I want adventure in the great wide somewhere (comments welcome)

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

My History I'm fairly new to DIS and WISH, but so far I just love it!

I'm 38, married with a DS13 and a DS18 mos. We meant to have them closer together, but struggled with getting and staying pregnant. I've always struggled with my weight, typically being about 25 lbs overweight but physically fit. After DS #1, I put on another 30lbs. Through the struggle for DS #2, I ended up at my highest weight of 235. In Jan 2010, I decided my weight was hurting my fertility, got serious about my diet and got down to 205.

That March I got pregnant and ended up with gestational diabetes which I kept under control with a doctor directed low carb diet. I ended up gaining no weight during the pregnancy and had a natural, fairly easy delivery of an 8lb 2oz baby boy in Dec 2010. The only downside is that just like my first postpartum six months, I ended up gaining 30 lbs despite nursing and (sort of) watching what I ate.

Working full time at a demanding & stressful job and mothering a pre-teen and an infant gave me the excuses to pamper myself with TV and snacks and lunches out at work. Not only did most of my clothes not fit, my blood pressure started to climb into the borderline range. Suddenly I realized that I really wanted to be around for my kids and my grandkids. Once the baby turned one, I realized it was time to commit to my health and fitness. I went to my doctor and she recommended exercise and the South Beach diet. I used to run but my weight + running = messed up knees. This time I decided to try to start slow - definitely against my personality.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

Feb to July 2012

Starting weight: 202lbs
Current weight: 179.2 lbs

I started the South Beach diet in February and started walking the same day. The SB diet was pretty easy for me to adapt to since, after the first two super strict weeks, it's a lot like the gestational diabetes diet I was on for six months. I also really enjoy exercising, but I have, in the past, started too fast and gotten injured. My plan this time was to walk for 3 months before even considering adding running intervals. And I did it! I walked 3 times a week, generally for 3 miles for 3 months, losing about one pound a week.

In Feb I was looking for an inspiring goal event and found the Disney Princess 1/2 marathon. Disney + running + awesome medal = awesome! Now I had something concrete on my calendar to keep my focused

In May I added 1 min run intervals every 5 minutes. I've worked up to 2min walk & 2 min run intervals and my weight is down to 179 . It's been slow, but I'm really trying to eat in a way I can see me sticking with forever. That means lots of variety and treats on special occasions.

I do think I may have ramped my speed up a little too quickly, I'm still at 3 miles 3 x a week, but I'm running at a 9ish min mile and walking at a 14 min mile pace. I'm thrilled with that, but I'm starting to have twinges of shin pain and a little plantar fasciatiis.

I am planning to stick with this pace and distance one more month before increasing the long run distance in Sept. I've already bought new shoes and calf compression sleeves.

I'm really looking forward to sharing this journey to health and fitness with you all. There are so many things I let my weight hold me back from doing. Time to grab that adventure, I want it more than I can tell!

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

178.6 lbs

I went on my run this morning and for the first time my iPhone app messed up. I was listening to Disney songs on Pandora (yes I'm a dork) and I think that must have messed up the gps. I'm pretty sure I wasn't running a 6.5 minute mile .

Based on my best guestimate, I did 3.5 miles in 41 minutes at a 2/2 interval. I wore my sexy bright green compression calf sleeves. I guess we'll see tonight or tomorrow if they help reduce the shin tenderness.

My family is so sick of hearing about the princess 1/2. So I'll try to channel that energy here instead. I've 99% decided to dress as Merida. I'm thinking a green sparkle skirt with a green running tank with white undershirt... I want to lose about 30 lbs more by then (one lb per week), so I don't want to buy the costume yet.

As soon as I'm done icing my legs I'm off to mow the grass.

 

[Terapin]

Just saying hi!

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

Just saying hi!

Awesome, a reader!! Hi also.

No running scheduled today but I did eat well. I think I need to add some cross training in. I was doing Zumba but it is what gave me plantar fasciatiis in my left foot, and though I can do it without jumping it's just not as much fun that way.

I work 4 ten hour days and have a teen and a toddler at home, so if I exercise during the workweek, it has to be during lunch. I have a great health conscious employer, so I have access to a gym at work and a pool nearby. Guess I need to try some new things.

Nothing exciting to report, just checking in.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

Current weight - 178.0

I did a 2/2 interval today in major heat & humidity. 3.3 miles, 37 minutes, avg pace 11.11 min/mile. I wore the compression sleeves again and I'm starting to think they really are protecting my shins, they aren't tender at all.


I really need to put my ego away when running. I find myself running faster and further than I should if other people are around. Like I want to prove to them that heavy girls can book it too... That's just a recipe for injury. Honestly, they probably couldn't care less how fast or far I'm going, I just need to get my head straight.

Next run is scheduled for Friday.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

Did my run on the treadmill today. The gym was sooooo hot, it was worse than running outside. I did 3 miles at a 2/2 interval in 35:40. Just under 12 minute miles. I walked another half mile just to cool down. I finished up with 10 sit-ups. I know, that's a pitiful number, but it's better than none, right?

Since I've lost almost 25 lbs this year, my exercise clothes are getting loose. They're mostly cotton which is pretty miserable in the summer. I am torn between wanting to buy some awesome new gear and trying to save money and pay off credit cards. Here's what I *want* to buy:
- sparkle tech running skirt from sparkleskirts.
- at least one more good running bra
- two new pairs of fancy running socks
- a gamin 110 gps watch or something like it.
- two running shirts made out of tech material

On the one hand, I should reward myself for losing weight. On the other hand, I have two new pairs of very nice running shoes and a good pair of socks and compression sleeves. I've also plunked down a lot of $$ for the princess half marathon registration and the race retreat.

I think I'm going to wait on most of it except for the running skirt. Now I just have to decide on a color!

Tomorrow IF it doesn't rain too much I'm planning to do an hour long bike ride as cross training. I despise exercise bikes, but I love riding outside.

I'm hoping to see 177 by the end of the weekend.

 

[Terapin]

I find good exercise clothes very motivating. Plus I like to look as good as I can while exercising - not hair and makeup, but good in the clothes. I don't wanna wear stuff that shows the bulges.

So I say go for it - whatever helps you keep going!

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

177.8

For cross training today I did a nice bike ride. I went 14 miles in 1 hour and 8 minutes, at an average speed of 12.28 mph. I have no idea if that is fast or slow, but I was sweating a lot and tried to keep my breathing at a running pace if that makes any sense.

I was getting pretty tired of the bike ride about half way home when the skies opened up and dumped torrential rain on me. Anyone who's been in a rainstorm in the summer in Florida knows what this was like. I could barely see, but I was in the middle of nowhere, so I just kept pedaling. It eventually stopped but I was drenched, which was actually pretty refreshing. It also kind of broke up the monotony of the last few miles. So, all in all, a nice ride. My gps app on my phone said I burned 846 calories, but that's kind of hard to believe.

I keep reading that if you refuel within 30 minutes of hard exercise with a carb/protein mix like chocolate milk then you'll recover more quickly and be less hungry later in the day. I can't have actual chocolate milk right now because I'm still nursing my toddler and he gets terrible gas if I have dairy, but I bought some dark chocolate almond milk today in little 8oz serving boxes and mmmmm, that hit the spot after the bike ride. I'm going to definitely try another one after my run tomorrow.

I did go ahead and order a skirt from sparkleskirts. I got a sparkletech skirt that comes with shorts underneath that are guaranteed not to ride up. I'm somewhat skeptical, but I've read some great reviews, so we'll see...

Here's the one I got:
http://www.sparkleskirts.com/sparkletech/sparkletech-solid-colors/sparkletech-surf-city/

If I love it, I may get them to make me a custom hunter green one for my Merida costume for the Princess Half Marathon. Hopefully I'll be down to a Medium by then!!

I'm planning to run a 10k in St. Augustine in November, but I am hesitating on signing up for some reason. I think I just need to go ahead and register. I'm hoping to use my time from that race to move up to Corral B in the Princess race.

I'm going to go for 4 miles tomorrow at the 2/2 pace. I'd like to bump my pace up to 2 minutes running/ 1 minute walking, but I feel like I need to get started increasing my long runs too. So I'll keep the 2/2 pace this month, but start working in the longer runs on Sundays. If my shins and knees and feet can handle that ok, I'll move the pace up next month.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

177.6

I did 4.53 miles at a 2/2 interval in 51:37. Avg pace was 11:24 minutes/mile. When I finished up at 8am it was 76 degrees and 93% humidity. I hate August! And it really doesn't consistently cool off until November. I drank my chocolate almond milk (yum!) and then headed out to mow the grass.

I typically have been following a "good" carb diet, whole grains and fruit in moderation, no white flour or sugar. I'm trying to decide if shocking my system with one terrible meal a week will be good or bad. Ok you got me, I just really want some Popeyes chicken tenders and a biscuit today. I think I burned around 1,000 calories between the run and mowing. We'll see what the scale says about it!

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

178.2

Yep, that Popeyes biscuit did me in. I was crazy hungry on Sunday and Monday. I didn't eat too bad, but my lunches both days were larger and had more garbagey carbs than normal. Today was back on track.

Today I ran/walked 2/2 intervals, 3.36 miles in 36 minutes, which was under 11 minute miles. Way too fast, considering the heat & humidity and the fact that I'm fighting plantar fasciatis in my left foot. I just am not good at the slow or moderate run. I'll try again Friday.

Tomorrow, I'm taking the day off work for volunteering and shopping at a semi-annual consignment sale. I'm hoping to find a good deal on a jogging stroller. I'm planning on a one hour bike ride in the morning since I'm not working.

I really hope to see the scale go back down tomorrow. Exercise is an important component for weight loss, but a good clean diet is just critical. I hope that crazy hunger episode the last couple of days was an anomaly or else I'm in trouble!

My new sparkle skirts running skirt should arrive tomorrow. I hope it fits!

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

177.8

I did get my 14 mile bike ride in yesterday morning. It actually felt pretty good. I brought extra water which helped a lot. A lot of bike riders with fancy bikes and colorful jerseys ride on the route I use. Then there's me, pedaling my fastest on a street bike with a giant baby seat on the back. I'm not very aerodynamic, but I figure the extra wind resistance just helps my workout.

After the bike ride and a shower, I met up with a friend and did a few hours of shopping and then we did a 4 1/2 hour shift of cashiering at a consignment sale. It's an awesome event they have a couple of times a year and if you volunteer you get to shop early. I took the day off of work and got a jeep jogging stroller that looked new, a tricycle, assorted clothes and toys. The volunteer shift was brutal though. We shopped the sale from 2:30-4:00 and then volunteered from 4:00 to 8:30. No time for dinner, so I was fading fast by the end. I ate a little dinner when I got home but I was so tired I just wanted to crash.

My sparkle skirt came in the mail and it fits! Well, it is a little tight, but I can get it on which is awesome. It gets an inaugural run tomorrow. I ate well today. Public will boil fresh shrimp for you for free (you just buy the shrimp) in your choice of seasonings in 3 minutes, so I had awesome boiled shrimp for lunch. I paired it with my other favorite quick food, Lean Cuisine garlic spring rolls. Awesome with low carbs and calories.

I really hope to see some progress on the scale this weekend. Under 177 would be awesome.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

177.4

I did 3.17 miles in 33:54. 2/2 intervals avg pace of 10:41/mile. The last mile my intervals were fast running and slow running. Why????? I don't know. I think I'm a little addicted to the feeling I get from pushing myself. Which is awesome until I get injured! Ok, my "long" run is Sunday. I vow to only do 2/2 run/WALK intervals for 4.5 miles. As slow as I can stand it. NO running more than 2 minutes.

I ran in my new sparkle tech skirt and it was great! I love the pockets and the legs did not ride up at all! I have definate chub rub and every other running skirt I've had rides upmjust with walking, so I highly endorse this skirt! I don't love the fabric print in person as much as online though. It's ok, just not really my style. My fault for selecting it, I'll be more thoughtful on the next one.

Just got back from the pool with the family. My DH is a teacher, so it's our last summer Friday off together. I swam one lap crawl style and it was hard! I guess that would be great cross training.

So far so good on eating today. Whole oat, unprocessed oatmeal wipureed peaches for breakfast. Chocolate almond milk after running. Chicken and brown rice stir fry with carrots and peas for lunch and almonds for snack. Come on 176.something!

I was over 200 lbs for so many years that I keep thinking I weigh 2-something. It's hard for me to completely realize that I'm in the 100's again. I guess that will come with time.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

176.6

I was a couple of miles into my bike ride this afternoon (during DS#2's nap) and I saw some dark clouds on the horizon. I figured that I'd keep going and see where the weather went. I don't mind getting rained on, especially in August temps. I got about 5 miles from home when I heard a big crack of thunder . I did a quick u-turn and raced the storm home. I pulled into my driveway just as the sky opened up. I'm fine with rain and wind but I do not mess with lightning!

So my planned 14 mile ride turned into a 10 mile ride. I had two small pieces of thin crust pizza that I was hoping to mitigate the carbs and calories with the bike ride, I hope I got enough in!

I'm still experimenting with the chocolate almond milk after exercise. I hope it keeps the hunger monster tamed. I'm still planning on a slow 4.5 miles tomorrow, followed by yard work if the weather permits.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

177.2

I'm ok with a little bump up in my weight, since I weigh every day I'm used to bumping around certain numbers before seeing a consistent drop. I'm still trending down about one pound a week, which is fine with me!

I ran 2/2 intervals today for 4.5 miles at an11:30min/mile pace (52:02 minutes). I'm pretty happy with that. I did keep my runs a little slower and kept my walks at the faster rate. I felt good during and after the run, even with this awful heat.

I have a couple of aches and twinges in my shins which I'm freaked out might be stress fractures. They don't hurt while I'm running, so I think they're just random twinges, but I'm paranoid from reading back in the Princess 11 thread and seeing all those stress fractures from ladies in training. I'll just use the fear as an incentive to keep the speed slower and to stick to my intervals for now.

After running, I edged and mowed the yard for about 45 minutes. A quick shower and then we drove out to the in-laws for a cook-out and a nice swim in their pool. Lifting my 25lb 20-month old out of the pool a zillion times so he could jump in to me must qualify as a strength workout, right?

I ate 1 1/2 hamburger patties with no bun and some beanie weenies. I know they are pretty high in carbs, but I turned down the potato chips AND cheesecake so that should count for something, right??? Seriously, though, I made the best choices from what was available and since I consider this a lifestyle, not a diet, that's just going to have to be good enough. I ate some almonds on the way there, knowing there would be bad food choices and that if I was super hungry, I'd make bad decisions. I think that helped.

Tomorrow is a rest day thank goodness. 3 miles planned for Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on my schedule at work.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

176.6

I had to get my run in a little late this morning due to a meeting, so it was super hot and humid. Yuck! I did run/walk intervals for 3.17 miles, avg pace of 11:19 min/mile. Man that chocolate almond milk tasted great when I was done!

I had a small lunch and missed my afternoon snack due to another meeting, so I was super hungry. Then my husband called to tel me the utility company busted a gas line in front of our house and while everyone was safe we had no gas for our stove, so dinner was off. I got some fried chicken on the way home. Not the best choice, but I was too hungry to care.

Lesson learned: find the time for a snack, especially on workout days. 7 pounds to go to get from obese to overweight. Kind of a sad goal, but an important one.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

178.0

I just have to think this bump is hormones or water retention... In other news I managed a run this morning with the toddler in his regular stroller. My DH is a teacher, so I've been able to get my runs in without the stroller all summer. The first run back with a stroller was brutal! 3.14 miles at a 2/2 interval avg pace of 11.52/mile.

Oh well, I'm glad I did it. I bought a jogging stroller but he refused to sit in it without screaming. I guess I'll try again next time.

If the scale doesn't start moving down again I'm owing to have to get stricter with my diet.

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

177.4

I did 5 miles today !

2/2 intervals at an average pace of 11.02 min/mile. Then I edged and mowed the yard. Whew!

My bike ride yesterday ended up only being 3 miles. I tried to go during the baby's nap, but the weather was bad. Then we tried to all go together later in the afternoon and got poured on so we had to turn back. Oh well, no big deal.

Next run is scheduled for Tuesday.

 

[shinysparklybubbles]

It sounds like you are doing great! I just stated to get my act together in hopes of walking a Princess. I don't think 2013 is going to happen (today was the first time I went out For a walk!!) but 2014 for sure! Looking forward to following along!

 

[SuperHappyFunTimes]

It sounds like you are doing great! I just stated to get my act together in hopes of walking a Princess. I don't think 2013 is going to happen (today was the first time I went out For a walk!!) but 2014 for sure! Looking forward to following along!

Thanks! Just get a plan and keep moving!

177.6 ... Guess I'm stalled on the weight loss. I've been eating 95% well, but if the scale doesn't start going down again by the end of the weekend, I'll start tightening up again on my diet.

Yesterday I ran 3.29 miles at 11:26 average pace, 2/2 intervals. I've been having strange pains in my calves/shins that come and go, like zings. I am a little worried about stress fractures, but I can jump up and down on each leg without pain and when I used my electronic massager on my legs, it helped. I think it might be muscle knots or something. I'm going to replace my run tomorrow with either a walk or a bike ride and then see how Sunday's run goes...