Dieting for Disney

[silverangel879]

Hello Everyone!

I'm so glad to hear that you are doing so well!!! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU!!! KEEP GOING!!!!

momrek06: That is normal, when you are lossing weigth everything that is not in the diet start to look so delicious, so tempting. You'll have your downs...hey, we're human, no?. The Important thing is that you keep going! For the sweets temptation, Do you like Jell-o? When I had those cravings for something sweet I eat Sugar-free Strawberry Jello (my favorite ). They have like 10 cal and it helps to ease the sugar tooth. I know is not the same that jellybeans or chocolate ice-cream but it helps. You get your sweet without the guilt. You could try those sugarfree jellybeans, too. I haven't read the Nutrition Facts but you could check them out. In small amounts, of course.

Today's Tip: Go to the supermarket with a grocery list and a full stomach. If you don't have a list is easier for the Bad-Sanck-Fairy to attack you and make you buy all those no-permited-while-dieting things. And with an empty stomach, you could end up buying a lot of unnecessary stuffs, because is the tummy talking not you.

Remember, lossing weight (in a healthy way, of course) is not a temporary state is change in your life...A VERY GOOD ONE. You desided to change, to look good, to feel good. It could be hard, but it worth it. You deserve it. You deserve to be healthier. I'll be here to help you, to suport you! ALWAYS!!!!

HAVE A NICE DIETING! and HAPPY EASTER!!!

 

[thelionqueen]

Hi everyone, I was just debating if I should go to the gym today or not when I popped on this thread...still debating.

Momrek...I literally smiled the entire way reading your post. I found it so funny that you feel and do the same things I do sometimes. I know it is so hard to resist temptation, and if you do succumb (sp?) to it, just chalk it up to "being human" and keep on going with your workout.

In all honesty, pizza is one of the better cheats you could have. Now, you don't want to eat a whole pizza with double cheese and double meat, but a thin crust cheese pizza is REALLY good for you nutritionally and fairly low in fat. My uncle owns and operates a successful Italian restaurant (in business for over 35 years) so I know the nutritional information on pizza fairly well. One slice of thin crust cheese pizza (from his store) has 375 cal and 5 grams of fat.

I'm not trying to make you feel better because I like you, I just want to show you a silver lining. You could have had a huge basket of chili fries, double cheeseburger, chocolate shake and dessert and that would have really done you in. The pizza you ate, although not what you had intended, was not the end of the world. Don't look back at yesterday, look forward to tomorrow!

Let us know how your first day with your trainer works out. Share any tips
we could use if you don't mind. Maybe you could be our surrogate online trainer???

Bubba...I say at least look into it! I think you would be really, really good at it. You are so motivational to all of us, and we don't even see you! Maybe you could do it part time at your gym or something and see if it is something you'd want to pursue full time. I think it would definitely boost your enthusiasm for health and fitness (if that's possible ).

EASTER PLANS ANYONE???
Is anyone doing anything special or fun for Easter this weekend? Let us know what special or different activities you have planned.

As for me, I am marinating the veggies for an antipasto on Sunday as we speak, but other than church, lots of food (big Sicilian family) and an Easter egg hunt we're just going to hang out at home. I am going to try really hard not to eat my uncles eggplant parm (my biggest challenge) or garlic bread and focus on the veggies and salad...wish me luck

Still debating on whether to go to the gym or not (have already worked out 5 days & swam 2) will let you know later.

Have a FABULOUS day everyone~~

 

[teacher31]

Hey teacher...WAY TO GO!! That pesky salt is a kicker aint it? I don't even want to get on the scale anymore, I don't know what is muscle, what is fat and what is salt..so I'm staying away from it for awhile

Great point! When I weighed last time at Curves I had lost about 6 pounds in one month. They do the bmi thingy, and it showed I had lost almost 7.5 pounds of fat. I had gained the difference in muscle. So in my mind I had really lost 7.5 pounds because I want the fat gone!!

Hope everyone has a great day. I'm off to do shopping for Easter. I even have a plan for Easter dinner. Ham, asparagus, 3 bites of scollaped potatoes, 1 piece of coconut cake. Hee hee hee. I can't wait!

 

[thelionqueen]

Hey everybody, anyone still here? I know it's a holiday weekend and hopefully you are all out doing some really fun and groovy things....did I just say groovy?? Anyway..

I did workout yesterday, I'm so proud of myself! So now I have 6 days of workout under my belt and I'm taking a much needed day off. I do have some really exciting news to share..as exciting as dieting can be I guess

Today is my cheat day, and 1st thing I did was go to Starbucks and get a vanilla mocha latte' (which BTW I havent had in over 2 months). It tasted GREAT!! I was thinking and thinking what I was going to have for lunch and nothing sounded good. Then, out of the blue, I thought..I want Panda Express (fast food type chinese). The crazy thing was that I was Craving Vegetables! Not the yummy fried stuff, but veggies!

I got the steamed rice with steamed veggies and mandarin chicken. Can you believe that! I actually chose on my cheat day to eat healthy. Even more than that, that is what my body craved! Am I officially changing my lifestyle here? Anyone?? I think my body is starting to crave the good stuff. Again, this is only one meal, but things are looking up

I hope everyone is well, for those who've been away for awhile, let us know how you are doing. Have a GREAT weekend!!

 

[momrek06]

HEY EVERYONE : Happy Easter! I am going to be good...I am going to be good....Oh, Hi, well that is the little song playing in MY head this weekend. I have NO candy in this house EXCEPT those frozen little chocolates from the Easter exchange and they are STILL all accounted for in the freeze. YUP!!!

Had my first session with Colleen my Trainer and it was AWESOME! We covered so much in ONE hour. I was WIPED when I got home. We discussed some nutrition but that will be later in another session. We did all strength training for the hour. She explained everything to me, how to do the exercise and what areas it works. She said most importantly "consistency" get here SIX times a week. YUP, I already am but I tend to be "lazy" and jump on a treadmill more than s/t. So she told me I have NO upper body strength at all and that needs to change. I am 52yo and so important for us as we get older to do the strength training. Important for our bones. She wants me to concentrate 3x a week on the s/t and then 3x on cardio. We worked with the 5lb medicine ball and the stability ball. She wrote everything down and I will pull my chart everytime I go to review and mark down what I did on what day! Next week Friday 7am again. I am telling you I got home, I showered up and actually started to feel ENERGIZED from that workout. Oh, we did push-ups (YUCK) and sit-ups (YUCK) but they work and so I WILL be doing them. Allot of ABS.
SO ALL IN ALL THIS WAS A !

BUBBA: With the little time that I have known you...and just listening to Colleen on Thursday, (if I closed my eyes, I would have thought you were actually standing there giving me some of your AWESOME motivation), YOU would be a FABULOUS trainer. Your PASSION would get a CRUISE LOAD of people IN SHAPE!!! And you LOVE IT !! You have first hand knowledge and experience that this DOES WORK when one puts your mind to it!!! Go for it, seriously go for the Certification. Colleen is a Dental Hygenist for a Pediatric Dentist and has given up full-time there as her first love has been Training. She now works 4 days at the office and 3 days at the gym!! You CAN DO IT!!!

SILVERANGEL: I did it, I bought myself the SugarFree Jello! I did not buy the ones you make I opted (lazy) to get the ones in the refridge section of the store and LOVE them. EASY & EASY Pull one out and pull off the lid and there you go and as I enjoy it I remind myself I AM BEING GOOD!!! I get empowered abit by that, yup, I do. Love all the tips ALL OF THEM!!!

LIONQUEEN: It was a THIN CRUST PIZZA and it really was a small piece. I felt SOOOO much better reading that info you posted about Pizza...wow...the guilt has been LIFTED!

Easter plans are a day in BOSTON! Family is going to the city for the day and we will have dinner BUT my sis' are ALWAYS ALWAYS watching everything they eat so it is so enjoyable being with them. Oh, we have our cheat sessions but all the emails between fam has been "let's not overdue"!!! So with that in mind, FISH is such a good option and steam veggies...avoiding the CARBS (that bread that always arrives so early and SO MUCH)!!!

To all of you: PLEASE KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK! To: Bubba, Lionqueen, Silverangel, Kidsmom, Teacher For all YOUR support! Have a GREAT weekend!!!

 

[bubba73]

Happy Easter everyone! Unforunately, I have to get reasy for a long day at work so I am going to try to keep this brief but you all know how I get so who knows how long this may be.


I want to start off by saying to the ones that have been giving me the support to pursue my passion. I still have some "at-home" critics that are telling me that I need to get bigger or tighter before people would take me seriously as a trainer but then again I have had a lot of people ask for me to either train them or give them different workout plans so I am going to do it. After I get my Certification, I will definately let you know what happens next. I will more than likely take that knowledge that I gain and apply it to myself to see if I can get the rest of that "look" that everyone here is telling me I have to have. But again, I want to say thank you for supporting me in this.

Now, for my update. This week started off very well. I was getting into the gym everyday. Doing 2 hours a night. Doing all of my strength and cardio training that I was supposed to do. Must have been doing something right as my body is still sore from the workouts. But because of the soreness and my work schedule, I faded at the end of the week. I started getting frustrated because I couldn't find the right kinds of foods for my diet. I had lost my motivation because I really felt like I wasn't progressing the way I had thought I should. I have stayed off the scales because I know the weight could be a misnomer. I am still working out really hard so hopefully, I am still gaining some muscle but I have actually devised a new test to see if I am progressing. This may be scary but what I am doing now is when I get home, I will take off my shirt and do a jump-twist motion. Depending on how much "shakeage" I have will show me if I am moving forward. I feel like with all of the cardio, carb depletion and sodium depletion that I should be a lot tighter than I am now. I am not loosing hope. Just a little frustrated and giving myself a little pity party. Sorry if this is a negative message but I know we all have hit this kind of wall and really after over 6 years of training and dieting, this is the first time I have gotten like this. I know I will probably never have a "6 pack" or have the look of one of the models you see on a fitness magazine. That's ok. Right now, I have to remember what is important. Remembering that all the work and effort is so I can be healthy for my DW and DKs and so I can maintain a certain active lifestyle.

OK. I have got to get ready for work. I hope this isn't too forward but I can truly say that do to the fact that we have talked and shared do many personal issues on this thread, that I can honestly say that I feel a lot of for all of you. I am in just a temporary set back and I am sure I will be back full throttle very soon. I am NOT leaving this site. As I have said so many times, you guys are my strength. Thank you for all of your help!!

 

[thelionqueen]

Silverangel...thanks for the great post! All the suggestions you made are wonderful..I'm so glad to hear everything is going well for you!

Momrek..great to hear about your training session, the personal trainer is definitely a motivator eh? Very interesting to hear about the 6 times per week thing..WHOA . I thought I was overdoing it going 6 times, I thought 5 was more than enough, oh well, thanks to your trainer, I have to add my "free" day every week I alternate cardio and s/t everyday, I wonder if I should alternate days like you're doing. Would make it a lot easier. Anyway, hope you don't mind if I live vicariously through your trainer Keep it up, sounds like you've got some great motivation and energy!! Awesome!

Bubba..As the leader of our group here, you've been incredibly inspirational and uplifting to all of us. I am hoping to give you a little motivation as well.
First of all, everyone needs a break from constant working out and diet monitoring, in fact, your body needs it to lose weight. Honestly, you cannot keep going at the pace we're going without breaks, even long breaks. I strongly suggest that you take as much time as you need, even if it is a week or two, and just relax. Don't watch every morsel of food or workout every day. Just get your mind set clear and you will come back stronger than ever. I did this awhile ago and it was the BEST thing I ever did! I was getting discouraged, didn't want to go to the gym, and in general just had kinda a dole-drum kind of attitude. When I drug myself to gym, and got on the TM, which I REALLY didn't want to do, then walked for 40 secs I decided. I do NOT want to be here right now, and I jumped off the TM and went home. I decided to have a cheat week and not work out. I convinced myself this was OK (which it totally is) and decided to do it. Well, just by changing my way of thinking, actually worked in the opposite. I did cheat, had pasta, popcorn, bread, candy, the whole works..but didn't gorge on it. Then after I had a couple days of "freedom" I was ready more than ever to get back.

Don't worry about us, you do not need to be our "fearless leader" all the time. Let us help you during this frustrating time. Just take it easy, take the pressure and worry away then you will feel much better. Have a GREAT weekend everyone!!!

 

[teacher31]

Bubba-I think I would like a trainer who isn't perfect. I would definitely feel more comfortable especially considering your attitude that this is about health and not vanity. Let's face facts. No way on God's green earth I will ever look like I did before 3 c-sections. However - I can look good (hopefully) for where I am now in my life. If someone is discouraging you from your passion because you are not ripped, that's their issue - not yours. Your positive attitude would be contagious and I bet you would find a loyal clientel quickly.

Now I have a question for the group: what do you do with flabby arms? I've been working the machines, I'm developing muscle in the front, but there is still the flab on the backside. Any thoughts besides bingo arms? TIA.

 

[thelionqueen]

Teacher, welcome to the problem most women have, me included! The back of the arm (triceps I think) are the HARDEST to get rid of! If you notice, even Oprah, as thin as she has gotten, still has massive "Bye Bye Arms". I call them that because they keep waving bye bye long after my hand has stopped

I do the rowing machine and side lifts with 5lb weights-kneel on bench with one knee on, one knee off. Hold your arm close to your body, like there is something holding it to your side. Then lift the weight behind you with the upper arm still tight into the body. I've been doing this and working on them FOREVER and although they look better, still not close to what I want. Good luck!

 

[bubba73]

I love training triceps. They actually make up two-thirds of your arm size so I always try to train them really hard so my arms will look bigger than normal. Let me see if I can give you some good routines for this area. I will try to describe them as well so you know how to do the exercise.

First, the exercise that lionqueen was describing is called a tricep extension. This is a great routine but it is limited in the ability in getting rid of those "Bye-Bye" arms. This is more for etching in detail and shape for those bodybuilders that are trying to show every vain in their body. Remember though, it is a good exercise.

Let's try some push downs. If you are at a gym, get on the machine with the cables. Get a cambered bar. (I don't really know how to describe the bar other than saying that it is not straight.) Stand close to the cable and as straight as you can with the bar about eye level. Put a comfortable amount of weight on it, pul it down to where your forearms are parallel to the floor. Keep your elbows tight to your side. If you let them flare out, really on any tricep exercise, you are taking the stress of the triceps and putting more stress on your shoulders. From here, push down nice and slow. Bring the weight back up to that parallel position and then push down again. When you go higher than parallel, you are again taking the stress of your triceps and letting them rest instead of working them. (This is one of my favorites!)

Also, take a dumb bell and lift it over your head. Remember to keep your elbows tight. Straighten your arms out and then slowly drop at the elbow. In this exercise, your arms from your elbows down should not move. This is also a tricep extension but from this angle, you can actually lift more weight for more reps in a more controlled manner.

I will give you one more to ponder. Try taking a push up movement and move your hands closer in. The closer your hands are, the more you are hitting your triceps.

When you get to the point that you can do 15-20 reps of any of these exercises, add a little more weight. I know the goal is to tone but if you are doing that many reps, you are not putting enough stress on the muscle for it to get any kind of work at all. Also, just for the physiology portion of this message, you have to remember that the triceps have three heads to it. If you don't hit all three heads, you will never get the full result that you are striving for.

Everyone, I want to tell you how much your support really means to me. Reading the responses to my message earlier really hit home. I have tried to do a lot of things in my life one way or another to help people. I went to college to become a Psychologist, I have turned myself into a comedian at work to try to give people a reason to smile, I have turned into a volunteer cop in my community to give back to my City and I have tried to share any knowledge that I have been fortunate enough to have gained when it comes to diet and exercise. I say all of that to say that I have never had anyone been as nice and as caring to me as you all have on this thread. Someone said that it can be easier to talk to people when you don't see them. Well, I may have not seen any of you face to face but I have been lucky enough to be able to see inside of your hearts and I can say that you are as close to me as any of the people that I do see everyday.

Thanks for all of your support!! May you have a great Easter and then let's all get back at it next week with a renewed energy. Most of us are getting down to Crunch Time. Let's make it happen!!

 

[thelionqueen]

Good morning everyone, I hope you all had a great Holiday Weekend! We certainly did. It was a very early morning and a very late night, but we had a blast. The "Reader's Digest" version is below.

Eggplant Parmesan and the battle for my will power Part I

After an early (I mean really early) morning waking up @3:30am we were off! Made sunrise service by 5:00am (miracle getting over 30 people organized to meet this early) and was on the road again by 7:30am.

Needless to say, everyone was hungry. All 8 cars arrived at our favorite breakfast restaurant by 8:45 (service was in the mountains). I was really, really hungry but I only ended up having scrambled egg whites and dry toast This would turn out to be a dumb decision later on, but we'll get to that later. Breakfast was over and we were off to my house. Everyone (except me) was fed and happy and ready to enjoy the rest of the day.

Once to my house, the cooking and warming began. Uncle G (Giuseppe) was hard at work in the kitchen. Just a little background on U.G. He was born in Palermo and became a US citizen when he was 11. He's been cooking since he was 5 and has never stopped. To say his food is amazing would be an insult to how incredible it really is. He's owned and operated a successful restaurant here for over 30 years (almost 35 I think). Basically, it's nearly impossible to resist anything he makes, let alone a brunch made almost completely by him. OK, I'll be you can guess where this is going Here is a partial menu
Eggplant parmesan (my favorite)
Lasagna
Cannoli's (sausage rolled in sweet dough with peppers)
Fresh made crusty baguettes
Spaghetti/meatballs & sausage
Ham, potato salad, antipasto and scalloped potatoes.

The battle began almost immediately. Since the gym was closed, I could not use the old excuse, I'll just work out after the meal, I was really scr**ed. I resisted very well for about 10 mins. When the bread was warming up, and my sister began making the bruschetta, I knew it was a losing battle.

It began with a little sampling here and there. A little dipping here and there, and gradually gained momentum. By 11:00am I was famished. I had also decided there was no use to resist, the food had won I decided that tomorrow (today) I would work out extra hard and everything would be back to normal. Basically, I ate and I ate and I ate. I did not totally gorge, but I did not limit myself at all. We had brunch, we had a late lunch, and the worst part...discontinue reading if you're easily shocked...a late dinner (9:00pm). I ate a lot of food yesterday, but surprisingly don't feel fat and don't feel at all like a failure.

I am taking the wonderful memory of my eating day, yesterday, and am going to remember it for the next few weeks. I think it was worth it, and I also think it is going to drive my workout even harder.

Sorry to let you all down, I did not diet or exercise at all yesterday and ate everything I'm not suppose to. But I did not fall off the wagon completely, just 1 day. I have my workout in about 45mins and swimming after that.

Thank you all for listening to my confession, it feels so good to get it off my chest, and put it into the "that was yesterday" file and continue to work hard.

I hope you all had an amazing weekend, and hopefully, resisted better than me. Have a great week

 

[Thekidsmom]

Here is mine. For two days straight I ate filet mingion. Oh, how good it was. And yesturday I ate fried potatoes covered in butter I know, but I never cheat but this weekend, the food and stress won out. I also drand half a chocolate milkshake, about 6 whoppers, the chocolate candy not the burgers , and two reese's peanut butter eggs. Well I am back on the healthy foods wagon today, this morning cherrio's and for lunch I will eat one of the weight watcher meals. Like you lionqueen, I will keep the memories of my indulgencies, in my mind for weeks, while I am eating lettuce and carrots.

 

[teacher31]

Just a little confession -

I had scalloped potatoes that were SOOOOOOOOOOOOO good and a piece of coconut cake. I didn't feel guilty. Although by what I'm about to write you might think otherwise...

So which is more important - pounds or inches? This month I've only lost about 1.5 pounds but my waist is down about 1 inch and my hips are down 1.5 So if the inches are leaving but the pounds aren't going away as fast as they were (2 pounds a week in the beginning), what am I doing wrong? I know they say if you loose it slowly you will keep it off. Yada yada yada. I have seen results but am afraid I'm beginning to stagnate.

Bubba- Thanks for the arm tips. Took me a minute to get it, but I am looking forward to trying them tonight.

Lionqueen - Your joyful posting of your indulgence was a delight to read. I lived vicariously through you!

Happy week all!

 

[lindalinda]

Ok if we're confessing...I ate all the malted milk balls from my sons easter basket. 540 calories! So I went right to work to exercise it off and pulled something in my knee. I have it iced up...but its numb from hip to toe right now. Wish me luck that it gets better fast or I will gain massive weight sitting on my behind here!

 

[Thekidsmom]

Well, I got back to excercising tonight. I couldn't do the 30 minutes I normally do on the eliptical, I did 20 minutes. So that was disapointing. But I did do the 20 minutes on the bowflex and all my free weight training, and I did 60 situps with 30 pounds of resistance. So, for not exercising for a week I guess I did alright.

 

[momrek06]

HAPPY MONDAY EVERYONE! And here in Boston it is PATRIOT'S DAY and the BOSTON MARATHON. Yesterday I drove the entire Marathon route and as my fam drove up "Heartbreak Hill", man I can only say anyone that runs in THIS marathon has a special place in MY heart as THAT hill does not seem to END!!!
Well despite the fact and thought that I would be good on EASTER, well everyone QUESS AGAIN!!! Yup, chocolate bunnies, jelly beans like crazy and to top off the day "COLDSTONE ICE CREAM"....YUP, I messed up and BIG!!

I just had to accept my awful day (I did finish the day with a bowl of Wheat Chex and skim milk...ugh..guilt )! I am reminded of all you awesome friends of mine right here on the DIS Boards to chalk it up and MOVE ON. BUT, can I tell you guys something really strange...I knew eating this CRAP that I would need to come clean to all of you...to accept this horrid behavior of mine to not POUT about it as I am HUMAN and I will have these days and I will make up for it the very next chance I can.

Got to the gym very early today and RAN my sorry butt off 4 1/2 MILES...YUP, non stop. Someone in the gym asked if I was headed to the Marathon with all the running I was doing and I said NO, I ATE JELLY BEANS AND CHOCOLATE YESTERDAY!!!! I kept picturing them in my mind, the j.b.'s the whole time I was running. I felt GOOD after that INTENSE run!!! Actually, you guys..I think I should clarify...I was JOGGING. I do not run. I am old. This is a STEP above walking...so I was JOGGING...But I still felt GREAT!

YES YES YES , I will be MORE than HAPPY to post anything and everything my trainer has to say....I will tell you, I thought 6 days was allot but balancing everything OUT with the s/t and cardio, I will have the stamina to make it to the gym 6 days. Tomorrow is s/t! I am leaning more towards my OTHER TRAINER BUBBA with the reduction in weights. I, #1 do NOT want to get hurt, #2 I want to be consistent and #3 I want to ENJOY this and not struggle. Struggling aspects in my life do not get accomplished ....hhmmmm!

Bubba: going back to your last post(4/15), like I said, we have our good days and our bad days and some days are our STRUGGLING days, days that leave us thinking I CAN DO THIS BETTER and some days get us just damn frustrated! It is spelled like this H U M A N!! You are our "fearless leader"!!! And please do not ever leave us. Take a break, yes, but please come right back to THIS thread! Also remember as well, this is about you and your wonderful DW and your precious DK's!!! This is me in my cheerleading outfit for YOU!!!

Well as I review all the posts, I guess we all decided to take Easter off! And we need that as long as we can remember how far we have all come and we do not want to go backwards too much. Admitting our indulgences and moving on is the FIRST step. Second step, hit the gym or the walking track or the pool and just pick up where we last left off. My trainer wants me to write down in a small journal the date, time, how long I worked out and what I did, to keep by my desk and to review and glance at to show myself my own personal accomplishments. I started that last Thursday and only day I did not note was Sunday (gym was closed) and I really like looking at my little ity bity journal!

Bubba: While you are giving out the arm thingy...like teacher31, I had two c-sections and I will never ever be flat in the abs area ever again, I am convinced of THAT as I am 52yo and still have that flab...what exactly do you do for your ABS?? I would just love to tone that area UP but highly doubtful at this point in my life. I asked my trainer and her best suggestion right now is 3 sets, 10 reps of sit ups (HATE THEM) but I will be doing them...is there anything else that is more "user friendly" than sit ups!!!

Do you guys think I should ask the trainer to measure me? We did not do that on Thursday. But I would like to know if I do ultimately lose inches with all this s/t...do you lose more with s/t or cardio??? UGH!!!
I went to CURVES back 2001-2003 and the first year alone I lost overall 14 inches. Left Curves in 03 when the new gym opened but have never measured myself since Curves.

OKAY everyone: Bubba73, TheLionQueen, Silverangel. Teacher31, Kidsmom, lindalinda, keep up all the good work and have a great TUESDAY

 

[bubba73]

Hey everyone! Guess who is back from his temporary hiatus. If I may quote a movie, "I want more. I know I am not supposed to. I am better than that but I still want more." OK. I just showed my "geeky" side. That is a quote from Star Wars - Attack of the Clones. But it is true o fall of us. We all want more. We want more weight loss. We want more energy. We want to be leaner than we are. But I have good news. Wanting this will not lead you to "the Dark Side". This desire can be accomplished. It does take work, effort and desire but it can be done. I had to take a step back and clear my head to be able to see this truth. Well the good news is that I have been rejuvenated. I am not going to lie. The last few days I did cheat on my diet. I took in all the carbs, sugar and sodium that I had been cutting out for the last month. No doubt about it, it was GOOD! But now, I have a determination that had escaped me. I was going to the gym and being very lackluster. I wasn't giving it 110% of my effort. That has changed. I went in today with a new attitude. I did my strength training in about 30 minutes. I changed it up by doing only one body part instead of my usual two. I then did my abs with more intensity and focus. (Boy, they are still burning!) then, I went and did my hour of cardio. I did that with more intensity as well. I did 20 minutes on the ARC Trainer and then the rest on the Elliptical. I was able to go over 5 miles and burn over 900 calories. It was awesome! I want to go back but I know that I have to let my body rest and recuperate. I am planning on doing more abs before I go to bed so my day is not totally done.

Next, I want to take just a second and tell all of you how much I appreciate all of your kind words. I would like to point out lionqueen, teacher31 and momrek. Your inspirational words literally brought me to tears. I can't remember a time in my life when I have had such support with anything. Words will never be able to express my thanks.

Last thing, I promise. Well for tonight anyway. The question was about abs and ab exercises. First, let me say as a reminder, the abdominal region and the lower back is the hardest place to loose the fat and it is always the last place for it to disappear from. But it can be done. There are many exercises for the abs. Sit-ups are the worst in my opinion because they put way to much strain on your lower back and neck. Besides the fast of the matter is, that when you come up all the way during the sit-up movement, you are actually taking the stress off of your abs which is giving them a rest. That is also where you do most of the damage to your lower back and neck. Crunches are a much more compact movement that keeps the tension on your abs. Try this as a trick. Do as many as you can without enhaling any air. This will put more tension on your abs. The correct form is to pull your neck up but do not pull at the neck. Pretend like you have an apple under your chin. This will ensure proper form. Also, you can do standing twists. Doing this exercise, you need to make sure that you keep your lower body still. The movement is all in your waist. I usually pick up a weight and hold it in front of my waist and then twist. This is a great exercise for your obliques, otherwise known as the "love handles". One more exercise which is a difficult one. Leg Raises. These are tough but there are many different ways to do these. You can do them on the floor with your hands underneath you for extra balance. You can get on a bench with your legs hanging off and lift them. (This is somewhat easier for the beginner.) The main thing is to train your whole abdominal region. It doesn't matter if you use an ab roller, the ab lounge, the equipment you have at the gym or the floor at home. Just hit all areas.

Ok everyone. I think you have read enough of this installment of my future book . I am back. I am focused. And I hope I can help you or encourage you to meet all of your goals.

Have a great night and an awesome week!!

 

[momrek06]

JUST POPPING IN HERE QUICKLY BEFORE I HIT THE SACK TO SAY:

YEAH!!!!!!!!! BUBBA, YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! BUBBA!!!!!

SO GOOD TO HEAR FROM YOU AND TO HEAR YOU ARE DOING WONDERFUL!!!

HAVE A GOOD TUESDAY EVERYONE!!!!

 

[thelionqueen]

Thought I'd check in before bedtime and BOY am I GLAD I DID!! I just have to say first to Bubba...WELCOME BACK!!! Doesn't it feel wonderful to get rejuvenated again?? It's kinda like having a fight with your SO because the make-up is so good. I'm glad you had a cheat day, in fact, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH for being human and not workout machines!

I think it is totally hilarious how similarly we are all having strenghts and weaknesses, and best of all, the ability to share all our emotions and tribulations here. I hope everyone enjoyed cheating as much as I did, and it sounds like you did!!

Just to add, I did 50 mins on the ARC trainer, no s/t because I was running late for swimming. I did 40 mins of really focused lap swimming (54 laps) and I feel so much better. I honestly don't even remember the mind set I was in when I cheated, that was yesterday.

I hope you all have a successful and fabulous week!!

 

[Thekidsmom]

Well Tuesdays are my weekly weigh in. As of today I am 166 lbs, so I have gained 2 lbs. But I refuse to beat myself up about it. I cheated alot over the holiday, just had a good time with my family. It was worth it, I needed to just let go of everything for a while. I got back on the Healthy Change of Lifestyle wagon yesturday. I ate right and got back to using my food diary. I did my eliptical for 20 minutes which is down from 30 min. but that is not bad. I did my bowflex for 30 minutes and did my free weight training.
For the first time in a long time I feel good, I have my focus back, and know what I want from myself and what I want out of life. I am taking the steps I need to achieve my goals, and it feels good.
While I may have slowed down on loosing pounds, I know the shape of my body is changing. More and more people are telling me how good I look and I have went from a size 20 to a size 14. I am trying to only weigh myself once a week, and I am not measuring myself because I tend to get to caught up in numbers. I would rather go by the way I feel and how my clothes are fitting.
I feel so much better about going out and trying new things. Not being afraid of the way I look or am I too big to do something. I went to busch gardens with my kids last week and without hesitation I got on all the rides with them. I would never have done that before. I know I will never go back to being afraid and hiding behind all the weight!