Pain and Lemonade–PHC Day 2

18 August 2015

Someone once told me that the second day is always the hardest. They were right. I am in pain! Sore from yesterday, in which, if you ask me, I got a little carried away. I am going to have to find a way to pace myself, slow and steady wins the race, right?

I suffered a minor set back this evening, as I found out rather unexpectedly that the yoga class I was planning to attend at the gym was cancelled. Of course, I hadn’t packed my running shoes, so I had to go back home for them, and consequently go through the process of leaving the house with a three year old asking every two seconds where I am going and can he please have milk/lemonade/soda/water.

Finally I am on the road again to the gym–this time the location closest to my house–and I decide my motivation is out the window. Nevertheless, since this was an “off” day, I walked a mile on the treadmill and I spent about 20 minutes before and after the walk in the sauna. It felt good, and I got to relax a bit. The only reason I got out when I did was because someone in there was breathing really hard and, well, it did not smell so nice. Yuck.

This may have not been the best workout ever, but it sure beats lounging around doing nothing. Nite nite!

Baby Steps: Personal Health Challenge (PHC)–Day 1.

17 August 2015

Usually, I am an overachiever.

I love to be the first one done, the first to raise my hand in meetings, the one that gets the highest grade. It’s in my nature as a proud Type-A person to always want to be my very best. Don’t get me wrong, never at the expense of others. I like to lead by example, and have others join me where I am heading.

Sadly, however, we all have our faults.

I am not the athletic type. I’ve tried, this year more than others, to get my butt into shape. During Spring Break I decided to try Bikram Yoga. This summer I joined an indoor soccer league. I even enlisted my BFF at the beginning of the year to be my gym buddy, and we were regular Zumba queens for a while. Like my husband would say, though, “I’m not a Spring Chicken anymore.” My need to suddenly jump into a regimen resulted in me being in crutches not once, but twice this year. Crutches are the worst! Someone like me does not like to be slowed down, trust me.

I know this much about myself: I like variety. I like to mix things up and, more than anything, I like things to be fun. Because I like to overachieve, I tend to work hard as much as I can, but physical labor? Forget it. I am more of a supervisor than a worker, I always say. That needs to change. As far as health limitations go, I have hypothyroid, which makes it difficult to lose weight. Never impossible, though, I just need more discipline than the average non-hypothyroid-stricken person. It tends to affect my energy levels, especially when I am not active.

Let me make something clear, though: I am in no way interested in being skinny. My confidence, in fact, is above average. I like curves, meat. My butt and my wide hips are awesome. Food rocks, too. There is little attraction in being all bones, in my opinion. So what am I after, you ask? Health! Strength! When I do workout, even if once or twice a week, I feel better, I am more alert and focused. I sleep better, too. It feels great, and I feel accomplished (the best feeling ever, other than love, of course). Result? Less fatigue and awesome moods, which lead to more fun! Who doesn’t like fun?

So here is my challenge and commitment to myself: I am going to follow a well-thought-out, planned regiment for thirty days. I have done some personal research (nothing fancy), and workouts will be six days out of the week, three of them strength training with a volume of about 60-120 reps total for the week per big muscle group. Three days will be dedicated to fun things like Zumba, Yoga, hiking, etc. The seventh day of the week will be completely off, just recovery. If I flake out on myself and skip a day I am not supposed to skip, I will begin the challenge all over again. Remember, I am learning as I go. It is okay to make mistakes, but it os not okay to quit.

Writing this blog and reflections will keep me accountable to myself. Who cares if no one reads it?

Maybe I am fooling myself, maybe not. There’s a small chance that I will actually go through with this and that chance is worth sticking with. I like to think that maybe, just maybe, I will actually go through with it and actually change my habits. That is why I am taking baby steps and I am sticking, for now, within my comfort zone. I am a beginner, after all, and we are still on shaky grounds. If I do complete my personal challenge, then that is when I take it to the next level. For now, let’s make a habit out of working out, and let’s enjoy it. While I’m at it, I may make myself a salad (ha!). Baby steps…baby steps.

Wish me luck!

This is me at the gym during Day 1 of my PHC. 200lbs. Size 14-16 jeans. Everything else, XL. 

First off, I want to dedicate my very first blog entry to every one who has ever taught me something. Anything. There is a teacher in everyone of us, whether or not we know it. And that is precisely what I will dedicate this blog to–my learnings, namely about life. While I realize I have lots to learn and a long way to go, I know that the experiences I have had I can share with you, my readers, in the hopes that you may see a perspective you may not have otherwise explored, in case you need it. I cannot help myself, after all, I am a teacher.

Ironically enough for this entry, I want to share that when I was a child, I was expelled from my Pre school program. Of all things, the teacher said I fought too much, apparently I had an issue with sharing. If she saw me today, though, I think she’d be proud, or at least a bit surprised. The majority of my adult life, you see, I want to dedicate it to, well, sharing.

Don’t get me wrong, I do not really have much. I drive an old car, I live in a small apartment. I do not spend much time worrying about labels, following trends, or buying expensive gadgets. I never understood people who have the need to name drop every chance they get, going out of their way to let people know they are well off. Who cares? Honestly, what do people gain from this type of attention? That’s how people get robbed.

If it is one thing I know, is that sharing abundances does a great deal for