Weigh Day (week forty-one)

Things are down to the wire, ladies and gentlemen.  Seriously…to the wire.  I am getting so anxious I can barely stand it…and I know Denise is feeling the same anticipation I am.  How wonderful that she is so invested in my success, right?  She is not just excited for me when I am with her…she and I communicate nearly every day via text.  She is 110% invested in me, and that is an amazing feeling.  Truly something I would not have expected.

I could go on and on about Denise and all her exceptional qualities as both a trainer and just a person.  However, I should probably move on to tell you about my week:

Sunday – 3-mile loop at Sharon Woods with Denise and Branden (Denise’s trainer, folks) (17,752)

Monday – physical therapy; 35 mins with Denise; stairs with Chris; 30 mins shoulders & back with Cathie (10,072)

Tuesday – day off (somehow missed my step count, too?)

Wednesday – full fit score with Denise (CRAZINESS, folks – seriously)! (missed my step count again?)

Thursday – 15 mins of spinning; 30 mins with Neil and Chris (18,407)

Friday – physical therapy (2 hours); manual resistance training with Aaron (arms and back) (9,564)

Saturday – 1.5 hours of bootcamp with Denise (11,845)

Apparently somewhere in the middle of the week my step counts did not make it to my journal.  Not sure what happened there.  Friday was obviously a slow day for me, step-counting-wise, which is the first day in a *very* long time I did not break 10,000 steps.  I did work *extremely* hard that day, though, so I am not too terribly torn up about it.

I have to share the fit score thing with you all.  It was MADNESS at its finest.  Seriously.  The fit score test was created by Branden (Denise’s trainer) as a way to really measure both strength and endurance in such a way that is comparable to future testing.  I cannot tell you specifically how it is done (because as I said, it does belong to Branden), but I will tell you this much…  It includes EIGHT sets of pushups, squats, upright rows, burpees, and situps.  You have to complete all eight sets of all five exercises with *very little* rest between each set.  They then add up what you were able to complete and that makes up your score.  I scored 604, which they say was pretty good.  They also told me I beat an NFL player’s score.  Go figure that one!

On to this week’s weigh in (since I know you are all anxious to know, right?):

215.8

That is 2.2 pounds down from last week.  That also puts me ONLY 0.8 away from my 100-pound mark!!!  I think it is safe to assume I should be hitting that milestone at some point this week!  How very exciting!

As for today…I am getting ready to head out to Sharon Woods with my chicklets for the 3-mile nature trail.  They are excited to see what is going to be out and about today (critter-wise).

I will keep you all posted throughout the week!

GOAL TRACKER:
5 weeks; 5 days
16 pounds

-Erica

Weigh Day (week thirty-nine)

Happy Easter (to those of you who celebrate)!!!

Time is seriously getting away from me.  Week 39, really?  Already?

This week has been good.  Great, really.  Physical therapy kicked it up a notch, so now I am jumping as part of my rehab.  I hate to admit it, but I am pretty stoked about that.  I cannot wait to have zero limitations set on me so that I can attack new workouts with Denise.  I know she is dying to do the same with me.

Here is what the schedule looked like for the week:

Sunday – 1 hour (or maybe a touch more) with Denise, Aaron, Ketrell, and Sarah at Sharon Woods (13,517)

Monday – physical therapy; fit score session with Denise (19,704)

Tuesday – 3+ miles of walking at Sharon Woods with my chicklets (17,536)

Wednesday – legs & abs (13,144)

Thursday – whole body with Chris (on the stairs) & Denise (14,379)

Friday – physical therapy; back & chest with Denise (13,138)

Saturday – 4 hours at the zoo with my chicklets (14,741)

I continue to make my way toward 100 pounds lost.  Honestly just typing it looks strange to me.  How unbelievable, right?  I admit that if you had asked me 39 weeks ago I would *not* have thought I would be here right now.  I would have probably told you that this journey (like all others before it) would have stalled out at some point.  Maybe I would have thought 50 pounds lost by now…maybe.

If I had to go this journey alone there would not have been enough faith – enough drive – enough belief in myself.  It is the people I have surrounded myself with that have made my journey this successful.  The fact that I have an entire network of people (including all of you reading right now) rooting for me, standing behind me, believing in me is what has pushed me this far.  I thank each and every one of you for the kind words and encouragement.

So, as for my weigh in this week:

219.4

That is 2.8 pounds down from last week.  What excellent progress!  That means I am 4.4 pounds away from 100 lost – insane!  This also means I am only 34.4 pounds away from my initial goal of 185 – unbelievable!

Denise seems to think I will hit the 100-pound mark by next weekend’s weigh in.  I am not so sure about that, but we will see.  Her serious belief makes me wonder what kind of workouts she has planned for the week though.  Maybe I should be afraid.  Although it could not *possibly* be worse than the fit score test we did on Monday.  That. Was. Brutal. Seriously.  I cannot remember the last time my arms felt so weak.  I cannot remember the last time my whole body ached in the morning.  I cannot remember the last time I worked so hard I had *no* words to say when I was working out.  Seriously, all I had were grunts and sighs.  It was fabulous!

GOAL TRACKER:
7 weeks; 5 days
19.6 pounds

How was your week?  Did you try anything new with your workouts?

-Erica

Weigh Day (week thirty-eight)

‘Tis that time again, folks.  Good old weigh day.  This is “official” weigh-in number 38.  How time has flown.

Here is what my week looked like:

Sunday – lazy day (14,608 steps)

Monday – physical therapy; 1-hr workout with Dorsey & Denise (14,035 steps)

Tuesday – 5K run with Neil (27,384 steps)

Wednesday – self defense class; 35 mins with Denise; 15 mins with Neil (21,834 steps)

Thursday – brief arms & abs; 15 mins with Neil (20,789 steps)

Friday – physical therapy; arms & abs; 25 mins with Neil (20,413 steps)

Saturday – lazy day (10,010 steps)

As you can see, aside from working out this week, I have been extremely busy.  I have had errands out the wazoo to be running this week, and the step counter is showing it!  My eyes just about popped out of my head when I looked at my little gadget Tuesday night before bed!  That was just the confirmation I needed to go to bed early.  🙂

So, for this week’s weigh in.  I am still *creeping* my way toward 100 pounds lost:

222.2

That is 0.8 pounds down from last week.  So, a tiny step, but a step none-the-less.  That leaves me with 7.2 pounds to go until 100!

Hopefully today will help me kick start a great week!  Instead of heading to the gym, I am supposed to be hitting Sharon Woods (Hamilton County park) with Denise and Aaron.  I have *no* idea what will be in store for me, but I see myself doing TRX from a tree…probably.  At any rate, it should be an absolute blast (especially since they are two of my very favorite people)!

GOAL TRACKER:
8 weeks; 5 days
22.4 pounds

How was your week?  Did you accomplish what you hoped for this week?

-Erica

Weigh Day (week twenty-nine)

I must admit I was expecting this week’s loss considering my *huge* loss last week.  I am not necessarily disappointed, though, since I did mentally prepare myself to lose next to nothing.

This week’s weigh in showed: 239.2, which is exactly one pound down this week.  One pound.  This; however, does bump me over the 75-pound mark.  My total is 75.8 pounds lost in 29 weeks.

I am getting a little anxious to be measured again, though.  It has been four weeks since I was last measured at the gym, which means it will be coming up soon.  My guess is that during the weeks I lose very little weight, I am losing inches instead.  I am lifting weights at the gym, so I know I am gaining muscle and losing inches in the process.  Of course, I am fine with that.  I know some have decided not to do much with weights until after they lose the weight (because lifting weights does slow weight loss progression with the gaining of muscle), but I would rather just get it all done together.  Besides, I actually enjoy lifting weights.  Strange, I know.

On the walking/step-counting front, I have had some really good days…and some really stinky days.  I just cannot seem to stay consistent, which is going to have to change…soon.

Tuesday – 10,258
Wednesday – 9,530
Thursday – 13,274
Friday – 8,125
Saturday – 3,792 (*super* stinky)

GOAL TRACKER:
27 days
14.2 pounds

How did your week turn out?  Are you happy with your current plan/path?

-Erica

Weigh Day (week twenty-eight)

This week has really been something…I had some drama with my older daughter that landed us in the hospital for eight hours.  That also led us to a specialist at Children’s hospital for some neurological testing.  Scary stuff, really.  My younger daughter had to endure getting six shots this week for her four-year well child visit.  Also not fun.  I have been busting my butt to finish finals (due tonight by midnight), which will be the finish line of two years in college.  I cannot wait.

I also was able to spend some time with my bestie, Leslie, this week at the comedy club.  My trainer, Denise, switched up some of my routines…okay, all of my routines…at the gym this week.  I love that she listens to me.  Two weeks ago when I had that horrible 0.6 pound loss for the week, she knew it was time to switch some things up.  Great idea she had (and you will see why shortly).  I spent four days at the gym this week (and that is not even counting this afternoon when I go to see Denise).  That is one “extra” day than my normal, so life is good.

My new toy paid off this week.  I was happy to see my initial step count in the 9000’s…that happiness quickly dissipated, though.  Here is my “log” so far for the week:

Wednesday – 9206
Thursday – 6975
Friday – 11321 (yeah me!)
Saturday – 3832 (BOO!)

Saturday’s step count is super stinky, I know.  That is the product of me sitting in my office chair pretty much *all* day trying to finish up my accounting final.  I will likely spend majority of this day parked in this very chair as well; however, I know today’s count will be better.  I know it because I will be spending part of my afternoon with Denise…and she will keep these feet moving.

The last mentionable thing that happened this week was I started physical therapy again.  I can only hope a few more weeks of attention on this right ankle will get me out of this brace (and stop the pain in that darn ankle).  I injured it last March, so I am inching up on an entire year of discomfort with this stupid ankle.  What I wouldn’t give to have it all better…like now.

Alright…so, on to weigh in.  Can I just say that when I weighed myself this morning it shocked me so much that I actually weighed myself three times.  Yeah, I know.  So, on the scale was 240.2 which is a 4.2 pound loss from last week!  Crazy, right?!  That brings my total weight loss to 74.8 pounds in 28 weeks!  Let me just say I love Denise…again.  I doubt I would have seen such a dramatic loss without her switching up my rountines and pushing me hard.  Excellent.

GOAL TRACKER:
34 days
15.2 pounds

Do you vary your workout routines?  If so, how often do you switch things up?  Do you notice a “bigger-than-usual” drop in your weight during the week you change things?  If you do not switch your routine up, why not?

-Erica

9206 and One More Time…

So, my new toy arrived yesterday! I was so excited I strapped it on immediately! My plan was simple: the first day I am just going to be “normal” and see where I am starting with my step count. To be honest, I thought I would be in the lowly 4 or 5 thousands. I was pleasantly surprised to check it just before bedtime and see 9206.  Yes, I am still below 10,000 steps, but not that far under.  How exciting!  I guess I really do not give myself enough credit sometimes.

I am interested to see how today goes.  Yesterday was a gym day, today is not.  I did not do cardio on the elliptical yesterday, but I did do 10 minutes (1 mile).  So, I know that accounted for a decent amount of my steps for the day.  My goal is to be solidly up to (and beyond) 10,000 steps consistently by the end of this month.

As for the “One More Time” part of the post…well, Andie decided since she already had a cool, nifty toy that she wanted me to redraw for a winner.  So, someone else still has a shot at this level of fun with me…

And, so, that brings us to Charity as my new step-counting buddy! This should work perfectly with her new goal to take the stairs each day at work! Congrats, Charity! Please e-mail me at addictblog@aol.com with your address and I will get this gadget out to you immediately.

-Erica

Can I Get A Drum Roll, Please…

(Just imagine it in your head for me…) 

I wanted to announce the winner of the fancy new pedometer I offered earlier this week.  I hope the winner enjoys the new toy…and plans to share in the joys of 10,000 steps per day with me often…

Andie is the winner! Congrats, Love!  I will need you to e-mail me at addictblog@aol.com with your address information so that I can send it your way.

Thanks so much to those who entered, and I hope to be able to offer other great fitness gadgets to you in the future.  🙂

-Erica