my aching glutes

I got up this morning at 5:00 because my husbands alarm was going off...this weekend I got up earlier than I do for work days, sick I know! Anyway he left and I tossed and turned and then had what felt like a twenty pound bag of sand throw it's self down on my chest, wait no it was just my baby boy kitty Whiskey. He kept me company, curled up under the blankets with me for about a half hour then he bit me and promptly left.  He's like that. I turned on the light and grabbed my new book...eat pray love, so for so good. I guess I finally got up around 7 and made some coffee and hit the PC.

I found a training plan online to prep for my up coming 10k, which is only 10 weeks away! I modified the plan to gear up for the CN tower climb too. I also signed up for a two week booty camp in March and I re-enlisted for April too...I can't wait to see my body get back into the shape it was in last summer!  The plan is on the fridge so I can look at it every morning and night... as I am reaching for the ice cream my husband bought...seriously, it was his idea.

After I poked around here and there online and decided it was time to venture out and change up the living room layout.  We turned the couch last night to watch the game but it wasn't the best use of space. I spent an hour or more huffing and puffing pushing, pulling and lifting the couches due to area rug in the room. I finally got fed up, rolled up the carpet and got it out of the way. I could have used a finger to slide the couches around after I did that...thank you felt pads!  I probably spent 2 hours moving the furniture around in different configurations and think I finally found something that will work for the giant couches in my teeny tiny house.

I got busy in the kitchen after that doing a bunch of dishes then whipped up some strawberry banana muffins for me and blue berry muffins for my hubby. I used whole wheat flour and mixed in protein powder and ground flax seed...he'll never know haha...unless he decides to start following me here...hmmm. I don't think he will.

Anyway, I decided I had stalled log enough so I got changed, grabbed my music and headphones and headed down to go for a run. I don't remember the last I actually ran but boy did it feel great today. I went just over 5km and burned something like 550 cals. I wrapped up doing a little yoga, I was inspired by the new album I downloaded on Friday night. If your a fan of yoga music then check out "the best of wah" (#3 and #4 or so far my favorites). What an awesome album for a yoga class or any time you want something kinda mellow.

When I went to sit down for dinner I could already feel my glutes tightening up...I think I will be wearing flats tomorrow and that reminds me, I need to go change the laundry!

So on that note, have a good night!

jaw dropping, mouth watering whitefish

The day started at 5:30 this morning. I hit the snooze button a couple times since we both ended up losing about an hour of sleep this morning between 3:30 and 4:30 (thanks to an wrong number). Breakfast consisted of a large double double and a egg mcmuffin, not the healthiest but I do love them.

We got to the launch area and paid our entry fee, we were fishing in a fund raiser for a family with a boy who has Autism and the money helps pay for some of the extra care he requires. We made our way out on the hard water. Tony picked a great spot and we were on the fish in no time. Actually, he drilled the first hole and started marking fish immediately and before I could finish getting my gear ready he already landed one! Mmmmm whitefish! I could already taste the fish fry.

We spent the morning on that spot and it worked out great! He caught I think 5 and I landed one, but it was the biggest fish of the day. it was funny though cause after we put back the last whitefish caught we didn't land anymore, not for a lack of trying though.    

We made our way back in and decided not to weigh in our biggest as it was already beat by an inch for the biggest fish of the day. All in all a great day filled with people helping a family in need and a day spent with Tony doing what he LOVES to do.

I hit the stepper while Tony cleaned the fish then we indulged in a dinner of beer batter whitefish.

Tomorrow, I am going for a long run on the treadmill I think. The snow is coming down pretty good right now and I already bailed on the ice once this weekend, I don't need to press my luck out there tomorrow lol.

where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I went to a workshop last night call Vino 'n Visions (link to an older flyer http://www.beyondtheclassroom.ca/Flyer%20VV%202.pdf). It was an interested evening geared to get you to focus on your visions for your life and being open to accepting things when they come to you and going forward with your dreams.

During the second part of the evening we were doing an exercise of envisioning where we saw ourselves in five years. For the first time in a long time I had a different experience, this time I saw myself looking fit, at a mirrored wall helping someone with some kind of workout. Usually what I envision after yoga is very very different.

I think that some how some day I will be helping others do what I am doing... battling the bulge. I hope this blog helps those who find it too!

***

On another note I just got back from a hot hot session of hot yoga. What a great way to wrap up the week, by sweating it out. I was lazy earlier this week and just hopped on the stepper for a bit but that and a good run are in order for the weekend...my 10k race is starting to call my name! I think I have something liken 70 days to get ready and I am not even close to being ready.

G'night all in blogspot land.

just what the doctor ordered

In the spirit of setting new goals and planning on how to achieve them, I just signed up for the Mercedes Benz Oakville 10k on May 8th.  This just goes to show how motivating it is to spend time with and talk to those who are focused and have a training plan.  Reading Adena's blog and talking to her and walking with her has been the motivation I have been needing as I was struggling on my own.  What a difference it makes when you have a support system in place! 

My friend Ali is another staple in the support department, I mentioned her a few months back.  She is my friend who no matter the activity will ALWAYS be the first to jump on board and try it out.  I admire her for that and appreciate her coming along to try new ways we can torture ourselves!  I am soo looking forward to our next booty camp session...seriously, I am!  It's the best butt kicking you can get and feel amazing when its done.

Back to the upcoming event, the 10k is 75 days away and I figure that should be plenty of time to prepare.  I know I can run 5k on the treadmill and I have been told that if you can run 5, you can run 10 so I am not too worried.  Apparently the course is flat but they haven't posted the route yet.  On this note, I should go lace up and go for a jog on the hamster wheel.  My lower back is pretty sore from yesterday and as Adena put it so eloquently...motion is lotion lol

sunday walk

She said I need a goal and I made plans...I think in the comments of my previous post to go "for a walk".  She has a lot more events coming up that she is prepping for but I am gearing up for the 1/2 marathon I signed up for...who knows what else will get added to the mix before October.  We met at the half way point between our two houses and walked a loop twice totalling 10 km in under 2 hours.  Not bad for our first session.  She is nursing a badly sprained ankle back to health and I haven't done walking/running cardio for a few weeks now so it was a good start.

We started discussing a training plan that I can use to begin my marathon training (I am going to refer to it as a "marathon" for now on as noting the 1/2 every time is annoying...and maybe it will motivate me one day to do a full lol).  I signed up for booty camp for April and hope to get a mini camp in for March as well.  But in addition to that she recommended that on Tuesdays I do a 30 min run, Thursdays was I think run as much as I can for 5km to start? and Saturdays do a long run and Sundays will be the mental training of doing the activity for 3 hours.  So I think that will be the plan for Tuesdays and Saturdays for now as I still love going to my yoga class on Thursday nights, I can't give that up and really shouldn't...for my and my husbands own good lol.  But I could still get a run in if I ever decided to get my butt out of bed early enough in the morning...it's not like I have far to go to get on the treadmill so maybe that is the best option and Sundays are a great way to keep my head in the game and catch up with her as much as possible.

On another note, I pre-made a couple eggplant parms yesterday.  I coated them with whole wheat flour, then a seasoned egg mixture then dipped them in panko breadcrumbs.  Panko breadcrumbs are by far the BEST breadcrumbs to use for coating ANYTHING!  I broiled them on both sides cause really who has the time to wait for them to "bake" to get golden brown?  I put a thin layer of plain tomato sauce in the pan then 3 layers of the eggplant, more sauce then 3 or so more layers of hte eggplant, more sauce a small amount of grated parm and popped them in the freezer and those will work as four lunches per dish.  Today I have chickpeas boiling on the stove to make a chickpea eggplant dish as well but will probably finish cooking it tomorrow as we are heading out for a family dinner at 4 today.  But I forgot how much I love eggplant and meatless meals and I am so excited to get back on track with my eating, cooking and fitness. 

I made a shake before the walk using banana berry protein powder, almond milk and frozen (but thawed cause I hate REALLY cold food but love drinking and eating pipping hot food...weird I know) bananas and strawberries. I won't do that combo again or I have to change something because it totally tasted like the strawberry penicillin I use to get as a kid...Suggestions are welcome!  I usually use a berry blend that makes it a bit more tart tasting and maybe that's what was missing. 

have a great long weekend for those enjoying the "family day" holiday tomorrow!

no more messing around

I ate a really big lunch today, it was too big but it was delicious.  I then ate "snacks" for dinner but I really was still full from lunch so I didn't over do it.  I washed it down with a beer that was also delicious.

I got home around 7:25 and got myself ready for the 8:30 Moksha Yoga class I love.  During the class while breathing deeply and trying not to tip over I noticed a belly roll as a bent over to the right and the same roll appeared when I bent over to the left.  I was thinking to myself...that use to be gone and now it is back.  That was enough for me to realize enough is enough and it's time to get serious.

Now, by getting serious I don't mean tracking every single item I eat but what it does mean is that I am back to eating a lot more fruits and veggies, way less breads and pastas and way less beef.  I already started planning out some meals to prepare over the weekend but I think the sheppards pie is going to be modified or cancelled!  It also means that I don't care what it takes I am getting in a hardcore workout four days a week.  Seriously, enough is enough! I have to dig deep and find my skinny self, she IS in there, I just have to push through until I am face to face with her and mirror and never let her out of my sight again!

I was just thinking about a girl I used to chat with on previous forums I was on.  She struggled and struggled for over a year and it was funny that I never understood how she felt and why didn't she just do what she needed to do to see results.  It is amazing and more and more I am reminded that until you walk in someones shoes you really have no idea what it's like for them.  I am where she was so I need to take my advice and decide to change my habits and as my avatar use to read... JUST DO IT!

Slow and steady...

I am getting back on the workout bandwagon. Last Saturday my two week cold finally got kicked to the curb and I climbed about 1200 stairs on the stepper I got. Sunday afternoon I ventured out to a hot yoga class and the instructor Sarah kicked out butts! Tonight I climbed over 1700 stairs in just over 30 minutes so I know I will be able to climb the CN tower. I just need to keep pushing and climbing higher as I know doing it for real is going to be a lot harder than pushing these pedals!

I had picked up my blackberry last weekend and was going to track my calories but decided against it and put it down and stepped away. I am not going to become the calorie ingested, calorie burned tracking maniac I was a year ago. I am going to live with balance in mind as much as possible...why else did I get that tattoo (twice, don't ask its a long story)?!

I decided that I can eat treats but I have to keep up the activity and eat healthy as much as possible. So, tomorrow is appointments but back to yoga Thursday and Sunday and more cardio stair climbing in between, look out CN Tower, here I come!!

giving you the whole story

I met up with a long time friend this evening for coffee and we got to talking about blogging.  She is one of the reasons why I started blogging in the first place so I guess it's only natural our conversation went there.  She suggested that I not only share the good times with you, but the bad and maybe even the ugly too (that is my dad's favorite movie coming out there lol I lost count how many times we watched it) so here goes...

It is no secret that for the past six months my focus has been less than stellar.  I have commented before how during 2010 I had goals and specific events that were driving my motivation and for the past few months there really hasn't been anything to focus on specifically and I really believe that has been my downfall.  I know I have gained back approximately 15 of 65 pounds I lost and I noticed changes in my mood, energy level and of course fitness level.  Losing the weight is half the game (if that), keeping the weight off is the defensive side to the game that many of us fall down at, some of us are great losers but when it comes to keeping that weight off we realize it sometimes is harder than we thought.

So, how do we do it?  How do we strengthen the defense so we don't over work the offense? Am I watching too much hockey these days?  I think for me, having those goals and events scheduled to work towards worked wonders for me and so far this year I have two different events lined up.  I already posted about registering for the CN Tower climb on April 16.  I just registered, literally, like five minutes ago to do the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon...thanks to "she said I need a goal".  I have run 5km so far and now I am going to do over 21 km...at once, during the same session...I probably should be more scared than I am...but I know how great it feels to cross the finish line for events like this and that's what I am looking forward to, that and the massage after!

So on that note I am calling it a night...but I promise to post more often even if it's not about a great work out, even if it's about a "bad eating day" or anything else because at the end of the day I hope I can help not only myself with this blog, I hope I can help you too in realizing it's not a diet...it's a lifestyle and with that comes the ups and downs life can throw at us. We just have to learn how to bounce back and all will be well.

not much going on around here

today...I have a whole lot of nothing

I start out thinking that half the time then before I know it I have lots to say but today I really have nothing.  I have been battling a cold for the past week and my energy is still pretty drained so I have been taking it easy. 
 
Today I need to do some prep in the kitchen for dinner with friends tomorrow and a plans for tonight but that and some laundry will be about it.

The exercise I did manage to get from Sat-Tues was walking I don't know how far over the hard water to go ice fishing with my husband every day.  I know walking in snow is a lot more effort plus all the gear I was wearing had to add to the intensity as well but he pulled the sled of fishing gear so he definitely had a better workout. I mentioned that next time he goes he should take my heart rate monitor to see how many calories he is actually burning when he walks out a couple km each way.