Begining A New Chapter

It's not the end...
it's a new beginning!

Body - my body feels fantastic! I feel stronger than I've ever felt - even when I was playing lacrosse in school. I have much more muscle than I ever thought I could have and that is incredibly exciting and encouraging. Moving forward I do want to continue to develop my glute and ab muscles - my two most problematic areas. But all in all I very proud of myself! I'm proud of myself for committing to test group and eating healthy. I am so happy to see how far I've come. I didn't even realize it until I put the pictures side by side. If you would have asked me three years ago that I would be under 150 and a size 8 I would have laughed in your face! I'm so glad I'm in this place now and that I am determined to keep on keepin on!


Learning - With test group ending two weeks ago I am reminded how easy it is to fall off the wagon. I was really sick once we finished and I took time off to heal and ended up taking off a WEEK! Once I was well enough to work out I did not go back to working out 5 or 6 times a week. I only worked out 4 days so far. Am I going to be able to get back in a groove? Here is my plan - I ordered Insanity today! YAY! I plan to do both AM bootcamps, Insanity and running for the next 2 months and then evaluate at that point.

Observations - I'm getting a lot of compliments from friends and family about my body's improvement. I am very quick to enthusiastically tell everyone about bootcamp, shakeology and the change in how I am eating and encourage them to try it all out. I have learned to inform then LET GO. You can't force somebody to commit. Even if they say "oh, I need to do what you're doing" they may not be willing to do the work. They know they should but they are not in a place to put forth the effort to change.

Goals - TO PAY IT FORWARD! I want to share my new body of knowledge about fitness with as many people as possible. This experience has changed my life and I want to start that change in others.

Set goals - A week from today I will have contacted people about MY challenge group. Gotta get things started!


THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT! YOU ARE AN INCREDIBLY POSITIVE GROUP OF PEOPLE AND AT ONE POINT OR ANOTHER EACH AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU INSPIRED ME. I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING US ALL CONTINUE ON OUR FITNESS JOURNEYS :-)

One Week Left - Finish Strong!

We have exactly one week left in the test group - lets finish strong!

Body
I may be paranoid but I think I gained some mass in my stomach this last week. I ask myself is it because I ate pudding and jello? Coule it have made that big of a difference? Maia did say that belly fat is lost with nutrition. OR maybe I'm just being paranoid! I need to bust out the tape measurer to be sure. Other than that my body feels fabu! My legs are the most muscular they've every been, even when I was at my fittest during lacrosse season in college. I am in awe that I have a legitimate bicep and I have ab muscles! I feel them on sides of my stomach when I poke in there! Now I just have to loose more of the fat on top so I can see them!!

Learning
I'm starting to learn that as much as I encourage other people to make healthier decisions. THEY are the only person that can change their lives. I remember in my first meeting with Maia I mentioned that sometimes a person has to hit a rock bottom before they start to be serious about becoming healthier. I wish everyone could have the success I've had and hope that I can help them on that journey - but I can't take the journey for them!

Observations

A lot of people, me included, have mentioned worries about how they will do with their fitness and nutrition after the test group is over. Are we all moving away? No! I think we should all try to remember that we'll continue to be part of each other's support systems. I'm sure that everyone will take different paths after next week but we are still connected. The test group FB page will still be there! We are still connected through myfitnesspal.com to continue encouraging each other! At this point I'm sure that I want to help people with their health/fitness journeys but I'm not sure how to go about it. I don't like to half ass anything and with lacrosse season coming up I throw myself into coaching my high school girls. On top of that I will start studying in November for my PHR certification exam (an HR thing). The passing rate is only 57% and we're told we have to study for 3 months minimum to give ourselves a fighting chance. Whoa buddy! At this point I have to sit back and think about what I want to take on and how I can balance it.

Goals

I WANT TO FINISH STRONG! I wonder what my numbers will be like tonight and will tailor my goals to what I achieve. I do know that I want to run at least 3 times this week outside of class. I also need to start thinking hard about my goals and game plan for AFTER test group is over.

Two weeks left (for real this time)

October 16, 2011

Body - my oh my how this has come along! I caught myself flexing in the mirror the other day... because I have legit muscles now! Also, my friend told me after the game this weekend that my legs look great - she sees the muscle tone. woot woot! The three areas I want to work are my back fat, the belly and the bum! I've already seen some great results but want to concentrate on being the best I can be!

(pic after lacrosse game)

Learning - I feel like nutrition is the biggest change I've made in this journey. I've learned a lot from the coaches and my test group family. Thanks guys! I decided I Love greek yogurt, salads are starting to get on my good side more and more and brown rice isn't that bad!

Observations - I haven't got it together enough to plan my meals ahead of time. I see great examples of planning ahead from the test group fam - it's actually pretty amazing. I think making some stuff in bulk will really help - especially when it comes to dinner which is when I have the most trouble making the best choices.

Goals - I want to concentrate more on my bum and working on my endurance for running. I will do my BBL videos at least 2x a week and go for a run at least 2x a week. I think the added cardio will also help with shedding some weight/inches. I was very bummed about my last weigh in (gained 1/2 pound) and I am excited to take extra steps to ensure that I do well in the next weigh in!

Two weeks left...

October 9, 2011

Two weeks left! I feel like a brand new person compared to who I was when I started Bootcamp in July! My body has gone through a great transformation and I hope it will only continue to change. This week I had to go buy new pants for the weather change and I felt great. I decided that I would be sure to get pants as affordable as possible because I don't plan on staying at this size. I have always been a bargain shopper but I wouldn't even settle for buying pants over $20. That's how much I believe I won't be at this size next season. Thank you Marshalls/TJMaxx! I don't think that I've ever believed in myself this much and it's exciting to be in this place.

I didn't do 100% with last weeks goal's of having shakeology everyday. It's frustrating b/c its pretty simple, right? Well, I didn't get it done. This week I'm prepared with my bananas for the rest of the week both at home and at the office. I'm getting PB2 to get the calorie count down on my shakes. It's gonna be great!

3 weeks left...really?"

I cannot believe that we only have three weeks left!

This last week I made strides to eat fresher foods. I didn't pop a lean cuisine in the microwave once. Although, I came to find that I simply cannot eat a salad at work everyday. After lunch on Friday I felt like a rabbit and scrambled for a mini milky way to cope. In that state a mind a fruit cup wouldn't do, I had to find something really junky. I figure now that I really have to switch it up! Or else I'll go crazy again and look for some thing to rebel with.

For the first week ever I'm looking forward to arms day! I feel like I've pretty far with my push ups! No more modified for me! I can't go down very far yet but this week I wanna really pay attention to the distance I go down so I can try to push myself and track my improvement. I do feel like my arms look better than they ever have! It make me a little impatient with my belly! Although, I should zip my lip b/c I am on track with my goal of loosing four inches around my belly button by the end of the 2 months. two inches down - two to go!!!


(The pic is me after my cold weather lacrosse game! It took me about 2 minutes to get comfortable in the 45 degree weather so I know my body was burning those calories!!)

This week I am focusing on my nutrition! I'm going to mix up my meals a bit so I don't OD. I'm looking to keep it as fresh as possible so I can help my belly shrink! And my goal is to take my Shakeology EVERY day. I've fallen off the wagon with that one.

Also, I reached one of my goals of being a size 8. YESSSSS!!! And now I want to be a size six!! It's interesting that this is my goal now b/c I've always considered that to be "skinny girl" size. I've always considered myself to be a big boned/thicker lady. But I'm getting out of that now. I feel very fit and getting down to a size 6 is fully possible b/c I have a ways to go with my belly and bit of back fat so I can get that to be better.

I've not said this so far in my blog so far but twice now my mom or dad have commented on my weight loss and insinuated that they have fear of me getting to skinny or even anorexic. Is this a cultural thing? Obviously the way I look now is a lot different then when I was a size FOURTEEN three years ago but I feel like I still look healthy. I definitely have more muscle than ever. Maybe since they may not see me eating like I used too they're worried. I realize that they are only looking out for me but I got VERY defensive to the comments. I know the concern comes from a place of love but I'm not sure how to react in those situations. Any advice?

The Halfway Point!

Finishing week four


At the end if week four I feel both weak and strong. My leg muscles are coming back, my arms are starting to get a little somethin somethin! But my jumper's knee is getting bad. I find myself not being able to push through a lot of the plyo moves and slowing down on some of the moves that have high knees or jumps. I put in a call to the physical therapist that worked in my back in hopes of getting some advice on how to manage the pain for the next month and see about getting orthodics. But I will say that I'm getting to point where I can do some real pushups!! I may not last a long time with a good form but I can knock a few good ones out!

I was also got sick Monday so I didn't do my weakday workouts like I was shooting for. I even skipped Wednesday's class so I can rest. In the end, I think it was a good movie because I felt much better Thursday.

I'm learning that I really need to diversify the types of food that I eat. I need to figure out some substitutions that I can introduce at home. If I can work on that than I can stop excluding myself from dinner. Unfortunately, i wasn't able to make it to the cooking tutorial - that would have been a great learning experience!

Looking back at the last weigh in I am nervous about my weigh in tomorrow. I remember that Maia said don't let the numbers get to you too much, but I lost one pound last week and i felt disappointed. I'm not too sure what a reasonable weight loss goal would be for each weigh in but one pound felt like I failed, even though my goals have to do with loosing inches not loosing pounds. I'm trying to take Maia's advice and take it in stride. I'm very interested to see what the scale shows tomorrow.

My goals for this week are to work out twice during the week outside of class and try a new healthy recipe that doesn't taste "healthy".

Completed Week Three...

Looking back on week three my body feels good! After tweaking my back in week 1, I finally feel like I'm back to 100%! I could tell that there is a difference in my ab strength! Woo hoo! Getting rid of the pooch! (picture above at KZX on Saturday)

I was not able to fully complete my goals for this week, I was shooting to work out 3 times during the week outside of class - I only did two weekday workouts. One of those workouts was supposed to be yoga... didn't happen. I think I may have set my expectations a bit high for my weekday workouts. Sometimes I have to stay longer than expected at work and that throws me off. I think I can fit in 3 or 4 workouts a week just maybe trying to squish them into the work week is a mistake. This week I had 4 workouts outside of class. I lifted weights for my legs and did Kazaxe during the week then i did Kazaxe and had a lacrosse game this weekend... I hope that puts a dent into my cheat meals!

I feel disappointed in myself because I this week I put in the extra effort during the week outside of class to get more workouts in but made some bad food choices. I had four cheat meals this week! On my birthday I made good choices for my lunch - ordering asparagus instead of fries! But then I went crazy at night with southwest rolls and cold stone cake! I went a little overboard with dessert at two get togethers during the week and my last cheat meal was a lazy pizza hut dinner on Friday night. Looking back these slip ups were due to lack of planning and lack of self control. I've realized that it's easier for me to give in to the tempting choices when I don't have the healthy choices easily accessible.

Here are my goals...
- workout 2-3 times during the week outside of class
- make one workout yoga or pilates and one lifting for my legs.
- have a PLAN for dinner every day so I don't fall into temptation.

Am I Really Doing my best?

At the end of week two I ask myself... am I really doing my very best?

I have to say that my food choices have been the best they've ever been. I've been much better about rejecting bad foods. When I do make choices that aren't the best I make it a point to work out harder/longer than I normally would. I feel like I've learned a lot in this department because of Maia and my test groupmates.

But what am I doing about my FITNESS outside of bootcamp? Other than working out on the weekends... nothing. I know that I can add at least two or three extra workouts in outside of class during the week. I'm in awe of my test groupmates that have already shown that they are going hard outside of class during the week... I'm going to do that too!!

At this point my body feels STRONG! I feel like I have more upper body strength that I've ever had. I'm so excited about it! I will say this - my left knee has been giving me a lot of pain. I need to get back in the weight room to work on my leg muscles to help the old knees out.

I find that my friends and family have been very supportive. They have complimented me on the physical changes they see and that type of acknowledgement makes me want to push more to reach my goals!! Some have even asked me how I did it and it feels good to share the knowledge that I've gained throughout this experience.

So here is my goal for this week! Fit in THREE workouts outside of bootcamp during the week. At least one of those workouts will be lifting weights - quads, hammies, etc - to help out my knee. I will do yoga at least once by the end of the week (I'm very injury prone and my body needs as much help as it can get!)

Why am I doing the 60 Day KZX Test Group?

In 2008 I got up to 178 pounds. When I realized I was that heavy I thought to myself... that is practically 180 pounds, what is going to stop me from getting to 200 pounds? I went from being a college athlete running several miles a day in practice and games to struggling to make it to the gym more than twice a a week. It was a slippery slope.

Then I hurt my back pretty badly and went through physical therapy for months. That's when I became even more scared that I was going to get even bigger.

Over time, as my back got better, I paid attention to my portion sizes and tried to keep active through coaching, playing in lacrosse leagues, going to the gym and going to Kazaxe. In about 2 years and change I lost about 20 pounds.

I started to see the scale creep up again. I was scared I was going to spiral back to that woman who had gotten to the point where almost no outfit made her feel pretty because she was unhappy about her body. I had just purchased the Beachbody Brazil Butt Lift (BBL) DVD program and ordered Shakeology but I felt and extra kick to my workout routine couldn’t hurt! SOO I decided to participate in Maia's Birthday challenge with my cousin. In 6 six weeks I lost 2 inches in my waist and was ECSTATIC about the change! I felt so empowered by what I was able to do for myself.


I heard about the test group during bootcamp class and thought to myself... that's crazy! Going to bootcamp 4 days in a row? That's just too much. But then I took a step back and though about the commitments that I have in my life already. I coach high school lacrosse... that's committing to hours of work every Monday - Thursday and weekends for fundraisers plus even more hours of planning and administrative work. If I can make that commitment to the sport that I love and group of girls that I didn't know before the season then WHY can't I make this 2 month commitment to myself?


There is no good reason as to why I can't! SO here I am.... test subject #10! My goal is to loose 4 inches in my waist. I'm going to give it everything I got!

-Cindy

Day 3 of KZX Bootcamp Test Group

I am SORE! It's harder than I thought it would be to push this hard without having a recovery day in between. Last night was our 3rd night of bootcamp and I was really feeling the burn. Before I was doing runs or a workout DVD on my no bootcamp days but it doesn't really compare.

I will say that I'm nervous because I tweaked my back on Tuesday. I really don't want to get back to the place where I couldn't bend and had pain just from standing. Since starting bootcamp in July my back has gotten stronger but maybe i pushed to hard on Tuesday. I'm glad I spoke to Maia about the situation and hope that modifying the lower back moves will help me. I'm going to have to book a massage!!! Good excuse to indulge :-)