Tis the season

This is a difficult season for me, I grew up with a grandmother who made the holiday season larger than life. I was used to going to her home and being surrounded by my entire family.  Regardless of what nightmare I was living with in my own home. I knew that time would be sacred, peaceful and safe for me.  Since her passing so much has changed in my life and I spend the holidays with only my husband and children.  In the beginning I would cook tons of food and eat till my hearts content, honestly filling my sorrow with food.

In recent years,  I have come to realize  that killing my self by over consuming food would not heal my heart. I decided to look at my little family as a blessing, they are my heart and home. I also made some hard choices and decided to deal with all the issues that kept me in solitude.  Exercise  has become a part of that healing process, running is a freedom for me from all the stress and history.  So this year as the holidays are in full effect, I ramp up my exercise routine and try to find new things to do.

I think that sometimes,  we as people tend to forget that everyone is not on the same path.   We are all on a different journey and may not be celebrating the same blessings. I have no idea, how many times I have been asked if I am going home for Christmas, my reply is yes I will be with my husband and children.  In the past, just that question would wound me and send me running to the refrigerator to  eat away my sorrows.  I am stronger now and I have the tools to choose a different ways to deal with stress and painful memories.

However, there are some people who don't have the tools to make the right choices yet. So as you walk around and spread the holiday cheer, really take the time to look into the eyes of the people you ask random questions.  This may not be their favorite time of the year.

As for me, I am rejoicing in making  new traditions and memories with my husband and children. I will never forget however to be mindful of others during this season or daily for that matter.

Road blocks or excuses?

So I got up on Monday and the weather was beautiful. I found myself upset because I felt like I had no where to run. I live in a location where sidewalks are scarce an lately that has become a bit of a hindrance to my running. I am bored with running the same routes and it seems like I am finding it hard to run the distance I desire with out looping the same places twice.

This would not be an issue but I get bored easily and boredom for me equals lack of motivation. So as I was having this conversation with myself. I realized mid thought that I was allowing sidewalks to become a roadblock to running. I seem to allow silly things to get in the way of meeting my goals. I am running a half marathon in march and I need to push my mileage up slowly to run that race successfully.

Why am I too good to run on grass, or in the bike lane? As long as I take off my Ipod and remain alert I can run anywhere in my neighborhood. So Monday I left my Ipod at home and hit the road, I am not sure how far I ran but I know that it was much farther than the 4.5 mile rut I had been stuck in.  I felt amazing after that run and removed the word can't from the situation.

In addition , the Weight Watchers center in my area is closed. They have community meetings that are at times that just don't meet with my schedule.  So decided I would set up a at work meeting on campus. It is more convenient for me and several other people that I  work with. Sometimes you have to create solutions  to your road blocks.

Can I do this?

I had to tell my self that today, as I was running. After spending five days at a convention where I did workout. Not as much as I should have but I got my exercise in. I arrived home feeling tired and depleted. So Monday, my workout never actually happened, in fact I opted for pie instead. Well today after I dropped the boys at childcare, I parked around the corner for my run.  After completing a mile and a half. I found myself asking if I could make it. Then it hit me, it is not can I  but will I make it. If I decide that I am going to do it, I will. If I doubt my own ability then I wont.

Half the battle of working out is overcoming the mental barriers you place on yourself.  You can physically do more than you think you can. That mental voice in your head, will sometimes talk you out of it. I often have to recite positive affirmations to myself when I feel like I am losing motivation.  Sometimes it is as simple as repeating " I can do this" over and over as I work through a hard session. When I am done I say " I did it!!" 

Remove the negative thoughts about your ability and start realizing your potential. Instead of saying " there is no way I can squat a hundred pounds"  say " I  am working toward squatting a hundred pounds.  This holiday season give yourself the gift of positivity!!!!

Couples Therapy

Seriously that is what it is!!Working out with my husband has strengthen our relationship. We started working out together when we were dating but one of us would be more committed than the other. That was frustrating and we would both fall off our routines. However years after we got married, we  would work out in the gym together and compete on machines. Our diets however were not as good as they could be so we did not see the results we desired, once again we fell off.

As you all know I started on a weight loss journey on my own and built a strong foundation. I had some individuals goals that I met before we started working out again together. My husband also started to plan out his own goals and put a plan in to action.  That was over  two years ago and one thing remains constant, we either work out together or we work out alone. Fitness has become a part of our lives and we have learned to balance each other out.  I can get lazy during reps and he motivates me to push harder. Sometimes he needs a little nudge to get started, so I push him.

We  laugh, joke , listen to great music and talk about everything under the sun while we train. I am the first to notice his body change and he is the first to notice subtle changes in mine.  My children train with us on the weekends and it hilarious to see them try and do yoga moves. My oldest is actually really   strong and will drop down and do  push ups and  sit ups like a pro. I feel like my family benefits from our new habits  and my children don't stop a workout from occurring. We find a way to do it with them.

We no longer train in expensive gyms, we hit the gym at the University because it is free. Most of the time we train at home or outside( you will catch me in university gym daily for my cardio fix).  This past summer you would see us at the play ground with the kids  doing our routine while the kids played.  The boys would run over and join in periodically then go back and play when they got bored.

We just started a new round of P90X together and it is amazing how much stronger we are. I  go to bed every night knowing that I will have blast in morning.  After the kids are off in the morning we have a 8am date to press play or run 4 miles. We are stronger in every way,so if you are sitting on the couch with your spouse try getting up together.

A Day Spiral....

A day spiral can happen at anytime, for me it usually happens when I am stressed out! What is a day spiral ? Well a day spiral is when you start off with a missed work out or a "cheat meal" and you let your entire day spiral out of control. I usually am thinking that I have already missed a work out or ate too much so, I throw in the towel for the day.  Luckily for me I learned early in this journey that it is never too late to change.  If you miss a workout, get one in later. Eat to much at a  meal,  throw in an extra workout or just deal with it. 

Everyday will have it's challenges , the common denominator in each day is you. You can make the decisions that will determine if you take a step back or forward. Don't let a day spiral  turn into a week of bad decisions. I received a e-mail from a reader asking me how I stay on track. The reality is that there is no magic answer. I am learning as I go and some days I fall back into bad habits.

The difference between the old me and the new me is that I have the tools  that I need to  be successful. I am constantly reading and learning about health and fitness. I surround my self with people who are trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. My lifestyle is now very active so, I am constantly on the move. So how do I stay on track? I guess it is because I am living a differently, I have changed my life. So this is just how I live now, being sedentary and eating fast food is a rare occasion  in my current life.  I have made this habit , it is now a part of how I live my life. 

Tales from the treadmill

I have changed my workout routine since the semester began. My office hours are early afternoon so I head to the campus gym at about 8:00am  and I can usually get in a  great workout before I head to my office.  So I have been running indoors consistently for about 3 weeks and I have noticed a few things about the treadmill. I usually wear my ipod and heart monitor while I am running.

I have noticed that, my gadgets usually are off from the treadmills read outs. So I started doing some research.  I found that the calorie estimate on the treadmill is based on the average  exerciser, it has nothing to do with you. So if an average person burns 200 calories running a mile, then that is what it will say.  you in fact may be burning more of less.  So don't base your workout on that caloric burn, your best bet is to use your own heart rate monitor. That way you will have an accurate read out of how much energy you are expelling.

When it comes to distance the treadmill cannot determine your stride.  I happen to be 5'3 and my monitor calculates me running father on the readout than , the treadmill does by a quarter mile.  I have also found a new machine to torture myself, it is called Jacob's ladder.  Click the video below to see a short video about it.

I honestly feel like a clumsy on this machine and I have not stayed on it longer than 15 minutes.  I am working on improving my stamina on it though. For now it is a new challenge that I am embracing. 

Scale withdrawl

So I might have  a bit of scale withdraw, I actually tried to piece together my old one.  then I caught myself and had to laugh. I am glad that I decided not to purchase a new one though. I do feel a bit more encouraged that I am not reflecting on the scale every day.