Hi Everyone!

Thanks for the warm welcome, Copperblu, Morrigan and Marvin!

Yesterday I went to the gym and did 45 minutes on the treadmill and worked out for 45 minutes on the machines. It felt so good. Then I got stressed out by my work and started overeating. Hello!! Morrigan, your streaking game got me right back on track today. It feels good to be good.

This morning I did my Body Flex tape so far. Yes, Marvin the Martian, I think the tape is like Oxycise. I've already noticed an improvement in my toning in just a couple of days. It's supposed to make you lose inches, so I'll keep you posted on what happens.

Today's kind of a busy day, so I won't have time for the gym but I'll get on my stationary bike.

I keep reminding myself of how great I feel when I exercise and eat right. It's really does help me physically and mentally.

Let's keep moving, eating right and drinking our water.
(Hugs),
Dena

Hi everyone!

Thanks for the email saggy! and the encouraging words Dena and copperblue and Marvin!

I went to the gym today (I lifted yesterday) and did 60 minutes on the stationary bike and 30 minutes on the stairmaster. Then I did all my ab exercises and 3 sets of 10 pushups. I stretched, came home and had a good lunch and 32 oz of water.

I am going out for sushi and movies tonight - but I think I am going to have the sushi first so I don't crave popcorn at the movie. I am going to see Pearl Harbor (which I hear is dippy) with a friend from Japan who is flying back to Osaka on the 24th and wants to see the unedited version before she gets home (her mom and sis saw it there and it cost them $24 a ticket) - so it is cheaper for her to watch it here before she goes home.

Hey everyone! A quick check-in before I leave for the day --

Marvin: I think you're right that we may soon need a daily thread!!
I KNOW what you mean w/the PMS -- I'm doing it too, and I'm tired (but having trouble sleeping), bloated, spotty, moody, and can't stop eating!! I had a piece of pizza leftover from a meeting after I'd had my own healthy lunch today, and just had a piece of chocolate cake at an office birthday party that I SO did not need! I looked at my stomach this morning, and I swear it was sticking out a good 2 inches more than usual!
So I will grant you some leeway for the PMS crazies. BUT you know you don't want to be an unhealthy mommy, so don't you neglect your exercise in the midst of all this TTC excitement!
The yoga sounds fun, and maybe I will try some tonight if I'm not too burnt out -- it might be just what I need to keep moving in the midst of this slug-time.

Morrigan: I'm impressed by your cardio day!! I can't spend even close to that amount on the cardio machines w/out a) wanting to die and b) getting darn close to dying...of boredom! I am a cardio wimp! I wish I had your stamina!
Your movie '"date" with your friend sounds fun -- although I think you're right, I've also heard that "Pearl Harbor" is kind of dippy. Yay for sushi though! I just had sushi for lunch yesterday -- yum! And so good for you! Have fun!

Meredith: I'm glad you're feeling a little better, although your sleepless night sounds terrible! I've always been on the insomniatic side (since I was a kid), and though the exercise has helped a lot, I know there's nothing worse than being SO tired but completely unable to get the sleep you so desperately need. Good luck!
It's good to hear you got in your Pilates! It's easy to give up our exercise in times of stress, and I'm glad you're still trying to take care of yourself.
I think having to suddenly be parted from your loved one for a month and a half would make anyone upset + blue, and I hope you're not getting down on yourself for having an honest emotional reaction. You have a right to cry + stomp about!

Saggy: Try not to feel too bad about the cheesecake -- we have to allow ourselves the occasional "slip-up" without feeling like we are "bad" or wrong for giving in to a craving. I'm trying to talk myself down from my own post-treat guilt, and I know how it makes you feel like you "blew it" or you should have just been stronger or whatever. But think about all the times this past week when you made the hard choice, and you passed up immediate gratification for your long term goals! The path to our goals is not straight + narrow, and I think if we make the healthier choices more often then not, we'll end up okay.
And I see you had a great workout!
Thanks for the support regarding my test -- I'll know in about 2 weeks what's up, and in the meantime am just trying not to think about it + get myself into a tizzy.

Dena: Such a good exercise day yesterday! Good for you! Heck, maybe your overeating was just your hardworking body pushing for fuel!
And you're right -- I really do feel so much better when I'm active. I've got to keep that in mind when I'm feeling like I do now -- all tired + poopy + sooo reluctant to push myself into motion! I've got to make it back to the gym tomorrow, or I won't be able to keep up with you girls, you're doing so well!

See you all tomorrow morning!

Good morning!

I don't have a lot of time this morning, but wanted to check in. I had a pretty good workout yesterday at Curves, and then a very productive evening getting ready for tomorrow's farmer's market.

I'm going golfing this afternoon after work, so I'll probably miss Curves, but golfing's good too, right? OMG, I totally forgot, I have to go to the dentist's this morning!

Gotta run!

Hey all! Here I am again!

Can you tell by the exclamation points that I'm feeling better? Why yes, I DID make it to the gym this morning!

I didn't get to bed as early as I had wanted to (got sucked in by "The Perfect Storm"), but I managed to haul my sorry butt to the gym this morning for Cardio Day. Why is it that after just ONE skipped workout, I feel like I'm recovering from a looong slump?! So weird. Anyway, did my 30 minutes of intervals on the elliptical crossramp, and got my best distance for that time yet (by a smidgen). Guess I really did need a rest! At any rate, it's good to be back on track, and hopefully I'll be as successful dragging myself to my weights workout tomorrow.
Ate too much yesterday, but balanced it out w/a healthy dinner (I've got a recipe for healthy tortilla soup + grilled turkey clubs if anyone wants ). Still, only going over my goals by about 100-150 cals, which isn't bad for PMS week. Luckily my drinks date w/a friend on Thursday was cancelled, so I don't have to worry about overindulging that night. People at work are going out Friday afternoon (we have a special summer schedule) to celebrate a coworker's birthday, so I'm going to have to think about how to deal with that dietary landmine when it comes. Ah, the world is full of temptations.

Hope everyone's doing well, and remember the week's half over!

P.S. Marvin: cross-posted AGAIN! Glad to hear you had a good night, and I hope the dentist isn't too bad!

I didn't ride my bike again today (for the 3rd day in a row) -- today's excuse was that I went to see Pearl Harbor in Spokane (a 1:10 drive) and didn't get home until 1:30 am and was too tired to drag my rear out of bed this morning.

This only puts off the inevitable - now I have summer school until 10:30, PT for my knee from 10:30-12:00 and then off to the health club for all my weights. I will probably be in the gym until 1:30 or 2:00. This not having a job as an excuse not to exercise is really helping me out this summer.

As for all the cardio - it sounds like a lot - but it never is very intense. I don't know what it is about my body, but I can enter this state while exercising where my breathing slows down and I rarely break a sweat even when doing the exact same thing as the person next to me. It is strange - but I can actually slow down my breathing and pulse in this kind of meditative state. I was a really good swimmer in high school and it was the same place I went to in races. My body could be going all out but my mind and my breathing are in a completely different place that doesn't feel the pain or oxygen depravation in my limbs. The only way I can really get out of that is to do something for an extended duration. If I go over 30 or 40 mintues at a high intensity- then I start to sweat.

I just reread the paragraph above and it sounds kind of crazy - but I really do have a heck of a time getting my heart rate up. The only exercise that really does it for me is running - if I run then my heart rate just shoots up, but I can't run yet because of my knee - and once I get into shape then running is like the rest of the sports - I don't go real fast but I can go for a long, long time.

I hope no one minds me joining in

I am trying to lose some inches.

My workout schedule is:

Wed-Weights at gym & cardio & pilates
Thur-Interval Step at gym
Fri-Step & weights at gym & pilates
Sat-treadmill at home

I normally exercise at least 3 times a week but it isn't enoug to lose the inches I've got on my hips, stomach and butt.

Thanks for letting me join in!

Welcome Sherryi - I just joined in here myself a few weeks ago when I started exercising everyday. I have been here every day since June 18th and exercised everyday except July 4th. In that same time I have lost 6 lbs! I love coming here for motivation and accountability.

Welcome again!

I forgot to ask if anyone has tried to use a heart rate monitor.

I use on for my cardio workout. I found after tracking that I wasn't getting my heart rate high enough to lose weight. I was in a maintenance zone.

I just started working out with the heart rate monitor and can tell a difference already

Hi Morrigan. Thanks for the warm welcome

Congrats on your loss

Do you exercise at the gym or at home?

Welcome Sherryi!

We're happy to have you, and I think it's great that you're trying to commit to more frequent exercise! Doing up to 3 workouts on your chosen days sounds time consuming! How do you do it?
I don't use a heart rate monitor, although I've considered it. Some of the machines I use have monitors on them, which is very helpful, since I've been known to get too high too fast. What do you mean by a "maintenance" heart rate? Is that what would be classified as 'level 1' of exertion? I'm actually close to buying a HRM, now that I'm using machines that don't have them built in more often (I might get one as my next reward for sticking to my workouts for a specified time). I'm wondering if it's possible to get a HRM that doesn't require a chest strap?

Morrigan: I don't think you sounded weird at all! It sounds like you a) are in good cardiovascular shape and b) have an ability to enter a meditative state while exercising, thus lowering your pulse and your perceived exertion. Sounds wonderful, and I wish I were capable of it!
And you are so right -- posting to this thread helps me out a lot -- I LOVE posting that I got a good workout in, and I HATE having to report that I skipped! My workouts have gotten more frequent , more intense, and more consistent since I started posting on this thread, and I definitely believe that the accountability + support this thread provides are largely responsible.

With that said, off to finish my lunch!

Cooperblu--what I mean by maintenance zone is that I was only working out hard enough to maintain my current weight without gaining and I haven't gained in 2 years. I wasn't working out hard enough to burn anything. I'm talking about exertion of a level 7 or 8. I got this from Bob Greene's book Make the Connection & Keep the Connection. (both at your local library) It says a level 7 is where you could carry on a converation but don't feel like it. Level 8 is where you could carry on a conversation also but wouldn't want to & you aren't sure if you can keep up the pace for the rest of the workout.

He also talks about staying in the fat burning zone for at least 20 mins. I figure I will start out with 20 & work my way up to the max which is 40 minutes.

I got my heart rate monitor from Sam's Club and it does have a chest strap. I don't need it anymore after using it a few times--the chest strap that is b/c I know when I'm in my fat burning zone. I do use the watch b/c it has an awesome stop watch on it & I can make sure I stay in my fat burning zone for at least 20 minutes.

Before I was hardly even sweating but now I am breaking out into a full sweat and feel like my cardio endurance is better than ever. I feel stronger & I can't believe how pumped up I am after working out.

I don't have a set workout schedule. I'm sure coming here & posting my workouts will help to keep me motiviated.

Sorry for babbling on

Hi Sherryi! Welcome to the thread. I'm sure you will find it as enjoyable as I do. I noticed that you are from Charleston S.C. My husband and I are going to Hilton Head on July 28th and talked about taking a day and checking out Charleston. How many hours is it from Hilton Head?

Copperblu- I,too, have major PMS right now. My boobs are so sore and I am grouchy. Thanks for the encouragement on my cheesecake slip up. I will attribute it to PMS.

Morrigan- You do sound crazy! Just kidding. I totally know what you mean. Sometimes when I walk on the treadmill I kind of get into a zone and block out everything around me. It can be very meditative. How was the movie? Was it cheesy?

Marvin- Have fun golfing. I hit golf balls last night with my husband and for some reason I was crushing them. (this is very unusual). My husband was having a hard time with his shots so of course I rubbed it in!

Dena- Welcome!

Meredith- Good luck with the fundraiser. Don't let it stress you out.

Have a good day!

workout update for the day:
walked 3.2 miles at the park
did half an hour of step aerobics
will be going to kickboxing class tonight for 45 minutes.

Saggy

Hi exercisers!!! I'd like to join you if you don't mind. I'm sitting here on my lunch hour at work with my jogging stuff in a bag at my feet (still clean). Here's my deal.... The best time for me to exercise is in the morning before work. I'm fairly consistent at it but not as consistent as I'd like to be. A perfect week would be: 2 days of swimming; 2 days of running; and 2 days of weights/lifecycle (or actual bicycle). However, I can't remember the last perfect week I had. If I don't get it done before work, then my next option is to run at lunch (we have shower facilities in our building). After work is not realistic for me because (a) I've never been a motivated nighttimer; and (b) I have a one-year-old daughter and 14 year-old stepdaughter that I like to spend my evenings with (oh, and a dh).

Soooo, what keeps me from getting my workout in on some mornings.....hmmmmm....? Let's take this morning for example. It was supposed to be a swim day. On swim days I have to be at the YMCA by 5:30 (to get a lane and have enough time). When my alarm went off this morning I struggled and fought and struggled, but next thing I knew my hubby was bringing me a cup of coffee saying "time to get up." DARN! It was too late to go swimming. So I packed up my gym bag for my lunchtime run. Ugh...it's too hot to run at lunch (at least that's my excuse de jour). I'll come back all red-faced and my hair will look funny. Okay, so let's go back to this a.m. What went wrong? Oh, perhaps we should go further back to last evening. Could it have been the 3rd glass of wine???? Yes, I admit it. I love vino and whenever I exceed 1-2 glasses, the odds are that I won't get up early to workout.

Now that I've sufficiently bored you to death (you've probably all gone to workout since even that's more fun than reading this post), I'll state my goals and shut up. I want to workout 6 days a week (as described above). My workout journal starts the week on Sunday. As of last Sunday I have worked out exactly ONCE. I won't be working out today so the best I can do this week is 4 days (Tues, Thurs, Fri, Sat), unless I fit in multiple workouts on one day, but that's highly unlikely. As of Sunday 7/22 I will work hard on my goal of 6 days.

Morrigan, I have to confess that I've been a lurker for some time and have really enjoyed your posts on the support thread. (Incidentally we seem to share a love of wine among other things.) I've enjoyed everyone's posts and have wanted to contribute but just haven't felt I had much to add. I think this is a good place for me to start.

Thanks to all for your input and insights! I'll report after my morning workout tomorrow (Thurs - bike/weights).


Take care!

Hey everyone! Welcome jusdoit and sherryi! This is a fun place to post. I'm pretty new to this thread as well and everyone here is great!

Well, last night wasn't good. I skipped another workout. I did go see my little brother's play. He's in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. He sang a solo and was soooo good. Not just little brother good, but honest to God good! I was so proud. Tonight I have to work at the video store from 6 to 10. If I don't get any other exercise in, it's still a lot of standing, squatting, stretching and moving. Maybe I can get in some Pilates after 10:00 or squeeze something in from 5 to 6. I have the same schedule tomorrow.

Friday after work I have to drive eight hours. This weekend I am going to do some major power shopping. That is my all time favorite ways to burn calories. I'm not a huge fan of the Mall of America but that's a good evening activity. I love downtown Minneapolis, I figure a good six hours of shopping both Saturday and Sunday will do some fat burning. Plus, I am going with my mother. She is a weight watcher to the core and she knows all the healthy restaurants and is the original power shopper.

Hopefully I will have a good workout report for tomorrow, I'm getting sick of posting about my skipping out! I've been eating healthier the last few days though. My appetite is getting back to normal after several days of marathon eating. I better get some work done today. Take care!