The Last Hurrah

I cannot believe this point has been reached. I finished my last FT training session this morning. A very weird feeling walking out of there. I have achieved so much at FT - beyond what I truly believed possible. I thought I'd never lose 10 lbs, never mind the 29 that I lost. It is truly astounding to me that the trainers knows just how far to push - where our breaking point is. And what success we can achieve with that.

I found my outfit for the Reveal party last night. Woah. Amy chose the perfect outfit. And wait until you checkout the shoes! Holy smokes.

Today and tomorrow are filled with photo shoots, hair coloring, waxing, nails, etc. And Cheryl and I are going out for a celebratory dinner together. That'll be fun.

Not sure if I'll get a chance to update again before the Reveal, but I hope to see you there!

Sweet Relief

I went away for Thanksgiving - to Philadelphia for five days to visit my husband's family. It was very difficult to maintain any semblence of our nutrition regime there. I did bring protein shakes, which really helped, even if not the best for me. I was certain that I'd come back having gained at least 3 pounds, but miraculously, I actually lost a little, instead. I went for some brisk walks which probably helped. I am SO relieved.

I cannot believe that yesterday was my last Monday morning at FT, and that today was my last Dr Nahata appointment (although I do plan to officially switch to him as my dentist). And just wait until you see my hair! Wow. They are going to throw some color in it on Friday night, but for now, the cut is fabulous. Still trying to learn how to manage such different hair, but I love it. I never would have been brave enough to do what Jose did, so I am glad they gave me that push.

I am excited for the party Sunday. Still very curious what we'll be wearing...hopefully we'll know in the next day or two! I don't have too many people coming, but a couple, and I'm excited about that.

A lot of final appointments this week, so we're plugging through! Also, it is the weekend of my daughter's Nutcracker performances, so it's busy, but well worth it.

See you Sunday!

Two -Three Down

I gave in today. I trekked through the downpouring raing with my two youngest children to Old Navy to use my coupon which expires tomorrow. I thought I'd get one pair of pants to get me through Thanksgiving (most of my pants are Old Navy, as they seem to fit me well). However........when I got to Old Navy, all the pants I love were marked down 50% off, plus my 20% off coupon, and my $10 gift card and my other $14 gift card....so I bought a few pairs. Really fabulous stuff. Haven't had pants that fit me in a long time. It feels good. But what feels great is the fact that I have dropped two to three sizes (depending on style). THAT was awesome. Seven pairs of pants for $53. Not too bad.

Pictures and another evaluation tonight. We'll see how it goes! Hair tomorrow - and you all know how THRILLED I am about that. Just in time to see my husband's family for Thanksgiving. Hopefully they'll notice huge improvements. Then one more week to go.

Yeah!

Going Wild

Things are really starting to pick up pace - if you can believe that! I am really glad I have most of my workout sessions at 6 AM, so I can schedule in all my other appointments.

I saw Dr Nahata yesterday for some tooth sensitivity - I called at 8:30 AM and they had me in there (and fixed the problem) by 11:30. Amazing.

I met with Amy from Dresscode on Saturday - I really love so many of their clothes. I expect in the next week or so we'll be going in for fittings. Can't wait to see what is chosen for us to wear. She said she was going to push us out of our comfortzone. Yikes.

Just got a call from Indra, adding appointments for waxing, facials, hair 'touch-ups', confirming for my straightening, cut and color. I am beyond excited for this. My hair is a disaster, as I think I've mentioned before.

Worked out with Brian this morning as a little treat. It has been months since I've had him as a trainer. Good, hard workout, as always. Thanks so much!

I'll keep you posted.

It's been awhile...

So sorry it has been so long since I've posted. That's usually a good sign, though - it's means I'm super busy (which translates into getting all my cardio in!). So here's a quick update:

Hoping to meet with Dresscode this weekend.
Hair in 1.5 weeks.
Changed up nutrition this week - going well.
High weights, lower reps. And my upper back is killing me...
Teeth are looking good.
Can't wait for the big bash.

It seems that it is all coming together. The final push - yeah! It is with mixed emotions that I reach the end of this 'journey'. It has been amazing to accomplish so much in so little time - without the help and support of SO many, it never would have been possible. I feel like I have truly been educated and now have some tools to help me in the future. Yet I must admit, it'll be helpful to get a few hours of my week back, and to go to the gym on my schedule. And I will do it! I won't slack. I have been given the motivation and the drive, and truly the confidence, knowing all that can be accomplished. This is not the end of this makeover journey, but hopefully just the beginning...

Hair Update

I have my Indra appointments! I am getting my hair straightened on Wednesday, November 26th at 10:30 AM. It'll take about 3 hours, but it'll be worth it. From there, I'll hop in the car and drive to Philadelphia. I am very pleased my hair will be nice for Thanksgiving and seeing family who live far away. On December 5th, the Friday night before the Reveal, I'll be getting my color and cut. Apparently Cheryl will be there as well, and they said they'd pamper us (like always!) and make it a relaxing evening. Just wanted to give you the update. I am psyched!

The Countdown Is On!

December 4th

4pm

Glory Restaurant

Reveal Party

Be there

Let me know if you want to come and I'll turn in your RSVP. All are welcome.

That being said, time is flying by. I am waiting to hear back from Indra regarding hair appointments. Really can't wait for that process to begin.

This week, I've been having my neighbor come to FT for workouts with me (it's bring a friend week). So neat to see it through someone else's eyes. And nice to have that encouragement! We did full body on Monday and last night did Cardio/Ab intervals. Whew - Sam was brutual (as a reminder, brutal is a good thing!). After my cardio, I did 45 minutes more of cardio. Haha! Funny how that works.

So proud of Cheryl and her 5K aspirations. Good for you! If I were around this Thanksgiving, I'd have been inspired to join you. Oh well, let's do it next year. =)

Assessment and the newest Andover Clown

I had my assessment this week. All went well - yeah! I am down 23 pounds, as of today. Down about 6 more inches, and my body fat decreased a bunch, as well. I don't know all the specifics this time around, but down is good.

Cheryl and I plan to really work hard this last month - 5 weeks, really. Yikes - can't believe the end is in sight. Scary, but exciting! This means I'll be getting my hair done soon, for which I am SUPER excited. And can't wait to meet with Dresscode - I hope that's coming up soon, as well. I love the outfits in their storefront windows right now.

On Saturday, there is a photographer coming to take photos during my training session. Maybe I'll break out the hairbrush before I head over for a change. =) That'd be different.

I feel that I am really getting the nutrition right now, and that there is a steady decline in weight. The cardio is strong this week, so overall, I'm feeling good. The only thing I'm not feeling great about is the state of my hair (but as I mentioned before, that'll change soon!) and the fact that I have no pants that fit me. And I'm not willing to invest in new ones until I've lost my final 10-15 pounds (that's my goal, at least). So until then, I will look like a new clown around town - frizzy hair and baggy pants. That's me!

Clock Disaster

So I woke as usual this morning at 5:40AM to meet Anna at 6 for our workout. However, upon my entrance to the kitchen to grab my shoes, those clocks were reading an hour ahead. Yes, that's right, my bedroom clock was an hour behind. So I totally missed my entire training session.

I immediately called Anna and feel SO HORRIBLE. I know she was not too pleased, and this IS NOT the way I intended to begin the week. We rescheduled, but I still feel horrible for getting her up and out this early and missing. Please forgive me, Anna! I'll work extra extra hard for you.

Plugging Along

We are plugging along - getting so that I can say the end is in sight. And that's SCARY! We have a fitness assessment this week. I am very curious to see how that goes. Not sure - the weight loss last week was up and down - I essentially haven't lost at all, overall. We'll see tomorrow morning what this weekend brought.

I plan to try to ramp up my cardio a bit this week, as I feel that it was a little low last week. I'll start at 6:45 (after my workout with Anna!) tomorrow morning with some HIIT training. That should be a great way to start.

I am excited for the date for the Reveal to be finalized so I can schedule my hair appointments. My hair is pretty crazy right now, as I haven't had it cut since May!!! (Indra wants me to not mess with it until they do - which won't be until 3 weeks before the Reveal.) So it's frizzy and long right now. Not a good looking combo.

Off to eat some more protein. Fun stuff! I'll post once we assess later this week and let you know how it goes.

I'm back!

I'm back and still going at it. It was not nearly as hard as I thought to maintain this fitness/nutrition lifestyle in Florida. Especially when for my cardio I could take walks in the perfectly sunny 85 degree days, or swim laps in the pool. Ah, the life! Before I even got to my sister's place, we stopped at the grocery store and I picked up protein shakes, cottage cheese, etc. - staples in my diet. Good stuff!

I got home around midnight on Sunday and was at the gym six short hours later working my chest and biceps! That is one of the beauties of personal training - I'd never in a million years have lugged myself out of bed in the 30 degree weather to go to the gym.

I had my teeth shaped today by Dr Nahata - before Cheryl had her fabulous turn there. They look much better - who knew what 30 minutes could do for your smile. =) Thanks so much!

OK - well, the kiddos are crazy today. Gotta run!

Vacation

Early tomorrow morning I'll be heading to Florida for a long weekend to visit my sister and her new baby. It'll be great fun, but challenging in the nutrition area. I am sure exercise won't be an issue, but I'm going to be very careful about what I eat. I already told her I'm going to buy protein when I get there! Because of the trip, I've been craming in my FT sessions - so in the last 10 days I've been 8 times! Yikes, crazy me. But now I have four days off of training (just cardio). It'll feel weird, I imagine.

I had another facial tonight at Indra. A peel. My skin feels really soft! I hope it lasts.

I'll let you know how the weekend goes!

Another week down

In speaking with my husband tonight, it struck me really just how soon this fabulous makeover will be done. I feel like Cheryl and I have made great progress, but I feel that I still have so far to go! I am actually enjoying the cardio intervals we've been doing - it really makes my cardio sessions fly by each day.

The first half of this week I lost two pounds, and the second half none. We'll see what happened over the weekend in the morning when I weigh in. Hopefully it's good news!

I have another facial this week, which I really looking forward to. Also, I am going away for a few days to visit my sister, so I'm already talking to her about my nutrition 'needs' and my cardio time. I've added a training session last week and this week so that I don't miss out on one. So it's been extra busy!

I plan to talk to Dr Nahata's office this week about whether to go ahead and cap my front cracked tooth. I thinking I will but still haven't completely settled on that. I also feel like the whiteness from my teeth is fading away. I don't know if I'm more used to it, or if they are yellowing already! I hope they'll compare the color to what it was when I left my whitening treatment. I hope I haven't given up coffee for nothing!

So that's my news for the week. Have a good one!

Very Carefully

So Lisa informed me that despite what I thought, my nutrition has not been following the guidelines. So I've begun to email her my mealplan for the following day, so she can check it out before I eat it, rather than after. We hope to regulate my food intake so as to see how my body reacts to eating this way.

We began new cardio workouts this week (45 minutes 6 days per week, 4 of 3-minute intervals and 2 of steady state). I did my first 3-minute intervals today. It really does make time fly by! Much more so than steady state. We also have changed our weight workouts this week to high weight, low reps. Good stuff!

I have to decide tomorrow what to do about my teeth to cap/veneer or not, that is the question...I'll let you know what I decide. That's where we stand now. Waiting to hear about the Reveal date, as that will get the ball rolling at Indra with my hair. Cannot wait - as it is way too long and driving me crazy. I'll keep you posted!

You Rock!

I have meet some really fabulous people throughout this whole process. I really cannot think of one person I have come in contact with who has not gone above and beyond for me. I find that astounding. For example (just one of many), I had a concern about a tooth of mine, so I called Dr. Nahata's with a question. My schedule did not permit me to get in there that same day, so they tried to schedule me for the next day. Well, I couldn't make any of those appointments, either (such is life juggling three young children!). So what did they do? Push me off? Tell me to call back later? Tell me to wait it out? No - they opened early for me. Yes, that's right, at 6:45 AM I was in the dentist chair consulting with the hygenist and Dr. Nahata himself. I find that incredible.

So thanks to all you fabulous people out there. This process has been made even more unbelievable just by getting to know you. You rock!

Change of Pace

This week begins a new cardio regime. 45 minutes alternating: 5 minutes high intensity, 5 minutes medium intensity. As daunting as it sounds, it'll be nice to mix things up a little bit. It'll be tough, but hopefully it'll encourage those pounds to fly right off...bye bye belly (my nemesis).

My teeth are nice and white. They were really sensitive the first day, but that is much better now. I do have a big of patchiness on some of my teeth, so I'm going to call Dr Nahata's and see if that's normal. But overall, I am quite pleased.

So I'll be at FT's at 6AM - excited to get another week underway. Lisa said she has some new ideas for our nutrition which she'll be talking to us in a day or two, so I'm very curious what that means.

As of last Friday, I was down 15 lbs, so here's hoping a few more come off this week! I'll keep you posted... =)

Gleaming White

So, my teeth are not gleaming white. But tomorrow morning at 8:30 AM they will be! I am having a 'ZOOM' treatment at Dr. Nahata's. I'll let you know how it goes! Can't wait...And thanks to Cheryl, for watching my children so I can go! I'll do the same for you...

Indra

My facial was amazing! So soothing and exfoliating. My skin feels SO soft. Thanks, Nicole. Can't wait to go back! They were fabulous there - of course - and even let me come back later in the evening for a makeup consult, as we ran out of time earlier in the day.

Beginning tomorrow, I'll be switching some of my FT trainings to morning sessions. So I'll be up bright (or really dark) and early! Looking forward to seeing my friends at FT nice and early.

Another Week

We are now in another week - just that much closer to our big Reveal. Working hard! This week consists of time at FT, a facial tomorrow at Indra, and a teeth whitening follow-up with Dr Nahata. My teeth just are being a bit stubborn - we may need to laser them whiter. Depends on what Dr Nahata thinks.

I think that something must be done about my weekends. I didn't lose any weight at all this weekend. I don't know if it's because I have my day off or not, but it is frustrating. Also, this weekend was really tough in the temptation area. It was SO hard to stay away from certain things - like sweets and carbs. Yikes! Any tips on mental strategies to stay strong would be greatly appreciated.

I took a nice (but tough) walk this morning with my two youngest. Went up lots of hills while pushing a 38lb child and a 25lb child - never mind the weight of the stroller. Fun stuff! But it was a cool and beautiful morning. I should do that more often!

Good Stuff

Cheryl and I had our four week assessment tonight. I think we were both pleased. I won't give you exact measurements (as they still aren't pretty), but overall, things are going down. I have lost 10.8 pounds and 13.5 inches (and that's only counting one arm and one leg!). My most significant places of loss were the waist and thigh. Shoulders came in next and hips shortly after. (For those of you at FT tonight during the reporting, Anna and I realized there was an typographical error in the computer and so this is with the accurate information.)

I did about 15 more pushups than last time, and my heart rate (resting) dropped 14 points and after a 3 minute step test dropped 41 points! And I felt so much better than I did last time I did it.

It was so very encouraging. Today I put on a pair of jeans and literally could not wear them because they were too big. It was great. So that's the news. I am hopeful for continued loss, as Lisa pointed out my first two weeks were SLOW in making improvements, and I've finally gotten on track these past two. And she has lots of tricks up her sleeve to mix up our cardio. Fun stuff!

And finally, I want to say yeah for Cheryl - she is doing SO awesome. I am proud of you! Keep it up. Can't wait to walk around Dresscode with you! And your teeth look super white. =)

And now, back to my protein.

Busted by a Three Year Old

I was impressed with my three year old today when on the way to Target, he saw my protein shake and asked if I was 'drinking my energy thing' to get healthy. I guess even the littles ones are noticing changes.

However, as I was leaving Target and verbally expressed my desire for coffee (there's a Starbucks inside my Target), he said to me 'No, mommy, you can't have coffee. It turns your teeth a funny color'. Obviously, he's heard me mention I shouldn't have coffee while teeth whitening. Oh my, out of the mouth of babes.

No food in the house

So I had a lapse yesterday. I went to eat dinner (after too long without food) and found the only thing in the house to be frozen chicken breasts. Bummer. I should have planned ahead. And I could not eat the chicken last night. No way. So I settled for cottage cheese. Probably a bad idea, but better than no protein. I am already planning for dinner tonight so that doesn't happen. But I felt I had to confess...

Early Morning Fog

I woke up to the most beautiful morning. It was not quite dawn and so very foggy. Breathtaking, really. It was earlier than usual, as I wanted to do my cardio in the early morning versus at night. I am missing out on a lot of bedtimes with my kids, and as much as possible, I'd like to get a few back. So at 6 this morning I headed over to FT and was greeted by a very cheery Anna. I did 45 minutes of cardio then headed home to begin the day.

I went to a mother's group this morning for it's kickoff - and yup, you guessed it - brunch. My nemesis. But I was good (I think). Had a little bit of non-carby fruit and some eggs and broccoli. Could have been a LOT worse...there was a lot of good looking food there.

I find with these cool temperatures it's been a struggle to resist the coffee (not supposed to have it while teeth whitening). I think I'll enjoy getting coffee back more than anything else. Really.

Assessment tomorrow. I'll let you know!

Quiet

Although I have been quiet on the blog, things have been quite the opposite. Now, though, I think life will return to normal and I'll be blogging more. Sorry for the silence.

Did a good hour of cardio yesterday, which felt great. My hamstrings are still sore and tight from Saturday - yes, that was three days ago. Hopefully by tonight (my next leg workout)they'll be feeling a little better. After my upper body workout last night, I could barely, if at all, lift my arms. Brutal.

Had an appointment at 7AM with Dr Nahata today. There is improvement in the color of my teeth. We are hoping to go a little bit whiter, though, so I'll keep using my whitening trays for another 10 days, then we'll re-evaluate.

Nutrition I thought was going well, until my three carb day yesterday Lisa informed me was actually five carbs. Ugh - frustrating, when I thought I understood it. I just hope I didn't do too much damage. At least with the Vitabot tool, Lisa can catch it right away. So glad she's so diligent and caring. Thanks for catching it, Lisa! I had a struggle with trying to ignore birthday party and restuarant food this weekend. I normally wouldn't even go to a restaurant, but I didn't have much choice this weekend. That was tough, as there was literally one thing on the menu I could eat, and the side options were all carbs. They had no non-carb veggies. Annoying. But I survived.

As Cheryl posted, I, too, am looking forward to our fitness assessment this week. Very curious where all the measurements and heart rates will fall. I'll let you know.

All right, well, I will post more frequently from now on. Back in the swing of life. Have a good day!

Sorry for the lack of updates

Hi there. Sorry it has been a few days since my last post. Life ran away from me this week! Between my husband's birthday last Friday, my daughter's birthday today (a ray of light every September 11), my mother-in-law visiting for a week, first full week of school, birthday parties and four doctor's appointments in two days...it's been hard to find the time.

Thankfully, I was able to manage my life just enough to fit in my workouts and trainings still. I was a little low on my cardio today, but did well yesterday - an hour on the elyptical trainer. I'll hope to do a full hour again tomorrow. I did have a good session with Dorothy today - arms and abs.

Still whitening my teeth - I have a follow-up on Tuesday with Dr Nahata. Using my great products from Indra. Also, because I have been running around so much and live almost downtown Andover, I have driven past Dresscode MANY times these past few days. They have some great stuff in their windows and I can't wait to get in there and look around. It's one of those place I've always loved the look of but never went in because I was sure nothing would fit. So I'm hoping that will change and I can go much more regularly! (Just don't tell my husband...)

So now I am off to the birthday dinner. But I'll be good - it's not worth it to cheat.

Shaking

Well, Lisa got what she wanted - my arms are shaking! I just left FT and am snacking on a delicious (really!) peanut butter and rice cake. Nothing ever tasted so good! We did drop sets tonight - upper body. Wow - they were tough. But I really felt like I pushed to the max - which is usual at FT.

I ate an exact 'day' which Lisa gave me - meal by meal, everything she said. Yeah! It really is so pathetic, but this is hard for me to completely grasp. So her providing that for me was awesome. I did everything except I completely forgot the almonds at snack #2 and market basket did not have flax seed oil, so I picked some up tonight to use tomorrow. I even weighed my chicken and meat.

The best thing to report is that this weekend I wore a pair of pants that I haven't worn in two years, and my shirt felt a little baggy.

Well, my rice cake is almost done, so I'm going to have some protein powder, shower and tooth whiten. That's my night!

Have a good one.

Indra & Updates

Had my consult at Indra yesterday. All my dreams are coming true - they are going to straighten my hair! I cannot wait. And I am going to have my skin look more "radiant" by having facials every 3 weeks. No complaints here! Sounds like a dream.

I am now using my teeth whitening trays, so that process has begun. As Cheryl says, it does taste nasty, but last night was better than the first. Another day or two and I should see progress.

Although the weight is not sliding off, I do think some clothes are fitting better. Toning is good, at least for now!

Had weight training with Brian last night, and cardio this morning with Dorothy (and Cheryl). Then tomorrow is an off day. Yeah!

Spoke with Lisa last night about nutrition - this new tool is so helpful. Yesterday was much better than the day before. I realized that the salads I have everyday for lunch, because they're so good for you, was actually horrible and full of calories, fat, carbs and too much protein! Yikes. Who knew? That'll change. I found some awesome Flax & Omega 3 pitas with very low carbs, so I can use those some.

My cardio seems to be right on track. I am doing just what Lisa wants, so that is good. 45-60 minutes on my no training days, 20-40 on training days.

We get another fitness evaluation after next week, so I am excited to see what that says. Hopefully inches will be done, if not pounds.

OK - gotta run to cardio!

Online Nutrition

So starting today, we have begun logging everything we eat/drink in this really great program online that Lisa gave us. It actually grades your day based on your goals, including all your vitamin and minerals. So I got a whole lot of F's today. A couple A's, a few in between, but overall, not pretty. So let's start from scratch, now that I can track it better. Hopefully I'll see huge improvements. Lisa can watch much more closely, as well, and let us know when something is out of wack before it goes overboard.

I had a good exercise day - an hour of cardio. 45 on elyptical and 15 on the bike. Felt good and didn't kill me as much as usual. Odd. It was 8PM. Oh well, I'll take it!

Well, we are embarking upon a week of birthdays and family visits. I will stay strong, and not waste my nights of cardio on frivolous calories. I do hope, however, that by next Saturday, the 13th, I'll be allowed just one little slice of cake....

Oh Man

When I walked in tonight and Brian was singing along to 'You're a Loser, baby, so why don't you kill me', I knew it was gonna be tough. We did 3+ sets on the weights and my legs are killing me. Seriously. Killing me. Oh man.

I am a bit discouraged with the weight loss, so I am curious what Lisa will say tomorrow night about nutrition and cardio. I need some advice.

I am going to try to get in more cardio - whether that means splitting my time during the day (if that's even OK, I don't know) or figuring out someway to make more hours in the day. I'll try to figure it out. Now that school is starting, hopefully I can take very brisk walks pushing my 37lb son and 25 lbs daughter up some hills. It can't hurt, right?

Resisted a LOT of food this weekend - went to a baseball game and said no to the free hot dog, soda and ice cream. Willpower! No treats on our rare date night, and no carbs at our cookout Monday. Little by little, meal by meal.

So that's it for now. School starts tomorrow so we should fall into a routine soon. That'll help all of this, I think. I'll keep you updated on all the appointments this week. Thanks for reading!

5.5

Unfortunately, due to life demands, I could not fit in cardio yesterday. Which means instead of having a day off this nice long weekend, I'll be at the gym each day. Oh well!

We did cardio with Brian this morning. Whew! Cheryl and I were limping out of there. But we survived. And before we left, we weighed ourselves. I have lost 5.5 lbs! So I am pleased. I hope that pace keeps up, as then I'll be on track to lose my goal.

This week is a busy one squished into fewer days than normal. Four personal trainings, a nutrition evaluation, a dentist appointment for my whitening trays, and a hair appointment at Indra. On top of that, my daughter starts first grade on Wednesday, so there's a whole lot of driving, my husband has a birthday Friday and my daughter has a birthday party on Saturday. Gonna be one crazy week!

So I am going to enjoy a few quiet moments. And eat some protein, of course!

Weights, Shakes & Playdates

For the first time in my seven training sessions, I am admitting that I am looking forard to my session tonight. I really feel a sense of accomplishment after the weight training - I can physically see the progress I am making (with the weights increasing). And as hard as it is and as much as I sweat, it feels good. Maybe now that I've admitted that, FT will increase my workout, as perhaps it should not ever 'feel good', but so be it. At least the dread factor isn't playing tonight.

I have tried to improve my nutrition, primarily my protein. And thanks to Cheryl, I am sucking down an EAS carb control protein shake. Not too bad. DEFINITELY better than the powder ones I could not ingest last week.

A side benefit to this whole process is that I have found a great friend in Cheryl. We are similar -stay at home moms trying to make it through a grueling but fabulous makeover. So it has been really nice getting to know her a bit. When I walked into the Finalist Interview a few weeks ago, we instantly recognized each other. Apparently we're in the same mother's group and have briefly met on an occasion or two. Who knew that a few weeks later we'd see each other 4-5 days a week and meet up for playdates at the park? We are definitely forming a bond (sweat bond or not - still good stuff!) which is fun and will last a long time. I expect that we'll continue to meet up and encourage each other to 'stick with it' once the official makeover is done.

So that's my day today - weights, shakes and playdates!

A Mistake, huh?

So last night's weight session was great. Bryan was awesome and pushed really hard. We did three circuits and barely took a breathe inbetween. But that's good!

Doing one of the exercises the first time around, Bryan allegedly made a mistake a put 10 extra pounds on. I mentioned it seemed heavier, but pushed through. It was only when he was removing the weights that he noticed he 'forgot' to take one off when he added another one. Needless to say, because I completed the set, he decided that 'mistake' was a good one and decided to not only keep those weights high, but also bumped up some others. There was even one exercise where I got a weight from the 'lower rack'. Progress, I suppose!

I am not as certain about my nutrition as Cheryl, so tonight's consult is much needed. I'm going out today and bringing some protein with me. Now to be able to drive past the Starbucks instead of pulling in....

Protein, protein, protein

I find the easiest thing to maintain is the exercise. I am 'forced' into it four days a week, and did it the other two days just so I could look forward to Sunday off! It's hard, but it feels great when I'm done.

Nutrition: it's going OK here. I tried one type of shake/powder and couldn't take it. So I bought another today and hope it's better. And I bought some bars. I actually bought the South Beach ones because they seemed to have the higher protein and lower carbs than the others. I haven't weighed myself - I'm scared I haven't actually lost weight.

Cheryl had a great idea: cardio training together. I think it'll work from here on out. Just having someone else who is going through it and encouraging you to hold the planks longer is awesome. Tomorrow will be tough without her! I have really been enjoying the weight training - it feels good, and challenging.

I have a consult with Dr Nahata next Friday morning. So I'll have more news then!

And Indra I see in two weeks. Very curious what they'll say/do!

That's my update. I think I'll definitely need some guidance in the nutrition area on Tuesday. I've grasped some of it but am certainly still struggling. Now that I have some bars, that will help maintain my protein all day.

Thanks for checking in!

Ouch.

I thought last night was hard. Whoops. I was so wrong.

Tonight was cardio intervals with abs. Talk about hurt. At first the pain was the cardio, but then as we got further on, I looked forward to the cardio. Funny how that works. I am just thankful to Cheryl (my co-winner) for not laughing when I fell - literally - off the ball tonight. =)

But enough complaining, all these aching muscles tell me that I have been ignoring them, and now they're waking up - so this is good news. And the nutrition consult tonight was amazing - so much I had no idea about. I am excited for my morning run to the grocery store (odd, yes?) to stock up on all the good things to eat.

Never thought I'd look forward to stepping on a scale - now I just hope it makes me happy.

Day 2 - Done.

Easy?

Well, I was told we'd 'take it easy' today because it was our first day of training. You know, figuring out weights and the like.

Um, I'm in trouble. I did not at all consider that easy.

My trainer for the night, Dorothy, was really great and encouraging. Challenging, too, which was good for me. I look forward to meeting other trainers throughout this process. I am especially interested in my nutrition evaluation tomorrow with Lisa. I don't know whether I eat well, horrible, or somewhere in between.

Anyway, we have barely just hit the tip of the iceberg. This is gonna be tough. Good. But tough.

Day 1 - done.

Day 1

Today is the first day of our personal training. I am excited to get underway, but am nervous about how hard this is going to be. I know it is going to be worth it! I just am trying to keep the end result my driving motivation.

We had our fitness evaluation last week. Yikes. Not a pretty thing. But I suppose it must be done so we can see a positive result - right? It also confirmed how much I need help.

I keep trying to think of the part of this makeover I am most excited about - and it keeps changing. The teeth whitening is a huge thing for me. And just something different and contemporary with my hair (instead of my signature ponytail!). And a new outfit - stylish and hip. Wow. And then the whole body change - fitter, slimmer, healthier. I expect my favorite part will keep changing, but for now, I am content to remain grateful for all of it. I would have been ecstatic to win even one of these prizes. To have them all together is beyond belief.

Thank you to all the sponsors - I feel as if my life will be longer and healthier and happier because of your generosity.

And to my family and friends, and those I don't know - please keep encouraging me! I hope this feeling of excitement can drive me and help me achieve my goals. But I know that every bit of motivation you provide will push me that much more. Thanks for being part of this journey with me.

Here we go!!!