Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Halloween~~~~

How is everyone? What is everyone doing for Halloween? I didn't purchase any candy at all this year, we get so few kids in my complex that I'm not even going to tempt fate by bringing the candy into the house. Instead I picked up a half dozen Tim Horton's cards that I put 2.00 each on and if we get any kids, they can have a treat at Timmies, if we don't , well then my husband has his IceCaps pre paid for the next couple of weeks.

I'm working today and decided at the last minute to dress up. I didn't have a costume on hand so I decided to go as a Participant. Yes, a participant to a Run. Now because I have a team that does the CIBC Run for the Cure, that's who I'm dressed as this year, but on my waist pack I have my buttons from the Weekend to End Breast Cancer as well.

Tomorrow is November 1st and I'll be getting back on line a ilttle bit more. After doing all of the work for putting the Run on this year, when it was all done and finished with, my husband asked me to give myself a break from the computer. In the lead up to the Run in Septmeber and the early part of October I would be on the computer first thing in the morning, as soon as I got home from work (usually for an hour or two) then again for an hour before bed. I'd get up at 530am adn I'd be back on the computer for another hour.

I totally understood where he was coming from. I was tired of the computer. I didn't want to check e-mail (of which i had four different accounts to check), I didn't want to go on face book, (I got tired of doing updates for the run, the activites, creating events, managing the events etc.) So, after three weeks of being mostly computer free, I'm giong to go back to checking my personal e-mail, to reading the blogs I follow and keeping you all up to date with how I'm doing.

This week got me back into the swing of things. I spent 6 hours in teh pool this week, which I am really incredibly greatful for. It felt so good to get my muscles warmed up and moving in the water. I'm going to try going back to the gym to work out as well. I miss the elliptical, I miss the treadmill and I miss the weights. I'm going to make an appointment with my doctor and get his clearance before I do so but it's been four months since I started working the water. I haven't had my knee go out from under me in all of that time so I think it may be a good time to get going again.

Have a great day everyone! Happy Halloween!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Thanksgiving

..so how was your Thanksgiving? I ended up having two of them. Yes! Two! I was a little freaked out at first that I was going to have to sit through two turkey dinners, deserts and everything else and I was honestly VERY nervous about it. I decided going in that I would have a plan of attack ready and raring to go. On Saturday I ate very little during the day, I had breakfast, and I had a light lunch(bowl of soup). I got home from work and I was hungry, hungry, hungry! I knew that dinner would be at 7pm so I filled up my water bottle and drank some water. When we went over to our friends for dinner, they had some cheese and crackers out, I helped myself to a few and then put my plate aside. I sipped some water and when it came time to eat dinner. I was very proud of myself. I took a little bit of several things, but not everything. I only had one helping of everything, a little bit of gravy and that was it. I did indulge in desert. Pumpkin Pie! My favorite, it was home made pumpkin pie and I had a little piece along with a little dollop of whipped cream. I was satified. I wasn't over stuffed as I usually get during these types of meals.

I was proud of myself. Especially considering that I had weigh in to do the next morning. I was a little apprehensive on Sunday morning. I didn't get to the gym at all last week as I wasn't feeling well and I was still running around doing Run stuff. I have to say though that I was happy! I stayed the same! Now that may not seem like a huge accomplishment to some, but considering that I had lost 4 pounds the week before, I had eaten out 3 times and I had a turkey dinner. Well, all in all, I was very happy.

Sunday was a nice relaxing day, my husband and I tranferred most of the run stuff from our basement to the storage closet and for dinner we had home made Cream of Mushroom soup. - Non Fat! and sandwiches for dinner. Again we ate light, knowing that on Monday we were heading over to my parents house where we as a family have a tradition of cooking enough food to feed a small army!

My husband and I had a light breaksfast of muffins and tea and then we held off during the day. We headed over to my parents house around 2 in the afternoon and instead of the usual chips and dips and lots of appetizer's. My mom didn't put anything out at all. I was soooo very thankful for that! It meant that I wouldn't graze all afternoon while we prepared dinner and then sit down to a full dinner. By the time dinner time came around, I was very hungry, but common sense prevailed, I took a little bit of most things, and a little bit of gravy. For desert I had picked up a pumpkin pie at my local grocery store and I had a small piece, this time without ice cream or whipped cream. I was truly satisfied. I wasn't groaning from being full or feeling sick to my stomach from being over stuffed.

This was a true Non Scale Victory for me. I'm not afraid to say no when the platters are coming around for the second time. It feels GREAT to be in Control. So what am I thankful for? A loving, caring and understanding family who understands the struggle I'm going through and is helping me over come it!

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Aqua spinning.

So, as you know if you've been reading my blog for any length of time, I have a knee injury that has prevented me from working out on land as much as I would like to. So the specialist suggested I get in the water. I'm fine with swimming laps, but I wanted to kick it up a notch or two as well. I tried Aqua fit a couple of times but the bouncing up and down was aggravating my knee.

Now while I was in the shallow end of the pool, in the deep end there were people on pool noodles and it looked like they were having a lot of fun as well. I asked at the front desk what was going on in the deep end and I was advised that they were Aqua Spinning. It's a more intense workout as you have to keep moving to keep floating, they use pool noodles or waist type floatation devices but you still have to keep your legs moving as though you were riding a stationary bike. Thus the Aqua Spining.

Now, I have to admit I thought at first it would be easy, but let me tell you, when you are sitting on this noodle and you are pedaling away as though you were on a bike, it takes a lot of work. Then you add in the arm movements, the resistance and the constant circling of the deep end of the pool and you get one heck of a workout. I thoroughly enjoy my Aquafit class, and in fact I now have my Brother in Law attending class with me.

Check out your local leisure centre and see if they offer it, give it a shot, I promise, you'll love it!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Whew!!!

That was a busy few weeks but the Run for the Cure in Abbotsford went off for the most part without a hitch and I am now returning to the land of actually having time to breathe! YEAH! I have a few more run related events coming up, I also have to tidy up my basement! It currently looks as though the Run for the Cure threw up all over my house! My basement has become the temporary storage area for everything until we can get it all sorted, packed and labelled so that the people who need it next year will have it.

Working with the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, CIBC Run for the Cure has been an enlightening experience. As with any major event's, you don't go without your hiccups or false starts but we did it! We had a phenomenal turn out at this year's race with over 1800 participants, over $291,000(and still counting) and we had over 100 volunteers help out. It was indeed a sight to be seen and it's something that I am very proud to have been a part of! See some of my amazing committee below!




So now what? Now that the Run is done, life is coming back to normal what's next for Katie? Getting moving again. I haven't done a lot of swimming the past two weeks, simply no time! However, I figure I did enough excercise on Saturday and Sunday make up for that and the next two weeks as well. I will be hitting the pool at 8am tomorrow morning for my aqua spinning class. I'm off of work as I work on the weekend and I'm quite happy to be able to take in an aqua spin class. I've missed going for the past two weeks so this is a good thing to my way of thinking!

So I hope you all have a fabulous Friday, and I WILL be talking to to you tomorrow! Have a great evening everyone!

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Doing all right.

Hi Everyone~~~~~~~~~

I'm still here and I'm doing all right. Work has been insanely busy with product launches, training, new promotions and the usual insanity that comes along with it. I've also been incredibly busy getting ready for the Run for the Cure. I'm the Co-Run Director in Charge of Logistics for the Abbotsford/Fraser Valley, Canadian Breast Cancer Foundaton, CIBC Run for the Cure. As the run is literally 3 weeks away, I have a tonne of stuff to get accomplished and very little time to get it done in. Add to that all of the fund raising events that are happening and I'm beginning to wonder if I'm going to lose my mind by the time everything is said and done, but it is all good.

I am keeping on track with points and activity. I actually hit a new high of 17 laps today at the pool in 45 minutes AND I've moved in to the medium speed lane. I think this is a good thing.

This coming week is the calm before the storm. I only have one run related meeting and no conference call this week, however next week is when the flurry of activity hits into high gear.

In case you didn't know the Run for the Cure is the Largest Volunteer driven event in Canada. Each run site is put together with a committee of volunteers who volunteer their time, and energy to pull the run together and make sure it goes off without a hitch. You can do one of two runs, a 1km fun run/walk or a 5km walk/run. All of the money raised goes to support breast cancer awareness, support and research.

If you haven't already registered for the run in your area,or would like more information go to www.runforthecure.com find the run site nearest you and see what it's all about. If you don't want to particpate, you can always volunteer or go down to the urn site on run day and cheer on the participants. I guarantee, you won't regret it!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Bad Blogger!

Yes I've been a bad blogger! I haven't been blogging. I keep meaning to and then before I know it, I'm laying in bed and I'm thinking to myself. I didn't blog again!

I'm sorry....it's been an eventful two weeks and I've had quite a few Non Scale Victories. The swimming is going well. I'm still enjoying it and I managed to find two new tankini tops that will hopefully get me through the winter. I've been busy attending all sorts of product training. It's that time of year in the travel industry when all of the suppliers host their breakfast or dinner training shows. I've been pretty busy with work, and volunteer stuff for the CBCF CIBC Run for the Cure, but my hubby and I even managed to get down to Seattle last saturday to take in a ball game. The Minnesota Twins were in Seattle! It was a fun day filled with lots to do and see.

So that's been the past two weeks in a very small nut shell. Now onto the exciting stuff!

Non Scale Victory #1? I got my Tankini's in SEARS! Yes indeed, I was able to buy not one, but two tankini's in SEARS! YEAH! They were even on sale, so it was like two for the price of one! YEAH ME!

Non Scale Victory #2? I managed to get swimming in every day, even if it meant getting up at 6am to head to the pool to swim laps before work as I had after work training sessions.

Non Scale Victory #3? I managed to eat healthily despite dinner presentations and in the five shows I attended I only had one desert and that was a fruit desert that only cost me 4 points(including the whipped cream!)

Non Scale Victory #4? Even at the ball game, fast food mecca that it is, between the foot long hot dogs, the hamburgers the size of your head, the Ivars Fish and Chips, the Garlic Fries, the Nachos...I could go on and on, I ate healthily. How do you ask? Safeco field has Sushi! That's right, I had california rolls at the ball game and they only cost me 6 points! WAHOO!! Dinner on the way home was a salad with grilled chicken with low fat vinagrette on the side..... Oh HAPPY DANCE!!!
I took in a ball game, ate out Breakfast, lunch and dinner and still had points left to munch on Smart Pop microwave popcorn later that night!

So...how was your week?

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Aqua Fit.

I'm thinking that my Rec centre should be giving me a discount, last week I brought my mom and introduced her to Aquafit. Last night, it was my sister, my brother in law, and my next door neighbour! YEAH US!!! I went to the pool right after work, did 15 laps today! WAHOO!!! Then I got out of the pool to rest for a few minutes before starting Aqua Fit. We had a sub instructor today and I have to tell you, I really enjoyed her better than our usual instructor. She was fabulous! All in all, I earned 17 activity points! How do you like them apples! Have a great Tuesday everyone!

Monday, August 23, 2010

Still no excuses!!!

I'm sorry...I really am, I'm still here, I've just been so blinking busy! I really and truly have. I have been meaning to get caught up but I haven't had a chance so let's do a real quick recap of the past five days.

1. Wednesday night, I went to aquafit class and my mom, who is terrified of water and hates it with a passion, (and rightfully so, I may add). Went to her doctor and he was happy with the progress of her blood pressure and her diabetes, but told her he wanted her to get moving, even if it was just moving back and forth in the water. So...long story short, and what should be a blog in and of itself, my mom came to aqua fit, she stayed by the wall so that she could hold onto it but she did it and I'm soooo proud of her!

2. Thursday was a typical work day and I hit the pool on my way home from work, managed to do my 13 laps again. Happy day happy day! Stayed on track with points and all!

3. Friday, was supposed to be a day off, but I ended up having to go into Burnaby for a training session so I was up and on the road by 6am, had a meeting with my co run director for the Run for the Cure, came home, made dinner...then took the dog for a nice walk instead of swimming, truth be told, I forgot to hang my suit up on Thursday night, it was still wet on Friday when I realized that my gym bag was still in the trunk so no swimming on Friday.

4. Saturday. I needed to get another tankini top as yesterday's experience was sticking in my craw a little bit, so off my mom and I went to find one. Went to AdditionElle, went to Pennington's and they both had nothing left. Ended up buying a one piece swim suit that I've had to take apart and remake as it was too big for me, but oh well. Saturday night, we test drove that newly remade tankini top and hit the pool. I did 15 laps on saturday. Wahoo!!

Sunday!!!!! Dohm, da dah de dohm....WEIGH IN DAY!!!!
EEEEKKKK!!! The weigh in has not done so good for me the past couple of week so I was a little nervous about it but for no real reason, down almost 3 pounds!!! WAHOOO!!!!

There's something to be said for this swimming after all! My husband and I decided that we were going to do a road trip so we packed up Angus and headed out to Keremeos to buy our canning fruit and tomato's. 40 pounds of tomato's to pack this week and I just don't know when the heck I'm going to get it done! That's another post though...back to sunday, so after driving round trip 546km's, what did Katie do? Did she sit on the couch and veg? Crawl into bed and nap? Start canning? None of the above! Katie went swimming! YEAH ME!!!! No excuses means no excuses and right now, I'm rocking the no excuse thing!

Have a fabulous monday everyone....

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Faster...or...better????

I'm entering into week three of my new excercise regime swimming. My goal has been to swim 10 laps or 20 lengths of the pool. I have stayed on track and tried my hardest to keep swimming the whole way. There are a few times when I have had to stop as I'm sure I've just swallowed half of the water in the pool, but I keep going once I get my breath back.

Last night I worked until 530, and length swim is from 530 to 630. The first week of swimming, it was taking me almost the full hour to get my ten laps in. I was a little nervous last night as I wasn't sure if I would be able to get all 10 laps in. I arrived at the pool, quickly changed, showered and hit the pool at extactly 545pm. I got started on my laps and just went. There weren't that many people in the slow lane so I don't know really know if I was swimming faster than I have been. Or, if I've just gotten better. I was done my 10 laps in the pool and looked up at the big time clock as I finished my last lap and it was 618pm. I was in the water for not even 40 minutes yet I hit my goal of number of laps!

So the big question today....am I swimming faster, or just better? Am I improving my form or was it the time pressure in my mind that I had limited time to get my laps in? I guess I may have to judge it tonight when I hit the water. What do you think?

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Pizza anyone?

So I had my pizza for dinner last night at my meeting. I had been looking forward to it all day. It has been at least three or four months since I last had pizza. I have learned that it's not all it's cracked up to be. I had my pizza becuase I was hungry and there weren't any other options. It was all right, it wasn't fabulous, it didn't make my body sing with joy. In fact just the opposite! I have to come to the conclusion today that my body, no longer likes pizza. It didn't have a pleasant effect on me in the middle of the night. My body let me know in no uncertain terms that pizza is no longer for me, my body was not happy with me!

So, out next meeting is in two weeks and again we'll be having pizza. I think I'll squeeze in dinner before I head to the meeting. At least that way my body with be happy with me!

Monday, August 16, 2010

No Excuses!

I have decided after last week's gain, I'm having a week of no excuses. There is no excuse not to exercise, there is no excuse not to eat properly, there is no excuse not to count my points! NO EXCUSES ALLOWED!!!

I have a busy day today, at work all day, and then a run meeting to organize and go to tonight. We're having pizza brought in for the meeting (I'm allowing myself one piece of veggie pizza) but with the timing of getting off of work and getting to the pool, and getting to my meeting, I realized last night that going to the pool would have to fall to the way side today.

I didn't get to the pool yesterday as I was working and we had company over, so I knew in my heart of hearts that I could not miss another day of swimming. No excuses!!

I didn't plan it but this morning when I got up with the dog at 545am, (yes he's an early riser and my husband and I take turns taking him out). I decided that instead of lounging around in the morning as I usually do, I would go to the pool. I did it! I went to the pool, arrived at 630AM, did my ten laps, and left the pool at 715am.

I'm thinking this is the best way to conquer this NO EXCUSES thing I've got going on this week! LOL!

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Weigh in day

So today was my weigh in day. It didn't go well, it sucked. I was up almost a pound. I'm really surprised as I got in a lot of activity and I was careful with my points, but that's the way the ball bounces sometimes. So although I would like to put a big -Xpounds on here, I have to do the opposite and put +1 pound.

I did do pretty good today with my points, I was working by myself at the office and I always struggle with that, but I did drink my water and I brought my lunch with me which helps a lot. It meant that I didn't have to go to the food court or the vending machines. Which means that I stayed on plan even though I was feeling down about my weight gain.

However, today is a new day, the start of a new week so onwards and upwards!(or should that be downwards...you know what I mean though!)

This week may be a little bit harder than I would like. I didn't get my swim in today as the pool doesn't have a morning length swim and I couldn't go afterwork as we had company over for dinner. I won't be able to go tomorrow night after work as I have a meeting for the CBCF CIBC Run for the Cure. I'll have to make it up somehow. Not to worry though, I'll figure it out!

Saturday, August 14, 2010

I'm on track....

...I realize it's been a while....all right it's been more than a month! But! I'm still here, and I'm on track. I've hit quite a few forks in the road in the last month but I'm doing really good again. I'm back on program, back to exercising and doing my best.

If you remember, I did the Weekend to end Women's Cancer's last year for the 2nd year in a row. Around Km53, I got a very sharp pain through my right knee and that pretty much ended the walk for me. It was to painful to walk and I hobbled my way to the medical tent and then took a sweeper van to the finish area where I hobbled down the last 500 meters of the walk to cross the finish line.

Well, I finally got my appointment with the specialist. I'm still on the waiting list for an MRI but with my leg giving out on me constantly and me actually falling off of exercise equipment and hurting my self, may family doctor sent me to see the specialist.

Dr. Rose was very nice, he sent me for a new batch of x-rays and two weeks after our initial consultation my husband came with me to see what the good Dr. had to say. Turns out, he can't quite diagnose me without the MRI. He thought I may have a stress fracture in my knee but the x-rays just couldn't see it clearly. He didn't want to send me for a bone scan as he didn't feel that would help us with the issue.

So what the doctor suggested is that my knee could quite simply be giving out. I'm very active and as he put it, I've got "extra load factors" on my knee. He told me to stop walking, stop stairclimbing, stop ellipticalling and get in the water!

Yes! Me! In water!!!!

To be perfectly honest I was upset! I haven't been in a bathing suit in too many years to count. I stopped swimming when I was about 16 years old and other people at the pool (kids mostly) would call me names as I was swimming. You can only handle being called a whale so many times before you stop going.

So here I am for the first time in over twenty years, donning a bathing suit and going into the water. I did have a bathing suit, it's hardly been worn but I wasn't comfortable with how it looks. It's a tankini, and the top is very nice but my concern is the that the bottom doesn't cover everything that it probably should so I found a pair of shorts I could wear and I've gotten into the pool.

It does amaze me that even though I haven't swam in over 20 years, it all comes back to you pretty quickly. Swimming is like riding a bike. You just remember how to do it. It's amazing isn't ithow our little kid just wants to come out and play? I have to re-learn the breathing techniques, I would love to be able to swim under water again but I'm enjoying my swimming. I try to go the pool at least four days a week for length swim. I'll be heading there tonight when I'm done work.

Question for the day....do you Swim? How do you measure your exertion level when swimming?

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Barely Hangin in...

..it's been a rough week. I've caught myself the mother of all summer colds! I hate being sick and being sick when it's hot and cold inside (air conditioning at work going on and off) just makes it that much worse. I'm going to work and by the time I get home I'm so tired I just sit on the couch like a bump on a log.

I'm crabby and grumpy and I don't know how my poor husband puts up with me but he does. Ah well. I'm probably mid way through this cold thing so hopefully by the weekend it will be a thing of history and I will get back to working out and being active.

In the meantime, I have no appetite, can't stomach food, so I'm not overly worried about counting my points. I'm basically living on toast and apple juice. MEH! Talk to you all later when I'm feeling better. Have a good day everyone!

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Busy week....

I always find it so amazing how time flies by when you have a huge to do list and have a lot of plans. This past week flew by with barely any notice! I tell you!

I meant to get back into blogging every night before I go to bed but it just didn't happen this week. I will do my best to get everything down daily from now on. I promise.

First of all. I got to the gym on Monday, I did 10 minutes of the stair climber, 35 minutes of weights, 25 minutes of elliptical and 30 minutes of stair climber. Then I walked the dog when I got home from the gym. I was exhausted but felt really good.

Tuesday I got to the gym, it was a light cardio day, 40 minutes on the Elliptical.

Wednesday I did not get to the gym. I had every intention of doing so but I just didn't get there. By the time I was done work and doing all the running around to the Storage locker, sorting through boxes and putting kits for the Parade and the Family Festival. It was after 10pm and I was just too exhausted.

I did make up for it on Thursday though. Thursday was Canada Day! I was in the Canada Day Parade as part of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, CIBC Run for the Cure Committee. We entered a float and we walked the Parade route. Not quite 5km's but I figure I probably did about 7km when you count in all the zig zagging from side to side to make sure that people on both sides of the street were getting their goodies etc. Then it was to the Family Festival where we handed out more Breast Cancer Awareness items and put tattoo's on pretty much every child that was there. I swear to goodness!

Friday found me in the car going out to Vancouver to have a meeting about my position as a Run Director for the Run here in Abbotsford, then my mom and I went walking through the shops in Langley before finally heading home.

Today has been a busy day running errands and doing things around the house. Although I did not go to the gym today, I have taken the dog on a 5km walk as well as another walk around the block this evening.

I got a lot accomplished this week and I'm feeling pretty good about it. I'm going to start tracking my food again though. I've not done this in quite a while and I'm seeing the results on the scale. I was only down a pound this week and with all the activity I got in, I figure I should have lost at least two or three.

So here's to a new week starting tomorrow. To my American Friends, Happy 4th of July!

Monday, June 28, 2010

I'm back!!!

Well, to be honest I got back a week ago today, but between jetlag, catching up at work, catching up at home and the general return to craziness, I haven't had any time to stop by. But, here I am!

My conference went really well. As expected we were busy, busy, busy. I did get in one gym workout, it lasted half an hour. However, I did do multiple hotel inspections, and when you're walking around a mega resort in 40degree weather with 100% humidity. Trust me it's a work out. As well, on one of the Inspection days, the supplier turned it into an Amazing Race game so there we were in teams of 8 running like mad people through resorts to accomplish our tasks. That was more of a workout then working out was. Let me tell you! I will post pictures of it later.

I'm finally over the jetlag. I think it's odd. Take me to Europe with an 8 hour time difference and I'm fine. Take me to the east coast and it takes a week to get over the 3 hour time difference. Oh well. What can you do?

While I was away, I gained 8 pounds. YES 8 pounds....although, I'm pretty sure that ALL of that was water weight as of yesterday when I weighed myself on my regular weigh in day, I am down 1 pound from the week before I left. Considering I got in zero work out time last week and didn't really watch my eating plan that much, I am pretty confidant in saying the 8 pounds was water weight. My fingers, legs and feet can attest to that. I'm finally able to wear my rings again and do up my running shoes. YEAH!

Today's plan, I brought lunch with me, a good balanced lunch, dinner will be a simple stir fry and then we're off to the gym tonight for an hour's worth of cardio and resistance training. I hope you all have a great day!

Friday, June 11, 2010

Last post for a while.

I'm heading off to conference in the morning, I'll be away a total of 10 days. I'm looking forward to seeing old friends who I haven't seen in a couple of years. (It's been two years since we had a conference). We're heading off to a new destination for me I've never been to this Caribbean Island and I'm looking forward to exploring the people and the culture. I've got my MP3, and my gym clothes packed and I'm going to try to squeeze in a few workouts over the weeks. We've got a packed schedule. However with two free hours in between sessions and evening events I should be able to get some solid gym time or walks in the sand in.

It's been a busy week and I did get my work out's in everyday this week with the exception of last night. However, I did take the dog for a nice long walk so I still got my activity in.

I'll catch you all up to date when I get back. In the mean time, keep up the fight! Have a great week, we'll talk soon.

Monday, June 7, 2010

Tired...

I am really and truly tired today. I was up extra early this morning, to the tune of 4am. I drove my sister and brother in law to the airport for their flight. They are on their way to Montreal to take in the sights, relax and enjoy some racing!

Needless to say, after getting up that early and then working, my umption in my gumption had certainly left the building without me by the end of my work day. I told my husband when I called to let him know I was leaving the office for home that I didn't think I was up to going to the gym. I got home, we had dinner, we walked the dog around the block. He was ready to head to the gym and I just didn't feel like it.

I went though! I went and I worked out, and I struggled. I was tired, I was feeling it but I did it. I did 10 minutes on the stairclimber, I did resistance training on my legs, I did another 20 minutes on the Stiar Climber, then I did twenty minutes on the stationary bike and then I did 20 minutes on the Elliptical. You see I was tired and I was having a hard time focusing all of my energy on one machine so I moved around today. I don't do that very often, but I did get a really good workout in.

My activity Accountability Chart today:
Activity 1hr:24min:41seconds
Time in Zone 1hr:23min:22seconds
Average Heart Rate 135
Maximum Heart Rate 153
Total Calories Burned 1156.

As you can see from my heart rate and my calorie burn, it wasn't an overly intense workout today, but considering I was on my fourth or fifth wind by then, I think I did pretty good. I'm proud of going to the gym, when really I could have just sat on the couch and been lazy. I made a choice, and I feel better for having made that choice.

Have a good night everyone! Talk to you tomorrow!

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Blank....

I can't think of a title. I don't know what to call this post so I guess I'll have to call it blank.

I'm actually feeling pretty bad right now. I haven't been posting and several of you have sent me messages asking if all is right in my world and it is. It really and truly is, I just haven't been in the mood to write.

I'm going to try to change that this week, try is the operative word. I'm leaving for our National Managers Conference at the end of the week and so this week promises to be a busy one. I'm going to be going to the gym in the evenings with my husband as I have been for the past week and a bit. However, I'm going to have to be dealing with shopping, laundry and packing as well so I'll have to wait and see how I do for the posting part of it.

I'm just back from the gym, not quite an hour ago now, we came home, showered and had a nice healthy lunch of green salad with a grilled 4oz chicken breast cut up through it. It was very yummy for the tummy. I enjoyed it. I'm still a little hungry but I'm going to drink another bottle of water to see if I'm really hungry or I just ate to fast. I'll have to wait and see.

I've gotten a lot of activity in this week, I went to the Gym, Monday, Wednesday and today. I didn't get there on Tuesday as Life got in the way and Thursday I helped out over at my parents house weedwacking the yard and raking up the grass clippings. Saturday, I didn't get there as I simply didn't have the energy. I'm not using that as an excuse but I was falling asleep everytime I sat down. You see I haven't been sleeping very well(for about three weeks) and on Friday night, I finally, finally broke down and took a half a sleeping pill. I don't like taking them; but when on average you're only getting maybe two hours of sleep on and off through the whole night and it's been like that for weeks; you eventually have to bite the bullet and do something about it. My husband asked me to please take one and so I did. Thus the reason I had absolutely no umption in my gumption on Saturday at all. I was groggy and dozy the whole day.

Today I'm much better, I had a good night sleep last night and even had an hour long nap this morning and then off to the gym I went. Today I followed Jillian Michaels advice in her book "Winning by Losing". In it she says to do no more than 10 minutes of warm up cardio before doing your resistance training and after your resistance training do the bulk of your cardio.

This is what I did today. I did 10 minutes on the Stairclimber and then moved into my resistance training. I can honestly tell you,I felt the difference today, I actually felt as though I was challenging myself with my weights, I was able to do more reps then when I do my resistance training after 45minutes of cardio. So how about that...I learned something this week and it paid off!

This post is getting a little long winded, I guess that's what happens when you haven't blogged for almost three weeks!LOL!

Weight loss, in the past three weeks I'm down 4.5 pounds. I'm not thrilled with that number but I'm happy with it, the weight is going in the correct direction so I'm fine with that.

Here are my Activity accountability charts for this week.

Date... Total Activity,.. Time in Zone,.. AVG HR ...MAX HR... Calories
May 31.... 1h 33min .......1h 28min .......143 .....163 .......1422
June 1.... 1h 2min ........59min27sec .....149 .....192........ 960
June 6.... 1h 37min ........1h 22min ......143 .....164........ 1474

Total 4hour 20min 3hour 40min 145 3856.

A pretty good week...talk to you all tomorrow!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Let's get physcial...

physical..I wanna get physical, let's get into physical
Let me hear your body talk, your body talk, let me hear your body talk

All right, I realize I have just completely dated myself by typing those infamous words to Olivia Newton Johns' song Physical. It was in the early 80's? Maybe. I know that it was played everywhere and the video(who remembersGood Rockin' tonight on CBC with Stu Jeffries?) was scandalous.

Ah well....those were the days. Fortunately the skin tight bodysuit and leotard with leg warmers is no longer how we dress to go to the gym. If that were the case everyone there would have run from the building screaming in terror as I walked in the doors. Instead I was in my shorts, my trust old work out t-shirt and my good runners. It was time to get physical. And physical I did get. I started with a 10 minute warm up on the stair climber. Then I switched over to my weight program. After the first interval, I did another 10 minutes of cardio by using the rower and then back to my last interval of weights. I was cooling down on the Elliptical when my husband came up to get me.

Revitalized and rejuvenated I had to wonder why I had put off going to the gym for so long. It's been a really long time since I was there and I felt so GOOD when I was done!

Of course last night, I pulled a typical Katie move and while reaching into the cupboard bottom shelf, I managed to twist myself into a pretzel and hurt my neck. I think I've strained the muscles. It honestly feels like whiplash. I don't know how I did it, but I did. So alas, today I didn't go to the gym. I am simply too stiff and sore in my neck area, the silliest things hurt, like sneezing (hello allergies!), picking up a pot, petting the dog. All these silly mundane things are hurting me today so I'm going to take it easy today, but alas tomorrow I will be back at the gym! Nothing is holding me back now. Absolutely nothing!

Weigh in was yesterday, and I'm happy to advise you that I was down 1.4 pounds. YEAH ME!

We're back on track and loving every minute it of. Here I am being accountable so we may as well just get yesterday's activity on the page so to speak.

Activity Dog Walk
Duration 50 min
Distance 6ish km's.
Heart Rate. Don't know forget to start it.

Activity Gym Work out
Duration 50min, 35 sec
Time in zone 47min, 02 sec
AVG Heart Rate 128
Max Heart Rate 149
Calories burned 624

Have a super day everyone!

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Feeling the Burn

I am feeling the burn today! Wahoo! First off was weigh in. It sucked, I'm up three pounds. I'm not happy about it. I think I know why so I'm not going to obcess over it. That's just the way it is.

My husband and I went on our first bike ride together today. I was so excited about it. Now, I am in now way, shape or form as good a rider as my husband. Let's face it. It's hard for a 280ish person to be as light and fly on a bike as their 170ish counter part so I know that I'm going to be moving slower, but I tell ya. My husband flies on his bike. It's amazing the speed he gets. When we were going down hill he led the way, when we got to the flat parts I led. I eventually has to tell him to go on without me, I was going to wait here for a few minutes and then turn around.

My legs were killing me! They were burning like nobody's business. I wore my heart rate monitor and it was working hard to keep up with my beating heart, let me tell you! We live in an area with some substantial hills and I don't mind telling you I worked my buns off to get up them.

There is one hill that I havne't been able to make it up yet. That is my goal, to be able to come around the corner at South Parallel Road, turn right and make it up that darned hill.

I worked hard today, I was huffing and puffing, giving myself pep talks as I struggled up that last darned hill but I did it!

Today's Road tally. 5.8km's 35min, 40 seconds, AHR 154bpm, MHR 180bpm(That was coming up the last hill, I thought my chest was going to explode!;-)

It was a great ride. I'm looking forward to the day when I can do that ride in under 30minutes with an AHR(average heart rate) of below 140. It will come, I just have to keep working at it.

For all of you Mother's out there, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

Monday, May 3, 2010

Riding...Riding....Riding....

I'm really enjoying riding! I really am, when I got home from work tonight, the rain of the past few days was done and I decided to get on my bike and go for a ride. Now, even though it is MAY, someone forgot to tell mother nature and it is frigging cold out there. None the less, I bundled up, long sleeved shirt, under a short sleeved shirt with a jacket on top, long pants, my helmet and off I went. It was exhilirating. I'm loving it. I went down our horseshoe to the right, turned right onto Old Yale road, turned right onto Whatcom road, right onto South Parallel Road, Left onto Old Yale Road, and around Delair park, turned right back onto Old Yale road and finally turned right onto the second half of our horseshoe.

I don't actually know how long I was gone. I didn't look at the time when I left, I do know that the Canucks game had just gone into the first between period segment and when I got back they were about 5 minutes or so into the 2nd period.

I DO know that I worked my buns off. I did have to get off the bike at one point and push it up one of the hills. I just plum ran out of steam! The wind was in my face and I was pedaling for all I was worth but I didn't seem to get anywhere. So, I got off, and walked my bike to the top of the first hill. Got back on at the flat portion, built up my speed and made it up the rest of the hill, including the hill leading up to our complex.

I couldn't beleive how hard it was. Bike riding used to be so easy! At the Gym I can get on a stationary bike and go for a half an hour, or forty five minutes. However, in the real world, on a real road, with REAL hills, and REAL wind blowing in your face, it is so much more difficult.

Here I sit 4 hours later and my legs are still throbbing and are all jello feeling. I know that I was huffing and puffing when I got home, I was sweating up a storm when I got home as well. The next bike ride, I'm going to wear my heart rate monitor so that I can see just how intense my ride really is!

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Love it when a plan comes together!

I really do like it when a plan come together. Nothing is more satisfying than making a plan and at the end of the day it all comes together and everything turns out better than you had hoped.

You see, my husband used to have a road bike. When we first met, he would go on these 3 hour bike rides and thoroughly enjoy them. When he moved to be closer to me, when we got engaged, he moved into an apartment and unfortunately the bike was stolen off his third floor balcony. We never did find out how the heck they did it, but they did.

Flash forward to last week, we knew that we were getting money back from our taxes. You have to like it when the government gives you some of your money back. It's really nice when they do that and low and behold the money popped into our bank account. So we had several discussions on what we would like to do with oure refunds and I made the suggestion that we get bikes. We can go on rides together, it will get us outdoors, fresh air and it's good for us!

When I was a teenager I loved my bike. I had a ten speed bike that I took everywhere, I would go riding for hours and hours. It was great! I was hoping that I would still have that wonderful feeling if we got bikes.

Well! Guess what....we got our bikes yesterday!!!! Mine is lovely purple color, it fits me just right. It has 24 gears(I have no idea what to do with all of them!), and it has a nice wide comfy seat. I got a Trek 7200WSD. Here is a picture from their website.



We bought our bikes and stopped by my parents house to show them our new purchase. I got on my bike and rode around my old neighbourhood and it was exhilarating! I loved the feel of the pedals, I loved the wind blowing in my face. It was AWESOME!!! I so enjoyed it.

You know that old saying "It's like riding a bike, you never forget how?" Well that was me yesterday. I was a little nervous, I'm a lot heavier now than I was then, but it was great! I had a wobbly start but I did good, no crashes!

I was hoping to go for a bike ride this morning before I had to go to work, however, living on the Wet Coast of Canada, it was pouring this morning. Maybe tonight, after dinner....I can't wait to hit the road and feel the wind on my face!

Good day!

I'm a little late posting this week. I had a great day though. First thing is first. Weigh-in. I was the same, no heavier, no lighter but I'm good with that. I still haven't managed to get myself back into the groove of going to the gym. I really do need to get to the gym!

I know that once I get the umption in my gumption and get going again, I will feel better about it and I will be happy about it. I know it is a mind set and I just HAVE to do it! I know that, I really honestly do but I just haven't gotten there.

I don't know why this is, I actually think it's ironic. Most people when they go on holidays worry about not getting in a good workout, they drop down their physical activity. I went on my holiday and hit the gym 90% of the time. I get home, and I haven't gotten to the gym once yet.

I know, I know. It make no sense what so ever, BUT hopefully if something comes together as my husband and I are hoping it will. I will be getting lost of outdoor activity. More about that later....Have a great day everyone!

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Weekly Weigh in....

yes...it is weigh in day today! I have to tell you, I was excited about it, I know that I've been really good with my points this week. I know that I haven't gotten a lot of activity in due to the blister on the bottom of my foot, but I did get out and move. I walked the dog a few times, I danced around the living room with my hubby. I moved this body of mine and it paid off!!!

I am down 2.2 pounds today.

I am HAPPY about that.

I am HAPPY that I am back on track.

I am HAPPY that it is Saturday!

I am happy with the progress that I have made with my life.

I am actually so happy with it that I'm ready to share my first before and after pictures with you. You see this journey for me actually started in 2004.

In December of 2003, my sister took my mother and I over to Victoria to celebrate my birthday. I had never been over to the Island before and this was my very first trip. When we got home, my sister sent me the pictures, and one particular picture was of my mom and I standing at the car in the ferry line up. For the first time in my life I realized I had a problem. At first glance I didn't realize that it was me. I didn't recognize myself. It was then that I realized how heavy I was and it terrified me. In January 2003 I joined my first gym ever and I joined weight watchers and started on my weight loss journey. There's been a lot of bumps in the road in the past few years. My car accident five years ago set me back huge. I was in physio for over a year, however, in June of 2009, I decided to get my crap together and get back on the weight loss journey.

So here it is....the picture that started my journey so many years ago.




And this is where I am now, this was taken at lunch time on day two of the Weekend to End Women's cancers in Vancouver, I was 48km's into the walk, and danged proud of myself.



Now some of you may be saying, but Katie you're still really heavy. I am, I readily admit I am still heavy, but I can't help to wonder how much heavier I would be if I hadn't done something then, if I hadn't taken charge of my life. Of my weight. Yes I am heavy. I still have somehwere around 90 pounds to lose. BUT, I'm here, I'm alive! I don't know if I could say the same for the Katie in the first picture.

I am HAPPY to be here!

Close Call

I had a close call yesterday, a very, very close call yesterday. It's brought back a whole bunch of really bad emotions for me and I'm doing my best to deal with it and not fall back onto food. The good thing is, we are all o.k. It brought back flashes from 5 years ago and I had a rough night sleeping last night. I know that everything is all right, but I still kept playing the "what if" game in my head during the night.

After dinner last night, we decided to go for a drive, so my husband, dog and I all piled into my car for a drive. We ended up stopping for Ice Cream at one of the local country dairy farms and we were driving back along the country road on our way home.

The road is a fairly straight road, and yes some people tend to speed on it, I saw the car coming, I could see it was speeding, and then I noticed that she was drifting onto my side of the road. She had her left turn blinker on, but she wasn't slowing down. I lay on my horn and swerved to avoid her, she saw us and straightened out but not before some damage was done.

She knocked off my drivers side mirror and we appear to have exchanged paint from the hood to the trunk.








I am very grateful that it wasn't a more serious accident. I'm not taking anything for granted and one of the first things my husband and I did today after work, was to go to our local pet store. Why there you ask? We got our dog a harness that hooks through the seat belt. Angus comes on our drives all the time, he loves nothing better than a Car Ride. I want him to be as safe as my husband and I are.

So please, if you have an animal that you take in your vehicle, go to your pet store and invest 30.00 in a harness that will not only ensure that the dog can't jump out a window, but it will also keep them safe and sound if they were to be involved in an accident.

Trust me, your cuddly critters will be thankful!

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

WOW!!

You guys are awesome. I'm here and I'm getting myself back into my routine. This has actually been a really good week and I've been debating what to post and how to explain my absence. Today I received two comments and two e-mails from people asking me where I was. You guys are AWESOME, thank you for the push and getting me back to blogging.

The truth of the matter is....Katie fell off the wagon, fell on her head and lost all her senses!

The good part...the damage wasn't that bad. I gained two pounds, then lost one pound. So over all...not a bad fall off.

Now...however is climbing back into the wagon and getting back into the activity, to get my body moving again. I'm back on track with my eating. I'm tracking my food, I'm using my points sensibly. I'm doing good there.

Activity on the other hand. I still need a good swift kick in the pants to get me back up to full speed. BUT I'm almost there. You see we had some friends over on the weekend for dinner and then for the men to watch "THE GAME" in this house right now, it's any hockey play off game in any league that is on TV. So while the men headed down to the man cave to yell and scream at the TV and referee's who can't possibly hear them, us ladies sat upstairs talking.

It was a great conversation on what we've both learned about nutrition and exercise over the past several months. During the course of the conversation, it was mentioned that our friend's walking partner was injured and she has no one to walk with. I volunteered to walk with her so on Monday night, after work, before dinner, we headed over to their house where we proceeded to walk at a (for me) very fast past, up hills, down hills, UUUUUPPPPP a hill and then down a hill. A good forty five minute walk, my husband was sweating, I was a little breathless from the pace but we did good. Bad news...I had a pebble in my shoe and I now have a HUGE blister on the ball of my foot.

Did any of you see the English movie. RUN FAT BOY RUN? It was a fabulous movie and it was funny, but there's this one scene where the character gets a huge blister on the sole of his foot? Without a word of a lie, that is the size of this sucker on my foot!

This morning there was no way I could go walking with that blister, so my husband called and we cancelled the walk...well, wouldn't you know it, despite my best efforts to protect it, blister bandages, gauze and tape. The darned thing burst this afternoon. So...I didn't go over to their house to go for our walk, however I did get out and about and I took the dog for a quick walk around our block two times. Pretty good, it equals two km's.

So...long story short....
Eating Right- Check
Moving the body - Check
Back on Track - Check
Feeling good about it- Check Check and Check.

Until tomorrow everyone...have an awesome day!

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Why oh why?

Do I do this to myself? I do it and I instantly regret it and then I do it again!!!!

Let me start at the beginning here....I went to weigh in today. I didn't lose, I didn't gain, I maintained this week. I'm very happy with that considering I didn't go to the gym at all this past week. Physically I just couldn't do it. I'm still fighting whatever this stomach thing is. According to my doctor(who I saw on Thursday) I had e-coli. We have no idea where I got it from, where I picked it up from. But there you had it.

You would think that after being nauseated several times a day, fighting to keep your food in your stomach by having to take slow deep breaths, now that I'm feeling better I would eat proper. I didn't have to fight not to throw up this morning, and the back door trotts seem to have ended so you would think I would eat properly! You would think so wouldn't you?

Not today. Today was not a good food day for me. I don't like admiting it, but that's all part of being accountable here. So here is my being accountable today for my food.

I didn't eat breakfast before weigh in. I never do, came home, saw the accountant to do our taxes up. Went to Buckerfields to get the 1/2 wine barrels for the garden they had on sale. Came home, putzed around and then decided to go up to Zellers to get some soil and peat moss to fill said barrel up. I get in the car and head out and what do I do? What do I do? I go to MCDONALDS!!!!! I was in the drive thru, ordering the sausage and egg mcmuffin and a hashbrown before I even realized what the heck I was doing. I ate it on the way to Zellers and threw the garbage out there. I can't believe I did it!

After realizing what I had done, you would think I would get control of myself and do good the rest of the day. Did I? Heck NO!!! In my little mind, I've screwed up majorly so why not keep at it? So after getting all the planting done for the day,I headed out to the grocery store this afternoon, finding myself hungry what did I do? I went to BURGER KING!!!! I HATE Burger King! I don't know what the heck I was I doing. I ordered the Junior whopper with cheese and an onion rings. Ate that in the car and threw the garbage out at the grocery store. No evidence I did it so no proof right?

What the heck!!! At this point, most reasonable people would get their crap together, give their head a shake and get over it. Did I? What do you think? OF COURSE NOT!!!! After dinner, around eight or so, my husband wanted to go for a treat so we go to Afterthoughts. A wonderful desert restaurant. I didn't really want anything, so why did I order something? What did I order you ask? I ordered their Mint Chocolate Chip Cake! Four layers of chocolate cake filled with mint cream icing between the layers finished off with extra whip cream!!!

I came home, I ate some of it, put it down, a half hour later, ate some more, put it down and now I've finished off the darned cake I didn't want and didn't need.

Why oh why do I do this to myself? I'm now sitting here, angry at myself, nauseated and bloated feeling like crap. ARRRGGGHHH!!!

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Day of Reckoning.

All right, today is weigh in day, but to give you a little bit of background. We got back from our trip on Tuesday night, all was well, Wednesday spent the day doing laundry, grocery shopping and getting ready to go back to work on Thursday. Woke up about 2am on Thursday morning really not feeling well, began throwing up and running to the washroom. I couldn't stop the waterworks so 14 hours later we ended up at the hospital where I had to be given 5 bags of IV Fluids. A few injections of gravol and I was sent home six hours later. Spent Friday in bed, still running to the bathroom constantly but no longer throwing up. YEAH! Today I'm feeling a lot better but still not up to going to work.

I debated going to weigh in, not sure if I should or not but my husband decided he would drive me up and wait for me and bring me home. I went to weigh in and discovered that I lost 4.2 pounds. DOWN 4.2 pounds! Normally I would be ecstatic about that kind of a loss but I'm wondering how much of it is a false loss. Do you know what I mean? When you haven't been able to retain any liquids or food for 36 hours, how much of that weight loss is really a loss?

It's something I have to think upon and honestly I'm already mentally preparing myself for a gain next week as I get better and start to eat and drink again. We'll see though. If I manage to maintain or lose next week, then we'll do the happy dance.

For now, I'll say yeah, and I'm heading back to my bed for a little while. It's amazing how worn out a person gets running to the washroom, isn't it?

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

I'm baaaacccckkkkk!!!

After two weeks away, I am thrilled to be home again. Don't get me wrong, please. I enjoyed every minute of my vacation. I enjoyed spending so much quality time with my husband. I enjoyed the ship we were on, I enjoyed our cabin, I enjoyed our ports of call, I enjoyed our days at sea. I enjoyed it all! I enjoyed going to the ships gym almost everyday. (Yes, there were two days that I did not work out), I enjoyed meeting new people and making new friends. I enjoyed the food, the drinks and the company. It was a FANTASTIC Vacation. Totally and completely stress free, sitting back, relaxing and reading a book or two or three or four. It was fabulous!!!

So why am I so happy to be home? I'm happy to see my family, my friends and my animals!!! I sure did miss these fluffy little beasts.
"Duncan"


"Angus"
I missed sleeping in my own bed, with my own pillow. I missed cooking. I really and truly did. I missed making my own meals, cooking things the way that I want to cook them with ingredients that I know. I missed my routine.

I'm looking forward to getting back into the regiment of what it is that makes up my daily life. I'm looking forward to planning out our meals for the next week, to making that grocery list, to doing our shopping and our planning and getting it all taken care of. I'm looking forward to it all. Most of all, I'm looking forward to getting back into my own gym, with equipment that I know, to do my weights without having to adapt from free weights to machines. To using the BOSU and the excercise ball. I guess this means that my lifestyle changes have taken root. How about that!?! I didn't track my points while I was away, but I tried to eat within reason and I tried to make some of the better choices, (We'll just forget about the cheese and the chocolate deserts that I shared with my husband). The reckoning will come on Saturday when I go for my weigh in. I did step on the scale tonight when I got home and I'll be honest, I was pleasantly surprised at how I did while I was away. Two weeks of eating out for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, didn't take as large a toll as I thought they might.

Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz was right....there's no place like home.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Leaving on a Jet Plane.....

...in just over 24 hours. I'm excited, my husband is excited and we're ready to go! So, I'm signing off for two weeks for fun in the sun. I hope you all have a great couple of weeks. I'll talk to you all with pictures when we get back!

Friday, March 5, 2010

Ready to Rock the weekend....

I am ready, and raring to go! I'm looking forward to weigh in tomorrow, I'm hoping for another good loss and I dont't see a reason that I won't have it. I've been very good with my points this week, I've gotten in a couple of really good workouts. To top it off I'll be heading out to the gym tonight after dinner for my own last minute work out.

I'm also off this weekend as well! YEAH FOR ME!!! It will be a busy weekend as my husband and I are heading off on Vacation on Tuesday night! YEAH FOR US!!

It's been two years since we have been away and we are looking forward to our trip, 2 days in San Diego then, a 10 night Mexican Riviera cruise followed by one more day in San Diego. We're going to be away for a full two weeks!

I am so looking forward to it, rest, relaxation, sunshine, no cooking, no cleaning, no work, no cell phone! WAHOO!!

I also have a plan in place for sticking to my lifestyle. The ship has a state of the art gym, with various cardio equipment, weights and even some classes. My husband and I have agreeed that we're going to the gym every morning, and we won't be using the Elevators. We'll be using the stairs to get around. We're on the 9th deck, the Gym is on the 11th and the dining room, lounges etc are on the 5th and 6th decks. The Ship has their own "Spa Selection" meals which are low fat, low sodium meals with the actual nutritional information listed on the menu. I am so excited about getting on board the ship and taking in the cruising experience.

Have a great day everyone! I'm off to look at the deck plan again! LOL!!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Great Weekend!

I had a great weekend! It was the first weekend off in over a month and it was a gorgeous three days away from work. It was great, I was able to recharge my batteries and get my head back into the game! My only regret is I didn't get into Vancouver to absorb some of that wonderful Olympic Spirit but I had the chance to experience right here at home after the Hockey Game! What a game! I'm not a fan but found myself glued to the TV with my husband watching it. When it was over we hoped into the car and headed for South Fraser Way to joing the party! And what a party it was. It was great to see so many people out and about cheering on their country and just being part of the celebrations of a great two week experience.

I also had a great weekend activity wise as well. I didn't go to the gym on Sunday morning, but I did take the dog for a nice long walk, 3km's with a couple of hills thrown in for good measure. When we got home from our walk, my husband wanted to take me out for breakfast. Instead of driving to the restaurant we walked, round trip about four km's. I chose a nice healthy breakfast from the restaurant lifestyle choices menu and had a great walk with my husband at the same time!

Like I said, it was a great weekend. I'm looking forward to a great week this week and the official countdown to vacation starts tomorrow! More about that then! Have a great day everyone!

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Happy Saturday!!

Happy Saturday everyone!!!

It's my first Saturday off this month and it has started out pretty good. I went to weigh in this morning and I'm happy to report that I'm down 2.8 pounds this week. Yeah me! I got in a fair bit of activity, an hour on Wednesday night at the gym with my husband, a nice long dog walk on Thursday night, then my last chance type work out on Friday morning. I did 45 minutes on the Stair climber, forty minutes of weights, 15 more on the Stair climber, and five minutes of stretching. I felt really good afterwards, very energized, it kept me going all day and all evening long.

I bypassed the gym this morning, simply because I wanted to a nice thorough house cleaning. Do you know the type I mean? Not just moving the dust around but sweeping, and scrubbing the kitchen and dining room floors, scrubbing both of the washrooms, washing the walls and light fixtures, washing the Dining room teak table and 8 chairs and then treating it with lemon oil. The kind of deep cleaning that we don't normally do every week. I turned on the music and got to work. I worked up a sweat as I moved around on my hands and knees, scrubbing and cleaning! It was a great work out that lasted for almost two full hours. It was great.

Now, I'm going to sit back and relax, put my feet up and rest until it's time to go to a friend's birthday party. Where we will dance the night away.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Belly Dancing!

My Belly Dancing class has come to an end. It was a lot of fun, and a great way to get in group excercise. Last night we combined all of the different moves we have learned in the past six weeks and we danced, and we danced and we danced some more!

I had a great time at class, today, my shoulders are still sore from all of the chest lifts and shimmies but I feel so good. I really want to continue with class so I think when I get back from my holiday I'm going to sign up for the next set of classes.

Have you tried a dance class yet? It was just the thing I needed to get me moving and a nice change of pace from being in the gym.

Have a great day!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

I am Truly Honoured

I have been involved with various Cancer functions for a few years now. I am passionate about doing something about this disease and I do tend to jump in feet first to heck with the results. Back in January I heard an advertisement on my local radio station that the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation was looking for volunteer's in my area to help with the CIBC Run for the Cure. I grabbed a pen and wrote the phone number on my hand as I was driving to work. I called through, spoke to someone and then forwarded my resume and their volunteer application to them.

Long story short. I have been selected as the Co-Run Director for the Abbotsford CIBC Run for the Cure. I am truly honoured to be selected for this position and I am truly hoping that my previous experience and expertise will help this to be a great event.

If you are interested in helping to raise money for cancer research, please contact your local Cancer Society office and ask how you can volunteer. Your few hours a month can make the world of difference to the lives of people living with, and fighting this disease.

Saturday, February 20, 2010

A gain...again...

Yep, I gained again this week. I'm trying to analyze why I gained and the only explanation I can come up with is Water Retention. I have been retaining a lot of water this week. I have literally had no ankles since tuesday, the skin on my hands hurt because my hands are so swollen. I'm chalking this weight gain to water retention. I missed two days at the gym this week but I still had a lot of activity. I didn't get to the gym on Thursday as I had a meeting after work that ran until almost 930. I did take the dog for a twice around the block walk when I got home so that gave me 30 minutes of activity. I didn't get to the gym yesterday as I quite honestly just didn't feel like it. I got home from work, went grocery shopping, costco shopping and petsmart shopping. Took the dog for a walk and finally sat down to relax at 8pm. I just didn't have it in me to get up and go to the gym. I will be there tonight though and that's what matters.

I hope you all have a great day!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Bombing right along

...I've stayed on plan and gotten my activity in today. I did splurge a little bit, one of our suppliers came by with Purdy's chocolates so I had one maple leaf chocolate for 2 points and afterwards decided, it really wasn't worth it. It really and truly wasn't. I would rather have one of my Chocmint WW one point snack treats.

Ah well. Live and learn.

Today's Activity Accountability Chart.

Activity.......Elliptical
Duration.......49min 15sec
time in zone...46min 30sec
Avg Heart rate....129bpm
Max Heart rate....153bpm
Calories burned...798

Not bad for having to drag myself there. I hope you're all having a great day and enjoying the Olympics from my beautiful Home Province. Katie

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

I'm baaaccckkk!!

and I feel good...it's been a great two days. I stayed completely on program yesterday, went to the gym and I have to tell you. I knocked it out of the ball park! I did indeed, I did 30 min's on the Stair Climber on the fat burner setting then I did my weights, doing every kind of lunge and squat possible!Including wall sits. I did some upper body stuff-chest press, tricep pull downs, straight arm pull downs, hammer curls, pivot curls, not too much as that will be Wednesday's work out. I then finished up with another 20min's on the stair climber while waiting for my husband to finish his Spin Class. I have to say, I'm toying with the idea of joining the class. I just have to work up enough nerve to do it.

My activity Accountability for Monday is:
Duration......1hr, 22min 24 sec
Time in zone..1hr, 16min 13 sec
AVG heart rate....133
MAX heart rate....165
Calories burned ..1084

Today was another good day. I didn't take a full lunch to work with me as I have GOT to go grocery shopping this week, but had to wait until today at least, so I had my banana, I had my crackers with laughing cow cheese and when it was time to go for lunch down to the mall food court I went. I have to tell you, malls do not have healthy food choices. Fortunately there is a Quiznos so I grabbed a cup of soup from there and then I went over to the build your own salad place. They do these great vegetarian wraps with what you want in it. By asking, I was able to calculate the points value for the actual wrap, only 4 points, so I had a good well balanced and points friendly lunch. YEAH for me!!! I didn't have the Sub, I didn't have the A&W, I didn't have the Terriyaki Chicken, the New York Fries, the Thai way Express, the Manchu Wok, the Mrs. Vanelli's NOR the KCF/Taco Bell. I'm really pleased with myself.

Tonight was Belly dancing class and believe it or not you can get quite a workout doing Belly Dancing. I only have one more week left in this set of classes and I'm debating whether to do more or not but it is so much fun and a good work out to boot.

Here is today's Activity Accountability Chart.

Duration .....59min 34 sec
Time in zone..32min 57 sec
AVG heart rate...119
MAX heart rate...127
Cals burned......345

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Valentines day!!!

...perhaps today was not the best day to "get" myself back on track. I did good though. Instead of going for a high calorie restaurant dinner, my husband took me to a new restaurant in town called RAIN for brunch. Now, if you live in the Chilliwack, Abbotsford, Mission, Aldergrove or Langley area. You have GOT to go to RAIN for brunch. It was the best brunch I have ever had, they have a build your own omelet station, a crepe station and a HUGE variety of breakfast foods, lunch foods, salad's and deserts(including a chocolate fountain). All for under 15.00 per person including your coffee/tea and pop. It was great.

I did choose my options carefully, I asked for a small omelet with ham, cheese and mushroom, I had to pieces of bacon, a small scoop of hasbrowns and some fruit. I then also had a crepe. The best thing was, he made it exactly as I asked for it, fresh strawberries, no custard, a LITTLE bit of whipped cream and just a touch of Chocolate drizzle. My bunch cost me 22 points, but I tell ya, that was all I really had to eat all day. After coming home from the gym tonight, I made my husband and I Light Caesar salad with grilled chicken breast, 8 points for dinner for I still came in right at my points!

I tracked everything I ate and drank today! It felt really good to be back in that routine where I wrote down everything I ate while I ate it. I picked up one of the little clickers at my WW meeting yesterday so I used that to tick off the points I knew about when we were out and then looked up the rest when we got home.

So besides tracking my food today, I also got in a fair bit of activity.

I took the dog for a nice walk and then I went to the gym as well.

Here's what my activity Accountability looks like today:

Activity....... Dog Walk.........Gym
Duration .......32min 14 sec.....1hour 6min 25sec
In zone ........17min 42 sec.....1hour 3min 01sec
Avg Heart rate ...121 ...............129
Max Heart rate ...155............... 153
Calories burned...352 ...............948

I hope you all had a great Valentines day! Talk to you tomorrow!

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Getting Focused.

Hi~~~~
It's just me, the person who apparently fell off the face of the earth for almost two weeks. I'm still here...kinda...sorta.

It's been a hard few weeks, mostly work related, a lot happening through head office, I'm short staffed now in both offices as one my ladies is off having knee surgery.

Life has been hectic, it really and truly has, I have not stepped foot inside of the gym since January 29th.

It's horrible I know...I'm finding myself slipping back into my old patterns, even worse I haven't been tracking my points. I thought I was doing all right. If you all recall three weeks ago, I was up 2 pounds, the following week, I lost two pounds, last week I maintained, didn't lose, didn't gain.

This week however, different story, I've gained another two pounds. I'm not trying to make excuses. I know what I've done. I had a packed week this week and I've used that as my reason for not getting to the gym.

On Sunday, I had the day off, I could have gone to the gym in the morning but I didn't. I was tired and grumpy and we were hosting a combination Olympic Torch/Super bowl party. You see the Olympic Torch was going right by my street, so we invited a few friends over to watch the super bowl and go up and see the torch as it passed by. That was Sunday.

Monday I didn't go to the gym, my husband wasn't feeling well so I used that as my excuse not to go the gym.

Tuesday was belly dancing class, so yes I got in some activity, followed by two hours of sitting on the couch munching on veggies and dip while watching the Biggest Loser.

Wednesday, I had my team captains meeting for Relay for Life. It didn't start until 7 and I was home by 830 so I could have gone to the gym, but I chose not to.

Thursday, I was meeting some friends for dinner, at a Greek Restaurant, a really, really good Greek Restaurant. Where I ate way too much food, and had food that I had no business having! Really, did I need to have the melted Greek cheese smeared onto a fried pita? No, but I did. I didn't get home until 10pm, so that was my reason for not going to the gym.

Friday, it was my dad's birthday so over to my parents we went where we had an awesome spaghetti and meatball dinner, with garlic bread and Black forest cake. We then sat and watched the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

So...no gym for me there either, so I really was busy every evening. But do I have to go the gym in the evening? Is there a reason why I can't go in the morning when I'm going to be busy in the evening? There is no reason other than my own total lack of dedication and will power. I'm not a morning person, but still, I should gone in the morning.

This two pounds I've gained back have me really annoyed. I really need to get myself focused and get moving on and up with the whole program. Time is a wasting and it's not going to wait for me.

So here's to a fresh start, a new day, a new week and getting back on track.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Rough week.....

I had a rough week, I admit it. I followed my points, but I didn't get in any real quality workout time until last night and to be honest by then I was tired, grumpy and my heart just wasn't in it. So the result today. I gained two pounds last week. I'm picked off a little bit, but I know that I'll bounce back from it. I know I will. I know that I'm retaining water as my hands are swollen today and I have no ankles. That means sometime in the past couple of days I've had to much sodium so it is very likely that the two pounds I gained are mostly water. I've been drinking a ton of it this week.

It was a rough week, it was stressful and upsetting at work but I got through it without falling back on food. I'm quite proud of that fact. However, it also kept me from going to the gym, I just didn't have the energy for it. I'm not making excuses, it's just the plain truth. My heart wasn't into exercise this week. Yes, I went to dance class, yes I walked the dog, but no, I didn't go to the gym until Friday night and then it was barely for an hour. I wasn't in the mood for cardio so after just 20 minutes of cardio, I did my weights and headed home.

I didn't go to the gym today either. I just didn't feel like it, I went to weigh in, I did the weekly running around, I made lunch for us, I took the dog for a quick walk through the park and then I sat on the couch like a bump on a log for a half hour or so before it was time to head out to Vancouver where we spent the afternoon/evening with my husband's extended family. We had a great time, we had a lot of laughs and we had great food, home made pirogi and sausage, and cabbage rolls. Followed by cake for desert. It was great, I didn't over indulge, but I also didn't track my points for today. I didn't see the point in it.

Sunday is a new day, new week, new page. I'll get it together, starting off with a trip to the gym in the morning before I go on to the rest of the day.

A special message for my sister Kelly, I'm wishing you the Best Birthday ever! I hope it was a great one!

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Grooving to the music

Do you groove to the music while you're working out? I find that I get a much better and more intense workout when I have my mp3 player going. I've had a few workouts when I've forgotten my music or I've forgotten to charge my MP3 player and it dies on me in the first few minutes. It is times when that happens that I just don't get a good workout. The gym has good music, don't get me wrong but it's just not the same.

So...I was thrilled tonight to see that Jen over at Prior Fat Girl has posted a link to a Biggest Loser Subway free music down load. Here is the link. http://www.podworkoutmusic.com/SUBWAY/ all you have to do is enter you e-mail address and you can download this free music playlist.

Pretty neat huh?

I hope you all have a great day! Katie

Sunday, January 24, 2010

How do YOU measure success?

It's a question that I haven't really though of until today. I have had a very SUCCESSFUL weekend thus far. I went to weigh in yesterday on my way to work and I had a very succesful weigh in. I was down 4.8 pounds! I hit the 25pounds lost in 13weeks right on the nose!! I felt fabulous about that. I had been worried about weigh in and almost didn't go but I am so glad that I did. Success is seeing those numbers come down on the scale. It feels great. It also marked another success for me. I am now back to my pre-accident weight.

Yes, pre accident, Five years ago, a kid was racing a friend down the street and blew a red light. He t-boned my car, totalled my car, forever wrecking my back. I tore my L joint, it connects your lower back to your hip. I am NOW a walking human barometer. I can tell you when the weather is going to change, I can tell you when it's going to rain or be humid. But I'm back! Yes I got sidetracked. When you go from being totally active to struggling to walk a half a block without bursting into tears you feel sorry for your self and I didn't help myself any either. But I'm back! I'm better than I ever thought I would be. I've learned when and how to take medicines to help me along.

In fact, I'm so far back that I've worked on a project this morning. My husband is working and so after returning from taking the dog on a 5km walk in 40minutes(yes!), I showered and got dressed, looked at myself in the mirror and decided the shirt I was wearing was WAAAAYYYY too big for me! A frenzied 45 minutes later. This is what my bed looked like.



This is what my closet now looks like:




I now have three piles of clothes for donations, three sizes that I no longer wear.
Sizes 5X-6X



Size 4X



Size 3X


So as you can see, I've done pretty darn good and I'm very happy.

Here is my activity log for the past two days as well.

Date 23-Jan
Activity Gym Stairclmber
Duration 50min 06 sec
Time in Zone 34min 56 sec
Avg Heart Rate 133
Max Heart Rate 149
Calories 744

Date 24-Jan
Activity 5km dog walk
Duration 40min 55sec
Time in Zone 34min 20se`
Avg Heart Rate 128
Max Heart Rate 153
Calories 498

Friday, January 22, 2010

Da...Da...Da....

So I've been off line for the past couple of days but that in no way means I haven't been active. I have been! I've been going and working and plugging along. I have weigh in tomorrow so I went to the gym to do my last chance work out. I'm pretty sure I blew it tonight though. It was my brother's birthday yesterday and as he and everyone else had to work today he was meeting people for dinner and a couple of drinks and invited my husband and I along. Knowing the restaurant that they were going to and the fact that there isn't a single menu item on there under 20 points, my husband and I decided that we would have dinner at home,(roast chicken, roasted carrots, potatoes and onions with steamed broccoli. YUMMMYYY!) and we would have a desert between us.

When we got there I ordered an unsweetened ice tea, since they serve Pepsi at the restaurant I knew it would be Lipton Iced tea, which isn't my favorite but I can't handle restaurant water. It's just blechy. Anyway long story short, one and a half glasses of iced tea and more than my fair share of Chocolate Explosion. Yep...I have weigh in tomorrow...did I mention that? I think I did all right points wise despite indulging in a bit too much of the desert(which honestly, wasn't all that great).

Ahh well. I did do a fair bit of activity this week, so here is Wednesday, Thursday and Friday's Activity Journals(Yes I do have three journals for Friday. While swtiching from cardio to weights I accidently turned off my heart rate monitor).

Wednesday
Date 20-Jan
Activity cardio
Duration 1hr 27min 45 sec
Time in Zone 1hr 23 min 05sec
Avg Heart Rate 134
Max Heart Rate 155
Calories 1184

Thursday
Date 21-Jan
Activity
Duration 47min 15sec
Time in Zone 43min 14 sec
Avg Heart Rate 129
Max Heart Rate 145
Calories 590

Friday

Date 22-Jan
Activity Dog walk 3km
Duration 28Min 26 sec
Time in Zone 23min 05sec
Avg Heart Rate 134
Max Heart Rate 159
Calories 378

Date 22-Jan
Activity Cardio
Duration 41min 37 sec
Time in Zone 41 min 25 sec
Avg Heart Rate 135
Max Heart Rate 143
Calories 558

Date 22-Jan
Activity weights
Duration 39min 03 sec
Time in Zone 34min 30 sec
Avg Heart Rate 129
Max Heart Rate 150
Calories 356


So you see, with all of this activity, I'm hoping for a decent loss tomorrow morning.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

I'm Loving Dancing!

Who knew that I would love my dancing class as much as I do. I tell you, I am having so much fun with the Belly Dancing class. Yes, I'm the biggest (read heaviest) person there. When we had to get down on the floor today I was a little worried but I did great! I had so much fun! I can know do Piston Hips, the three dimensional figure eight, the Egyptian Shimmy, the reverse three dimensional figure eight and hip lifts, front side, back and neutral positions! I tell ya, it is a great work out. I will agree, it does NOT get my heart rate elevated into the zone, but it does get it up a little bit, and I still burn calories!

I'm feeling so good today, I made some excellent choices and I'm proud of myself. I didn't take a lunch to work with me today as I knew that I had to drive about 50km's to attend some training. I knew that with how busy we are at work this week, that I wouldn't get the chance to eat before I left, and that I couldn't very well eat a salad in the car on the way there. So when I left the office, I was hungry, it was just after 1pm and I had to figure out what to do. As I'm driving up the road heading for the freeway, I see KFC! It's been soooo long since I had KFC, but I drove right on by it...next came Taco Del Mar...I don't remember the last time I had one of their big beef burritos. They are soooo good...compact, easy to eat on the go... but I drove right on by. Next up was Wendy's, now I've already decided I'm not having salad so there's no point going in there, they don't really have anything else that I would want to have. Then I came to Tim Horton's, in I go, a ham and cheese sandwich, without the cheese, no sauce, no butter, on whole wheat please. I made such an awesome choice! Only six points! I did good! I really really did! Then when I got to my training, what do I see, but a coffee and tea table set up with Cookies, Brownies and Cheesecake, my three favorite things. So what does Katie do?!?!

I go and sit in my seat, facing forward and start sorting through the training material! I did it! I didn't give in to temptation! I was so pround of myself. I came home, had dinner and headed out to my Belly Dancing Class.

It was a great day. Monday was great as well. I took lunch with me, I ate healthy all day, I drank my five bottles of water at work and I went to the gym. My husband and I headed up at 645, he wanted to do the Night Ride class which started at 730 and ran for an hour. We only took one car so I did a full 90 minutes of cardio! I, yes I spent 90 minutes on the stair climber!!!! I feel so good about that accomplishment I could scream it from the roof tops. Did I stop, of course, I had to refill my water bottle, I had to stop to stretch my legs, but I did it! I feel so proud of myself. Not only did I spend a great amount of time on the Stair Climber, but I also increased my intensity on it as well. I moved myself up to Interval level 9 & 11.

It was a great work out! I had fun tonight at Dance class, but I'll be honest I can't wait to hit the gym tomorrow night, Cardio and weights (Depending on how my arm is feeling, it's still really bothering me from Saturday's blood test).

Here is my Activity Accountability chart for Monday and Tuesday.

Date Jan 18th
Activity Cardio Stairclimber
Duration 1hr, 29 min, 33sec
Time in Zone 1hr 23min 01sec
Avg Heart Rate 129
Max Heart Rate 146
Calories 1118

Date 19-Jan
Activity Belly Dancing
Duration 58min 58sec
Time in Zone 0
Avg Heart Rate 118
Max Heart Rate 124
Calories 361

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Super Saturday!

As it is Saturday today, it was weigh in day....however, I missed yesterday's blog entry so here's a brief recap.

I took the day off of work, I called it my own mental health break day. I have a lot of time accumulated and I just needed an extra day off to sort some things out for myself. I started my day off by going to the gym where I proceeded to do my last chance work out. I did 40 minutes on the Stair Climber Interval program level 7 & 9. I feel really good about that. Next came my weights. I did them and I did them, and I have to say....I ROCKED THEM!! I did my ball press ups, I did my step ups, I did my crunches and my pull downs, I did my ball chest presses, I did my hammer curls, I did my triceps pull down 21's. I did my bosu squats with 10 pound bicep curls, I did my plank. I did it all and I rocked it! You know you've worked hard when your shirt is sticking to your back because of all of the sweat. The back of my shirt was soaked! Absolutely soaked. It was actually pretty gross, but I'm proud of that. Later in the day, just for the heck of it I took the dog on a long walk, 3kms in under a half hour. I rocked that walk too!

My work outs this week did pay off. I went to weigh in this morning and I was down 2.4 pounds. I am only 1.5 pounds away from being into the 280's. I don't when I last weighed that little. It's working pretty good and I'm happy with it.

I had my mind set to go to the gym tonight and do a super cardio set. However I ended up passing. I had to go the lab for some blood work this morning and the lab technician, went through my vein. I actually have two puncture marks in my arm and it hurts like a son of a BBEEEEPPP!!! I have this wonderful nasty bruise that circles my elbow and is slowly creeping up my arm. To top it all of, I've had the killer headache from he!! all day and I just couldn't do it tonight. That does not mean that I didn't get any activity in though. I did our grocery shopping, which means I did 12 flights of stairs up and down to get all the groceries up, and then I took the dog for a 5km walk. We did really good on the walk, we did the full five km's in just under 45 minutes. I think that's the fastest we've done this particular route. So, although I didn't get to the gym today, I still do have activity to log in my activity accountability log here:

Friday
Date 15-Jan
Activity Cardio/weights
Duration 1hr 32min 04sec
Time in Zone 1hr:25min47sec
Avg Heart Rate 134
Max Heart Rate 160
Calories 1236

Saturday

Date Jan 16th
Activity 5km dog walk
Duration 44min 05sec
Time in Zone 35min 58sec
Avg Heart Rate 129
Max Heart Rate 152
Calories 554

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Hungry....Hungry...Hungry...

I don't know what it is this week, but I am HUNGRY!!! Seriously hungry. I'm proud of myself as I haven't gone for the junk. I'm keeping to my points, and I'm exercising like a crazy person. BUT I'M STARVING!!!

I've ended up going to eating every two hours, a 2 pt snack, some carrot sticks with some non fat salad dressing, a 1pt WW bar, a banana etc. But I tell ya. I'm hungry and it's bugging me.

Part of me is hoping that this is my body finally saying all right, we need to burn some of this fat on the old body here lady so lets get some good stuff down her to burn the fat up.

I have to laugh though, it's not in my head, my stomach is audibly growling at times. Even as I sit here typing this I can hear my stomach growl. I was working with a client today and they heard my stomach growl. I don't know what it is. I'm going to have to ask my leader on Saturday morning what could be causing it, maybe I'm not eating enough protein or something. I'll have to figure it out and let you all know.

Today is Thursday, and that means it's my night alone. Thursday is the night my husband goes off to his weekly Toastmasters Meeting. I used to pop a bag of popcorn cuddle up on the couch with the cat on one side of me and the dog on the other and watch tv. The past two weeks though, I've had a different routine. I leave the house the same time as my husband and I head to the gym where I get in a good hour's worth of cardio. Tonight was no different. It was pretty busy at the gym when I first got there, as my favorite Elliptical was in use I climbed onto the stair climber, also known as my nemesis.

I have never been able to do more than 30-35 minutes on this thing. Usually it's because my feet start to go numb and get pins and needles in them, but tonight after 20 minutes of going strong on it I decided tonight would be the night I would beat the 35 minute mark. So at 25minutes I selected a new workout time, 40 minutes, at 36minutes, still able to feel my toes, I changed the time to 45 minutes, at 40 minutes, I changed it to 50 minutes, at 45 minutes, I reset it for 60minutes! I did it! I did sixty minutes! Well technically I did 65 minutes with the cool down time on it as well. I did it. I really, really did it! I was very proud of myself as at the end of the program it tells you how many calories per minute, your average and maximum heart rate and best of all your distance. I did 4.75miles on a stair climber. I'm pretty impressed with that.

I think, I really do think, I just may have to do it all over again tomorrow as part of my last chance work out.

Today's Activity Accountability chart is here:

Date Jan 14th
Activity Stair Climber
Duration hr 14min 10sec
Time in Zone 1hr 12min 55 sec
Avg Heart Rate 137
Max Heart Rate 150
Calories 1018

Happy Thursday night everyone! I hope you have a great Friday!