MN Trip - Walk around the lake - 5.1 Miles

The month before we left for MN my routine started to fall apart.  I was focused on our trip, our business, getting ready to be gone for 10 days takes some prep. =)  I was drinking less water, sleeping less, not spending my time on ME at all.  I would gain and lose the same 6lbs over and over again throughout the month.

When I arrived in MN it was time to reset focus and start thinking about me again.

My aunt and I head out Monday morning for a walk.  She takes their two small dogs and one has a hard time walking far due to her age and so my aunt walks in loops.  Walk a blocks distance on the trail, then turn around, walk back, then turn around and walk back moving slowly down the trail.  This is fine for the one deciding when we are turning, but for the follower this can be alarming each time we turn.  I finally decide I need to break away from this loop de loop pack and head out on my own.  I have my cell phone - if I get lost I have Maps on the phone. =)

Shortly into my walk I come across this in the gutter next to where I am walking.  Road kill.  Yeah this is kinda gross but definitely struck me in that moment as I am walking to save my life - this is where we all go.  My eventual destination won't be much different than this little former creature.  Keep walking.

On the far side of the lake there is a public access area.  There is a crane in the middle of the floating walkway.

This is the view from the water's edge - I am halfway done with my walk.  I feel so alive! =)

In the end I walked around the entire lake - 5.1 Miles.  This is the farthest I have walked at one time.  It felt so great to be out in the beautiful fresh MN air. =)

 

I felt so awesome being physical active again when I got back I headed up to the Maple Grove pool for 30 minutes of laps.

I ended up getting a blister on my foot.  Wow my feet look really dry. =)

Not bad for the start of a vacation.

SparkPeople.com

I was really having a good time on The Biggest Loser Club site.  The community there is fantastic!  Boot Camps, Challenges constantly starting, archives of articles, exercise video demonstrations and the food database and ability to make changes was pretty good.

However, for a pay site - it really is lacking.  Given that we create web promotional sites for a living and I know how much it costs to implement/update tools, it was clear that the site hasn't had an updated much since its launch several years ago.  It was discouraging at times to try to explain to newbies how to get to their

"AFTER" Photos..

Yesterday was a big day for me!  I posed nude for my "AFTER" photos with Dr. Forman. =)

As a reminder if you aren't aware.  In April 2009 I had a panniculectomy surgery.  You can google it for pics of you choose. =)  This removed the excess skin from my lower abdomen after my weight loss from a stomach reduction in May of 2000.  Having that removed reshaped my entire torso as well as it now allows me to be way more physically active than I was before... all of the progress posted here. =)

In preparation for my appointment, I wrote him a letter thanking him for his expert efforts and care of me during and post surgery.  I knew I wasn't going to be able to say what I wanted to say in a clear manner without bawling like a baby, and so it was easier to write it in a note. =)

The voices in my head were all chatty on the way over to my appointment:

Voice 1 - You know, think about all the times you came here to get dead skin cut off week after week.  Remember that time you went to his office and said, "I feel sad!" and he said, "Oh really.. you would have thought you would be showing off your new body to everyone by now and instead you have a huge gaping hole on the front of you.. you think you might feel sad?" All with his cutey cute Jason Bateman smile...

Voice 2 - He did up your pain meds and happy pills at that appointment and that certainly helped.

Voice 1 - I have come a really long way since then.  I am so grateful to have chosen to do this for myself. 

*tears start coming*

Voice 2 - Now WHY do the happy events in your life always make you cry?  This is a HAPPY event.. stop crying.  You are gonna be all puffy for your after photos.

Voice 1 - Maybe I cry because I don't think that I deserve this happiness.

Voice 2 - Well that is what you are gonna think now isn't it?  I don't really think that we are in a clear mental state right now to be making psychological assessments on the motivation of your tears.

Bottom line, this is a happy moment in your life.. be HAPPY for it rather than crying your way through it as though you don't deserve to be happy.

*Ok Voice 2 has a point I will have to consider again later, but for now I turn up Black Eyed Peas to drown out all of their voices*

Imma be takin them pics, lookin' all fly and shit
Imma be the flyest chick, so fly
Imma be spreadin' my wings
Imma be doin' my thang, do it, do it, okay


I get to the appointment and I am a few minutes early.  I end up waiting about 45 minutes in the lobby and during that time the voices in my head are all talking.. but I am trying to drown them out and just spend my time stretching.  I get so overzealous in my stretching I almost throw out a muscle area in my back.  Reeeeeeeeelax Lorelei. =)

I finally get in to see him and he is amazed at my progress - the food, the exercise, and my mental attitude.  We talk a little about what I have been doing, and what I can plan for in the future.  Then, for only the second time in my life, I pose naked for full body photos.  We look at my "BEFORE" photos again and it is really amazing the difference in my overall shape, my posture, my muscles. =)

It has been a long, but very successful journey since April of 2009.  I have learned so much about myself, my body, my health, my mind..  I am so grateful to have met Dr. Forman and made the choice for this surgery. 

As I have mentioned before I can't thank Kate or my hubby enough.  Months of taking on all of the household responsibilities, the work responsibilities and everything - PLUS taking care of me while I recovered.  I am forever grateful! =)

It changed my life! =)

How much profit can someone make off of a day of your life?

The other day I saw a commercial for Pop Tarts.  Have a happier summer when you take a pop tart, break it in half and put ice cream in between the halves and serve that to your children.  Other treat options include bowls of ice cream that have a pop tart shoved in the bowl.

This spawned my search to find a national organization that helps the parents of overweight kids.  I had learned on Dr. Oz that all of our fat cells are developed as children, and so overweight children can produce twice as many fat cells as their fit counterparts.  It is like a life sentence to obesity for these kids.  I was unable to find any resources, so I posted something to my Facebook page.

Always fantastically resourceful Eileen shared with me the link for Michelle Obama's initiative for Let's Move.gov - America's Move to Raise a Healthier Generation of Kids.  I love this description:  A nationwide initiative to promote making healthy choices, improving food quality in schools, increasing access to healthy, affordable food, and increasing physical activity for a healthier generation of kids.

Beautiful!

And just in time!  Tonight we are watching a Colbert rerun and see that Friendly's... isn't so friendly to your health, your heart or your longevity.  Let me introduce you to the Grilled Cheese BurgerMelt:

I entered the basic ingredients into my Biggest Loser menu plan to see what could be in a simply made version of that sandwich.  The actual sandwich may have more or less calories.

The sandwich is almost the calories for an entire day of nutrition.  Add some fries, and of course, since you are at Friendly's, some BASIC ice cream (1 cup vanilla with chocolate sauce) and the calories soar and the sodium significantly increases:

The pursuit of profits at the expense of your life are not beyond anyone.. even a company named Friendly's.

Make a better choice. =)

**** This is where this post originally ended.

Ten minutes after I hit publish on this, I am on Facebook and a friend has posted this link:

You can read the article here:  http://www.nrn.com/article/carls-jr-tests-foot-long-cheeseburger

The one that I had seen, but forgot about is the KFC Double Down


In the article above it says, "The foot-long cheeseburger is the latest in a string of envelope-pushing sandwiches on the market..." 

I disagree.

I think that we ate the envelope a long time ago.

I'm AWAKE! I'm AWAKE!

Evanescence - Wake Me Up Inside

This song is on my workout play list.  For just the last couple of workouts this song makes me cry every time it plays.  Considering it is third in a playlist of 19 on my current workout CD - that can be pretty debilitating or quite the struggle to move through very early on in a workout. =)


WAKE ME UP INSIDE. 

This has been part of my workout routine since the first day.  I would sing along with this song during the first few days of being on that treadmill and gasping and crying after 10 - 12 minutes when I first started. 

CALL MY NAME AND SAVE ME FROM THE DARK.

When I started this song was like a dedication from the inside me to the outside me.  The real me way deep down.  It was my responsibility to wake me up inside - and pull out the girl that is down under.. down inside all of this flesh.


I'VE BEEN SLEEPING FOR A THOUSAND YEARS IT SEEMS.  
I'VE GOT TO OPEN MY EYES TO EVERYTHING. 

BRING ME TO LIFE.

Well I have heard the wake up call.  Right as this song was playing during my workout I decided.. I am going to complete my first 5k on the treadmill!  So I did! =)

This makes me an official athlete right? =)

My time was 60:33.  Being this is only the second time I have attempted to complete it, I am SOOOOOOOO GLAD that I just finished.  I assure you, it wasn't pretty at times.  There were some moments of cussing and moments I swore I was gonna give up - but once I got half way through I figured I would have to get this far again to be half way done - so why not just finish it now.

When I started on April 10th, I could only do 30-minute miles and no way I could have done 3.1 of them in the same session without stopping. =)

Having accomplished this, I feel that this is a perfect time to retire this song.

I am AWAKE!


Thank you Evanescence for this song that helped ME do exactly exactly that.. Wake Me Up Inside. =)


Evanescence - Wake Me Up Inside

How can you see into my eyes
Like open doors?
Lading you down into my core,
Where I've become so numb.

Without a soul,
My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold,
Until you find it there and lead it back
Home.

(Wake me up)
Wake me up inside.
(I can't wake up)
Wake me up inside.
(Save me)
Call my name and save me from the dark.
(Wake me up)
Bid my blood to run.
(I can't wake up)
Before I come undone.
(Save me)
Save me from the nothing I've become.

Now that I know what I'm without,
You can't just leave me.
Breathe into me and make me real.
Bring me to life.

(Wake me up)
Wake me up inside.
(I can't wake up)
Wake me up inside.
(Save me)
Call my name and save me from the dark.
(Wake me up)
Bid my blood to run.
(I can't wake up)
Before I come undone.
(Save me)
Save me from the nothing I've become.

Bring me to life.
(I've been living a lie.
There's nothing inside)
Bring me to life.

Frozen inside without your touch,
Without your love, darling.
Only you are the life among the dead.

(All of this sight,
I can't believe I couldn't see
Kept in the dark
but you were there in front of me)
I've been sleeping a 1000 years it seems.
I've got to open my eyes to everything.
(Without a thought
Without a voice
Without a soul
Don't let me die here.
There must be something more).
Bring me to life.

(Wake me up)
Wake me up inside.
(I can't wake up)
Wake me up inside.
(Save me)
Call my name and save me from the dark.
(Wake me up)
Bid my blood to run.
(I can't wake up)
Before I come undone.
(Save me)
Save me from the nothing I've become.

Bring me to life.
(I've been living a lie. There's nothing inside)
Bring me to life

=)

For those keeping score..

Friday's are our weigh in for the boot camp that I participate in on the Biggest Loser Club website.

As of this morning, I am down 6 lbs this week to 263 starting from 298 on 4/10/10.

That is 17 lbs less than my high school graduation.  That is 117 lbs less than my highest weight.

At 255 I will be out of the "morbidly obese" category and into the "obese" category.  Never thought I would be excited to be just "obese". =)

WOOT!

ROCK that body!

It's amazing the things we do to trick ourselves into doing what we need to do.

Yesterday I was focusing on strength training.  Core and Arms.   I was on the floor, on the mat, on my back and I intended to do some crunches. 

After being laid up for a majority of last year on pain medication, and the surgery I had, my abs need some work.  I have already worked out for an hour.. and this is around the last 17 minutes or so of my current mix workout CD.  I tell myself to do crunches.  Just do it.  My body doesn't move.  It  doesn't even attempt to get into the position to do a crunch.

Oh.. I have seen these moments on the show all the time.  However I know for a fact when the Biggest Loser contestants get to this point, they have had their ass royally kicked.  I have done a good workout, but I am definitely not dying.  

So just do them.  

Get through 10.. just 10.  

Nope.  Not budging.

Just then the Black Eyed Peas song "Rock that Body" comes on and I hear that one voice in my say "OK since you won't move, now you have to do a crunch every time they say "ROCK" in this song.  The other voice starts to say, "are you effin' crazy.." but the word "ROCK" already has me like 7 crunches behind in the first few seconds of the song.

I get started.

"Oh.. aren't you a smarty.. picking the word ROCK.  How you liking it now?!

"Shut up and do these crunches.  Focus on what you are doing."

Rock that body.. come on come on now Rock that body..

In the end the song is about 5 minutes and has 59 "ROCK"s in the song.  I did em.  All of em and a few more for extra for good measure.

I have the power in my mind to be the slouch on the couch, or the Jillian in my head.  Sometimes, I am both.  When I am able to motivate myself through something the empowerment that comes from that is almost addicting.  I loved being able to trick my mind into doing something b/c it is tied to something else.  Once I had said that in my head I definitely wasn't going back on my word and so I got it done. =)

ROCK that body!