Thanks for the link Azure!

Kim, either way, you're amazing.

Kim - thanks so much for the long, detailed and definitely NOT boring post. It really reinforces what I already know...that I'm close to where I need to be but still have lots of room for improvement. I think I still eat too many refined carbs. They're a small part of my intake but probably too much for the changes I'm looking for. And, I need to lift more often. I was caught on the cardio train for a while but I wholeheartedly agree on how boring indoor cardio is. Trying to complete my 5k on the treadmill makes me want to shoot myself. I'm going to re-read your post and look for continued inspiration. :hug:

Mel - The pancakes kept me relatively happy until lunch so I'm sticking with those until I get bored of them! ;)

:D

Hmmm, thanks for the heads up on the new book. As I buy all the adult books for my library, I can guarantee that we'll be getting that! :) The NROL gets pretty good circulation now.

Kim - I immediately spotted that you basically don't eat any grains/carbs, and while I admire that you can do that, I know it would be hard for me. However, my hat's off to you - you look amazing!

It's so nice having an extra day on the weekend, I have to be careful not to fritter it away. My gym for a change is open on a holiday, so I'll wander off there in a little while. Plus I'm going to some stores I seldom get to in an average weekend (basically if you can't buy it in the grocery store, the coffee shop, or the gift shop across the way, I don't get it. :lol: ) I do lots of online shopping, though.

We had about 6" of snow over the weekend. It was snowing hard on Sat night when we had an anniversary dinner for our church. Most people came though and we had a wonderful dinner of roast pork, green beans with slivered almonds and some brown/wild rice patties. Yummy. DH was happy to eat my carrot cake along with his own.

Thanks for the details, Kim. Never too long or boring - always valuable information! Gathering of sticks -- love it!! lol

Thanks Kim- cardio only once or twice a week???? ah, you lucky young 'un!

I pretty much frittered away my day off, too. I did manage to mow and bag all the leaves on the front yard and tweak my back. Why can I deadlift 225 but am in pain from lifting a 20 pound bag of leaves? :eek:

Didn't even go to the gym today. Cardio here this morning- a triathalon of treadmill, ellptical and bike. My legs are still sore from Saturday's brutal "old school" workout.

Mel

Mel: Didn't you know that a pound of leaves weighs more than a pound of iron? ;)

Kim

:rofl: It's bigger, too!

I hate trying new things but I think I'm going to try Power Yoga today!

I'll let you know how it goes!

:D

Elisa: Good luck with your new class. OMG I tried something new today. A couple of weeks ago a six new pieces of cardio equipment arose from the depths of Hades and into our gym. It's made by Precor and looks suspiciously similar to an elliptical or EFX. But I swear, the thing was engineered by Satan's minions. :devil: The only thing missing was barbed wire around the handles. http://www.precor.com/comm/en/amt/amt100i/ Great workout though. May even help me make a dent in my weightloss efforts as we slide into the holiday season. I really need to read more about how this puppy works so that I can maximize my efforts. I had a tough time working hamstrings on this thing in an attempt to make it go backwards. Anyway, love it! Has anyone else used one of these things? :D

Kaw: Thanks for posting info about your typical eating day. :D Man, it looks similar to mine but my abs have along way to go. :rofl: Actually, it's not that bad but fear of losing enough to do that really stands in my way. This is such unfamiliar territory for me. I think that if I just slowly keep working toward my goal I'll be okay with it. :dunno: I think it's just taking time for my head to catch up with the rest of me. ;)

Mel: About that yard work. I really believe that real time physical labor out classes most of the things we can put our bodies though in the gym. I think it is a duration thing. You know, we just keep going and going until the job is done. I hardly think that you raked for three sets of ten and then walked away from the yard....or maybe you did.:p

Okay. Off to cook for a friend from the gym who just had surgery. Have a great afternoon everyone.

And speaking of hamstrings - mine were soooo sore on Sunday and still some yesterday.... Holding on while sitting down to pee sore! :lol: I didn't think I'd done that much more at the gym, but apparently I did..... Those ball squats are :devil: I tell you.

Great visual Pat. :lol: I wonder how many of us go through this on a regular basis. :dizzy:

Lydia, we had a machine like that in my old gym in NJ. I loved it--it was my absolute favorite cardio machine. Ours was a Cybex, but the principle is the same: a sort of running/elliptical hybrid. I would get soooooooo sweaty on that thing that I thought it must burn more calories than the elliptical.

I like the idea of doing yardwork for three sets of 10. You could do it like a circuit: 1x10 raking, 1x10 stacking firewood, 1x10 lawn mowing and then back for more raking until you've completed the circuit three times. That way you get strength and cardio benefits, like at Curves. :)

Hi Ladies!

Holy &%$#@* kaw, you look amazing! I'd settle for more flat, less rolls in the belly, you've got mad wash-board action. And the cut definition of those legs, wow. WTG, you earned it, I admire your discipline.

Pat, I was wincing every time I moved for the first couple weeks I re-started squats and lunges. It does making going to the bathroom, um...interesting.

Power class this morning, yoga tonight (enjoy your class elisa!) and I'll probably go for my run early tomorrow am since I'm doing an interview for local news tomorrow night.

In OT news, DF and I are fostering this lovely little dog. Her name is Mona, she's a real sweetie. :x

http://bp2.blogger.com/_CqjgTdKIWnk/...00/Mona-01.jpg

Power Yoga Update: Okay, I went (yay for me! ;)) and wow...what a great workout. I've done Pilates and while part of me loved it, part of me felt like I was missing the "work" part of the workout. Not so much with Power Yoga. I really feel like that was an amazing workout and that it will not only help my flexibility but my strength as well. I'll definitely be going back.

Shan - love the dog. What a cutie! I wish we lived in the same city...I think we follow similar workout plans with our running, power and now yoga too. If you love spinning then we're soul-workout-sisters! ;)

Pat - I've been where you are with the "man, that toilet is so far down to get to" feeling. But I enjoy it in a weird sort of way!!

:D

Shan, what a sweet little dog. I love the crossed paws. :lol:

Yah, Elisa, it's not totally a bad feeling, just kind of, um, inconvenient..... I'll be back at them hopefully tonight.