March 16, 2013 • 1 Comment
There was once a time in my life when I was able to run a half marathon, but after my lengthy joint infection and subsequent lazy lifestyle, I needed a jump start to get back into healthy habits. I heard an ad on the radio for Farrell’s eXtreme Bodyshaping and after listening to recommendations from coworkers who had previously joined the center, I made the leap. It’s an overall lifestyle program incorporating a healthy diet plan, kickboxing 3 days a week for cardio and resistance training 3 days a week to increase lean muscle mass.
I just finished my 10 week boot camp and am pleased with the progress I made. My results are not as “extreme” as I had hoped they would be, but my main focus was for healthy habits to be reestablished, and I had fun while doing it. The baseline and follow-up testing felt similar to the Presidential Fitness assessments we did in grade school. Here are my results:
- Weight: down 8lbs
- Body Fat: down 2.1%
- Inches: total loss of 7¾”
- Flexibility (i.e. sit & reach): increase of 5″
- Push-ups (1 minute): up from 12 to 24
- Sit-ups (1 minute): up from 31 to 45
- Mile Run: reduced by 1:12
Now comes the even harder part… keeping it up.
October 14, 2012 • 1 Comment
I used to be pretty good about updating my blog with posts about random life events, but now that I can send a quick quip or image about what I’m doing via Twitter, I lack motivation to create detailed posts. This is unlikely to change, but I would be remiss if I don’t say I will make an effort. Anyway, here is yet another bullet list to catch up on what I’ve been doing to lately.
- My nephew turned 2 and discovered the joy of blowing out birthday candles.
- I turned 30. It’s not that different from being 29 – with the exception that Mike mocks me about my age with increased frequency.
- My cousin and I ran the Mud Chug. It was disgusting, yet hilarious.
- Spent a lot of time in Aberdeen, SD for work.
- I’ve made a couple of trips out to Wyoming with my mom to visit family.
- Took Binx to get his vaccinations. He didn’t like it.
July 20, 2012 • No Comments
The long and short of it is that I am too lazy to construct and backdate posts, so here is a list of highlights that I would have posted about, had I found the motivation.
- Decided to give minimalist running a try (not to be confused with barefoot running).
- Made my Las Vegas debut for Annie’s 30th birthday.
- My niece Emersyn (Emi) came to being.
- Ran the Deadwood Mickelson Trail (Relay) Marathon for the 3rd time. It was the races 10th anniversary, so I got a sweet looking medal.
- Rejoiced with Annie as she shared the news of her recent cancer free scan.
- The husband turned 31 (Happy Birthday, Mike!!).
- Celebrated 5 years of marriage. ♥ (FYI, I am totally excited there was a symbol for that.)
- Took a cruise to Bermuda. It was Epic.
March 1, 2012 • 2 Comments
I dislike training. It makes me wonder how I ever enjoyed running to begin with. But, I refuse to believe I was insane for 6 years, so I shall forge onward.
Over the past several months I have had a myriad of excuses which have gotten me to this point. The first was legitimate; severe joint pain lasting from July 2011 to October 2011. Then an irrational fear that if I began exercising, I would induce a flare up and have to admit once-and-for-all that I had arthritis. A month later, I finally accepted the fact that I was in the clear and began to run. This resolve lasted for nearly a week, then came December and the rationale that I would “never” be able to keep up my stamina between traveling to New York and the busyness of the holidays.
Come January I was so out of shape, I didn’t even want to begin. However, discussion began amongst my relay team to register for the Deadwood Relay Marathon for the 3rd year in a row, so after signing up, I resolved it was time to begin. And yet I didn’t.
For those who don’t know, I use the Couch to 5k plan, which takes approximately 12 weeks. Thus, come February, I was running out of time. However, it turns out I am so out of shape my ankles couldn’t handle the strain of running, so I’ve spent the last couple of weeks walking, lifting (a little) and doing Pilate’s.
Today was my first official training day. It went OK, but it definitely wasn’t pleasurable. I am still in the infancy stages of the program, so I won’t be using my Nike+ for a couple of weeks. But soon, yes soon, my little widget shall be happy again. It’s been a long time girlfriend.
