Whew... It's been a good, but long week!

It has been a great week. I have had the motivation to do things the right way this week! Trying to keep track of carbs, servings, calories etc. has been a bit intimidating to me... so I have reverted back to counting points. It's something I can comprehend and keeps me in control of what I am consuming. Maybe I just need more practice with all the other stuff, but for now the points are working.

I did manage to get to the gym today, though what I really wanted to do was go home and take a nap! I knew that I would feel better once I got there. I had a great workout even though I didn't quite hit the high intensity of my treadmill intervals that Dallas can push me through.

What I want to know is... When is the image in the mirror going to catch up and match with the image I have in my mind?

A Question Posed....

Okay, so I had a co-worker pose a question that got me thinking. He asked "So which element of the 100 Day Heart Challenge could you do without?"

I had to take a minute and think about the question posed and what it actually means to be to be part of this challenge. With each day of the challenge that passes, I am gaining soooooo much (hopefully not in weight, but knowledge). With the information we are learning in the Nutrition class, monitoring my food, choosing what I eat - with a knowledge of limits and portion sizes, the time I am spending at the gym and workouts through the week, I have come to the conclusion that each element of this program is going to be a necessary and important part to my being healthy and successful in this challenge and throughout my life. It's a myriad of things that need to be equally committed to in order to gain the most success and not be out of balance.

MONDAY!!!

That was a great weekend!

Why? I am not sure... but I loved getting some good food (healthy and within my guidelines). I loved getting to the gym. AND...I rode my bike to work Sunday morning, though I didn't ride it home.

We took a drive up American Fork Canyon and I dropped my husband off to ride the Mill Canyon Loop. I had planned on riding around the area where my husband would need to be picked up, but only got in a quick ride before he was down the mountain. But all in all, it was good to be outside and on my mountain bike again. You know, we really have some beautiful scenery here in Utah!

Tonight I have another training session with Dallas! I look forward to these sessions with sort of a morbid curiosity to what he is going to do, and how hard he is going to push me past my comfort zone. I hope that I can always meet the challenge, but he has always been in tune with what I can do.

Have good week!!

post workout update: Can I say it again, I love getting to the gym! I cannot believe that for the first time EVER I maintained a bit of a jog on the treadmill!! WOW!!! You have no idea how excited I am about this accomplishment. When I started this challenge I never imagined that I would be able to do this!! Dallas, YOU ARE AWESOME! Thanks for the motivation to keep getting past each of these small little milestones! I cannot wait to see what else this body of mine is able to do!

Happy Pioneer Day!

I celebrated this holiday by getting to the gym today!! I loved getting in a good workout today. I tried to challenge myself as if Dallas were standing next to me at the treadmill. I was having fun playing with the incline and trying to keep the speed up as well. So I hit a level 7 incline with a speed of 3.7 for a couple of rounds.

I am recovering from feeling like crap yesterday. I am absolutely sure that it was my body's revenge from the crap I ate the day before. Lesson learned, for sure!!

We stopped by the store to pick up some much needed veggies for the snacking. We found some amazing looking chicken patties and I am soooo excited to try them in a wrap. I miss having spinach in my house, I LOVE COOKED SPINACH! Also picked up some strawberries and a pineapple. Yummy stuff.
Off to enjoy this yummy looking wrap! Have a great Holiday!!

Math: A double shift + weakness = Bad food decisions

Okay...so I was so proud of walking past the desserts the other day, and today...I was tempted and weak and did partake. This was even after I had made a stop to the store to pick up fruit. UGH!! But it tasted sooooooooooooooo good. Why can't the "bad" stuff taste like nasty cough medicine?

.... but I did have a salad for lunch ....

Give me strength to make better choices and reap the consequences of good health.... that is my mantra today!

Ask Me, What's For Dessert??

I have no idea, because I didn't even look when I walked by for lunch!! Now that's an improvement!

It was a R & R Weekend. We have been staying at a friends house caring for their 2 Boston Terriers while they are out of town. It's like staying at a 5 star boutique hotel, minus the room service. So, my exercise during the weekend was getting out and walking with the dogs.

I love the trails that we have in our area. They offer some good terrain and some challenging hills. It was late in the evening, just before the sun goes down. So the Temperature was perfect, the skies were gorgeous, and I was in the company of two cute dogs and a wonderful husband! Couldn't be any better !

Finally, It's Friday!!

It has been a great week, and I am sooooo glad it's finally Friday. So far 3 great workouts this week and each accomplishing new levels. I LOVE IT!

I am kind of bummed that I am working a double shift today and will not be able to get to the gym. But I'll go home and find something to do even if it is a shorter workout session.

Ok, Ihave to explain the picture. First, its proof that I survived Dallas' workout! Second, I was so excited at the new accomplishments and third, I wanted to add some color to this blog. :) It was just a good milestone day!

I do realize that I need to be more disciplined with my eating. I find that I have some really days, then other days I struggle getting in all my fruits/veggies or I miss a meal completely. I have enjoyed the information we got in nutrition class, (even though I was way late) the handouts have some really great information and answer some really good questions about cholesterol.

Allright... I better get back to work now. Have a great weekend!

I'm Feeling a Change!!

Wahooo! I am so glad to be participating in this challenge. While working out at the gym with Dallas, I was excited to get to new levels in my exercise program. I was intimidated when he wanted to hit a level 4 speed on the treadmill and almost panicked. But, I made it through the intervals and actually enjoyed it, and even survived a surprise dose of level 4.2 (twisted, I know!) THREE MINUTES on the Elliptical, not the marathon length of time I see everyone else doing, but hey.... Its an improvement! And the Bio-fit machine, dang! I finally got above the 80 line and held a pretty steady 90 during my intervals on that machine. And the Hand-Bike thing?? Oh man can that machine make the arms burn!!

Again, I can't say enough how glad I am for this challenge and everything it is helping me to accomplish. I feel better, I have a better endurance for exercise and I am seeing little changes in my shape. I love that I am actually looking forward to time working out, and get bummed when something happens to interfere with getting to a gym, but I am finding alternative workouts at home that I can do instead.

Thanks to everyone for your support and your curiosity with my activites while doing this challenge! It's much appreciated!!

I Wanted Chocolate.... But I Opted for Cantaloup

So, it's 2pm on a Monday while at work. I wanted chocolate in a bad way, then I suddenly remembered that I had brought a cantaloup last week but never got around to enjoying it. It was heavenly, and I am no longer feeling such a strong urge for chocolate. I think this is just like those times when sitting in front of the T.V. and my mind is saying.... "you're not really hungry, but you should be snacking on something." I'm not truly hungry in the sense that I need to be eating a meal, but snacking on something healthy will keep the "hungries" away. Good lessons we are learning in nutrition class!

I have another meeting with Dallas, my trainer this afternoon. I love getting to the gym and working out. Friday I was soooo tempted to call and cancel our appointment as I wasn't feeling well. But I didn't! I went to work out, Dallas was sympathetic and worked me a little less of a strenuous of a workout. And even though I didn't feel 100%, I was glad that I went.

My Bike, My Friend!

Wow, has it really been 21 days?

I had a great day at work today, and when I arrived home I found my house was 81 degrees! Toooooo Hot for me! So, I decided that I would go down to the basement where it's cooler and I would work out. 30 minutes of my recumbant bike doing the cardio challenge. I have been working out on it for a bit, but never really pushed up to a high interval level, staying around 3 to 4. I about panicked when on my 4th interval, I hit the level 9 - but I pushed my way through it and it felt good to meet the challenge and not shy away from it. Then I did about 25 minutes of weight training. Awesome!! I feel great and I am happy to have completed yet another day in this challenge!