Shake It Out

So there's this song that I like, that has sort of become my theme song for this journey I'm on.  It's called "Shake it Out" by Florence & The Machine. (video above).  The song and video have nothing to do with what I'm doing really, but I've tailored the meaning to fit my journey.


To me, the song is about facing the demons of your past, realizing the darkest point, then making the changes you need to make. Shaking the devil off your back so to speak.


For me, this devil was my thirst, or hunger for fast food, junk food, bad food, and living a sedentary lifestyle.  Taking the easy way out, and thinking I will do something about it some day. I'm still young, I have plenty of time.  Well, when I turned 36 (if you've been reading this along the way, you will understand my "enlightenment moment") I decided to make that change and address those demons. Head on.  Sure, I've had my ups and downs, my good days, bad days, my triumphs, and my frustrations, but at the end of the day, it's about winning that battle each and every day, and hoping you have more successes than failures.  It's about determination, perseverance, pushing your limits, and adapting to the new reality of this new life I'm creating.


I listen to this song every morning, and every night before bed. It helps me remember where I've been, and where I'm headed.


I am now creating my future, creating a healthier me, and that feels great!

Measurements: Month 5

April seemed to be a tough month for me, at least in the weight loss column. I have to keep my head high though, because there are a few big wins I had this month:

• My lab results came back and I'm healthier than ever!
• I ran 8 miles for the first time!
• I started working with a trainer and I'm building more muscle!

As you'll see in a minute, I didn't lose much weight this month... only 3 pounds. But I need to remember that I'm working with a trainer and building muscle now, and I added a 2nd protein shake to my diet each day to help my body recover from my runs and workouts. I'm convinced that that is making a difference. Also, I didn't get quite as much cardio in previous months due to my knee hurting and trying to take it easy.  Anyway, enough excuses. I need to remember that sometimes the results won't show in a picture or on paper, but they show in how I feel, and how my clothes fit.

Here are the numbers:

• Weight:  233.5 (lost 47.5 lbs)
• Chest: 45.5" (lost 5.5")
• R Arm:  14" (lost 1.5") no change from last month
• L Arm:  14" (lost 1.5") no change from last month
• Waist:  43" (lost 8.5")
• Hips:  42" (lost 5") no change from last month
• R Thigh:  25" (lost 4") no change from last month
• L Thigh:  25" (lost 3.5") no change from last month
• Neck:  18" (lost 1.5")

So there you have it.  Some change, not a lot, but any progress is better than none!

Here are the pics!

I also thought it would be fun this month to give me a reminder that although short term progress may not always seem apparent, adding up a little progress each and every time makes a difference in the long run!  Here's my very first pic, and a "fun" pic I did today to be goofy.  Gotta laugh too, right?!

     

Dublin Countdown

6 month from today is the Dublin Marathon!  In fact, I will have hopefully already finished the run by now.  It starts at 10am there, which will be 4am here. 
I have an informational meeting this Tuesday, where I will hopefully sign up!  (pending approval from the ortho doctor who I see on Monday to get the green light)
Who would have thought 5 months ago I would be writing or thinking of this crazy thing?

I'm off for a run in a bit...although I have a headache and my body feels very tight.  Need to stretch!  No excuses, it's a beautiful day!

I AM AN ATHLETE!

I saw something the other day that said "being an athlete is a state of mind." I completely agree with that, but there also needs to be some sort of physical ability.


Tonight, for the first time in my life, I can call myself an athlete. And I believe it.


I wanted to get in a 6 mile run tonight, as it has been a few weeks since I've done it.  I thought that if I felt good, I would try to stretch it to 7 miles.  I set off on my run with my new Garmin GPS watch and iPod shuffle. The first few miles went well, and I was able to keep a steady pace through those 3 miles.  I hit 4 and I was still feeling good, then 5 miles.  Woo hoo, I felt great, minus all of the swarms of giant killer gnats I kept running into along the river. I guess a little extra protein won't hurt! 


Mile 4-5 had a bit of an incline for part of it, but I was able to make it through without issue, but with a little more focus on the pavement as I was now on city sidewalks and I had to watch for uneven pavement and holes and such.  I hit mile 5 and turned to head up Montreal Ave. As I looked ahead, I could only see an incline the whole way.  Now, I've driven this before and knew it was a hill, but wow, running it uphill for an entire mile...that was tough.  To my credit, not once did I walk. I just slowed my pace a bit and chugged along.  Just when I thought I was to the top, I look again and it became even more steep. No problem!


I finally made it to the top of the hill and was feeling I wanted to stretch this out (I had pre-mapped my route to get an idea, so my planned route would be 7 miles) I wanted to stretch it further!  What? Farther than 8 miles?  Maybe those gnats made me delusional.  I ran around the golf course, then down the hill and I was on the home stretch....but one red light stood in my way.. amazingly the only one I had to deal with the whole time.  Stopping and waiting was a bother, I could feel my legs tighten, and it seemed to take 5 minutes. Looking at the log from my GPS, it really was only about 20 seconds, but still!  Green light, I'm back on, and turn the corner to head home!  I hit 8 miles right in front of my house! I couldn't have planned it any better!


Although I feel amazing right now, and accomplished, I don't think this has really set in yet.  I just accomplished something I thought I would never be able to do.  EVER. I think this will teach me to never doubt myself again. To never not do something for fear of failure. This process is teaching me something about myself and about life each and every day. So rewarding.


Click here to see the details of tonight's run!

Rainy day

I was hoping to get in a decent 4-6 mile run outside yesterday, but it was cold and rainy out so I took it inside to the gym for a cardio only workout.  While stretching, I decided to take what seems to be an obligatory picture of me in the gym mirror.  Here it is:

I like this orange long sleeve running shirt. It's size XL :) and slims me up a bit, or so it seems.  Makes my shoulders look pretty good.  Anyway..

I did a 60 minute cardio on the treadmill and burned 1135 calories.  Felt great, and I was so sweaty.  The gym will be closed this next week for annual maintenance, so I'll need to be sure to get some good workouts in elsewhere. My trainer is on vacation, so I won't get to work weights until next Saturday.  Maybe lots of pushups, crunches, and what not?

Have a good week! 

Project 365: 5 month update

Today marks 5 months since my birthday, and 5 months since I started Project: 365.  I've missed plenty of pictures along the way, but it's still been fun. I sit and look at these pics each day, ok, most days and I know I've lost weight and look differently, but sometimes I just wish I was through this process and saw the final result, and looked how I feel I want/should look.  I guess they don't call it a process and lifestyle change because it's easy!  Anyway, here's the pics...
The top is from Nov 19 and the bottom pic is from tonight, April 19.

Lab Results!

My lab results are in from my blood test yesterday, and the news is good!
Let me just cut right to the chase:


Starting/Current

• Total Cholesterol: 194/147 (47 point improvement)
• HDL Cholesterol: 52/54 (2 point improvement)
• LDL Cholesterol: 96/67 (29 point improvement)
• Triglycerides:  233/131 (102 point improvement)

Wow, what a difference exercise and diet make in these results!  All are in the good/normal range now.  That's pretty exciting, and as I've read, one of the benefits of a vegan diet.

The results also confirmed I'm getting enough of all of the other nutrients to remain in the normal range.  And as for protein, the results show that's actually increased as well, so we can put that myth to bed!

I promised myself tonight, that this week I will break through this plateau that I've been in for the past few weeks!  Busting through it!

Finally!

So I haven't run in 10 days due to the soreness/pain/issues with my knee.. I've been icing it and stretching it religiously.
This afternoon my trainer texted me to see how my knee was, and if I thought I'd be able to do some cardio work.  It's been feeling better so I said sure, let's give it a whirl.  He's very good about making sure I don't overdo it, and has no problem adjusting the work if it bothers me.
So I get there and warm up on the treadmill, not knowing what's in store. After my 5 minutes, he said we're staying here... time for some cardio! (will also hopefully help me break through this plateau I've been in)


So, we started doing 30 second intervals running on the treadmill.  I started at 5.2 mph for 30 seconds, then jump off to the sides for 30 seconds. Then I increased .2 mph and ran for another 30 seconds, then off again for 30.  I kept doing that for 2 miles, eventually making my way up to 8.2 mph!  That's the fastest I've ever run.  Clearly I wouldn't be able to sustain that pace for too long, but if I can build that into my normal routine once per week, that should help my overall speed improve over time.  So needless to say, after 2 miles (I really only ran 1 of them), I was already all sweaty!  Here's what else I did tonight (in no particular - we did 1 set of the whole routine, then the 2nd set):

• 2 sets of 20 oblique twists with a medicine ball (lean back, balancing on my butt with my legs slightly bent and elevated)
• 2 sets of 15 crunches on the decline bench throwing the medicine ball back and forth to my trainer with each repetition
• 2 sets of 15 push ups
• 2 sets of 12/hold 12/12 Superman exercises (lay on my stomach with my arms stretched out like a flying superman. raise arms and legs 12 times, then hold for 12 seconds in the raised position, then 12 more reps)
• 2 sets of 10/10/10 leg lifts (lay on my back with shoulders slightly elevated, extend legs straight out, then raise upward for 10 reps, then rotate each leg one at a time for 5 each, then another 10 together)
• 12 push ups resting one hand on a kettle ball (6 push ups with one hand on the kettle ball, and the other on the floor, then another 6 switching hands)
• 15 squats holding a kettle ball at chest level
• 20 lunges (10 on each leg holding a kettle ball in each hand at my side)
• 30 swinging squats with a kettle ball (squat while swinging a kettle ball in right hand and swinging it from in front to between legs while squating, then swing it with both hands while squating, then the left hand while squating, for a total of 10 with the right hand, 10 with both hands, and 10 with the left hand)
• 1 minute plank

To finish the night, we went back to the treadmill walking at 3.2 mph.  We started at 15 degree incline, and reduced the incline 1.5 degrees every 2 minutes. This continued for 15 minutes.

Wow, when I put this down and see it it sure looks like a lot!  Hard to believe that just a few months ago, doing something like this would have put me out of commission.  Oh wait, just a few months ago, I probably wouldn't have been able to complete this at all!  It's amazing how your body grows and develops and gets stronger with a little work!

I'm getting a physical next week, and am going tomorrow morning to get my blood drawn for my fasting lab test.  Curious to see what my results are for my cholesterol, triglycerides, etc to see how the exercise and vegan diet have impacted that stuff, after nearly 4 months.  I also want to make sure I'm getting all the nutrients I need, so I can adjust my diet if necessary.  Will post once I get those results back!

Ok, time for bed!  Have a good week. 

UGH!

So... things have been plugging right along. Almost too much of a routine for my taste now that I've settled in on running as my main cardio source (to train for the half marathon I've now signed up for - more on that later I guess I may have forgotten to mention that). 
When I cranked out the 6.23 miles a few weeks ago, my knee bothered me just a bit, nothing major.  Then I went to do a free workout with a trainer that Saturday, and I was doing squats, and think I may have hurt my knee somehow. I continued to run the following week, and it didn't really hurt, but I had been icing it quite a bit.  
Felt good the last 2 days, and I went back to the trainer tonight.  Seems to hurt again.  Icing it again.
I've taken this week off from running to help it rest and heal.  I hope it works!
I really don't want, or need a set-back right now.  I've come too far, and still have a long way to go, to get discouraged over an injury.
To top it off, I think I've hit a plateau with my weight.  I'm not showing any weight loss for 3 weeks in a row.  In fact, I gained 2 pounds over the last week. That's the first time that happened since I started this journey!  I'm chalking it up to Easter, salt, and lack of water for now.  But I really want to see a decrease soon, so I don't become discouraged. (I'm the person who needs to visualize the result to know my efforts are paying off).
On a positive note, my clothes do fit better, I've decreased a size in my shirts (to an XL now) and am close to going down a size in my pants. I guess that's progress, I need to keep that in mind too, and hold on to whatever positives I can.


I REFUSE to let myself go back to this!

Measurements: Month 4

Wow, time is really flying by fast.  I've been vegan for 3 months now, haven't had any soda since Jan 1, and am now working out with a trainer - well, one time so far anyway.  I had a good deal and got 5 additional sessions for $75!  Meeting with him twice this week!


Not much has changed visually from last month in my pics, but I have still lost some weight and inches.  Click here for my starting pics and measurements.
Here we go:


Weight: 236.5 (lost 44.5 pounds)
Chest: 46.5" (lost 4.5")
Right arm:  14" (lost 1.5")
Left arm:  14" (lost 1.5")
Waist:  44" (lost 7.5")
Hips:  42" (lost 5")
Right thigh:  25" (lost 4")
Left thigh:  25" (lost 3.5")
Neck:  18.25" (lost 1.25")


Now for the pics:

Spring is in the air! It's time to get outside and enjoy this weather!  I'm looking forward to what April will bring with my own transformation!