Tuchos is another word for the part of your anatomy you sit on. Well, I was defeated! Either I'm getting older (hope not) or I didn't sleep too well the night before...and I'm sticking with that reason!

Cosmo was a good Jack Russell Terror..oh I mean Terrier this morning and actually let me sleep until eight am. I managed to make both of us breakfast and after a quick walk around the block I headed out to SNAP for a cardio workout. Today I felt I accomplished plenty with not only kicking my tuchos but feeling stronger and thinner.

I had to face reality back down on Earth and scurried home after a quick trip to buy some workout clothes and shelving units. Great...more stuff to assemble!

Now if I could only get the bleach smell off of my hands after cleaning up the kitchen!

Have a fantastic week everyone!

--
Mortal wounds give no pain.

We are all doing our best to get healthy. It has been a long road for me. In July 2009 I was tipping the scales at nearly 250 pounds and was extremely unhappy and totally exhausted carrying that weight on my five foot eight inch frame. This is the first time I have gone public with that weight as I was quite ashamed that I let myself go. I actually felt I was going to drop dead from diabetes. I was taking mass quantities of several types of insulin and blood pressure meds and still  was gaining weight and my blood sugar was out of control. I was stuffing my face with junk food 24/7. I totally neglected myself and everything around me. 

I remember when I was overweight I would go into clothing stores. Either the salesperson would immediately come up to me to see what I wanted maybe thinking I can't fit in any clothes and would try to take them or they would totally ignore me. Now I am finally treated like a human being when I shop. Talk about discrimination!  I was like the "fat girl" no one would date until I lost weight and then I was in the "in crowd".

It has taken some time to get to where I currently weigh now. I still have weight to lose to my goal and then there is maintenance....it will be eating in a way that will sustain me for the rest of my natural life. 

Many of my friends congratulate me on my successes so far and applaud me in my continued journey. A few however "think" I have lost enough and are too thin. They are aware that I have diabetes and complications from that disease could end my life. Although many say I am pretty good with a "comeback", I am at a loss for words when addressing the negative comments. Any suggestions?

All I want to be is healthy, free from diabetes, and happy. Is that asking too much?

Well, only two more weeks until the weigh-in. Oy. I'm going to make my best effort to kick it up a notch the next two weeks at the gym. I believe I know what my body can do now and I must say it is a hell of a lot better with the weigh loss I have sustained. Slowly but surely I am inching my way to my goal weight.  My last blood pressure was 90/60 and all my glucose readings are normal. I don't see my endocrinologist until May and am hoping I can get off the meds. The only drawback now is a lingering sinus infection and I have just a few more days of antibiotics.

 

 

I went to the Willoughby boot camp this morning. There were six others and I was the only one from the group. This was a very fulfilling session. I made my way to the Willoughby YMCA. The place was crawling with children. It seems there was a gymnastic meet. The locker room that houses the sauna was closed to the public. So I used the women's locker room to shower and change. At the time I was planning to work out some more but I was exhausted.

If I have any steam left I'll stop by at SNAP later tonight.

I did my usual Saturday shopping at Old Navy, TJ Maxx, and Marshall's. I bought a few t-shirts and exchanged a pair of jeans. I have noticed the guys at the gym get a kick out of my t-shirts. Who says I don't have a sense of humor?  I then proceeded to have my mini-day of beauty pampering at the Brown-Aveda Institute; which is a beauty school. I haven't been there in sometime and really, really love the pampering I receive.

I'm home now after after stuffing myself with a power salad and doing laundry while watching 'The Tudor's" on Netflix.

Of course; Cosmo, my Jack Russell Terrier is watching as well.

Yesterday and today I was in training for an exam for the Ohio Certified Healthcare Emergency Professional from the OHA; Ohio Hospital Association. I sure hoped I passed as the exam was totally brutal.

I did my workout after the exam and it helped me immensely with the stress level I experienced as I hate taking tests. In a previous blog post I stated that I have started to run and added minutes on the treadmill. I am going to learn to run in baby steps so I don't injure myself.

Right now I'm watching the Pens hockey game. Sidney Crosby is finally back and the game is tied 1-1.

Tomorrow I have a training session with Drake at SNAP and will continue to improve on my form lifting weights. I am working very hard to burn the fat.  All my clothes are getting huge and now I can see my bones emerge from the once layers of fat.  It's a good feeling but I can't give up and will continue to soldier on to my goals.

I will attend boot camp on Saturday morning in Willoughby followed by a visit to the YMCA.  After that I have a little mini-day of beauty planned for myself and then have to stop by at Heinen's as they have a special on Fage Greek yogurt. On Sunday it's back to workout at SNAP.

Have a great weekend and be safe!

OK, I'm not Forrest Gump, but I started running for the first time today on the treadmill.  Starting out at a one minute run and then walking for four and another one minute run. I kept up four times total until I was exhausted and then I just finished walking for forty minutes. I did some work with the step platform with hand weights and then ten minutes on the elliptical. This was all my body could take for today.

After the gym I did some shopping and now I'm home watching the Pens winning the hockey game against Boston and also studying for my CHEP exam.

Have a great week everyone!

Lesson one: eat before you workout! DUH! My bad as I didn't realize how hard the class would be.  I needed more than a cappuccino and strawberries. Next time it will be a protein shake and some substantial carbs.

Glad to workout with fellow Lighten Up participants.

After the boot camp I went for car service to get my oil changed and tires rotated; but before that I just had to stop at Marshals...well it was on the way.  Classic Toyota has K-cup coffee and fresh fruit in the service waiting area...which of course I sampled.  I also managed to visit Sam's Club where they had some free health screenings. I am proud to say I had my body fat measured; albeit still high  had decreased from January and also my BMI has decreased. My blood pressure was normal. They also took a little blood to test for allergies and the results will be available to my email in six to eight weeks. Since we had such a mild winter a heavy allergy season has been predicted. This is not good as I suffer from seasonal allergies.

I managed to make it home in time to have a healthy lunch and then prepare for dinner. My special stir-fry chicken .

I managed an entire day following a detox diet. Two more to go. This was not too difficult (NOT!)  and not a major departure from what I eat.  Drinking the protein shakes with a tablespoon of psyllium husks mixed in was a challenge but I soldiered on. For the next two days I change it up a little. I have fruit throughout the day; four servings of 100 calories each and then a huge raw veggie salad and a protein shake. Plus I add a medium baked potato. Yum!

It is amazing what you can have  for 100 calories. Mass quantities of strawberries, a tad over a cup of fresh pineapple, a medium banana, two small apples....

I went to the gym today and completed thirty minutes on the treadmill. Tomorrow I meet with Drake for some serious workouts; within reason and my energy level holds up.

I'm just glad I have no apparent withdrawal symptoms from the gallons of coffee I usually drink all day!

I am having my last Diet Coke today. No more Splenda, Nutrasweet, or unnecessary chemicals. Tomorrow not only am I cleansing my body I am renewing myself and my well being. All these bad chemicals bloat and pollute my body and make me crabby!

For the next three days I will eat clean healthy fruit, raw veggies, and pure protein sources.

I may not be much fun to be around but this is for my greater good.
_

Rhymes with fun day...right?

The weekend is over and its time to get back to the serious business of getting fit.  I tried my best to stay on plan.  Friday night BF was in town (lives in PIT) and we went to Sumo Boy and shared shrimp dumplings (two each), miso soup, small dinner salad, shared veggie tempura. My entree was tofu and veggie teriyaki. It was delicious. To top it off I had one scoop of green tea ice cream.  Green tea ice cream is delicious and believe it or not...it is not sweet. I haven't had ice cream in two months...this was a well deserved treat for me! Saturday night was a rotisserie chicken from Sam's Club as I was just too lazy to cook.

Saturday morning I managed a quick work out at SNAP and went home to shower and change.  We both went to the Painesville YMCA so I could sign up for the four month membership. I ask for a quickie tour and was amazed of the expanse of the place. Looking from Mentor Ave the building seems so small. The ladies locker room has a wet and dry sauna with direct access to the pool and hot tub.  The gym has a boatload of equipment.  I plan on just swimming as my workout schedule is pretty full at this time. Now all I have to do is find a bathing suit that fits properly.

This weekend was my seventh year anniversary with my BF and he surprised me with a Blu-ray player. Now I need some movies!

Hope everyone has a great week.