Attitude of grattitude.

I was apparently having a "fat day" yesterday when I got on the scale & it showed that I was back up to 239, because this morning it said 234!!!!  GAH!  Even after doing basically nothing all week last week, my body kept processing food as if I had been & I'm down the poundage that I've required myself to lose to justify a new tattoo!  WOOT!  I can't necessarily afford to do it right away, but just knowing that I'm still on the downward spiral is such good news to me.  :)

I didn't get in any mileage on the stationary bike today like I needed to, but I did meet up with my bestie, Kimmy Jo, & we had a good walk at the Riparian Preserve.  It was REALLY hot today, the weather stations were saying it was an "extreme heat advisory" day & even at 6pm, it was still 110 degrees.  Gross!  But we got in a good 2.9 miles in 50 minutes.  Yay us!!

It was very apparent to me tonight while walking that it's been entirely too long since I've done consistent work outs.  I struggled tonight.  Between my "lazy" week & the heat the walk tonight was pretty brutal.  But we finished & were happy with the time & distance.  

It truly does feel good to be working out again & sweating & over coming all the mental road blocks of "it's too hard".  My body is capable of so much more than what my brain tells me it is, and as long as I remember that & keep pushing myself just that little extra bit, this journey will continue to be successful & amazing.  I got this.  I can do hard things.  ;)

Back in the saddle.

This last week was absolutely brutal for me.  I had my kids, who didn't want to do any more walking after Tuesday, and therefor I got no additional work outs either.  I know I could've & should've done something around the house that would have been considered a work out, but for whatever reason, I was just so exhausted mentally & physically I didn't do anything.  So, starting today, I'm re-dedicating myself to daily workouts.  This morning I got in 10 miles on the stationary bike.  It felt really good to be sweaty!  You know, a year ago I wouldn't have said that!  I have always hated being sweaty but it seems so refreshing these days, for whatever reason.  Probably because I know I'm doing something for myself, accomplishing something only I can accomplish.  There's absolute satisfaction in knowing this.  :)

I also did a little bit of grocery shopping today to stock up on needed items for the week, so I can get back on track with my healthy eating habits.  Mainly, I wanted to be able to make this:

This is my new addition to my healthy eating menu.  It's two handfuls of baby spinach, two bananas, one cup of chunk pineapple, one cup of low fat yogurt (I used plain), and a cup of water.  It looks really weird & pretty gross, but it's seriously yummy!  I'm going to drink one a day, it's supposed to really help in weight loss.

Even though I veered from my "plan" for a week, and even though the scale said I am back up to 239 after my week of no work outs and eating dinners with my girls, I'm not throwing in the towel!  I've got a long way to go, but I have to keep reminding myself how far I've already come.  I will not stop until I'm satisfied with the body I see when I look in the mirror and know that I'm at a healthy weight for my age & height.  I got this.  I can do hard things.

Too much time off.

Admittedly, I've not done much in the way of working out over the last few days.  :(  I've been busy running around all over the place trying to make sure my kids get to appointments, going to & from work, & to be completely honest, I'm exhausted!  Still, it's not a very good excuse, I should be able to make time to get something done in the way of working out, even if it's just some jumping jacks & push ups in my living room. I need to get back on track, pronto!  So last night was the first walk or anything I've done since Friday.  I took my girls and met up with Kim & her kiddos at the Riparian Preserve in Gilbert, AZ.  I LOVE walking there, and so do the kids!

Here's a shot of my and my girls waiting impatiently for the rest of the gang to show up.  :)

We were able to get in a pretty good walk last night, despite the disgusting temp of 108.  Sick!  It just gets way too hot in AZ.  Only 3 more months until it cools back down.  If we're lucky.  We walked 1.76mi in 33 minutes.  Considering we had 5 kids with us, I think we rocked it!

So the lesson I've learned over the last week-ish is that it's really not worth it to convince myself that I can't do a work out when my kids are with me.  Because now I'm going to have to step it up big time next week while they're at their dad's.  I'm going to have to be on the stationary bike every day for an hour, at the very least, along with keeping up with my walking & swimming.  I WILL finish the mileage in all areas for this Lazy Man Iron Man before the 4th of July.  I got this.  I can do hard things.

The family that works out together is a happy family :)

Picked up my girls last night & my BFF got back from Cali so we got our crews together to do some walking at our fail safe; the Riparian Preserve!  It's always interesting when we get the kids to go along with us, we never really know how long they'll hang in for the walking, but we actually were able to get in a decent walk last night with all of them there to entertain each other & hang out.  We walked 1.73mi in 33 mins!  Pretty good, we were pleased.  :)

The girls & I in pre-walk mode, waiting for the rest of the gang to show up.

Kim & I, post walk.  I <3 her!!

Today we will be poolside, hopefully sun burns will not be acquired & just relax mode & good times with good friends will take place.  Swimming is excellent exercise & I still have a little under a mile left for my Lazy Man Iron Man.  I got this.  I can do hard things.

Whatever my excuse is, it's invalid.

I decided to take the night off of work outs last night.  My ankle was hurting, it's been a really long week, physically & emotionally.  Just needed a night to relax.  I don't regret it today, I think it's good to take days off at least once or twice a week to let my body "recover".  I stepped on the scale this morning before coming to work, just to see, and it said 236!  236!!!!!!  I've lost 3lbs this week!  SO excited!

My dear friend, Kim, sent me a link to something she'd watched while on vacation in California over the last couple of weeks.  It's an Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition, with a man named Tony.  If you have the time to watch it, here's the link:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/367095#s-p1-so-i0

It's a 2 hour episode, so it's kind of long, but totally worth watching!  This man proved that no matter what life hands you, no matter what obstacles throw themselves at you, no matter how much you weigh when you start, no matter how old you are, that if you have the perseverance and determination to make significant changes in your life, you can accomplish your goals.  There is absolutely no reason whatsoever that I can't reach my goals, too.  The only person standing in my way is me.  I'm the only one who can convince myself that I can or cannot do this.  It's obvious from the results that I've been seeing since I started taking this process seriously, I know I CAN do this.  I just have to continue to have confidence in myself & not listen to the excuses I try & tell myself, I'll be golden.  I got this.  I can do hard things.

OH!  And something else that I've noticed this week, I can cross my legs & sit comfortably with them UNDER my desk!  I can't remember the last time I've been able to do that.  It's never been comfortable for me to sit with my legs crossed, first of all, and since I've been so big, they've always bumped into the edge of my desk, never been able to go under.  I hope someone knows what I mean, lol, it's kinda hard to explain, but it's pretty freaking exciting for me.  :D

I think "discipline" has set in.

I did not want to work out last night.  Not at all.  I was feeling very lazy & wanted to curl up on the couch and watch a movie.  But, again, I knew I would be upset with myself for not working out, so I laced up my shoes and went to the Riparian Preserve & had myself a really nice walk.  The weather was perfect, there's plenty of shade, and instead of walking on asphalt, it was dirt paths.  I think that if I decide to continue to walk throughout the summer, it will have to happen there.  It's too hot in the neighborhood or main streets.

3.43mi walk

Before I left my house to go for my walk, I did this again:

I keep getting compliments and encouragement from friends on my Facebook page and here, but there's something lacking at the moment.  I need something new.  I'm starting to get bored.  :/  But until I finish all that's required for this lazy man iron man, I'm kinda stuck with what I've got.  I'll be on the bike tonight for another 10mi and then I pick up my girls tomorrow for the week, so who knows what the week will have in store for us.  I got this.  I can do hard things.

3500 calories = 1 pound.

Drum roll please!!!  According to my weigh in this morning, I am down 1 more pound!  This is the exact reason why I didn't wimp out last night & not workout.  I love this picture & others like it, that give a complete visual of how nasty fat looks AND how much "only" 1 pound is.  I've read that it takes burning 3500 calories to lose a pound.  So yay me!!  4 more to go for new tattoo time!!  :D  Have a great day, everyone, I know I will.  I got this.  I can do hard things.

Found this little gem.  :)