride up on the Loup in the Sweat Creek area.
     We were about an hour into our climb, and that's when we noticed GI-NORMOUS bear tracks!!! They were fairly fresh (either earlier in the day or maybe the day before).
     Since we did not have our rifle with us (just our .22 pistol), we decided to head back down to the truck.
     We did get an hour and forty-five minute ride in, and we planned on eating lunch and then heading out again, but staying down a little lower.
     But, Rick's horse caught his stirrup on the trailer, and it ripped off, so our day of riding was over.
     I was actually OK with that, and I am glad that we will be back in the saddle next weekend, but with our rifle along. Just in case.
     I so love being out riding. We saw a coyote, and tons of birds and even butterflies. The air is so clean and crisp, you can't help but feel ALIVE!
     Truly, I think this is the best exercise ever!!!

Friday, April 17, 2009

Going gyming (one of my new favorite words)!
New Friday tradition...walk to Wallwebbers for a veggie sandwich.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Itty bitty, but still inching in the right direction!

     I lost .4 last night, and I will readily admit, I was MAD about it, and I felt all pouty.
     I did so much exercise that I really felt like I would've had a bigger loss on the scale.
     Even though I did not track points, I still felt like I ate respectably well, especially through Easter!
     So, I was sitting there with my lower lip out there enough for a bird to perch on it (or, so my dad would say), and then we had a GREAT WWers meeting that truly change my perspective around.
     I know, I know...a loss is a loss no matter how small! Blah, blah, right?
     Well, our leader had a demonstration that hit home. She first asked for any volunteers who thought they were strong. She went to the back row and had the people there try to rip a phone book in two.
     Of course, when they tried to do this by grabbing the phone book as a whole, it did not work.
     But, then when the leader grabbed the book and opened it up and tore a few pages at a time, you could visually see how it would be possible to rip that phone book into two pieces!!
     Then our leader went on to ask us all how many times that we had lost weight, but it was under a pound. It was crazy to look at the big picture like that!!!
     So many people had lost LOTS of weight in under one pound increments. That made me feel better.
     In the end, she used the "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." (Which by the way I have seen attributed to both Confucius and Lao-Tzu)

Finally finished!

     I just finished The Amazing Adventures of Diet Girl. AND, I loved it!
     (Click on the link to the book, and you can even read an excerpt! I love her style of writing!!!)
     I made the time to read, and then I really cruised through it!! It's so funny and inspiring.
     I COMPLETELY relate to the author, and I love the life lessons she has figured out and how much she has learned about herself :)
     READ IT! YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!!!!

Uphill all the way (well, at least one-way)

     Today for lunch I headed out and up the hill from school. I don't have any idea how far I walked, but I felt great!
     The birds were singing, the flowers (and trees) were blossoming, and the wind was gently blowing my wild mane of hair :)
     I walked eight minutes uphill (a steep one), and then walked back downhill, which only took five minutes!
     Love it!!!

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Great walk for lunch! And I scored on a Rawsons' sale!

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Testing out this blogging from my phone. Reminds me of Twitter.

Falling in love!

      I am falling in love with exercising again! Yahoo! This morning I rode the bike for 45 minutes!!!
      Then at lunch I walked for a mile, even in the wind (thankfully only in one direction, right?!).
      I wanted to challenge you to walk during a break or your lunch! All you need is 15 minutes, and you will clock in a mile!!!! So, even if you don't know for sure how long you are walking, you can walk at a decent pace for 7 1/2 minutes, and then turn around and come back. YOU CAN DO IT! Plus, you will feel so much better after doing so! I PROMISE!
      After school I walked/jogged on the treadmill for another mile (eight straight minutes of jogging). And, I followed that up with a weights workout!
      To make exercising even better, we recently received a DVR!! Can I say YOWSER??!! What a super cool piece of technology!!
      Now, I am busy taping all of these dumb reality shows that I do love to watch, but sometimes feel a little guilty for wasting the time on them.
      Well, NO MORE! I am now watching the shows and riding the bike at the same time!!! It's so sweet that you can fast forward through all of the commercials! I LOVE it!!!!
      I have heard so many people talking about their DVRs, and I didn't really get the hype, but now I do!

Monday, April 13, 2009

THE most amazing ride

     So, Saturday we headed out for a "trail" ride, only we were hardly ever on the the trail!
     That's right! I officially now am a mountain rider! LOL! We were all up and down the hills and mountains in the Pogue Mountain area.
     I still can't believe how close to home we are, and yet when you are out riding you feel WORLDS away!
     I am in love with riding my horse. I kept telling Rick that I felt like I was in a western movie of some kind, as we went everywhere.
     At different times we could see Duck Lake, Brown Lake, Green Lake; the towns of Omak, Okanogan, Malott; and beyond.
     We rode through where the fire was last year, and surprisingly the damage wasn't nearly as bad as we expected.
     And, the regeneration of grass and flowers is inspiring.
     The views were breathtaking!







     Now, let's talk about the workout! I rode for four hours, but like I said everything was up and down hills, with just a little (very little) amount of flat trail riding.
     I earned 13 exercise points, as I dialed in my activity online at Weight Watchers, and they don't give an option for the kind of riding we did; they just have walking, trotting, or galloping.
     So, on Sunday my core and my back muscles were the ones feeling it the most. But, I feel good, alive, and STRONG!
     I know I am getting stronger, because I can get pull myself up in the saddle all by myself now, wihtout needing any extra lift from Rick :)
     Again, thanks to my amazing new saddle, I didn't feel any saddle soreness :)
     Mostly I just love my horse, and I can't wait to get out all summer long!!!
     I love exercising outside. I love the sounds and smells, and the fresh air! YEEHAW!

Friday, April 10, 2009

New routine

      For this entire week I have walked every day at lunch! I love it! It's so invigorating for the rest of the day.
     For the past two days, I had been so busy with baseball in the evening that I did not have a chance to go shopping for lunch stuff for me, so I went to Wall Webbers yesterday and today for a scrumptious veggie sandwich!!! YUMMY, and healthy, woo hoo!
     I had an AWESOME workout this afternoon. I am up to jogging for 8 minutes straight! That's so amazing considering when I started a minute felt like an hour!!
     I am really happy with the routine of working out that I have right now!!! Besides my daily lunch walks, I am also lifting weights and jogging on the treadmill.
     Tomorrow if the weather holds out, we are going for a LONG trail ride! I can't wait!!!

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Another loss and a new do!

     I lost 1.2 pounds this past week, and I was pleasantly surprised because I did NOT do a good job tracking over Spring Break, and this past weekend, but I did exercise TONS and tons.
     I am definitely on a roll in the exercise department. I am at the point where I NEED to exercise!
     Now, I have exactly five pounds to lose, and I will be where I was last July, when I was at my lowest since I had started WWers! So, I am close!!! And, I am feeling very motivated.
     I tried on a pair of my jeans this morning that I haven't been able to wear, and what do you know...they fit and LOOKED perfect!! I was so excited!!!!!!
     So, another fun thing that happened today...my yearbook class completed the yearbook, and the deal was that when it happened, I would let them straighten my hair. I was a bit worried because I had my hair straightened two other times, and it looked like I was a triangle head, LOL!
     Well, three girls did it in 30 minutes, and they did such a good job!
     The best part of it all was watching the reactions of EVERYONE!!!! LOL

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Another loss!

     I lost .8, which is OK. It brings me up to a total of 20 pounds gone!
     I feel pretty good about the fact that I had a loss considering I did not do good tracking on Friday - Sunday,and we did eat out. I expect this week to be better!!
     I am now able to get back into pants that I couldn't wear when I started back up with Weight Watchers, so that makes me happy!!
     One thing I did do is...for the month of March I worked out 21 times!!! 15 of those times was weights and cardio, and the other six times were cardio only.
     I am very pleased with that pattern of behavior! I am at the point right now where I want to exercise.