Weight

I weighed in on the Wii again today. I weigh every 2 weeks and no more, or else I get obsessive about it.

I am still consistently losing 2 pounds every 2 weeks. If I could remember the actual weight number, I'd post it. I honestly don't pay much attention to it except to compare to the last reading.

It makes me happy to see that line in a steady decline on the progress chart.

Monday and Tuesday were very tough days for me after having the excess food splurge I had last weekend. My brain kept telling me I needed more, more more but I had to stay focused and resolve not to give in unless my stomach told me the same thing.

Anyway, I don't normally update about things like this and figured I'd just go ahead.

Now You're Dancing!

Well, that's what Bonnie Franklin told me anyway! I'm not sure she heard the rhythm coming from those taps though...
Practice makes perfect right?! Until I get these basic steps down, the tap dancing isn't really exercise. What I'm doing most closely resembles walking or skipping in place - and not very quickly at that. However, it is getting me back in the habit of blocking out that time for exercise, which is what's important.

Out of control!

It's no secret that I jump off the health wagon on the weekends. I'm not ready, nor willing, to make the sacrifices necessary to continue eating in the top two tiers on those days. Is it feasible? Yes - very much so. I'm just resisting. In any case, even with the not-so-healthy food choices on the weekends, I generally go low on portions as a norm so it all works out. This weekend I was out of control. Not only did I eat in lower tiers, but I consistently overate. My body has what I've come to call a 'built-in Alli system'. It's not fun and it's not pretty. Some who know me say they wish they had that. Trust me, no one wants this. It sucks.

So today is Monday. I'm back on the wagon. I've had my egg white sandwich and 2 cups of coffee. My brain is screaming at me to eat more. My stomach says I'm fine (at least, it's not making any noises). Having the veggie chili for lunch but adding about 3oz of ground turkey to each portion this week for added protein. I'll probably also toast some cheese on a whole wheat tortilla.

I'm really wanting to start tapping. Last week was a horrible week all around - mentally and physically - and the tap never happened. Ashley was wonderful and loaded a program on the laptop so I can watch the dvd on there. I'm thinking that's going to be a great way to end the day today.

Measurements & Weight

I keep forgetting so while it seems random and dated, here are my measurements including today's.

October 2010 (after first 2 weeks of Insanity)
Chest: 39
L Bicep: 10.5
R Bicep: 11
Waist: 34
Hips: 40
L Thigh: 20
R Thigh: 20
L Calf: 15
R Calf: 14
Weight: 160

January 2011 (after recovery and 2nd attempt of first 2 weeks of Insanity)
Chest: 37
L Bicep: 11
R Bicep: 11
Waist: 32
Hips: 37
L Thigh: 20
R Thigh: 20
L Calf: 14
R Calf: 14
Weight: 152

February 2011 (no exercise Jan. 22nd through Feb. 13th, approx 1300-1500 cals per day)
Chest: 36
L Bicep: 10
R Bicep: 10
Waist: 32
Hips: 37
L Thigh: 19
R Thigh: 19
L Calf: 13
R Calf: 13
Weight: 147

Bad Idea or just bad timing?

I got home and changed into workout clothes. (warning - female discussion coming) I noticed a certain sign that a particular curse had arrived. Still very light and I wasn't feeling any physical effects except for the heavy boobage. So I strapped on the heavy-duty bra and got started with the warm-up for Plyometric Cardio Circuit. About halfway through the workout, I felt cramps - not muscle cramps either. Ugh. About halfway through the cool down from the warm-up, I got nauseous. VERY nauseous. I actually stopped before finishing the cool down and hurried to the bathroom. After frantically removing the bra and heart rate monitor, which in effect reduced the nausea, I got VERY dizzy and clammy. Well dandy. I was crashing. I was sweating so profusely that I was slipping around on the toilet seat and drops were falling from my shoulders onto my knees while I tucked my head between my knees in an attempt to not pass out. I succeeded.

SO! I got the warm up done! The only factor I can come up with that was different than previous workouts is that I had started menstruating. Stupid gonads anyway.

I think I'm going to work on tap dancing this week instead of Insanity - and start up after this whole female thing has run its course.

How do you top off a workout flop such as that? With Cinnamon Caramel French Toast and bacon of course! This was a dinner I had planned for Ashley in celebration of Valentine's Day. Yeah, I'm pretty sure I sunk clear to the bottom of Tier 5 with that dinner but it was SOOOO yummy! A huge thanks is in order to the author of the Crepes of Wrath blog for that delectable recipe!

Starting over...again

I've been off the exercise wagon for almost a month now. I'm ready to start up again but I'm pretty sure if I jump into month 2 of Insanity without building up to it, I'll be ready to quit in no time - or my shin will flare up at it - either way it's no good. So I've decided to start over for the 4th time. My night classes are making the scheduling difficult. I think I'm going to take 2 rest days instead of 1 (the class days). This might benefit both my shin and my mental setbacks from when I previously would miss days. When I actually FINISH the 60-day Insanity program, I will be SO excited!  First things first though - I gotta start.

I've been falling behind on working ahead for school work, so I don't feel as though I have enough time to exercise. Here's where my pro/con list comes in.

Pros:
Exercising increases my memory retention and focus.
Exercising increases my endorphins, and I'm certainly ready for some happy time!
I'll continue losing inches and looking good as well as feeling good.

Cons:
I'll return to a tight schedule with little free time during the week.
That's one more hour I can't use for studying.
I can't really think of any other cons, so I guess that means it's time to start!

It's Valentine's Day (and YES, apostrophe - s! It's not the day of all valentines. It is the day of St. Valentine. The fact that we've turned it into a greeting card day does not change the original meaning of why this 14th of February gets celebrated with love. /end rant ) so I'm cooking a special dinner for Ashley. I'll use my lunch hour today to study for my Psychology test, eat a snack just before leaving work, head home and work out, shower and start dinner by 7. It's do-able. I just dislike being rushed.

In other health related news - I've continued losing weight at about 2 pounds every 2 weeks. I'm at 147 now. I'm still trying to stick with eating in the top 2 tiers for breakfast and lunch. Weekends have been especially off the rocker on food choices (small portions but pretty consistently in tiers 3-5) but it doesn't seem to be affecting me weight-wise. So apparently, I can still get away with eating crap once a week. Ashley's dinners are usually within the top 3 tiers at least. I'm going to have to re-learn how to eat when I start working out tonight. I do recall having to eat more when I'm doing the Insanity program.

No news is not generally good news

I've been doing okay with food choices. A few slips into Tiers 4 and 5 but the important thing is that I didn't stay there! With all the snow we've gotten lately and the low temps, I'm craving chili. Ashley would have a fit but I'm thinking a meat-less chili would do the trick AND keep me in the top two tiers. Apple Market had 'no salt added' canned red & black beans on sale that I picked up the other day. They also had red peppers & roma tomatoes on sale so I have those too.
Exercise, on the other hand, is lacking. I haven't done a single workout since January 21st! That's 11 days so far, 12 if I don't do it tonight. Some days, there's an 'excuse'. Some days I just can't seem to overcome the 'I don't wanna' mentality. Most recently, I've started feeling the physical and mental effects of not exercising. My cheeks are getting warm and pink, I'm getting headaches, shortness of breath is returning. It's just nuts that a steady routine of exercise helps all those effects disappear. The flip side of it though, is that when I'm short of breath and have a headache, the last thing I want to do is exercise! The longer I don't exercise, the easier it is to skip - the less I even think about it. I find I'm getting restless and irritable. I know I need to exercise. I seem to have allowed myself to get stuck in a cycle here. We'll see how tonight goes.