Good Monday Morning everyone!  Welcome back DocRose, and congratulations on making time for fitness during vacation!

Just a review of what disappeared from one of my last posts on the old myLT.  I was suffering from major fatigue for about 2-3 weeks, I hadn't had my period since mid-April, I was fast approaching my 45th birthday, and I began to wonder if I was at the beginning stages of menopause -- it was so much more dramatic than this brief run down -- darn you myLT administrators! 

As of today, I am now beyond 45 years old, and my old friend Aunt Flo came to visit, and boy did she let me know she had arrived!  I felt physically ill for two days (bloating, stomach cramps [read labor pains], on the verge of dry heaves).  I was pretty miserable -- if this is what menopause is about, I'm ready to get it over with because I can't function like this for the next 5-10 years.  My husband pointed out that perhaps my body is getting used to the fact that I've become physically active on a regular basis.  I don't know what it is/was, but I hope the next few months are kinder to me.

On Saturday morning, I forced myself to the gym thinking that perhaps some of my symptoms would subside a bit if I moved my body around.  Ugh!  It was a tough workout because my heart and soul were just not into it, but I got it done.  Saturday was my first visit to the gym since last Monday, so it was a major accomplishment just to get there -- and yes, I was that ill.

This morning, I talked myself out of a visit to the gym -- the old mojoflo is trying hard to rear her ugly head.  After much debate, I convinced myself that I just needed to do something, so I opted for a run around my neighborhood.  Much to my surprise, it felt great!  I know that I was running faster than I usually do -- which is still pretty slow, but come on, I am seriously overweight still -- and I managed to pound out 1.5 miles with one short walking segment.

Right now, I'm feeling like my old self again.  I think that I added to my physical symptoms over the long weekend because my diet was horrible (due to birthday celebrations, picnics, and my weak will power).  It's funny, I kept thinking things like, "Oh, maybe this piece of cake will give me some energy."  "Yeah, go ahead, have a can of pop because you need the boost."  "You're bloated anyhow, so what's one more breadstick gonna matter?"  Like I said, the old mojoflo was working overtime these past few days, and I was beginning to let her get the best of me.

On the bright side, I was in a slump, and now I'm ready to get back to my regular routine.  My next weigh-in day will be sometime in early August -- I say sometime because I'll be on vacation the last two weeks of July and the first few days of August. 

Let's set some goals peeps!

My goals are as follows:

1.  Lose 6 pounds by my next weigh-in.  That feels like a lot considering the fact that I'm quite positive that I gained some weight this past weekend, and I'll be on vacation.

2.  Do cardio at least 5 times per week this month.  I'm still not getting in enough cardio.

3.  Continue to modify my diet.  Carbs, carbs, carbs -- I've got to break free from all the carbs that I like to eat.  I've been tracking my eating, and I'm still shocked at the number of carbs that I consume.  Let's take a moment to review (darn myLT administrators): Hello, I'm mojoflo, and I'm a food addict and an emotional eater.  My big secret: I love carbs, and I'm a slave to my cravings for them. 

Anyone else up for posting their goals for the month of July?  Come on, don't be shy . . .

Hey Mojoflo!  Glad to hear that getting to the gym and doing the run perked you up.  Keep accentuating the positive!

Let me put on the doctor hat for a moment and talk about menopause.  It's not like a switch where suddenly your ovaries stop making estrogen and your done.  It's more like a sputtering boat motor.  Your ovaries gradually put out less and less estrogen, but it is pulsatile for awhile, meaning you
can have no period for 2-4 months and then suddenly get one, and then not get one for three months, then get two months running, etc.  This will usually stop happening within a year, so it shouldn't be too awful.

Bad news -- your metabolism is slowing down.  SOOOO you really need to keep up your exercising.  No excuses girlfriend!    Many women gain weight this time of life because they don't keep active and watch what they eat.  So keep up the good fight!  We're all rooting for you!

Met with the trainer this am.  The little brat!  He said, let's see how much ground you've lost over the last two weeks, and proceeded to put me through a conditioning workout that nearly had me ready to puke.  The whole time I was zone three/four/five.  The good news -- 1) I didn't puke.
2) I did 643 calories for the hour which is a new record for me, 3) He told me afterwards that he never expected me to finish the workout and he was really proud of me.  It's amazing how that one statement can really make me feel like a million bucks!

Bad news -- Back at work and it feels like I never left.  Why oh why can't people act their age rather than their shoe size?  Stress, stress, stress.  And two new cancer diagnoses to give.  Some days I really, really hate my job.  Good thing I have my exercise to try to get rid of the crap or I would be up to 500 pounds by this point!

Blessings everyone!

DocRose

Weigh-in day today...

2 pounds down!  Ta-Da!!!!!  DING!DING!DING!  Yes, I am back to all time low, and only one pound away from my first set long-term goal of 160.  Zelig and I were both a little shocked at the scale, I think.  After 2 weeks of vaca I would have been happy if I had just maintained.  Getting those cortisol levels down and all the extra walking one does as a tourist really paid off.  And I got my reward today of a good foam roll-out after we worked out, which I really needed sincemy glutes were still so sore I hurt every time I sat down!  I am committed to one pound off this next week.  That will hit the long-term goal I set 19 months (or one complete lifetime) ago.

Soy foods definitely help with menopause and I would even go so far as to suggest a soy supplement, like estroven or promensil, which are both especially good for hot flashes and sleep disturbances that commonly occur with menopause.

MJ -- So sorry about the IT band stuff.  I had a bout with that about 6 mo ago that really slowed me down for a good 4 weeks.  Remember to ice afterwards and stretch, stretch, stretch.  Also, be careful of too much foam rolling.  Would give muscles a break and do cross-fiber massage before workout, foam roll and the ice afterwards.  Heat on days off and alternate workout days prior to working out.  Good luck!

Today is an administrative day, so I will now log off and become one with my paperwork.

Blessings!

DocRose

OK, Mojo. We're here for you.  Take a deep breath... hold it... now let it out.  There, better?   Ok, let's tackle these things one at a time...

1)  Have you been prone to migraines before?  If so, this just may be your usual headaches making a resurgance.  I would take your usual migraine help, take a few days off to break the cycle, and then get back to the gym.  If you are having exercise induced headaches you can use an old trick of taking 400-600 mg of motrin 1 hour prior to exercise.

2)  Fatigue and swollen ankles -- Now, I don't want to be diagnosing things over the internet, so this is a huge leap, and I would encourage a large grain of salt with this advice, but salt is bad for you, so skip that.    Anyway, these symptoms should be a cause for concern and should be checked out by your doctor.  Given your family history a stress test is not necessarily a bad idea.  Now, other simpler things that can be causing this is falling off the wagon in terms of eating, as a sudden increase in salt and carbs can lead to fluid retention and feeling tired.  I would not do the cardiopoint testing until you are cleared by your doctor or your symptoms go away.

3)  Tell the old mojoflo to TAKE A HIKE!  (preferrably a long one so she can shed a few pounds  )  Remember your control mantra:  You are the one in control, not she.  You have a commitment to your health that you are not going to break  (or MJ and I are coming after you!)

You did mention that recently the diet has gone out of whack.  I remember a big dietary indiscretion I had round about the 30 pound mark -- bacon, egg and cheese biscuit meal from McD's.  Now I had been off fried, salt and caffiene for 3 months at that point, and I used to eat these things two or three times per week, so I thought, what's the harm.  I felt terrible for three days afterwards.  Haven't had one since.  Once you get your body used to the way you should eat, going back to the old way can really throw you for a loop.  Maybe this is what happened.

Hang in there girl!

DocRose

PS -- Tell Mr. Marathon to go out for a long run.  It is rare for people who haven't fought this fight to get what this is all about.  The few who do, well, they become the best trainers.

Hey DocRose!

So sorry to hear about your week, especially at work.  Maybe stress is part of why you feel lousy?  I'm amazed at the havoc that stress can create in one's mental as well as physical being.

As for potty training, it can be a looooooong process -- and stressful too, but it can be done!  Hang in there, and don't listen to those people that say, "Oh, my son/daughter was trained by the time they were 1."  Or, "Oh, my son/daughter was trained in a day."  Whatever!

In a few years, you'll look back and laugh at this phase of your child's life.  I have a few good potty training stories for each one of my children, and now they can laugh with me.

I tried to post both on Monday (twice) and Tuesday (once), and each time I hit the "Post Message" button, I got a blank screen with the following message: "Serious Systems Error."

In brief:  I'm feeling much better -- read headache free!  I ran on Monday, and it felt great both during the run and hours after the run!  Yahoo!

Thank you for your advice DocRose (I've been trying to thank you for two days now).  I did look at my diet, and I think that played a part in my headaches -- I had been eating out a lot, but now it's back to homecooking.  Yum!  Also, I wonder if stress wasn't playing a part in my headaches.  Hey, I thought exercising was suppose to relieve stress though?

Any idea where mjsoccermom is?

Okay, I'm going to press the "Post Message" button again.  Here goes . . .

So, this week (Or, really more just yesterday), I've been facing a couple of old demons.  You know... the one that sits in the back of your mind that says "You're not going anywhere... you're stuck... what's the point?  Just give up!"  or, the one that creeps up when you look in the mirror and says "You're still fat.  See that fold of skin around the middle?  See how your legs still jiggle at the top?  You're still fat....."  Yeah... those guys... I hate them!!!!

I keep telling the first guy that the point is that I am NOT going back to where I was.  I REFUSE to go back to where I was.  I'm winning that battle... The second guy?  Yeah, still trying to figure out how to kick that one to the curb once and for all.  I'm not "fat" anymore... In fact, I'm in the best shape of my life!  (19.5% BF at last measurement)   Sure, I still have some weight to lose, but I'm still "thin."  And, yet, for some reason, I can't get past that image in the mirror.  It's a spiritual battle, the way I see it.  I'm taking comfort in small compliments when I hear them, but it's still an internal battle that I have to fight.

Monday's timed run: New record of 3.18 miles in 30 minutes.  Other Boot Camp activities, and a good full-body workout during PT session.  Next week's goal: 3.2 (or more) miles.

Tuesday: Another 30 minute run, 6.0 mph with a -1.0 decline.  Kept my HR in zone 3 or below the whole time.   Then, a couple of weight exercises and stretching.

Today: Boot Camp, then lots of time with my friend, Mr. Foam Roll.

Tomorrow: Day of Rest

Friday: Boot Camp, then butt-kicking courtesy of MJ

Saturday: TBD, but probably a long run.  (i.e. as long as I can hold a 10 minute/mile pace.  If I can get a minimum of 5-6 miles in, that would be ideal.)

Weigh-in -- Same as last week.  Might have been better if I hadn't gotten dinner so late (Last patient passed out in the office, had to call 911, all that nonsense, so didn't eat until 9pm -- Blech!).  Did an intense upper body routine and then finished with 10 times up and down the central stairs, jogging on the way up!  *pant,pant,pant*  I swear those horns just don't show with Zelig's new haircut...   I have a fun session planned for Saturday -- a friend of mine is joining me for a buddy workout session Saturday AM.  Zelig says he has something special planned.  I think I'm scared!

I hope everyone is having a good week.  Hey MJ, where are ya luv?

Blessings

DocRose

Message was edited by: docrose

Wow, Doc!  Sounds like your friend will have a new-found respect for you after that session with Zelig.  Feels good, huh?

So, yesterday was my long run... 6 miles completed in 1 hour!  My goal was to hold the 10 min. mile for as long as I could while still keeping a handle on my heart rate.  I must say it was quite a success.  I managed to stay in zone 3 for about 40-45 minutes, and then crept into the lower part of zone 4 for the last 15-20 minutes.  Now, I was running at a -1.0 decline, but I'm happy to be making such good progress lately.  (That's one way to shut those demons up...)

Speakin' of feeling good about progress... Doc, congrats on treating yourself to a new pair of smaller pants!!!  19 months ago, I was a size 18-20.  Today, I'm a loose size 10, and even managed to get into a pair of 8's!  They're still a little snug in spots, but I went ahead and bought them as my new goal pants.  I'm hoping to also fit into a size 8 bridesmaid dress now, for my friend's wedding in December.  Plenty of time to get there, but if it fits now, even better!  Heck, with the butt-kicking MJ appears to have planned for me tomorrow, I'll have no problem getting there.   Of course, if you guys don't see me for a while, you might call a search party and make sure I haven't fallen over somewhere because I'm too sore to move.

Wishing you all a good Sunday, and a good start to the week!

I had a patient say to me one day "When you reach your goal will you have the excess skin removed?"

It's really a huge issue for me.  I have an unreasoned fear of general anesthesia, but this would be the one thing that might get me under the knife.  (Yes the girls are droopy, but that doesn't bother me.)  Anyway, I was at my friend the plastic surgeon's office getting a mole taken off and asked her about the whole thing.  (Yes, it's helpful to be in medicine.  So many friends with useful skills.)  So we discussed pros and cons, ups and downs of all the different methods.  She told me a few things --

1)  Lasers are NOT there yet for the amount of work that I need.

2)  There will be scarring and you need to be able to accept that.

3)  She would like me to be at goal weight and maintain it for 1 year.

4)  I would need to be out of the gym completely for 6 weeks to heal.

Wow!  That number four is HUGE!  I don't know how I would handle that. I was supposed to stay away from the gym for two days after the mole was removed, and I couldn't even do that.  The gym has become my stress balancer, my control, my stability.  If I had to give up one thing, my therapist or my trainer, I could guarantee you the therapist would be the first to go, and I've been with her a lot longer!

So for now I will love the skin that I am in, droopy belly and all.  It actually serves me well as a reminder of how far I've come, since at one time this skin fit.

Blessings!

DocRose

Ooo, they come up too tiny for my vision to get a good look.  Sorry!  Wish I could get a better look.

So, did you leave anything left of poor Heather? 

Today's two really major advancements -- 90 pound leg press 3 sets of 15, 17.5 pound bicep isolations 3 sets of 6

I will defnitely be in pain tomorrow.

DocRose

Wow MJ!  Awesome running!

Congrats for surviving the killer schedule, but you gotta get some help with that or their gonna be scraping you up off the floor.  I know the boot camp isn't the workout for you as it is for the boot campers, but that's still a pretty punishing schedule.  I hope Heather is out of pain long enough to drop us a line soon.

I am in a really, really bad place with work right now, so I am showing it by being obsessive-compulsive in other areas in my life and I hate the fact that it's showing up at the gym.  After writing that post I was so angry with myself that I just took two steps back.  So I have decided that I am NOT getting on the scale until my next weigh in with Zelig (August 6), that I am NOT going to be obsessively counting calories, and that I am going to remember to sleep the hours I'm supposed to and stop skipping meals (which has been happening because of work -- I know, I know, it's the worst thng I can be doing and I am paying for it big time.  I'm sure my metabolism is going haywire with this... but I'm digressing).  Anyway, Back to the gym as balancer, not as another thing to be stressed about.  I did solely Zone 1-2 workout Saturday which seems to have also helped me feel better.  I think there's some overtraining coming into play here as well.

DocRose

PS -- Mojo?  Mojo?  What's happenin' lady?  We miss you!!!!!

Hello my friends... I'm still here; the last week has been incredibly busy for me, between work and family events.  This past weekend was spent with my extended family celebrating my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary.  It was great to see people I haven't seen in years, and I got a ton of compliments on how good I am looking.  (almost to the embarrassing point, actually)

The downside is that I came down with another cold on Sunday... Yesterday was a very good day for me to work at home, because I did not feel all that great, and would have called in had it not been my work-at-home day.  (I love that i have that option!)  As a result, though, I only did boot camp yesterday, and not my individual session... (I'll make it up later this week).  Slept in this morning; didn't even try to get up to work out.  I am feeling much better today; my throat is not sore anymore, but I am still dealing with head congestion and all that comes with it.  I will probably get up for boot camp in the morning, but will have to gauge how I feel afterwards before deciding if I will do some extra cardio afterwards or not.  Hoping another couple of nights with nyquil, and days of Zicam, Airbourne and other OTC cold medicine, and I'll be good as new by the weekend.

Doc, keep up the good work!

Mojo??  Where are you, girl??

Ok, here it goes --

A good friend of mine who was more overweight than I was used to say "I didn't just fall of the wagon; I ate the wagon."

These last three days, I ate the wagon, and the horse-team pulling it as well.

I am so damn frustrated, it hurts.  I don't know why I've spiralled out of control on the diet.  It's like I'm watching someone else eat.  I am still going to the gym every day, but I just can't seem to maintain my self-control.  I thought if I freed myself of the scale for awhile I would feel less stressed about it, but it seems to have resulted in my self-control going on a three-day bender.  As I usually weigh on Thursday, and I had a sense of bad things going on, I got on the scale in the locker room after workout today.

Up two pounds from last week.

Maybe this isn't really a lot, I thought.  But I have nothing to blame it on.  I can't keep using work as an excuse.  Yes, I work a lot of hours.  That is NEVER going to change in any significant degree.  Yes, I deal with death and dying.  It's been fourteen years in this business.  I've  thought I was handling things better than this.  (Not necessarily well, but handling them.)  It's not time for Aunt Flo -- that was two weeks ago.

I will miss two days at the gym next week due to being stay-at-home Mom while my husband travels for business.  Can't be helped.  But I'm now scared to face Zelig on Tuesday, and I can't look at myself in the mirror.

help

DocRose

Thanks Heather.  It's really funny but you and I started our journeys at just about the same time, and for some very similar reasons.  Though I don't sit at a desk all day (I actually have a rather large office and spend a fair amount of time running around it some days), it is the job that becomes the excuse.  I would eat to comfort my soul, when I have have to give my patient of 11 years the news that her cancer is spread, when I have to tell family we can't do anything more for a loved one, when I have to say I'm sorry but he didn't survive his heart attack... The list goes on and on. Getting a high blood pressure reading at my gyne's office threw me into a panic, and that was the final straw that got the ball rolling.

I have often counseled patients that you have to have an understanding of why you eat to know how to change how you eat.  The frustrating thing with right now is I am really not sure why this is happening NOW.  I have had no great traumatic things at work or home.  I have not had any significant number of parties or whatever exposing me to more food.  There's nothing to look at and say -- This is the why so here's the how to fix, beyond the usual things of cleaning up my eating, etc.  Maybe I just need to go back to the beginning and really purge things down again -- low carb, higher protein, water or iced tea only, etc.    I don't think I'm that far off that, but maybe I am...  The higher protein is tough because I can't stand the whey powder taste.

Did have a good thing happen this am.  I was able to run a full 15 minutes on the treadmill at 1.5 inlcine and 4.2 mph.  It's the longest I have ever run in my entire life.  I just hope I'm not sore tomorrow!

Blessings for the weekend everyone!

DocRose

Happy August everyone!

Shelley -- Welcome aboard the thread!  It's a great group that hangs out here and I hope you'll have fun with us.  Though our namesake seems to have deserted us.  MOJO!  Where are you?  Thanks for the thoughts on the food journaling.  It is something I will be making a concerted effort on this month.

So this weekend I went up to Lake Geneva (which is just a little ways north of the Wisconsin border from here) to spend some time with my mother and my son and my uncle, who is like a second father to me.  Uncle Ralph taught me to fish, and although we haven't been able to go out in a long time, the water has always been something relaxing for me.  We decided to just go out for a few hours on a pontoon boat, no fishing, just cruising and enjoying the day.  The weather was finally perfect, high 70's light breeze, good sun.  And somewhere in the middle of all that whatever has been eating at me (and making me eat) just let go.  I was at peace for the first time in a few weeks, and I have felt re-grounded since then.  I hope it lasts.  I was out of the gym today doing my stay-at-home mom thing while husband travels, and tomorrow I will see my trainer and hopefully will be able to explain what happened while he was gone in such a way that he doesn't worry that I've gone off the deep end...

Saturday I did have a good workout, getting on the treadmill for two 15 minute intervals, so I feel like I have made a major breakthrough in the running department.  MJ do you think that I can try just running for say, 25-30 minutes without the walking or should I try to increase speed or what?  Not quite sure what the next progression should be.  I am seriously considering trying to run a 5K next year.  I don't want any added pressure to get one in prior to the end of this year, and I want to focus on the climb anyway.

Goals for August -- Not sure yet.  I want to see how the rest of this week goes, and how badly off I am on the weight path this Thursday.  I am at peace with whatever that answer is, but then it will be time to recommit.

Blessings for August!

DocRose

Trying to get back into the swings of things. A med change and reoccuring voices have been making it hard for me to focus on anything but the voices most days. Dragging myself to gym daily more so because it gives me something to do than really wanting to be around people so I don't think I am putting my full heart into it. Either that or I need to change up my rountiue somehow. Most days I'm lucky to clear 300 calories burned in an hour and ten workout. Still I'm only four pounds from my goal and two weeks to get there. Joined the summet fit program which meets three days a week for an hour at about five different times so I can attended any one of the sessions. But I haven't been able to bring myself to attend any sessions other than the two run by my trainers and the one by a trainer I worked with before (lucky for me the same group of people attend all three sessions). To many new people and new trainers to have to deal with at the other sessions and I'm not up to that just yet. I guess its a combination of team fitness and team weight loss which will help me decide which I want to do in September. But I'm leading toward team fitness cause I need both the stregth and cardio training. Still meeting with my trainer one day a week, mainly working on balance and strength. And have a racquetball lesson once a week. Oddly enough the two got together to put together a mini workout schedule which they can both follow (I think they called it tag team torture). I guess I'll see the results later this week.

I too journal what I eat mainly to see if something I was eating was giving my headaches daily or if it was something else. As a result we decided I have to many carb (breads and other white flour products that could be causing the headache) and not enough protein, Taking all but one or two pieces of bread a week out of my diet and watching the other carbs my headaches have all but went a way, how odd. Now if I can just figure out the protein situation I'd be set. Time to take my students out for a soccer game, at least now I can take part in it instead of just watching.

Enjoy your day.

I'm liking this talk of goals too. I have adopted the journal all food/exercise for 2 weeks goal as I've gotten sloppy about journaling (again.) And I have a few more for myself:

- have a real rest & recovery day before Sunday (I'm having a hard time actually slowing down for a day of recovery)

- try a 15 minute brisk walk on the treadmill

I want to start jogging again now that I no longer have PF pain during my day-to-day routine. When it first came up I stopped jogging and walking (for exercise) and began doing cardio that was easy on my foot. I almost went to a contact! class last week but thought better of it. I want to be sure I'm fully healed (no pun intended) before resuming activities which will impact my foot. It is time to explore where I am though so walking on the treadmill seems like a good place to begin. It's a nice, self-led controlled environment for me. If anyone has a better suggestion please share!

Later in August there is a Group Fitness Instructor Training workshop which I am attending. That's scary for me and exciting at the same time. I don't know if anything will come of it but I do think it is worth exploring. Aside from the person leading the workshop ya'll are the first people I've told. Hmmm...

Hope everyone had a great Wednesday, we've almost made it to Friday!!

Shelley

Have no fear, MJ... We'll be ok for one day while you take a break for yourself and your DH...   We'll even take care of beating up on Sir Talks-a-lot (that is, if he shows up on time! lol!)

I'm with the both of you in terms of not wanting to take time away... I'm notorious for working while sick (It's just allergies, I swear!), and even when I plan vacations, I tend to schedule them around holiday weekends, so that I'm not taking more days off than necessary, not to mention that it's a free day off, and I don't have to use any of my accrued PTO.  I'm learning to take rest and time off when I need to, and I can tell you right now that my vacation in 4 weeks cannot come fast enough!  (Two projects on the fast-track, gotta get through two design reviews before I leave for vacay, and I don't even have requirements for one of the projects... YIKES!)

My journaling has been better the rest of this week.  I guess I should clarify that my RMR is just below 1200 calories, so I take my total calories eaten, and subtract my calorie burn from the gym to get my net calories.  So, Monday's results show I came out about 300-400 calories short of meeting my RMR requirements.  Am I calculating that correctly??

If so, then here are the rest of my results:

Tuesday: Calorie burn = 798.  Total Calories eaten = 2138.  Net Calories = 1340

Wednesday: Calorie burn = 1480.  Total Calories eaten = 2744.  Net Calories = 1264

Thursday: Rest Day.  Total Calories eaten = 1623.  (yeah, I had a little more for dinner than I probably should have, but it's still not an obscene amount)

Friday: Calorie burn = 862.  Total Calories eaten = 2370.  Net Calories = 1508

Still working on figuring out how to balance everything properly... I guess not totally disastrous for a first week of journaling, though?

Tomorrow: Long run (7-8 miles) planned for early in the AM.  I need to get back outdoors, and want to get it done before it gets hotter than the sun.  We'll see how my pace is outdoors, since I've been training on the treadmill for the past few weeks.

Hi all!

Well, I made my goal of taking an actual, henst to goodness rest day. It was hard to actually not exert myself in some way - that seems strange to me but I guess I've always been the type of person who needs to be busy. Even when I was in college and not exercising (in a gym that is) I was hiking or biking during the day and dancing downtown at night.

Friday I had taken the day off from the gym but finished the front landscaping project. I found myself sweating in the yard for a solid 7 hours and decided that Friday didn't count as a rest day. The heat here is back to summer norms and the humidity has been awful. Ugh! Friday definitely didn't count as rest! So I went to bed at 10pm Friday and woke up bright and early Saturday....at noon! I can't remember the last time I slept until noon. I took that as a sign that my body needed a real break and spent the rest of the day floating on my back in the pool. Aahhhh!

Now I'm back in business. I feel great! I think I have been in denial about my rest days, thanks DocRose for the clarification,

I think you're right too about getting my assessments. (this may have been from a different post....) I've decided to wait until one of my two broken HR monitors comes back though before doing this. There's not much point in knowing the data right now as I don't have a working monitor and have no idea what my numbers are when I'm exercising. On Monday I'll go ahead and schedule the appointment a few weeks out and just cross my fingers that one of the monitors get repaired and shipped back to me by the time the appointment rolls around.

Anyone have any adivce for motivating loved ones to exercise? Friday morning my hubby and I got in an argument about his lifestyle choices. I'll preface all of this by saying that I met my husband in high school and he's been a part of my life ever since, although not necessarily romantically. I love him very much and can't imagine my life without him.

That said, I'll bitch a little....He's 5'8" weighs 230lbs and has hereditary disposition to type 2 diabetes and high cholesterol. He's an art director in the video game industry so he spends a lot of time in front of a computer with other guys who do the same. His office break room is stocked with  junk food and sodas and the guys eat out at fast food places almost daily. Then he gets home and sits down in front of the computer and/or tv and there is always some reason why he can't go to the gym. 'work is stressful' 'I didn't get much sleep' 'I've got some things to do here' etc.

What can I do?! I hardly ever mention it but Friday things reached a boiling point. I'm totally at a loss here! I don't understand how someone who is facing some very real health concerns wouldn't make the time to be proactive. Help!!!

Day 5 of food journaling.  Still a few problems.

I can't seem to get my water intake up.  What to do?

I have a hard time with calorie control and protein intake on my non-gym day.  How do I convince my body that I need to eat less?  It still gets hungry at the same times and wants the same foods!

What to do about lunches at work.  There's usually something healthy but today there was only chinese food.  I skipped the rice, but I know I will be starved in a few hours and by daily plate calorie counts I'm prob over 1000 cal already today.  Grrr......

Good news.  I did two 15 minute intervals at the gym 4.2mph/1% inlcine.  I will go up to 17 minutes next time.

DocRose

I like to keep sliced up veggies like for a party tray (carrots/zucchini/green peppers/etc) in tupperware in the fridge and eat them with a small amt of salad dressing with meals or for snacking.  The crunch and the small amt fat are very satisfying, and the calorie count is low.  You can also do a three-bean salad which gives you protein and vege as a nice light side-dish.

Your carb balance sounds ok, especially if they are mostly around your workouts.

Good idea on the water.  I can definitely try that.

Just dragging today.  The heat and humidity seem to be doing me in, and I have call all week starting tonight to boot.  Blech!  Hopefully effects of new doc will start kicking in this week.  I'm just too damn tired.  I seem to be running about 50% carbs, 30% protein, 20% fat, which is where I think I should be.  Most carbs in am and at lunch.

DocRose

Okay, I'm trying to post, and we'll see where this ends up.  I'm so not liking this new set up!

I've been home since last Thursday, and I've not yet been to the gym.  Two things are holding me back.

1. My knee is swollen and sore just from walking around the house.  I'm still having trouble going down stairs or any sort of decline (darn mountain!).  Also, when I try to go upstairs, my knee doesn't want to bear the weight (this is something new).  I'm going to begin a regimen of Tylenol and icing as well as elevating to see if this helps.  If not, I'll be going in to the doctor.

2. I know that when I return to the gym I'll be starting back at square one.  I feel so flabby and fat, and I need to get over this feeling of self-consciousness that I've redeveloped and just get my butt back to the gym.

On the bright side, I have been journalling my food intake, and that has really been a huge help in keeping my eating on track.

So, until my knee is better, I'll be focusing on the diet part of my healthy lifestyle.  I'll return to the gym once the swelling goes down in my knee.

Oh, one last thing, I've not been able to weigh myself because the battery in my scale is dead.  I'm positive that I gained weight while on vacation, but now have begun to lose it.

Happy Hump Day!

Ok, ok, it's not like world peace or anything, but my weigh in today...

159!!!!

There it is, 60 pounds off.

Zelig and I both looked at the scale like we couldn't believe it.  I actually asked him if someone had been messing with it.  He actually weighed himself to double-check that it was accurate and then I weighed again.  Same thing.

I celebrated by having 1 piece of toast with my eggs at lunch.  I don't want to go overboard. 

Quick, someone pinch me.  No, on second thought don't.  If this is a dream I don't want to wake up!

Blessings!

DocRose

Going back to the food journal (still one week to go, and I'm sticking with it dammit!) and getting seriously pissed off at myself.  Zelig always says that anger is a powerful motivating factor with me.  Whenever I'm having problems with a new amount of weight or a tough new exercise, he tells me "Get mad!"  and it almost always works.  I was not hungry this week, except when I had to delay eating because of work, and I even found myself a bit calorie short a few days and would have to have something at night.  Control was key.  My mirror talk this week was all about keeping control of what I could.

I'm trying to keep going as if nothing has happened.  I want to at least maintain this week.  This will really convince me that today is real.

DocRose

OPI I am not a waitress red is my preferred toe color.

Oh, and get the warm wax treatment, too.  I deserve it! 

I remembered you advice about copying before posting and it has saved me several times recently.

Good luck with the run.  If I was your training partner I wouldn't want you to leave me either!  Especially if she doesn't regularly run outside.

I will probably be sticking with my team during the November climb.  We have filled the last spot on our roster.  Team Name -- Real Women Take the Stairs!

DocRose

Howdy, all!

What a long weekend! Brian and I spent all weekend at QuakeCon in the VIP lounge and I am beat. Boy do I feel old - I think the days of partying night after night are  far behind me. The kids slept over with friends Thursday night and Brian and I stayed up late at the VIP party then Friday we took the kids up to QC. We meant to only be there for an hour or so but wound up staying until 9pm. Most of the guys at id have kids now so there's a 'Young Gamer's Association' area with wii's and kid appropriate games. Saturday night another friend had the kids sleep over so B and I were again kid-free and up late in the VIP lounge. Since I never get a chance to dress up, I took it upon myself to wear cute dresses and high heels the whole weekend. Ack! My back is killing me today!

This morning I dragged myself to 6am spin and was pleasantly surprised to find a sub. The regular instructor is one of my favorites but he works you at 110% the whole hour which I wasn't exactly looking forward to. But the sub was good and even though I started out slacking, by about half way through class I kicked it into high (well, almost high) gear and got in a good workout. This morning's workout reminded me of another aspect of spin that I enjoy - it's very mental. I was sure I couldn't do the work today but sure enough, it was in me all along.

Anyway, school starts next week so I think the kids and I are off to the pool to enjoy a bit more of summer.

cheers,

Shelley

Hey Mojoflo!

Glad that I could help with a boot to the netherparts.  The rationalizations abound, don't they?  We've all spent so much time coming up with excuses they are second nature.  And, frankly, as women and mothers we have been conditioned to NEVER put ourselves first.  A lot of what I tell my female patients who are dealing with stress is that for one hour a day they must put themselves first.  It doesn't matter what else is going on, everyone can fend for themselves for just one hour.  That's my gym time, for someone else it may be time on the computer, or yoga, or whatever.  We come back from that revitalized and re-energized (and for me sometimes a bit sore!).  But we are again ready to take on life's challenges.  So that's my message to you all.  For one hour per day, put yourself first on the list.  Then you will be able to be a better (mom, dad, doctor, trainer, indian chief, whatever).

I agree with you Mojoflo, that there is something about this new site that is off-putting.  Maybe it's all the technical glitches, having to remember to save before posting in case the system screws up yet again and you lose the last post you just spent 20 minutes typing, etc.  Maybe it's the difficulty we had re-connecting where in the process we lost some people that used to post some grace notes to our discussion.  Maybe it's the fact that we STILL don't have the old posts accessible, so we lost our past.  Maybe it's all of these.  But let's try not to give up on this.  I've gotten wonderful support from you all, and I would hope I've helped in my small ways.  So keep posting, keep ranting, keep giving, and we'll continue to create our community in spite of the bastards!

Today I ran two 17 minute intervals at 4.2mph and 1% incline, my longest intervals ever.  My shins were sore for awhile after, but are now ok.  I am not sure why the extra four minutes did that, maybe because I did dynamics with Zelig Saturday?  (Running up and down the basketball court 20 million times couldn't have helped.)  But why can't I get hardened to this?

Diet diary going well, except for Saturday, when I ate out twice due to work, and a very noticable lack of veges.  Anyone with any suggestions on that?  I seem to be consistent with the 100 grams of protein daily, and getting plenty of fruit, but now this crops up.

Blessings!

DocRose

Well, the beat goes on, and so does the weight loss!  Down another pound this week, only 2 pounds away from my challange goal.  The difference has really been the accountability of a food journal.  I don't eat the things I don't want to write down and calorize, and that has really helped.  There has also been great improvement in my protein intake with that as well.  Yeah!!!!!

I had a really awesome workout after the weigh-in today, with just more and more progress with the weights.  I looked in the mirror while doing some shoulder work and just fell in love with the look of my arms and shoulders now.  Zelig said he's not sure he remembers what I looked like 61 pounds ago.  I told him I'd bring in a "before" picture next week.  I have a family shot of the three of us taken about two weeks before I joined Lifetime.  It's really scary the difference.

I'm having a run in with shin splints again, grrrr!!!  Will I ever get this running thing figured out?

MJ, I'm glad that you're finding someone to possibly take over some of your boot camp work.  I wish things were doing better for me at work (The new doc is here but we're having some paperwork issues so she's not working all the hours I really need until this gets straightened out, hopefully by Sept 1.)

Have an awesome, awesome, blessed day everyone!

DocRose

Way to go MJ!!!!!  Way to go, Heather!!!  Woo Hoo!!!  You are crazy women running in that damn Texas heat.

I have taken four days off from doing any treadmill work trying to rest my shins.  Will try slow jog on Monday during cardio.  I am beginning to up the intensity of my stairs, doing level 8 -- 94 floors in 20 minutes.  I need to get to 5.15 floors per minute to do the 103 in 20 minutes, but I need to work there.  I was really nauseous after the 94 floors.

Today was my husband's and my 23rd anniversary of our first date, so we went to this amazing steak place by us.  I could only finish half my 6 oz filet.  What a difference a year makes!  Last year this time I would have polished off 8 oz and apps and dessert.

Goodnight everyone!  Sleep well!

DocRose

1st Confession:  Mojo has lost her mojo.  Ugh!  My current weight is 243.

2nd Confession: It is difficult to post this whine on such an upbeat part of the Weight Loss thread, however, I am reminded by the title of this thread that it all started when I decided to take control of my morbidly obese body a while ago . . . ya know, prior to the big upgrade to Life Time's website. Are we ever going to see the old posts Mr. Bob Stanke? I feel like a part of me is lost somewhere out there in the cyber world.

I digress.

3rd Confession: I haven't been to the gym since mid-July.

4th Confession: My food choices have been terrible -- yes, even with food journalling. "Oh look, it's been two days since I had a $100,000 grand candy bar. I can have another today."

I want to rant, however, a rant would feel like such a downer amidst others' successes (DocRose going beyond her goal weight; MJ and Heather having a great run; etc.). Don't get me wrong, I am happy for everyone, and I know that these successes come with lots of dedication, hard work and sweat. That's where I need to be: dedicating time to myself, working hard, and sweating.

Okay, so rather than rant, here's my plan: about a week ago, I decided that I needed to take a drastic step to get back on track.  For my diet, I've rejoined a weight loss system that I had previously used and experienced success with.  I found this weight loss system easy to follow and sensible.  Right now I'm in a place where I just need to get my diet back on track without having to think about it too much, and this seemed like the easiest route to take. The bummer is that it costs a lot of money, and I haven't told my husband yet.

As for the exercise, no one else can do that for me, and I just need to do it.

I just need to do it.

I just need to do it!

Sorry about the repetition, but I need to get that drilled into my head. I just need to do it! The gym is something that I need to think less about, and I just need to go and move my body. I have been lazy, and I'm losing control. I feel like a dog chasing my tail: I make bad food choices; I feel down about that; I avoid the gym because I feel fat; round and round and round I go.  Ugh!

Right now though, I'm keeping an eye out for my UPS man (I'm doing the "at home" version of the weight loss program). I am excited to get my materials and get back on track with my diet because I know that my diet is wreaking havoc on my mental state.

I am a food addict, and I need help! Where is that darn UPS man?!

Even though this wasn't a rant (per se), I do feel better.

Keep up the good work everyone! You are providing me with much needed inspiration!

Yes, I hate to make promises for things that are out of my control(!), but I am going to do it anyways... yes, the old discussions will be loaded in soon.  By soon, I mean I am not sure of an exact date, but yes, I am bugging enough people over here to try and get it done! 

MJ, you are a running fiend!  You're almost at that half marathon distance and it's only Sept 1.  Hope your ankle is ok.

I figured out that the stairs I did outside today was 55 floors equivalent (33 steps X 30 times up / 18 steps in the average floor).  I also got my heart rate up to 171, which is a new max exercise rate for me, which means I'm going to have to retest after the climb in November to see where my metabolics are again.

Now tell me what to do with the @#% shin splints again.  I'm scared to increase my run times over 10 minutes intervals.  HELP!

DocRose

Ouch on the PF!  I hope it heals quickly for you.  Had some issues with that myself in the past.  NO FUN!

The shoes probably need replacing.  I have been using my orthotics in them so the insoles aren't the issue, but I realized the other day that with the increasing mileage I had been doing, they are probably too old.  The big problem is finding the time to get to the store where the run club has the discount so I can replace them.  It's out of my usual day's circuit and my schedule is again crazy (or is it still?).  As for the foam rolling, Zelig works on my legs regularly, especially with the climb coming up and us doing extra work because of that.  I also roll them myself once or twice a week.  I don't have pain now really, just nerves.  I will probably at this point mostly put the running aside and start focusing mostly on my stairs time as I have decided to try for 22 minutes completion time, and I will actually be climbing with Zelig, which is making me a little nervous.  I am covering this insecurity by working out with each of my other climbing buddies on different Saturdays, and since they are all behind me in timing gives me a confidence boost if nothing else.

Today we totally switched it up and did what I call circus tricks -- stability ball work including balancing on top of the ball on my knees and doing things with the cables.  I did much better on it then any time in the past, so I think I am overcoming my fear of falling.  Zelig has been very patient with that, but I know he gets frustrated because he says I have the body to do it, but my mind holds me back.  Once again, so much is head games I play with myself...

Tomorrow I will go back to speed sprints, and Saturday I will do stairs.

DocRose

School has hijacked my schedule and just when I think things are slowing down, the PTA finds another project to tackle. The latest addition to the already full fall "to do" list is the auction, typically done in the spring in conjunction with the spring carnival. It really will be a better fund raiser if we do it as a stand-alone event so we've decided to move the date to the first week in December. Lots to do, lots to do! This is the PTA's third year (my son goes to an inner city elem. school in Dallas) and we're all very new at this so if anybody has any great auction item suggestions, please let me know!

I've been studying for my cycle instructor orientation workshop which is coming up at the end of the month. I'm suddenly very nervous and unsure of myself. I seem to have come down with something akin to stage fright and have been very shy about requesting participants for some practice classes. Mostly I think I don't want to sound like a female version of my favorite spin instructor and I'm very self concious about it. He's directed me to some reading material and I'm now on a quest to find some motivational comments that are my own - at least my own in the sense that none of the other instructors I love are using these particular quotes. Today's find: "It's not about the bike." (Lance Armstrong)

I'm actively working on my positive motivation skills; I've come to realize that I have a "drill sergeant" mentality which is really not helpful. But I am eager to learn and grow - as a person and (hopefully) as an instructor - and really do want to be someone who can help people realize their fitness goals. I think people are amazing and honestly believe that anyone given the right amount of determination and support can succeed. I'd love the chance to be a part of that success and to that end I've been studying motivation. Hopefully in time I can learn this delicate art!

Have been trying to do a lot more strength training but need to work on fitting it in to my regular schedule.

I've also been jogging a little again after an excruciating run in with PF. The Iyengar Yoga instructor at the gym showed the class a series of foot poses that has helped tremendously. If you think it would help, I'd be happy to ask him if he has any pose references which could be posted/emailed.

Looking forward to Friday!

Shelley

My life is a whirlwind right now with school, ballet lessons, piano lessons, football, homework, yada, yada, yada, all beginning this week!  Does it all have to start the day after Labor Day? What's up with that?

I'm hoping that by next week, we'll have all the kinks worked out of our system as a routine is slowly beginning to take shape.

• I've been to the gym -- mostly focusing on cardio.
• I'm down 4 pounds.  :-)
• I miss posting and reading everyone's updates, but I can appreciate that this is a busy week.

Let's get down to business beginning next week -- the week after Labor Day.

Enjoy the short week!

Hello Doc,

I am glad you train with kettlebells. I hope everyone does. My recommendation to everyone is to find a good RKC so you can stay injury free, and be formerly obese. It is great to see the encouragement in this thread. Everyone, keep it up.

John Rock

Hi everyone.

After a phenominally Bad week on call (short almost 20 hours of sleep for the week) and a difficult week at the office, I then proceeded to over-exercise and somewhat mess up my hamstrings.  Spent a lot of time in the tub, with the foam rollers, cross-fiber massaging, the works and got them up to about 90% good on the left and 60% good on the right prior to meeting with my trainer this am.  When he heard they were still bothering me after 5 days from the initial workout that caused the stress, he apparently re-worked the plan for the hour so that we could have a long talk about recovery, nutrition, sleep, and over-training.  I am now going to have an enforced extra day off tomorrow and a deep tissue massage on thursday.

There are emotional issues with this, too, stressors at work and with the 3rd anniversary of my father's passing, that are not helping.  And it's two months to the climb.  Things should be kicking into a higher gear.  But they aren't.

So I will try bringing things down the rest of this week, and hopefully restart next week with a healthier body and a mind more at peace.  Any advice would be greatly welcome.  I'm feeling overwhelmed.

DocRose

Hi MJ et al!  Missed y'all!

Went through a really bad time last week and found myself really overtraining.  Zelig actually had to bar me from the gym for a day.  "You're going to hurt yourself if you keep this up."  I managed to get it together, get caught up on sleep, got an awesome deep tissue massage (Thank you Anton!) and was able to get back on track.  I never, never want to go through that again!  I really was miserable in so many ways and couldn't seem to find my way out.  Thank goodness for support from friends and family.  Any advice of how to avoid this in the future?  Anyone ever go through this themselves?

I am not progressing with the running at all.  With the climb 7 weeks away and the hamstring issue last week I have decided to shelve it until after the climb.  It's really frustrating, but I feel like I need to not focus on that and do everything to get ready for the climb.  I will try again after Nov 15th to start to increase times for my run.  I replaced my shoes and am going to be getting monthly massages to help minimize damage.

Hope everyone is well in spirit.  Sorry about your PF, MJ!  I hope it gets better soon.  Glad you're able to start building up distances again!  Hope you find more boot camp help soon!

Mojo?

Shelley?

Heather?

Happy New Year to All!

DocRose

Hello Everyone,

I am still busy showing everyone how to use kettlebells.

Regards,

John

Hey MJ!  Good to hear from you!  I am so sorry about the bad pf.  That looks really, really painful!  You might want to see a doctor about some prednisone or something to calm down that inflammation.  You don't want to get scarring.

For me, the climb is 3 weeks from tomorrow.  Half our team is gathering at my sister's tomorrow.  She lives in a 36 story building and we are going to practice in her emergency stairwell.  Pacing and breath control are huge issues for doing something like this.  Much like a treadmill vs running outside, there's a big difference between the stairmaster and actual stairs.

Thursday I finished my weight loss challenge, leaving my challenger eating my dust and winning two free training sessions (one from him and one from Zelig).  Zelig redid my fitpoint and we discovered that I am now 23.5% body fat.  This is a drop of 31.5% body fat in 22 months.  No, that's not a typo.  So now, for the first time in my adult life, I am not trying to lose weight, not one ounce. 

I cannot begin to describe to you how weird that feels.

My new goals:

Figure out eating for weight-maintenance

Continuing strengthening, with a challenge goal of being able to do an unassisted pull-up

Doing Hustle Up the Hancock in February with a faster per floor time than I do on this climb on the 15th

Conditioning myself on the running to be able to do a 5K this coming summer.

That's about it.  Work continues to have it's ups and downs, but I think I'm adjusting to the new norms, or at least I hope I am.  I'm glad you've found someone to help with the bootcamp.  I've always been interested in marital arts.  Maybe another direction for me later...

Check in soon Mojo!

Blessings all!

DocRose

MJ -

Lather, rinse, repeat, eh?  Well, as long as you can run without pain, just keep on trucking! 

Met for practice stairclimb with about half the team today.  Did pretty well, although I had hoped to handle the dry air better.  Still ended up with burning lungs when we finished, but I made my time goal, so I'm pretty happy.  Looks like we've got two groups on the team, a slower paced and a speedier group.  Probably Zelig will pace the faster group and I'll pace the slower.  Still can't believe it's only three more weeks, but after today I feel ready.

DocRose

Hi Doc Rose,

I bet you are ready. Just stay focussed for another couple of weeks, be sure that you get plenty of rest for two to three days before your event and , you will do fine. And the Holiday sweets, you are right if you don't want them then, you don't have to have them. Keep it that simple, and it will work for you. Good Luck!

Regards,

John

Hey Rosa!

Congrats on your approach to the finish line of pregnancy.  Then a whole new race begins, called keeping up with your offspring! 

Don't worry about the forty pounds.  It's hard to keep weight down when you're on bedrest, and frankly, you really shouldn't be wasting time on that.  You will get it off, I'm sure.  Once you get your energy back, we'll be glad to cheer you on with your efforts!

I second the Mojo hunt.  Where are you, love?  We're all missing you!

12 days left to the climb.  Would someone please get the Halloween Candy out of my house!?!?!?  I'm not hauling those extra calories up 103 flights of stairs.  No way, no how!!!!!

How's the marathon training going MJ, Heather?

DocRose

Hello All,

It's mojoflo here after a looooooong absence.  Thanks to those who missed me!

Life has a funny way of throwing me off balance, and when I'm off balance, I eat.  Yes, somethings haven't changed, at least not yet. Remember, "My name is mojoflo, and I'm a foodaholic."

The good news is that I'm ready to get back in the saddle again. The bad news is that I weigh more now than when I left off so long ago. What happened? Well, I got weak. I wasn't kind to myself. I believed all the negative things that I was saying to myself. And, eventually, I got discouraged. I lost my zeal.

What's changed? I started being kind to myself, and I started to think positive thoughts. All this occurred while sitting next to my mom in her hospital bed. My mom became very ill, and she was hospitalized for two weeks. After her release from the hospital, she came here to my home to continue her recovery.

During this time, I felt like I was suffocating. You know, trying to keep up with my house, my kids, and tending to my mom -- mostly being her advocate because she became very confused (almost childlike) and often didn't understand what was happening to her.

Any how, during one of the first days that my mom was hospitalized, as I sat in her hospital room, knowing that I had already put on some weight and feeling pretty miserable, I promised myself that I would not eat my way through my mom's illness. I knew that no amount of food would help ease my pain. It was difficult because I could feel stress building up in my shoulders, but I didn't have an outlet at the time. Yeah, yeah, I know, I could have exercised, however, my time was not my time. I did what I needed to to comfort and reassure my mom (my mom doesn't want to die alone, so someone was by her bedside at most times).

After my long days at the hospital, I would come home to comfort and reassure my children as well as check-in with them to see how they were doing (both in school and with their feelings regarding their grandma's illness). My husband was stressed as well due to pressures at his work, in addition to stepping up and filling in for me around the house.

STRESS!

Thankfully, my mom seems to be on the road to recovery. After being here in my home for a few weeks, she transitioned back to her apartment this past weekend. So far, so good.

Okay, so I fell off the wagon back in late August because I had some severe pain in my right knee. That was my first excuse. "Oh, it hurts. Better lay off exercising to let it heal."

September was a whirlwind of getting my kids back to school and trying to get some projects around the house here completed. "Oh, since I have the house to myself, I should really take care of ________ (fill in the blank with your own home project)." Second excuse, the house is more important than my health.

October brought illness to my home. One of my children had a nasty head cold that just didn't want to go away. Aaah, another excuse. "What kind of crusty mom leaves their ill child at home to go to the gym?"

After my one child seemed to recover, my youngest child got the flu (I believe it was the H1N1 but I don't know that for sure because he was triaged over the phone -- my clinic didn't want flu patients coming in unless absolutely necessary). Aaah, another excuse (although this one scared me).

So, I was basically homebound with ill children during most of October. Then, just when I thought everyone was on the road to recovery, my mother's illness hit. Basically, I've been couped up for what feels like forever!

But, I broke out today and went to the gym. I will be honest, it sucked! I felt so out of shape, so out of place, and so breathless! Yet, I felt so good when I left. It was an accomplishment (at least for me) to just get through the door.

I'm back! Mojo lost her mojo, but I'm fighting hard to get it back. I deserve to be healthy. I deserve to feel good about myself. I deserve to be in the weight room. I deserve to break my addiction to food, and enjoy it in a good way.

I won't bore you with any more excuses. I do realize that there are nay-sayers out there that are probably thinking, "Yeah right!" But I've got to start, and sometimes restart, this process until I get it right.

I'll post new goals, my weight, all that other stuff next Monday.

Have a great week!

DocRose and MJ -- it is so good to hear from you both! Thanks for hanging in there with me, and missing me too.

Congratulations to you both (and Heather too) on your amazing accomplishments!  You are a great source of encouragement and inspiration to me.

I gotta tell ya DocRose, I think running a marathon sounds more appealing to me than running up all of those stairs.  MJ, perhaps in two years we can run the Chicago Marathon, and DocRose can cheer us on.  Have either of you seen the documentary "Spirit of the Marathon?" After watching this documentary, I've added running a marathon on to my bucket list. (That's a long term fitness goal.)

Welcome rntina. Chime in anytime you like. It's nice to know that others have been in the same boat as I. Hey, 4:30 AM used to be my workout time. I'm trying to get back to it, however, I'm having a terrible time getting out of bed of late.

Thanks for checking in, and I'll check back in on Monday as my arms are so sore that it hurts to type -- yes, I over did it!