No More Playing Around...Time to Reach My Goals!!!

Lyadeia

I have finally done it. I have finally reached that point where it is time to stop playing around and time to get serious about my health and fitness.

I have been on the road to weight loss for a long time, but by adding in cheats here and there and taking breaks from working out, I don't seem to be getting very far on my journey at all. But that all stops NOW!!!

I used to be 191 pounds...and this was when I was still only 5'2" tall. I tried so many things to lose weight, but I guess I was just avoiding the obvious...I had to change my eating habits and start working out regularly if I wanted to change my body composition for good.

In 2007 I ordered Power 90 off of an infomercial that I saw while I was at work. I didn't want to buy a gym membership, so I thought that $50 to workout in my livingroom would be perfect. I lost a lot of weight and inches and moved on to Tony' extreme program, P90X.

In 2008 I completed P90X and I was down to 128 pounds. I even won Beachbody's monthly contest for success stories in March of 2008 and they gave me a cash prize and put me on TV. And then...for some reason...I let myself go again.

Throughout 2009 and 2010, I was exercising, but not regularly. I was eating better than I was when I was obese, but I still wasn't eating within my calorie limits daily and keeping track of things like saturated fats or sugars. So, I lost some weight, I gained some weight...and at the end of 2010 I was still around 145 pounds which is what I started 2009 weighing.

I am thoroughly sick of starting workout programs not finishing them. I am sick of eating clean for 2 weeks followed by 4 straight "cheat days" and finishing up the same weight as I started. I am tired of going out to eat whenever I don't want to cook. I am tired of making excuses for myself when it comes to working out. I am tired of it all, and it is all my fault. It's time for a change, and I am making that change right NOW.

I am reorganizing, re prioritizing, and reclaiming my health and fitness!!!'

I have joined a challenge on Facebook with Chalene Johnson (Turbo Fire, ChaLEAN Extreme, and Turbo Kick creator) called "30 Day Challenge to Master Organization and Achieve Your Goals in 2011." After just 2 days in the challenge I have gained a head start on my goals for this year and how to manage things in my life in order to reach my goals even faster. I'm also using the principles she is teaching about there to further my fitness so I can finally reach my goals this year...and I WILL reach them this year!!!

In December, I made out a plan for my new exercise program. It's really quite simple as I will be following the Classic P90X schedule, only I am taking out Plyo X and Kenpo X replacing those with various Turbo Kick rounds (as a VIP instructor, I get new rounds mailed to me as soon as they are released so I have tons of DVDs to choose from). I have also decided that on days when I feel energetic enough to do so, I will be doing a second quick cardio routine such as Zumba, Turbo Jam, or the Cardio Axe workout from the Brazil Butt Lift program. I am not going to do a strictly doubles schedule, but simply add those in periodically to increase my heart rate throughout the day and burn more calories. I have written my plan down and I am ready to start!

Starting the day after Thanksgiving, I have been doing a lot of research on food. I fully understand that you can lose weight eating cakes, pies, and other things like that periodically and in moderation...HOWEVER, that is NOT what I will be doing. I want to change my lifestyle when it comes to food. Food is fuel for my body, not merely something to shove in my mouth every few hours when I am hungry. I want to fuel my body properly with the highest quality foods that will keep my body healthy and in good physical shape. So while I am not cutting out those "bad for you" foods completely, they are NOT part of my diet "in moderation" but are rather things that I will treat myself only on rare occasions such as a piece of cake on someone's birthday as opposed to all the time. I will not even have cookies and the like in my house. It's not good for you, and I won't have it. It might work for others, but that's not what I personally want.

I have a notebook in my house regarding the research on food...and I have made meal plans with delicious foods to help me reach my goals of lowering cholesterol and triglycerides as well as reducing body fat and weight. By the time I go to the beach this August, I will look completely different than I do right now, and I will be in the best shape of my life.

Every 30 days I will be taking body measurements and weight and recording them along with pictures of me in my cutest bikini to compare each month. I've already taken my Day 1 measurements today, and I am not impressed at all, lol. :blushing: But I refuse to give up or give in!!! I will reach my goals, and I think I should even have lowered my goal weight for the end of the year just to keep me motivated to continue!!!

So at any rate, if you have read through this long rant, I need YOU to help me stay motivated and continue on!!! I start my program TOMORROW, JANUARY 3. And I would LOVE for you to join me and help me out! We will help each other out on this journey and reach our goals together. It doesn't matter what workouts you do or if you eat like I do, we just need each other to help us stay on track and keep accountable. So what do you say? Will you join me on this journey through 2011?

bsweettt

I just have to say that I love your profile picture!- I found that a while ago and saved it because it's just so great and motivating!

Lyadeia

Thanks, it really does describe my body, too. I gain most of my weight in my stomach and butt which makes me a classic pear shape...which I hate!!! :bigsmile:

rjlam

You are a great motivator. You stated exacly what I feel. I have been on the same merry-go-round for the past several years and it's time to get off and get my butt in gear. Pls keep in touch. Would love it if we can motivate each other. Thanks for taking the courage to write what I was thinking.

PJilly

I read through your entire rant, and I'd love to join you on your journey! I've reached my goals and am doing pretty well staying consistent with my workouts and my eating, but I am finding maintenance to be a little more challenging than I expected it to be. So, in a nutshell, I don't want to find myself in a position to have to start all over again. I love the way you write, and I think we have some pretty similar philosophies, so count me in. Happy New Year!

bsweettt

unfortunately/fortunately I'm a pear shape as well!!- I can honestly say that i'd rather have hips/butt than none at all! curves are sexy! embrace! =]

Lyadeia

You are a great motivator. You stated exacly what I feel. I have been on the same merry-go-round for the past several years and it's time to get off and get my butt in gear. Pls keep in touch. Would love it if we can motivate each other. Thanks for taking the courage to write what I was thinking.

I have been thinking these things for such a long time, and I think once I finally came out and said them and wrote them here, it gave me more motivation to really get started! I am looking forward to it! :flowerforyou:

Lyadeia

I read through your entire rant, and I'd love to join you on your journey! I've reached my goals and am doing pretty well staying consistent with my workouts and my eating, but I am finding maintenance to be a little more challenging than I expected it to be. So, in a nutshell, I don't want to find myself in a position to have to start all over again. I love the way you write, and I think we have some pretty similar philosophies, so count me in. Happy New Year!

I completely understand about how difficult maintaining can be. That's where I was a couple of years ago, but after one trip to the beach and going out to eat all the time throughout the summer with my then new boyfriend (now fiance!) it started me on the track backwards with the weight. I could push through P90X and Insanity workouts with no problem, so I figured I was in great shape and didn't need to push as hard. And well, I gained like 20 pounds back and ended up right here where I am.

I'm sure that we can keep each other on track and when I get back to my goal weight again we can help each other maintain! :bigsmile:

Lyadeia

unfortunately/fortunately I'm a pear shape as well!!- I can honestly say that i'd rather have hips/butt than none at all! curves are sexy! embrace! =]

I don't mind curves, but my...um...upper torso measurement (that shouldn't sound lewd, I think? lol) is entirely too small and disproportionate. Buying bras is insanely difficult and there are some really cute ones from Victoria's Secret that just don't even come in my size to begin with. If I could just reduce the stomach and butt some so they don't totally overshadow everything else, it wouldn't be so bad. Or maybe if a surgeon would offer me a buy one get one free sale on boobs...hahahahaha!!! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

PJilly

Wouldn't it be amazing if we could change our overall body shapes to what we wanted? I'm the opposite of pear shape. And while I wouldn't trade my broad shoulders if I could, I'd love to have some more hips/butt to balance things out. I guess hourglass is my dream shape, but that's not my reality. *Sigh.* Oh well, that's why we just make the best of what we have, I suppose, and learn to be happy with that.

Lyadeia

OK, everyone, I am going to put myself out on a limb and post my Day 1 beginning stats. I am soooo annoyed that I let myself even get like this!!! And yes, I know that there are lots of others that are worse off than me, but my problem is that I was at my goal and then went backwards. So very uncool. :explode:

I measured quite a few places on me and will measure the exact same spots every 30 days. Here's my list of measurements (all measured in inches):

Chest: 36
Natural Waist: 32
Belly Button: 33
Pooch: 37 (By "pooch" I mean that lower ab area above the hips that carries the most fat in my middle)
Hips: 40
Arms (un-flexed bicep area): 11.5
Thighs (standing tall with tape around the chunkiest part): 23.5

I weighed myself this morning at 144 pounds. I bought a brand new scale this afternoon which I will be using from now on, so I will record my weight and body fat percentage again tomorrow morning since I prefer to weigh myself each time when I first wake up after going to the bathroom (I tend to weigh less at that time).

For body fat percentage, I have decided to use 2 different ways to measure this. I have a calculator that uses age, waist measurement, and weight to calculate body fat. Also, my new scale uses BIA to calculate body fat. I realize that both ways are not entirely accurate, but if I can see a progression from both, that would make me happy. The calculator told me using 144 pounds and 32 inches for the waist that my body fat is 31%. I will recalculate this tomorrow when I get my new measurements from the new scale. I am excited cause this is the first scale that measures in 0.2 pound increments which will be more precise. After all, my old scale might say 144 today and 144 tomorrow while the new scale would say 144.8 versus 144.2 which would make me happy seeing that I lost over half a pound.

You don't have to post any of your measurements, but I feel like it is a great way to stay accountable if you keep track of the facts and let others help you out there.

I'm so glad that you guys have decided to join me!

BoresEasily

Great post. I love how you opened yourself up and are forcing yourself to stay accountable. I just have one suggestion that comes from a show I have been watching. They try on outfits and then find one that will show off their figure when finished. The trainer then orders it in a size smaller. The outfit is used to motivate them to work harder. You mentioned the summer and I thought why not go shopping for a swim suit and then order it 1-2 sizes smaller to help motivate you. Just a thought. You strike me as a very strong willed woman and I think you will smash this. I wish you all the best on your journey ahead.

BoresEasily

One more thing. Is that facebook challenge open to the public?

Shannonk507

I am in! I will also go look for the group on FB. I am Shannonk507 on FB too if anyone wants to find me there. Just say you saw a post here so I know who you are. Can never have too many friends.....

Lyadeia

One more thing. Is that facebook challenge open to the public?

It is open to anyone who wants to join. I will post the link below. You have to first be added to the group (Chalene will add everyone that requests, so no worries there) Then you have to sign up on Chalene's website which is listed on the group page on FB so you can get the daily emails from her that come with a video about what to do each day for the challenge. It's been really cool so far because it has helped me to think about what's really important to me and make priorities. She's going to go over goal-setting from those priorities next. It all sounds sooo easy, and I guess it really IS easy, but when you follow the step and write things down it somehow cements the process and really helps you to see where you are and where you are going. :flowerforyou:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_140997542620119&id=144403178946222&notif_t=like#!/home.php?sk=group_140997542620119&ap=1

Lyadeia

Great post. I love how you opened yourself up and are forcing yourself to stay accountable. I just have one suggestion that comes from a show I have been watching. They try on outfits and then find one that will show off their figure when finished. The trainer then orders it in a size smaller. The outfit is used to motivate them to work harder. You mentioned the summer and I thought why not go shopping for a swim suit and then order it 1-2 sizes smaller to help motivate you. Just a thought. You strike me as a very strong willed woman and I think you will smash this. I wish you all the best on your journey ahead.

I will have to try that. I will probably buy something like pair of jean shorts because I think a lot of swimsuits are really stretchy and might give me a false sense of accomplishment...and I don't wanna be one wearing the too small suit cause I can squeeze it on, lol!!!

Lyadeia

I am in! I will also go look for the group on FB. I am Shannonk507 on FB too if anyone wants to find me there. Just say you saw a post here so I know who you are. Can never have too many friends.....

I totally agree, you definitely can not have too many friends! Especially when you are trying to reach goals, because I think friends are what really motivates a lot of us to push harder. I don't know why people are more willing to stay accountable to others as opposed to themselves, but it's true, lol. :drinker:

If you look me up on Facebook, the easiest way is probably by my email address listed here which is mrs_obi_wan@hotmail.com and my picture is me and my fiance. There's lots of people with my name, which is rather annoying, so email address is easiest to search for me with! :happy:

pamp1emousse

Can I join you? I've been battling with these last 7lbs forever and now that it's the new year I'm ready to be serious about it too. Your rant was great! I've been too scared to see the damage on the scales since my Christmas binges so I don't know my stats atm - I know I've put on loads though. I was going to wait until the 14th to take my measurements and log it all but I'm going to take inspiration from this thread and do it first thing tomorrow morning. No point in lying to myself!
Wonderful thread!

Lyadeia

Of course you can join me! I'd be glad to have you. We can never have enough friends to help motivate us. :flowerforyou:

As for my weight...I stepped on my new scale this morning and got the following results for weight and body fat:

145.2 pounds
35.5% body fat

Not at all good news, but definitely a starting point. I am going to go have a nice breakfast with some ice cold water...hope you guys are having a great day as well.

PJilly

Well, I decided to take measurements today for the first time since last spring. Now I remember why I stopped doing it! I don't have much faith in the accuracy — at least when I'm the one doing the measuring. I can measure a body part three times and get three different numbers. But here's roughly what I came up with, measuring the same parts I used to track:

Bust: 36.5
Chest: 31.5
Waist: 28.5
Hips: 35.5
Midway (between waist and hips): 33
Thighs: 20
Knees: 13
Calves: 14
Upper arms: Need an assistant for this one
Forearms: Need an assistant for this one too

My weight is 141, which is just outside the top end of my goal range of 135-140. Thanks to Christmas cookies and other holiday treats for breaking 140 for the first time in months.

Last time I had my body comp done, it was 23.5%, and I weighed 138 then, so it's probably a little higher than that — unless the cookies added lean weight, but I seriously doubt that. :laugh:

PJilly

P.S. I'm 5'6".

Lyadeia

Of course Christmas cookies are nothing but lean weight! That's why I was able to have so many!!! :laugh: :happy: :laugh: Seriously though, I think I was doing good maintaining from Thanksgiving until Christmas, and then for Christmas I decided to bake pound cake, peanut butter cookies, and a Greek pastry called tsoureke made mostly of butter and sugar...and then my mom made fudge, cheesecake, and chocolate chip cookies...and then Justin's mom made fudge...and ALL OF IT ended up in my kitchen and in my mouth daily. I am not proud to say it, but after Christmas, I was eating that garbage for breakfast and at every snack. I can guarantee that the reason my weight went up instead of maintaining after Christmas was all that mess. :sad: :sad: :sad:

I guess I should add my height too. I am 5'5" tall...or 5'4" if you listen to the previous doctor I used to see. He insisted that's how tall I was even though everyone else measures me an inch taller, lol.

Today's workout kicked my butt so bad!!! I have lost so much muscular strength and endurance that it makes me want to cry. I struggled with assisted pull-ups of every kind, I couldn't do any more than 20 push-ups of any kind, and some of them like the diamond push-ups were far less (I only did 10 of those the first time, and 8 the second round), and I didn't make it to 25 reps on ANY of the moves in Ab Ripper X. OMG, I used to be like a little powerhouse and I let it go away. :mad: It makes me really mad at myself. But, that is just MORE motivation to keep on doing P90X every single day and never miss a workout because I want to get back to where I was before.

My heart rate monitor said that I burned 722 calories...but that seems a little high? I want so bad to get a Bodybugg, but haven't been able to save up enough money for one yet. I think those are more accurate than my cheap-o HRM, but at least it gives me some idea of calories burned. At the very least I can use it to keep track of where my heart rate is and compare it to my perceived exertion and make sure that I am pushing through as hard as I can. Does anyone know where I can order a Bodybugg that doesn't cost $175 or more? I might check ebay later on.

I am going to go cook dinner now. It is a new recipe for me, but it sounds sooo tasty! I am having halibut with black bean relish and Greek salad from the ChaLEAN Extreme nutrition book, only I couldn't find fresh halibut so I am substituting with cod instead. (I don't like buying frozen fish, I prefer fresh from the seafood market so my fish recipes send to have lots of substitutions in them, lol). Time to go replenish the energy that was sucked out of my body. I mean, seriously, I literally ran out of energy during Ab Ripper X. It was crazy. I didn't realize I let myself slip back THAT much. :ohwell: :sad: :blushing:

Lyadeia

Wow, I just updated all my stats, and then my little fishy on my ticker swam backwards. How depressing. But, it's forwards and only forwards from now on!!!

And I looked at the other calculator for body fat using my new weight measurement and it says 30%. Still too high, but I like that number much better than 35.5%. I will be recording BOTH, though. :bigsmile:

pamp1emousse

722 is high, but perfectly possible! Especially if you haven't been exercising for a while? (I'm assuming it was like a 60min workout?) When I'm working hard I usually burn 10-12cals a minute - if you've got a normal burn you could always substitute than in instead? Either way, well done for getting back on the exercise wagon!!

So I weighed in today and horror of horrors - it's still the same as my xmas weigh-in. That's SIX POUNDS!!! :sad: :sad: :sad: That's a lot for someone working on the last 14 Anyway, I hope you all don't mind but that's just too heartbreaking for me to enter into MFP so I'm going to weigh myself everday for about a week, praying that the number miraculously goes back down to something reasonable like a 2-3lb gain.. I took my measurements again today but I'd actually stopped doing it for ages too (I'm with you PJilly) - I don't think it's reliable when I do it on myself seeing as I'm looking at 0.25 inch losses. Anyway, this is what I got...

Left arm - 9.5"
Left thigh - 20.5"
Bra line - 32.5"
Waist - 27.5"
Lovehandles - 32.3"

Lyadeia

OMG, it has been 12 hours since I worked out and I am already SORE!!! I haven't gone to sleep yet cause I work third shift and try to stay on that schedule on my days off too, but I can already feel my back, biceps, chest, and abs. Oi! :ohwell: I can just imagine how much more sore they will get when I wake up later on cause it always seems to get worse for me overnight. But, after the warm-up in my cardio routine, I am sure that the soreness will lessen. Cardio always seems to ease the pain for me.

If I was burning between 10-12 cals a minute, that means my total burn was actually between 550-660 calories. I think it was around 450 or so that I logged into MFP because I used their calculator for general circuit training. I was going to use the MFP calculation each day until I get my Bodybugg because I think it is safer to underestimate the calories burned than to overestimate them. I don't want to eat too much thinking I am doing good. I will most likely adjust one way or the other once I see what the Bodybugg is telling me, but for now I think the lower number is safe. I will just see how it goes for about 2 weeks with checking my stats constantly. :flowerforyou:

Lyadeia

Well I think I worked out most of my soreness today when I did Turbo Kick round 39. My HRM let me know my heart rate stayed between 185 and 191 the whole time after the warm-up. Yet I still find it hard to believe that I actually burned 862 calories in 48 minutes. I don't know, maybe when I get the bodybugg I will just be shocked to find out that my HRM was right all along. But until then I will still underestimate my calorie burn to be on the safe side!

pamp1emousse

Wow, high heart rate! Good for you! And yeah you're right about just logging 450 - and hopefully you'll see
One of my new years MFP resolutions is to do less cardio and spend more time on strength - at the end of last year I pretty much abandoned strength training so I could do more cardio to compensate for too much eating/drinking, but I really want to be toned - it's so attractive. I wonder if anyone knows... how often should I be increasing my weight or reps? Every week? Every month? I'd quite like to get 1 or 2 sessions with a personal trainer to make sure I'm doing this toning business properly.

So I checked my weight again today - down from 130.5 to 127.8 - much better but still way up from 124. Anyway, I'm safely out the 130s so I think I'll check in with that and hopefully it'll continue to go down :grumble:
Hows everyone doing?

Lyadeia

The best thing to do for strength training is first determine and write down exactly what exercises you will do on which days. You don't want to work the same muscle groups on consecutive days, and writing it down helps a lot.

Then, lift as heavy as possible so that you can get to between 10-12 reps on each exercise. If you lifted too light and can do more than 12 reps, pick a heavier weight next time. If you lifted to heavy and can't even do 10, then definitely pick something lighter next time. There is no set time or day to increase your weight, it is just whenever your body is ready for it. But you have to challenge yourself to stay at the correct weight for 10-12 reps. The fastest and easiest way to build lean muscle and get that toned look is to use the overload principle by lifting to muscle failure within the correct range, and then increasing weight when you feel you could lift beyond that range.

And no, this will NOT bulk you up unless you eat nothing but protein, take steroids, etc. Don't be afraid of heavy weight! It's also what keeps your metabolism up and burns more fat at rest so you can eat more food during the day. :flowerforyou:

Lyadeia

Oh, and congrats on getting out of the 130s!!! I can't wait until I reach that goal.

This morning I weighed in for the Biggest Loser contest that we are doing at work, and their stupid scale said I was 148. I guess I will believe it though since I normally weigh in right after waking up, but this time it was right before going to sleep. Plus, at home, I'm not exactly wearing anything when I step on the scale, lol, and at work I was wearing a turtleneck and pants. Even if it is just a half a pound, it still make a difference. And our bodies fluctuate so much within 1 day that the normal 3 pound fluctuation must have gotten on the scale with me this morning, haha. :blushing:

I have decided to weigh in at least once a week just to see how I am doing and compare the body fat % numbers that the scale gives me as well. I know that I can't possibly be GAINING body fat doing what I am doing and eating what I am eating, so if the bf% goes up at all ever on my scale, I will stop using that number and go with the calculator that I found online. That's a lower number anyway. I know that during the first month the pounds normally don't budge, especially for people closer to their goal (I need to shed about 20 pounds which is a lot closer to my goal than I used to be), but the body fat % should change since I know that I am losing it. :happy:

P90X Shoulders & Arms is coming up later today! I hope I don't get ultra sore from that one...

PJilly

Man, I've had such a busy week that I haven't done a very good job keeping up with this thread, and I haven't checked out the Facebook challenge. But the good news is that I've kept up with my workouts and have been doing great with my eating. I think I'm finally over that sugar-craving hump. Thank goodness for that! I just scheduled an appointment for a body comp this Friday, so I'll report that number once I know what it is. I'm pretty sure my last one was right around 23.5% fat. I'll dig that out and report it as well once I have the update. Whatever it was, I think it's going to be slightly higher now. And whatever it is now, it will be lower next time, and at this point, that's what matters most. :bigsmile:

Lyadeia

Jill, I have been incredibly busy as well! I just sit down at the computer for maybe 10 minutes at a time when I run past this room, lol. Great job keeping you with your workouts! And it's a nice feeling be over the sugar cravings. Good job!

I did much better today than I did Monday with my strength routine! My chest and back were still a little sore, but I was able to work most of that out. I bet my biceps and triceps will be talking to me tomorrow though!!! Just in time for some yoga. :bigsmile:

Actually, tomorrow is going to be really rough on me. I get off of work at 7am and then have to go home and get a couple of hours of sleep because I have to be back at work for a couple of hours at 1:30 in the afternoon. Then I get to go home again and sleep for maybe a couple more hours if I am lucky...and then, you guessed it, go back in to work at 11pm for my normal scheduled work day. I am a police officer, and I have to go to court on someone else's case tomorrow in the afternoon which makes me soooo mad because normally court is at 9am. And that time is just fine for me cause I stay at work, go to court, then go home and sleep and wake up and do my regular afternoon schedule after that. This 1:30 thing is going to make tomorrow hard. I am going to try hard to get that workout in, but it is a 90 minute one...I might substitute for a shorter one. I don't know yet. I just don't want to miss out because it takes 21 days to form a habit. and this will be a bump in the road on day 4. Blah!