Day 12 - Sculpt

Well, I've been thrown off a day due to waiting around for my mother. It's ok though, because now I get Sunday off rather than Tuesday! With that said, we just started the week over so I won't break until Sunday again.

Weights were good! I used 5lb dumbbells and I like them infinitely more, and I still felt like it was working my body just as well. Still working on those push ups though!

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I don't quite remember what I ate, as I didn't log it and it was a couple days ago. I think I had an egg and toast for brekky, then some pizza for lunch, and chicken breast with rosemary and veggies for din.

Day 11 - Sweat

Well, my asthma was a lot better today. I wonder if it has anything to do with what time I work out. It seems that the earlier, the better! Anyhow, today went ok. Still not a fan of the power yoga, and I really don't know that I will be until I can do it without the pain in my arms and the 5 minute headache. Did fine with the high knees, kept my arms going for the whole time except with legs out to the side. I was too busy struggling to keep my knees up during that portion to focus on my arms. Did half of each round of run lunges. Gosh those things are killer. I really think they would be a bit easier if I didn't have all this boob bouncing around on my chest, even with a sports bra! I felt pretty tired in kickboxing for some reason, so I just slowed my pace a bit and focused on getting my whole body into the hits. Side kicks are getting better. My balance is SLOWLY improving.

And last but not least, the ab blaster was fine. Did around 75 of the 100. I completed all of the sets except bicycle...did half, and then full body I did 3, and legs only I did 2. Legs only is rough since I have a lot of junk in my trunk. My whole upper body lifts with my legs, and it is highly uncomfortable, so I can't put my legs back down each time. :(

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I ate alright yesterday, though I just didn't feel too hungry throughout the day, so my meals were small and snack free. Had a breakfast of veggies and an egg, lunch was 3 baked chicken tenders (I hate eating at work, but I'm out of deli meat ), and dinner was a bowl of chili mac, and it was goooooood. Oh, and I had a cup of the new cappacino from work because it was bloody freezing, but it was way too chocolatey (never thought I'd say that), so that won't be happening again!

Sculpt tomorrow, looking forward to further developing my guns : D

Day 10 - Sculpt

-> Sculpt <-

Today went well, despite not getting much sleep. Definitely feel it in my arms! I tightened the resistance band on a few of the exercises because they felt way too easy even after 15-20 reps. My balance was good, and the so were the many squats.

Push-ups still suck, but they suck a little less each day. Not much else to say about today.

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Yesterday's meal plan was good through out the day, not so much the evening. I had some oatmeal and an egg for breakfast, then a tuna sandwich for lunch, a ham and turkey sandwich for dinner, and then went out for a friends bday and had a glass of Hofbrau hefe weizen. Delicious. Oh, and a strawberry daiquiri. I would have been so much worse had I not had to DD haha. Then, upon getting home around 3:30am, my stomach was ill from hunger, so I had something to eat before bed. oops. :/

Day 9 - Sweat

-> Cardio <-

Well, I started my work out late today. Our transformer blew last night right before I went to bed, so I woke my parents up hollering from the kitchen. Go figure, the one time I leave my phone in the other room, something blows up and sends the whole neighborhood into darkness. While I did go to bed at a decent hour, my work out buddy, aka mom, didn't get much sleep, so she refused to work out before napping. I figured I would wait until she woke up and try to encourage her to join, but she bailed anyway and just watched me the whole time.

I have concluded that I would much rather work out first thing in the morning oppose to early evening. In the morning, I eat a small but satisfying breakfast, wait 30mins to an hour, then get rollin', but in the evening, I just feel fatigued and less motivated to do a work out. Won't be doing that again, unless absolutely necessary!

The work out was a bit tougher than usual. My asthma was being particularly fussy today which left me very short of breath quite often. I did push through and do everything 99% except the running lunges. Those always have a profound effect on my asthma, and with it already flared up today, it just WAS NOT happening.

Power yoga is still a bitch, though I did -almost- make the downward dog leg up into the runners pose this time! All of the hanging around with my head below my waist gives me a killer headache, though. Granted, it dissipates as soon as I am standing upright for a few moments, but it is still hard to focus when you feel the blood racing through your head! As much as a loathe the headache and pain in my arms, I do love how stretched out my body feels after the 5 minutes of hell!

Kickboxing went good. I am terrible at balancing when I do side kicks, though! Other than that, I'm just working on keeping my fists and arms in the proper posture when doing punches. It's getting better!

Aaaaand alas, CRUNCHES...

Oh boy did I feel them today. I can tell that I had a day off, because it's like my muscles are rehurting all over again. ;(

I did about 70/100 crunches, but I did them darn well. Note to self, tuck my shirt into my shorts, because I manage to slide across the floor in fullbody crunches. Darn those heavy thighs.

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Last nights eating habits were pretty well. I had an egg, a biscuit, and some sausage for breakfast. About an hour after, I worked out, then had a few almonds while updating this. Then I showered and relaxed for another 2 hours or so and had lunch, which was the worst meal of the day! I had a piece of left over pizza. Then about 2 hours later, I had a couple triskets and muenster cheese. Then 3 hours later, an awesome dinner which consisted of a small piece of grilled steak, a few little shrimps sauteed in olive oil, some steamed potatos and green beans, and some peas. Kept me full for the next 5ish hours until bed.

Until tomorrow, au revoir!

Day 8 - Sculpt

-> Sculpt 1-2 Routine <-

Well, after having the day off, my muscles certainly felt a lot better, but I definitely felt the burn starting the workout again. Push-ups still kick my butt, especially the close ones! Today the squats and lunges tuckered my legs out pretty fast, but I did complete them all, begrudgingly. I even noticed that my balance is improving. I no longer teeter two and fro nearly as much as I used to hah. I think I want to try something new by using dumbbells instead of resistance bands. The bands are great, don't get me wrong, but there is a lot of tension doing exercises where my arm/arms are completely outstretched above me, and little tension at the bottom of the band when doing full range of motion. I'd like to try something that is the same weight throughout. I have a feeling I will like dumbbells more and resistance bands will become my travel companions.

As for yesterday's dining, while it wasn't nearly as nutritious as it should have been (pizza and one of mom's burgers, among some dried apricots and carrots), I did still drink plenty of water, and ate in moderation.

All and all, I feel pretty good! Looking forward to Cardio tomorrow!

Days 1-7

Since I already finished week 1, I just want to document my measurements and thoughts so that I have a foundation. I am not weighing myself on any regular basis, as I am more interested in how my body changes oppose to how my weight fluctuates. I will however take a weight measurement afterwards to see how the numbers and inches correlate!

1/18

Chest: 49"

R. Arm: 18"

L. Arm: 17"

Waist: 51"

Hips: 63"

R. Thigh: 31.75"

L. Thigh: 31.5"

Weight: 276lbs

Day 1 was Sculpt/strength training and Day 2 Cadio &Abs I took very easy, just getting the hang of the program.

Sculpt was not too bad, I definitely felt the work out and can easily accommodate it to be easier or more difficult as I progress. The push ups definitely kick my tail. I can do a pathetic 1 with good standard form. Rather than have poor form and sore shoulders, I have opted to do the push ups against the wall until I am strong enough to do them properly. They are still challenging but do not stress my arms as much. The rest of the routine went smoothly, but as I said, the intensity is completely up to me with the amount of resistance I choose, and number of reps (they do 15 typically). Over the course of the week, I definitely improved. I went from a 15 second wall sit to 37 seconds, and each day, the push ups get easier!

Cardio & Abs was not as nice to me. It starts off with power yoga for flexibility, which is really hard on my upper body. I have a lot of weight to hold up, so doing several downward facing dogs really tires my arms, but I am definitely trying to tough it out. I cannot do a downward facing dog into a leg raise into runners pose. I just cannot swing my leg forward, but I am sure it will come with time, and a smaller gut to get out of the way of my leg! I never thought high knees would be so difficult, but I noticed that my arms are pathetic and get tired into the first minute, and I got short winded within the first 2. By Day 3 of cardio, I did do the full 4 minutes of knees, with half of that using my arms. The jumping jacks and running lunges are hard on my asthma, but I am toughing it out and it is definitely getting easier for me. I am still getting used to the kickboxing portion, so I am focusing a lot on just trying to keep my form. The crunches go pretty well. 10 sets of 10, all different positions. I definitely have the most trouble with the bicycle and the leg raises. The rest are pretty alright, I definitely feel it after!

Today is my day off, so I allowed myself to have a comfort food, aka my favorite pizza! I did still enjoy it in moderation, however. I won't be measuring myself every week, likely not again until day 30, but I did measure my waist and hips today to see if I had any change, because I definitely feel like I have...and here's the results!

1/24

Waist: 49.5", lost 1.5"!

Hips: Still 63" ;(

Tomorrow starts week 2!

That really long first post....

Upon graduating in December, I decided that I wanted to start 2012 right by not only seeking awesome full time employment in a Computer Science related field, but getting in shape physically and mentally.

I have been overweight my entire life, really. By that I mean that I cannot recall what it feels like to be skinny. I was always a sick kid pumped with steroids and blessed with poor balance and a knack for breaking bones. My dad loves confectionery and both of my parents love convenience, which ended in many take-out and pre-packaged meals. All of this combined yielded quite the weight gain.

Periodically, I'd have a bout with my weight and have a sudden burst of willpower, which lead to the formation of short term goals, such as fitting into a dress. I'd work out religiously for the couple of months before the event, drink only water, and eat salads and grilled chicken like it was my job, whether they satisfied my hunger or not, as I couldn't afford much more than that and SXU's diner definitely didn't house many nutritious meals that I liked. Behold, by the special day, I always fit into that dress...barely. Then after, I relaxed back into my old routine.

This time, I have better reasons for pursuing a healthy lifestyle. This time, it isn't short term. First and foremost, I don't want to wind up like my father-- a diabetic losing his feet, because of his poor lifestyle choices. It runs on both sides of my family, and being my size is not helping my chances. Second, I am sick of paying double the cost for the same exact clothing as the skinny-minis! The style I like just isn't made for girls my size, and since I can't make my own clothes, I guess I'll have to stop pretending that the pants are too small for my butt and realize that I am to large for them. And third, I want to be in shape...plain and simple. I don't want to be out of breath after a couple flights of stairs, or find myself a sweaty mess when I'm dancing at my wedding. Oh, and not to mention, skydiving is on my bucket list, and fat people don't get to skydive! ;(

I decided on P90 for 2 main reasons: 1) Gym memberships are far too expensive for my current budget; 2) I prefer the comfort and convenience of my own home (perhaps because I am so out of shape). I did much research on routines for those beginning a fitness routine, as well as on nutrition and eating healthy. I started the New Year by going on a walk/jog around my neighborhood. I learned the hard way that not only was I out of shape, but there was no way my asthma was going to allow me to even come close to a jog in the dry winter air. So I started walking, and it was nice...but not the work out I needed. A friend suggested P90X with ample proof that it worked, but upon further research, I discovered that the precursor, P90, was better suited for me.

I am also altering my eating habits, but I don't like to call what I am doing a "diet and exercise" routine. This IS a lifestyle change. I am not doing a fad diet, or cutting out chocolate and pizza. Rather, I am implementing portion control and doing my best to eat in moderation (which is hard for a food lover! ) Not only that, but I am trying to be more conscious of how the foods I am eating are serving my body. I have learned in the past 25 days that eating a spinach salad is infinitely more filling than iceberg lettuce, fruit can be just as rewarding as a donut, and almonds are an awesome snack that fills me up for 2-3 hours. I typically eat 5 times a day: breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner...and depending on my agenda, potentially another snack, but never within 3 hours of bed time. And what's amazing is that I am not hungry, or short on energy...yet I am only consuming around 1500-2000 calories a day.

I am also trying to drink mainly water. I have been consuming anywhere from 8 to 12 glasses a day, a couple of which I drink with Crystal Lite. Occasionally I will have Coke Zero, but I am trying to stay away from sticky liquids, only having them on occassion. I don't really miss them, either!

I am completely oblivious as to how my body is going to react to this healthier lifestyle, so I am unsure how quickly I will drop inches. I read about women my size giving it their all and losing 6" within the first month, and then I have read about others only losing 1 or 2. It is hard for me to set goals not knowing this, but by the end of my 90 days, I would love to see myself in a size 18-20 oppose to my current 24-26. By my cruise in June, I hope to be around a 14! Let's see how attainable this is!

With all of that said, I am sure that in the course of the next 80 days of p90, I'm going to need some motivation, and having this is definitely going to keep me accountable. I wish I would have thought to do this before I started the program, but ah well! I'm only a week late! I am going to update after my work out about how I felt about it, my short comings, etc. I'll also likely update about my eating habits from the night before. It will just serve to me as a means of tracking my progress and seeing how far I have come.

So I hope if you're reading, that you find my journey amusing, at the very least!

And if I miss more than a day, harp on me!

Cheers!