Break

Hi Readers,

It is with a sad heart that I post today. My wonderful boyfriend lost his grandmother yesterday and it has been a very long and stressful past few days as her health began to rapidly decline.

He is a mid-western boy so we are in the midst of getting things together here in Philly so that we can travel to Indiana and be with his family for services.

I will be taking a short break from the blog to help him through this, but I'll be back to posting once we return. 

It is day 32 today. Just over a week away from completing the program. I am going to do my best with all of the events coming up to stay on point nutritionally. Also, I'm planning on bringing my JCore DVDs and laptop so that I can still do my workouts in the hotel room. 

Prayers and well wishes are appreciated.

Thanks.

Personal Best

I've been having trouble with my running after taking the whole summer off. Was determined to run for 30 minutes at lunch today without stopping.

Turned out I had one of the best runs I'd had in a while, but also set a personal best for 5k time. Somehow managed to push out 3.1 miles in 30:17!! Just 18 measely seconds off from my desire to be under 30 minutes. Soon!!

Now, if only I could magically add 10 more miles to that with ease! My hope is that a few more weekend runs outside in the cooler weather will help renew my energy and focus. I really am not a huge fan of running, I get so bored. This half marathon is a big goal for me, I'd like to finish it with as much strength and stamina as I can muster.

One step closer!

Yesterday on a whim my SO and I decided to head up to the Outlets to both be outside and shop. It was a beautiful day and while I was open to picking up some things, I wasn't going with any intention in mind. 

Now, throughout all of my weight loss, the GAP outlet has been my friend. Great bargains and quality items makes me very, very happy. I remember the first trip I took there in the summer of 2009 and I bought 2 XL shirts. I was so excited that I could even SHOP in the Gap, that I didn't care what size or style the items were! Okay, well maybe I cared a little. 

Yesterday I was in there, yet again making my way through the 60 and 70% off racks, when I saw the cutest black dress. I grabbed a L to try on, and then at the last minute, I put it back and grabbed the M. The last time I bought clothes, I was able to purchase all M tops, so I was hopeful that I could squeeze into the dress. I also grabbed some jeans and a few tops. Lo and behold the dress looked AMAZING and fit perfectly! I was so excited. As I tried on the jeans, I realized that the 14's were actually a little too loose for comfort. I stood in that dressing room debating to myself if I wanted to try on 12's. I have never been a size 12 (as an adult, anyway). Throughout high school I was a consistent 16 and in college ballooned up to a 22/24. I decided to take the risk and to my shock, amazement, and unbridled joy, the 12's fit. And not in a jump up and down suck it in coat hanger in the zipper fit. They buttoned and zipped with ease. Tears were shed in that dressing room. Tears of pride. 10+ pants sizes lost in 3 years. I earned it. 

I bought the dress, the jeans, and some size Medium tops, with a savings of over $75. It was a great day and a reminder that no matter how often I stress over the scale, or over-analyze what I'm eating (or not eating), that my hard work is paying off.  I still can't set a goal weight, but I know my goal size is in the single digits. I am now one step closer to those single digit sizes that I long to wear.

JCore - Day 24

This week has been a tough one. My legs have been pretty sore and I am trying to add running back in to my routine in addition to spinning regularly plus JCore. The good news is that I, and others, are noticing the results! I've gotten a lot of compliments and questions this week about if I am losing weight again, which is a good sign after all the hurdles I've been trying to get past. I am really excited to see Carly in 12 days and see what the scale says! Also, Monday is the 3rd Fit Test. Pretty excited to see what changes are there as well. 

I've gotten very comfortable with my nutrition plan. I finally feel more balanced with eating. I still have moments where I stress and over analyze everything I eat, but I take more enjoyment out of cooking and enjoying food lately. I am a work in progress. 

This morning I switched things up and did my JCore workout (Rev Up) before work instead of after. This was a 5:30am work out, but I feel like it actually gave me more energy to get through a 10 hour work day. Tomorrow is a rest day and then Saturday and Sunday will be Cardio Core and Hard Core. Bring on the pain!

JCore Days 20, 21, 22 - Over half way!

Halfway done with JCore! I honestly am surprised at how quickly the time is going. Day 20 (Sunday) was Hard Core and I attempted to do less positions in modified. It was so difficult! But I am definitely getting stronger and I am still feeling sore today.

I did do measurements on Day 20 and am pretty happy with the overall results so far. Here's how it looks:

Hips: -4"
Wasit: -2"
Thigh: -1"
Arm: -1"

Total inches lost so far: 8"!

I am SO happy to see the numbers dropping in my hips/waist, since that is the area where I am carrying the bulk of these last 20-30lbs. In 2 weeks I'll go back and see Carly and that will be my next time getting on a scale. Fingers crossed that number drops as well!

Yesterday was an off day from JCore but I went for a run in the morning as a start to my half marathon training. Started off with a 5k, hoping to build back up to a comfortable 5 miler in the next week or so. Just need to get my legs used to the running again. Last spring was definitely the best time I've had with running, hoping to bring that back! I'm still pretty terrified at the idea of running 13 (.1) miles, but I think it will be truly badass to finish that race and enjoy what I accomplished.

Today is going to be a busy workout day, new step class after work and Fire Fit for JCore. Plus I will probably sneak in a quick workout of some sort at lunch because it is such a nice break to go down to the gym and get away from my desk for a bit.

JCore Day 19

This week has been interesting for JCore, the first two work outs were Rev Up and then Fire Fit. This was followed by the rest day, during which I did an upper body strength workout and spin class! Today was Cardio Core 4x4 and tomorrow will be Hard Core. 2 cardio and 2 core this week. No wonder I am sore! I pushed my weights on Thursday and my arms are feeling it today. Not sure how I'm going to hold myself up tomorrow for Hard Core.

Since tomorrow is Day 20 I am going to take some measurements and compare them to Day 1. No scale, though!

Since school has started back up I've been worrying about how to balance work, school, workouts, and life. The JCore workouts are great because they are fast and you feel the pain of your body working hard. Once I add in training for the half marathon, I'll have to play around with my schedule to make sure I can get everything in and still have time to sleep.

Speaking of which, now that I finished my JCore for the day, it is off to the library to get some school work done!

I know I have gained some new readers the last few weeks and I just want to take a minute to say thank you to everyone who has been reading and following along. Please feel free to comment or ask questions! 

Happy Saturday!

JCore - Day 17 // Half Marathon Training

I can't believe I am almost to the halfway mark of the JCore program! It has been going so quickly, which I guess is a good thing! Last night was Rev Up, which is a really good workout. I am torn between that and Fire Fit as my favorites. Which is fitting, since Fire Fit is today's workout! The boyfriend and I are also heading to spin class after I get out of work, so it will be a good calorie burn day. Getting dressed this morning, I definitely am seeing changes in my body, even if the scale isn't reflecting them.

In other news - the Philly Half Marathon is only 73 days away!! I am going to be picking up a more formal training program this weekend and hopefully I will be ready to give it my all. After barely running all summer, I am pretty nervous. I've been easing back in to a few 2 or 3 mile runs to get my legs going again, plus I found a 10 week training guide in Women's Health that I will follow. My goal is to be able to maintain 10:30-11 min miles the whole time. If I could finish in under 2:15:00 I would be ecstatic. One day at a time.

Irony

I am not sure if there will ever be a time where I am not worried about what the scale says. I have tried so hard over the last few months to break that addiction and to focus on how good I feel and how much better (and how many sizes smaller) clothes fit. That number, though. That blasted number.

I was up 1lb yesterday at my check in with Carly. I was upset, she wasn’t. I should be relieved that after 3 days away and eating out that it was only a 1lb difference (which could just be fluid) but I felt defeated. When you work hard and put every spare ounce of energy you have towards a goal, not meeting that goal is disappointing. No matter which way you dice it.

The funniest part is that 3 weeks ago at my last appointment with Carly, I was convinced I was up and had ranted and raved at her for a half hour about how I work hard and am upset about being up, but when I got on the scale I was down 6lbs. Yesterday I felt really good, my clothes were fitting looser, I felt more toned and almost “thin”, and then the number was up. I know I am not alone with these frustrations.

The good news is that it is already Wednesday. The workweek is almost over, the first week back to school has started, and half marathon training starts soon.

Check back in later for a JCore update!

JCore Day 14 - Fit Test!

Well, I've been back home from NYC for less than an hour and I have jumped back on to my JCore routine with both feet. Fit Test and Release done! After walking 8-10 miles the last 3 days, my body was feeling sore and I wasn't sure I could handle the Fit Test. I decided to do Release since I missed it yesterday for Day 13. I did eat cheese while in NYC but healthy choices at meals and packing our own healthy snacks made the trip much smoother than it could have gone. 

Here are the results from my first 3 Fit Tests - Day 1, Day 7, and Day 14.

Day 1
Popsicle (L) - 24 (modified)
Popsicle (R) - 13
Leaning Tower (L) - 21 (modified)
Leaning Tower (R) - 22 (modified)
Charlies Angels (L)- 30
Charlies Angels (R) - 34
Break Dance- 10 (took me a while to figure out how to do them)
Pick Me Up - 14 (modified)
Threading the Needle- 32
Get Up - 10

Day 7 (nothing modified!)
Popsicle (L) -21
Popsicle (R) -23
Leaning Tower (L) - 28 
Leaning Tower (R) - 26
Charlies Angels (L)- 38
Charlies Angels (R) - 36
Break Dance- 28
Pick Me Up - 13 
Threading the Needle- 48
Get Up -9

Day 14 (nothing modified!)
Popsicle (L) -26
Popsicle (R) -26
Leaning Tower (L) - 28 
Leaning Tower (R) - 30
Charlies Angels (L)-42
Charlies Angels (R) -42
Break Dance-40
Pick Me Up - 19
Threading the Needle-58
Get Up -13

The numbers are definitely showing an improvement in my flexibility and strength. I have terrible, terrible, balance and the fact that I can now do both the Popsicle and Leaning Towers unmodified is darn impressive. 

I'm hoping to have my SO take some pictures of me or maybe even video of some of the workouts to document my progress. I'm really surprised and happy with the improvements and toning I'm feeling after only two weeks on this program. Tomorrow is an off day and I'm excited for the day of rest. I am meeting with Carly my RD tomorrow for my check-in/weigh-in so we will see how much of a change the scale reflects. Cross your virtual fingers for a drop!

JCore - Day 12

Well, this morning I did 2 of the JCore DVD's back to back. What a challenge that was!! My shoulders are on FIRE! I decided to bump things up today since my boyfriend and I are heading up to NYC for the weekend. 

I am hoping to follow the nutrition program as closely as possible. In preparation for the train ride and hotel stay we have packed up healthy snacks like rice cakes, to-go packs of low salt mixed nuts, and some fruit. I'm hoping having these snacks on hand will make stop any urges to snack on junk. I am going to really give it my all to stick to the no bread and no cheese since I am still in period 2, but I make no promises. I have gotten so much better in the last few months after working with Carly at making good choices when eating out, I think I can get through this trip without too much temptation.

I am going to be doing a LOT of walking while in NYC and will pick up with JCore on Monday when we get back, it will be day 14 - Fit Test time!