I'm feeling a little horse...

Chomping at the bit and ready to go!

In addition the #allgooddays challenge, I set a bunch of goals on my food journaling app, and decided to start a 30 cardio challenge, a 30 day abs challenge, a 30 day arm challenge, a 30 day butt challenge, a 30 day pushup challenge, and a 30 day squat challenge (all of which were miraculously already on my smart phone from resolutions ago).  Yes, that may have been overkill...but I am nothing if not enthusiastic.  Planning is the fun part...and lists are great too, along with these apps, and lest we forget count down clocks!  Ooohhhh...the excitement of it all!  I may have over done the screen time.  I seemed to be viewing the world through blue coloured glasses.

Time to disconnect from all devices.

First night, Full moon:  Unplugged, I did what any normal person would do on this night and began to shuffle a fairly large deck of cards.  Why?  Because I didn't have an extra daruma on hand to wish upon and colour in an eye.  And, because you have to forecast your spirit animal guides for each month of the new year, you know?  Haha...maybe you don't.  For me, it's a way to focus.  It gives me an idea of what to work on over the next year as I return to my healthy happy active place.  And also, PONIES! 

All oracle cards are from THE WILD UNKNOWN ANIMAL SPIRIT deck.

Horse was the overall theme of 2018 and what an inspiring card it was!  Horse represents momentum, freedom, expansive energy and force - I like the way this is going!  A horse to ride through the rest of the year towards my goal.  Also, I grew up riding horses...so hopefully, it's like muscle memory. 

"Building physical stamina (exercise) and mental focus (meditation) are the secret weapons behind the horse's legacy." - All quotations from Kim Krans' THE WILD UNKNOWN ANIMAL SPIRIT GUIDEBOOK

Oh, so everyone and their horse is telling me to get back to exercising.  I guess I had better pay attention.  But it's true, when's the last time that you saw a fat horse?  They are few and far between.  Before I even started this #ALLGOODDAYS challenge, I signed up for a SHE RECOVERS: Sacred Pause Saturday workshop facilitated by my yogini guru, Taryn Strong.  I used to go to Taryn's yoga for recovery every Tuesday night.  It was my hour to disconnect and just be in my body.  I remember loving it...and being surprised at what my body would do.  I also remember joining up about a month into a pretty insane training regimen and about 15 pounds lost.  So this time it's going to be different.  It may just be my reintroduction to moving my body, but more importantly I am ready for the spiritual side of yoga.  The side that has been sorely lacking in my life as of late.  Since stopping regular exercise, I feel like I have gotten waaay more bitter and judgemental, and I don't want to be that way.  I want to be more present and mindful...and you know...nice.  When I don't practice self-love and self-care, I seem to stop projecting love and care towards others.  Oh gods, all the clichés are true!  Whatever, this is me trotting towards  better place for my mind, body, and spirit.

As for January, I pulled the bear.  The beginning of the year, a perfect time for waking from spiritual hibernation, and for starting anew.

"At first the movement and effort is difficult, but the bear knows it's time to awaken and move toward the dawning light.  The bear card represents an individual on the cusp of new directions and personal transformation."   

I have already said that these cards are a way for me to focus, I see bear as a metaphor for my seeing the light.  My recovery from unhealthy habits, mindsets, and self sabotage.  Time to walk a different path, time to find my purpose again.  I am a stereotype...here we go again.

Namaste on track this time.

SIDE NOTE:  When I turned out all the lights and tucked myself into bed, there was this noticeable red glow around me.  Oh my gods, I was seeing my aura!  No, wait!  I opened my eyes, looked up, and I had forgotten to turn off one single light...my red resin Buddha head.  Buddha the enlightened one was shining down upon me.  Coincidence?  I think not.

#ALLGOODDAYS

If I weren't dying of whatever plague this is going around Victoria (and more specifically in that little dark cloud over my head that has been following me around for the better part of 9 days), I would most likely have posted more today than in all of 2016...but that didn't happen because I was in bed or resting or coughing so hard I thought my head would explode.  So I'm behind, but I can catch up.

Also, I joined a #allgooddays challenge.  I was impulsive and thought I should throw 50 dollars at accountability, and my former employee's mother (I wonder if she remembers me), because, like the foundation of all great ideas, I saw something about it on Facebook. 

Those of you who don't know my history, here it is in a nutshell:

I have struggled with my weight for the better part of 20 years.  And have lost and gained what seems like a thousand pounds.  And most recently I was a superstar health challenge participant, and then I wasn't....and I lost my ninja...and now I am fat and am getting stuck in sports bras again.  This challenge is the reclamation of my badassery, if you will.

2013 - 294 pounds, blah blah blah health challenge, ninja-in-training, popped ACL

2014 - 139 pounds, blah blah blah health challenge mentor, n-in-t, reconstructed ACL 

2015 - 165 pounds, blah blah blah h.c. mentor part 2, ninja-in-training, with & without ninja

2016 - 200 pounds, blah blah blah ninja-on-and-off, belt test injury, no more ninja

2017 - 250 pounds, blah blah blah work, home, food, wine, repeat, sleep, sleep, sleep...

2018 - 286 pounds, blah blah blah I gotta do something about this.  Again.

And today, I updated all the apps, tweaked the fitbits, unboxed the runners, squeezed into the sausage casing I call pants, threw on a Star Wars T-shirt, and donned a hoodie, and did a grocery shop for all the foods that when put into my fridge will really just be ingredients.  Even if I lack energy because of the pox placed on my house...I can't wait to kick this challenge's ass...and my own in the process.

And go!

Blogaffair 2018

Ah!  Nice to see you, Bloggy Bloggertons.  We have to stop meeting like this...under that big magical moon.

The beginning is always so engaging and fulfilling.  I get butterflies around you, thinking of what is to come.  I promise to be true and you give me so much freedom...but sometimes I take liberties.  Forget to check in.  But when I wake up to you the next morning...with all those things swirling in my head that I want to say to you, well, you know me, I can't resist a little morning write.  If I don't get to it early, sometimes I don't get to it at all.  And I've been a bit fickle in the last couple of years...and I feel like I want to get to know you again. 

I'm sorry our rendez-vous have been few and far between as of late...but let's rekindle that old flame, shall we?

Mama Spitfyre needs a bit of mojo. 

Happy New Year

x

e·piph·a·ny 2017

e·piph·a·ny

əˈpifənē/

noun

noun: Epiphany; noun: epiphany; plural noun: epiphanies

the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi (Matthew 2:1–12).

the festival commemorating the Epiphany on January 6.

a manifestation of a divine or supernatural being.

a moment of sudden revelation or insight.

First of all, I am not religious. Not in the epiphany sense of religion anyway...so January 6th has always meant "take your Christmas tree down, the party is over." In actuality, a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away it was the day when the 3 wise men arrived to give Jesus his belated birthday gifts. In Shakespeare's era, Twelfth Night was a time of bawdy pursuits, merry-making, hard drinking, and lusty encounters - well, that one sounds much more fun, though presents are good too. For me, and this year, it is going to have to mean a sudden revelation or insight. 

I need to get back to my healthy lifestyle thing. That thing I started 4 years ago. Thanks to Facebook I get updates as to what I was doing on this day in the past. Last year I was hiking in Volcano National Park on the Big Island of Hawaii, 2 years ago it was 6 weeks after my knee surgery and I was able to get myself into a nice cross-legged position after having trained at the gym, 3 years ago I was a puffy-eyed ninja-in-training who went to the gym in the morning despite having put my beloved cat, Cobweb, to sleep in the wee hours of the that day. I was a trooper, a yogini, an explorer...and today, I'm sitting on the couch writing this and wishing that I were anywhere but where I am right now.

I am 100 pounds away from where I want to be...in the last 7 months I have pretty much given up on being healthy and happy. After injuring myself (again) in June, I stopped going to the gym regularly. I was scared to restart taekwondo because of what had happened yet again in class. My willpower dwindled, and I pretty much gave up on myself. Depression followed and I turned to food once more for comfort - I pretty much ate myself silly from September to January. I wish everything were as easy as getting fat!

Today, this is my revelation: I got fat again.

My insight on the situation: At the very least, I know how to undo it.

Time to wise up.

Now someone give me some prezzies and we can call it a day.

True friends run stairs, while you do weighted burpees...

"What keeps you motivated?"

And, my answer is a myriad of things...but most recently, it's been my gym peeps.  

I've been seeing the ninja twice a week for personal training for the last 13 months, and I believe I have only called off one session due to illness.  There was that accountability, i.e. someone waiting for me to show up, warm up, train, and then do some cardio after - but he also works at the Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre most mornings, so if I were not to show up...he'd notice.  My own health and fitness is ultimately my responsibility, but it's nice to have someone else at the gym that knows what I want, and how I am going about getting what I want (because he's most likely told me what to do and when to do it and designed the circuit training, weigh routines, and cardio combinations that I am doing).  So, what has changed lately?  Well, I have continued with the personal training, and ninjas are extremely motivational as I wish to be one some day, but it's the other people that have become involved in my workout routine who are inspiring me to push harder.      

Enter, my friends in fitness.  Whether it's Skylar, Barb, Dawn, Dana or anyone else at the front desk of the Crystal Pool, or Michele (one L) on the treadmill around 9AM most days, or her mother Doris with a pool noodle, or Kombucha Geoff sweating up a storm on the spin bike and then a yoga mat, or kickboxing Nathan on the bag, roaming the halls, or giving pointers in the weight room, or anyone, for that matter, that has stopped to talk health 'n' fitness with me, run next to me on a treadmill while egging me on, or high-fived me after a session on the big ropes, these people are my new community...my extended support system...my fitness ninjas.  People who make time each day at the gym for themselves, for self care, and in turn give me strength to do the same.     

I will tout the praises of having a personal trainer (Jonathan Carpenter of MIJO Sport), a yoga teacher (Taryn Strong of Anahata Moon Yoga), spin instructors that make me push harder than I ever thought possible (Mary-Kay and Teresa of Quadra Sport & Fitness), and every other expert that I see on a regular basis to challenge me physically, but it's also the comradery that I feel with people in the same boat as I.  Yes, I'm talking about the workout buddies.  Namely, Jacqueline and Troy at the moment.

I have about 10 pounds to lose before I reach yet another goal I set...weighing 137 pounds (remember, I like odd numbers!)  Yes, folks, it's the last 10 pounds.  And it's always good to stack the odds in your favour, right?  So not only do I have a lot of sport professionals involved, but I have some die-hard workout neophytes in my corner as well.  We're all in the similar situations when you break it down.  We want to lose weight by eating clean and exercising.  Are these guys going to pry the Doritos out of my hot little hands after I lose my inhibitions after a girls' night?  No, that's all on me.  Are they going to notice if I'm not at the gym when I say I'm going to be?  Yes.  Am I going to make plans to meet them regularly so we can walk, run, bike, stair-climb, box, kick, elliptical, burpee, lift, circuit and cross-train together?  You betcha.  And, should you find a workout buddy or two to inspire you?  If you're in it for the long haul, then yes, yes you should!

Happy New Year! Weigh-in Wednesday #50

It's New Year's Eve...and I am bouncing on an exercise ball masquerading as a chair in front of my computer, sipping a cappuccino (best Christmas present ever...get your husband an espresso maker...he'll make you coffee every morning!), I am fresh out of the shower, dressed in a towel, and thinking about New Year's resolutions.

I certainly didn't expect 2013 to go the way it did...last year at this time, I was preparing the loft for a NYE party that was James Bond themed.  The next day, after looking at the Polaroid snapshots of the event, I told myself..."you've got to do something about your weight."  My first step was to committing myself to that idea...and believe me, it's not something that comes easily.  I mean, when I was big, I knew that I was big.  I wasn't an idiot, I wasn't in denial about it, but it was just too far out there to think that I could actually do something to change my life.  And, I know I'm not the only fat girl who thought/thinks that way.  Spraining my ankle lead to several doctors telling me that I was morbidly obese.  Thanks, really?  I kinda knew that already.  It was the truth, and the truth hurts.  In my case, it cuts to the bone...more specifically, my ankle.  Doctors in New Orleans told me to lose weight, doctors in Canada mentioned my weight in clinical notes, so I recommitted (for the umpteenth time) to eating healthily and getting more active in 2013. 

res·o·lu·tion

 

noun \ˌre-zə-ˈlü-shən\

: the act of finding an answer or solution to a conflict, problem, etc. : the act of resolving something

Suzie's 2013 New Year's Resolution - Get healthy, get active - lose weight in process.

I'd say it worked.  

Today is January 1st, 2014 and the first time I've weighed-in in two weeks.  I had a bit of a Christmas crisis and flat-out refused to weigh-in Xmas morning.  I know, I know...I should have, but there were celebrations that week, and I may have had a little extra to eat and drink.  So I opted out.  Gutless, though I think it made me even more determined to see a difference on the scale today.  This past week I buckled down.  The ninja took the week off, but left me with a handy dandy customised sheet filled with various exercises to do in combination, and I worked out every day (with the exception of Christmas and Boxing day) like a mad woman.  Yesterday, I even ran at 7.7 miles per hour on a treadmill for a bit...that's 12.4 kilometres per hour, thank you very much!  Funny how that turns my crank these days.

I wrote a blog post on Sunday, January 20, 2013 entitled Nothing happens until something moves.  I wrote that post after my first meeting with the ninja, and today on this first day of 2014 I look back at some of the goals I set for myself then:

And so I must move, because I want something to happen.

So...why do I want to move?  Well...Here's the reason I gave the paper: 

I want to rekindle my love affair with being active.  I used to swim, ski, mountain bike, ride horses, snowboard, kayak, hike, and dance up a storm...and I want to get back to all of that.  Heck, I'll be happy to climb up a flight of stairs without winding myself.  Ha!

That sounds really good, right?

Well, what if I said I also long to wear skinny, leather pants at some point...and pencil skirts, with Cuban-heeled stockings and high, high, high heels, and those pirate boots that go over your knee...haha...and dresses!?  Would you think me superficial?  Well, maybe I am a bit...and I don't care.  I miss fashion.  For the last 15 years, I have not been able to fully express myself through my clothes and I work for a fashion brand!  At least my make-up is trendy.

And so of course, at our meeting today...I told ALL of this to Jonathan Carpenter, my trainer..."oh, and also..muscles are sexy, sign me up for some of those."  *Cringe*  Luckily, he's super professional and has a plan.  Starting tomorrow I'll be doing cardio 6 days a week at the Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre...and doubling up with added strength training on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  I have Saturdays off...thank gods.  It worries me that Jonathan repeatedly said that this week would be the easiest.  I'm going to die.

Jonathan, you have your work cut out for you.

This morning I rang in the new year with a loss of 2.4 pounds.  That brings me to a total loss of 141.1 pounds.  I am very happy to report that this past year, I have gone swimming, ridden my mountain bike around town and on the Goose, kayaked off of Willows Beach with my folks, hiked up Mount Doug several times and Mount Finlayson once, I danced up a storm on several occasions, and I almost exclusively use the stairs, and I don't end up winding myself.  Haven't ridden yet because I haven't had access to a horse, and skiing and boarding will have to wait until after knee surgery...damn you lateral movement!  As for the skinny leather pants?  Well, I don't have leather pants, but I did buy a pair or polyurethane jeans the other day that are quite fitted...so they count, right?  And...I've worn dresses, Cuban-heeled stockings, and high, high, high heels.  Life is good.  I even have some of those sexy muscles that I signed up for...and even though it's been 50 weeks of hard work, I didn't die.  

I still think Jonathan has his work cut out for him, because I'm setting new goals for this year.

Just in case you missed it...this is what 2013 looked like for me:

Starting weight:  292.1 - January 16th, 2013

1st weigh-in:  286.8

2nd weigh-in:  280.1

3rd weigh-in:  276.4

4th weigh-in:  274.1

5th weigh-in:  270.6

6th weigh-in:  266.2

7th weigh-in:  262

8th weigh-in:  261.4

9th weigh-in:  257.7

10th weigh-in 251.4

11th weigh-in 247.3

12th weigh-in 243.6

13th weigh-in 241.7

14th weigh-in 235.4

15th weigh-in 235.4

16th weigh-in 227.7

17th weigh-in 223.5

18th weigh-in 223.5

19th weigh-in 221.6
20th weigh-in 221.6

21st weigh-in 215.6

22nd weigh-in 213.2

23rd weigh-in 207.9

24th weigh-in 206.6

25th weigh-in 200.1

26th weigh-in 199.7

27th weigh-in 197

28th weigh-in 191.3

29th weigh-in 189.9

30th weigh-in 180.7

31st weigh-in 183.4
32nd weigh-in 186.4
33rd weigh-in 186.3

34th weigh-in 174.8

35th weigh-in 174.8

36th weigh-in 170.1

37th weigh-in 169

38th weigh-in 170.2

39th weigh-in 174.7

40th weigh-in 166.4 

41st weigh-in 162.8

42nd weigh-in 159.9
43rd weigh-in 166
44th weigh-in 161.7
45th weigh-in 158.5

46th weigh-in 156.5

47th weigh-in 154.1 

48th weigh-in 153.4

49th weigh-in ??? Christmas Day (Didn't step on the scale.)

50th weigh-in 151 January 1st, 2014

And...this is what I look like today.  Haha...perhaps falling asleep in my make-up last night was not a good idea.  Oh yeah, I still know how to party.  Ugh!  My head.

January 1st, 2014

I don't know why I keep drinking water at the gym, it just seems to pour right out of me as soon as it's in.

When will I ever learn?

The last few training sessions with the ninja have been fairly exhausting.  My first 3 months on programme when I had a Jonathan day, I would wait until 15 minutes before it started to warm up on the treadmill or the elliptical and then enter the training full of energy...and butterflies.  The following 3 months, I switched things up by getting to the gym a couple of hours early and attacking the treadmill and then possibly hopping on a spin bike after.  The training session would then kill me, though my anxiety disappeared.  So, in the last month I have been getting to the gym a little early and then warming up by walking on the treadmill for an hour or so, having a little something to eat, a bit of a rest, before hopping on a machine for 5-10 minutes and then going into our sessions.  Here's the thing about ninjas - they are pretty tricky, so even if you have a date at 11AM, it can quickly turn into 10AM.  Bye-bye eating, bye-bye rest!

Last week just such skulduggery occurred.  After a brisk walk from home to the gym, and then an hour of hiking up an imaginary hill and then running down it (on a treadmill, obviously), the ninja came over to collect me an hour early:

"Feel like running?" he says, through a smirk. 

"I've already been running," I reply, aware that he is about to test me. 

"I was thinking a timed 800M."  His streak of evil ninjaness suddenly becomes very apparent.  His clean-cut appearance is simple subterfuge, he has always looked like the star quarterback in a made-for-TV-movie where the teenagers are all played by Hollywood actors in their late 20s.

"Um...okay," I say.  In my mind, I'm thinking he is doing this because he wants to see if I'm going to fight him, the strongest thing I can do is welcome the challenge...and beat my fastest time. 

"How many laps is it?  17?"

"No, 18."  This is the 2nd time I've had to correct him on this matter.  As a rule, I tell him when he's forgotten to get me to do a set of exercises or miscounted reps.  Perhaps I'm a masochist, perhaps it's my integrity...all I know is that when he says jump, I will always ask, "How high?" because he knows what he's doing and he gets results.   

"Why do I always think it's 17?" 

"I don't know, Jonathan, maybe it's cuz you're pretty?" I say grinning, searching his eyes for approval.  Nothing.

"Ready to go?  Go."

And so I ran, I ran back and forth focusing on my breath, trying to increase the length of my stride, and my cadence.  Pushing myself harder every lap when he called out my time, and racing against my old self.  The first time I attempted the 800M, I walked the entire thing in something like 13 minutes.  The second time I ran the course in 5 minutes and 45 seconds, that is quite an improvement, don't you think?  So how will I fair with another 50 pounds gone?  Well, I think my time was 4 minutes and 52 seconds, the ninja assured me that if I hadn't had that slip at the beginning, I would have beaten my previous recorded time by at least a minute.  I agree, and if I hadn't already done an hour and a half of walking/running before I entered the race, that would have been a great advantage too!  
 

His unpredictable training methods, keep me on my toes.  A ninja is always prepared, like every good Girl Guide, and I've been told on multiple occasions to be ready for anything...so that means wraps 'n' gloves, spinning shoes, towel, healthy lunch, snacks, water bottle full of Quench tea from Silk Road, and 2 changes of clothing in my gym bag at all times.  When I throw in my laptop and charger, that makes my bag 22 pounds or so - so not only is my walk to the Crystal Pool & Fitness Centre good cardio, it's weight bearing exercise!  The changes in clothing factor into this particular workout because after a good session on the treadmill, I will be dripping with sweat, and I will change into something less pruney-skin inducing.  After being plucked off the 'mill, and thrown into a timed run...I was a sweaty mess with no chance for a quick change. 

Earlier in the week, J-Carp asked if it would be okay with me if Aaron, the lifeguard and aquafit instructor extraordinaire, could shadow one of our training sessions - of course!  He met us by the staircase on the other side of the pool.  Well, this is ominous, generally when we hang out by the staircase I am asked to run stairs as a warm-up, but that's not going to happen because I've already walked to the gym, walked and run on the treadmill, and then done a back and forth thing in the hallway, right?  Wrong.  The ninja thinks it would be a good idea to do a timed stair run.  Seriously?  Haha...do not let him see you sweat.  No wait, I'm already sweating, do not let him see that you don't want to do something, or think that you can't do something.

"Think you can do that?" he says, narrowing his eyes and tightening his jaw. 

"Of course.  How many times up and down?"  Challenge accepted. 

"Let's make it 18, same as the run."  

 I have a thing for odd numbers, so 18 doesn't sit right with me, "How about 19?"

"Then you'll end up at the bottom of the stairs."

"I don't care, 19 is better than 18," I will live to regret saying that. 

"Do 18.  Go."  

Off I go down the stairs, up the stairs, down the stairs, up the stairs, and so on and so forth.  I try to be as efficient as possible, but I know I'm taking a couple of extra steps at the top and the bottom of the staircase.  I place my whole foot on each riser as I power up so as not to hurt my calf (again), and I treat the way down as my reprieve.  I try to regulate my breathing, but I am getting tired.

"How many have I done?"  I call out as I near the top, after what seems to be an infinite amount of stairs.

The ninja smiles and says, "16.  You know what?  Let's do 30 not 18, you're doing this pretty fast." 

"Huh?" is about all I could get out at that point...and I seem to use this expression far too often when I'm with the ninja.  Apparently, when I work out, I become a caveman.  Articulate speech, syntax, and vocabulary are reduced to a lexicon of grunts and monosyllabic drivel.  Not exactly the way I want to present myself in general, but then I wouldn't wear clothing this tight in real life either, so at least my neanderthal-self is contained within the gym.  

"Keep going, do 30." 

"Kay" I say doubting my ability to continue, but trusting that the ninja knows that I will push myself to go on because, 1.  He asked me to do it...and 2.  There is a witness, and I do not want to disappoint.

He counts me down all the way to zero, and then I get to rest.  Sweat, sweat, huff, puff...same old story.  When I first started running stairs 7 months ago, I did 10 ups and downs in a couple minutes...now I'm doing 30.  And apparently, I'm going to do it again, to see if I can beat that time.  Time to take out the extra steps, time to change the down from rest to the quick part.  While I feel like I'm running out of energy, I overhear the ninja telling Aaron why he includes exercises such as this in my training and it makes me soldier on.  And I do so, to the tune of under two minutes.  Yay me!  And yay ninja, because nothing makes me feel prouder than beating my previous time, especially when the challenges are back to back.  

Floor to ceilings with the ninja

Now what?  I feel like I could accomplish anything after that.  Floor to ceilings with 20 pounds in each hand,  15 of them, three sets.  No problem.  First, Jonathan spots me and explains what he's doing to Aaron.  Then Aaron takes over, and I start my last 15.  Oh, wow...this is getting heavy.  I attempt to lift the weights over my head on one of the last reps and my left arm gives out a bit and the weight comes crashing to a stop on my shoulder.  Aaron apologises for not being there, but truth be told I kinda like a "lifting bruise."  It makes me feel tough.  And, while I'm squatting then pressing those weights up and down again, I have a lifeguard right behind me and a ninja directly in front, so life is still pretty good....bruises or no.

Step-ups with weights and burpees followed, and somewhere in the middle of that Aaron looks at me taking a swig from my newly filled water bottle.

"Looks like that water is coming out of you as soon as it goes in." He smiles cheekily.

"Yes, but looking on the bright side, when I lie down on the mat to do a burpee, the cotton of my shirt wipes up the sweat that I left behind the time before," I retort.  I can be facetious too.     

This is what a push-up looked like in February

Then after my mopping up burpees it's time to stay in the prone position and do some push-ups.  These I have been practicing, unbeknownst to my ninja.  He says start with 10 full push-ups, I do 10.  He says go to 15, I go to 15.  Ha!  Practicing.  I think we all know that push-ups "exercise the pectoral muscles, triceps, and anterior deltoids, with ancillary benefits to the rest of the deltoids, serratus anterior, coracobrachialis and the midsection as a whole."  But, what you may not know is that at 292 pounds it is very difficult to even accomplish 1 knees-down push up.  In January, my gut and boobs practically propped me up as they rested on the mat.  Push-ups were knees down, always.  As I began to lose weight, Jonathan got me to push-up first with my knees down and then lift my legs 1 at a time positioning myself into full push-up pose, then I would lower down to my belly and do it again.  He tells the lifeguard, that he has never modified push-ups in that manner but by splitting up the components, I was still able to reap the benefits.  And so I show off the benefits by doing another round of push-ups.  

The ninja smiles and says, "Remember, when you couldn't do these at all?"

"Yes.  And I'm glad you're laughing at that now and not then."  Then I attempt to go a little deeper into a push-up and promptly fall on my face.  "Woops, you spoke too soon." 

He shakes his head.

Sit-ups were also a challenge, it's hard to fold yourself in half when you have the equivalent of a pillow and two throw cushions figuratively strapped around your abdomen.  Now I'm doing a sit-up with one leg straight, one bent, and a weight in one hand that I'm shoulder pressing as I come up.  I'm still not very good at these, but I am no longer struggling to keep my legs together - do not read anything into that!  I've lost a significant amount of thigh fat.  That is all.  

Planks are next, I flip over and assume the position.  I really dislike planks, mostly because I suck at them.  Why can't I hold the pose for longer than 45 seconds?  Gahhh!  Seriously, my arms start shaking, my abs want to give out, and my thighs seize up.  It's not pretty.  And, I'm all fine and dandy if I do them with my arms straight...but as soon as I go on my forearms, everything changes.  The ninja and lifeguard are discussing what we at MAC would call "style-stepping" or how you adapt the way you teach things to suit the person to whom you are teaching.  

Aaron asks, "Do people fight you?"

"Yes.  Suzie's been pretty good.  The only thing she's fought me on are planks," says the ninja coyly.

Overhearing this in mid-plank has made it difficult for me to keep my knees up, especially because I have made it a point to never fight the ninja on anything and do exactly what I'm told...and now he's said what? 

"I have never fought you!" I breath out, sweat dripping off my forehead.  "Are you trying to start a fight?"  45 seconds are up...and I'm resting on my belly.  "I have never fought you...unless you count this, and I'm fighting you on the fact that I've never fought with you...over anything...except possibly this...so it doesn't count!"

Back to planking, now I have to keep in form for another 45 seconds or I'll look like I'm fighting him.  For the record, I have never, ever disagreed with any of his training methods, I've always grinned and bearred it.  And, yes, sometimes I fall out of plank and he says get back in...and I do!  C'mon!  This is hard!  Haha...I am a model student...as much as I can be.  Why fight him when it's working?  Perhaps that's my style-stepping?  It used to be if I didn't like something, I wouldn't do it...and now, if it's hard, but I know it's going to tone my arms or strengthen my back or do something that I want it to do...well, I practice it.  Like push-ups, and don't think that I haven't been practicing planks...I have been...but they still suck.

Practice makes perfect.  And, this is training after all.

³train 

verb 

a : to form by instruction, discipline, or drill

b : to teach so as to make fit, qualified, or proficient

Weigh-in Wednesday #26 & #27

2 and a 1/2 weeks ago (Wednesday, July 10th), I dropped a colossal 6.5 pounds to 200.1  Then last week when I stepped on the scale I only lost 0.7 pounds on Weigh-in Wednesday #26, but that was to be expected after such a big loss the week before.  And yet, why am I pleased as punch?  Well, I dropped enough weight to put me under 200 pounds...a-thank you!  

So this Weigh-in Wednesday, I wasn't sure what to expect.  Lately my pattern has been 2 weeks of meh...then 1 week of YAY!  Which means I'm going to have to buckle down if I want to reach my goal of 100 pounds down.  Wednesday's scale read 197 pounds...that's a loss of 2.7 pounds, and I'm cool with that...I don't know when the last time the scale has been so low, actually.  I haven't seen a 1 at the front of my weight since probably 1999 just before I moved back to Montréal.    

Starting weight:  292.1
1st weigh-in:  286.8
2nd weigh-in:  280.1
3rd weigh-in:  276.4
4th weigh-in:  274.1
5th weigh-in:  270.6
6th weigh-in:  266.2
7th weigh-in:  262
8th weigh-in:  261.4
9th weigh-in:  257.7
10th weigh-in 251.4
11th weigh-in 247.3
12th weigh-in 243.6
13th weigh-in 241.7
14th weigh-in 235.4
15th weigh-in 235.4
16th weigh-in 227.7
17th weigh-in 223.5
18th weigh-in 223.5
19th weigh-in 221.6
20th weigh-in 221.6
21st weigh-in 215.6
22nd weigh-in 213.2
23rd weigh-in 207.9
24th weigh-in 206.6
25th weigh-in 200.1

26th weigh-in 199.7

27th weigh-in 197 

So what's the plan for this week?  So far, it's been an insane amount of cardio, strength training, and really clean eating.  I'm even skipping potatoes and rice this week.  Just a little.  Wish me luck for Wednesday, if I drop 5 pounds this week...I'll reach 100 pounds down!  The anticipation is killing me!

Um...did I just sign up to be in a race?

Yes, I did!

A fortnight after the finale of the Times Colonist Health Challenge, there's this little thing called the TC10K.  This race in particular is the reason my Wednesday nights have involved power walking with the Crystal Fools, and I was sure...certain even...that participants in the Health Challenge would be forced to participate.  We weren't.  So, I embraced my new lifestyle and the free pass that Shannon had given me via email and signed myself, as well as my parents, up for the walk.  My darling husband, Stéphane, had already enrolled as part of his company's (Genivar) team in the competitive walking section.  If you've ever seen Stéffi on the treadmill at the Crystal Pool, you'll know why he's not in the pleasure category...the man is a machine!

So, what do you do the night before the big race?  Well, in most cases you would eat a good dinner, drink lots of water and go to bed early.  But not us, we had a birthday barbecue planned.  We were only supposed to stop in for a quick hello and a couple of drinks...and doesn't this always happen?  We stayed until 1 AM or something...where'd the time go?  Oh, I remember, we started to have fun talking to everyone at Ron's celebration that we kept bumping up our cut-off time.  Haha...and believe me, we paid for it the next day.

 5:30 AM - Wake-up, Ninja!

Up at the butt-crack of dawn after too little sleep...I got into the shower to wake myself up.  Threw on my stretchy clothing, and, slapped on some mascara, and put my hair in ponytails.  Stéphane did much the same...well, he had a shower...I think.  We both ate our respective race breakfasts and waited for the arrival of my folks.  The thing is...parking would have been killer downtown as many streets were blocked off, so we decided to meet at the loft and then walk to the starting line from there...a mere 2 kilometres away. What were we thinking?

7AM - Leave the Shimmy Shack.
 

7:30 AM - Crystal Fools warm-up in Thunderbird Park.  Yes, we did a mambo...Number 5, in fact...and there's video to prove it.  Everyone was raring to go, but a special few fools congratulated me on being the most improved person to have done the Health Challenge.  Thank you, guys. xoxox

7:45 AM - Muster in start area - Stéffi takes off to his place (the competitive hour and a halfers) and I have decided, in my infinite wisdom, that it'll take me and the folks at least 2 hours to complete the course...so mom, dad, and myself are hangin' with the stroller drivers and octogenarians.  Perhaps, I should have chosen differently?  We'll see.  Live and learn.

8AM - The elite runners cross the start line...and the rest of us follow!

8:10ish - We cross the start line...and there stands Shannon (of the TC) ringing her cowbell furiously!  I gotta have MORE COWBELL!  She cheers us on...and we're on our way towards Johnson.  Moving slowly at first, it's hard to navigate in a crowd of 13,000, but we managed to reach our stride.  

On Johnson...we encountered THE BEST signs in front of Body Dynamics (encouraging the racers)...these were some of my favourites:

GO, RANDOM STRANGER! GO!

WORST CROWD EVER! (because there were only about 10 people standing there..haha)

WHY DO ALL THE CUTE ONES RUN AWAY?

ARE YOU TIRED...BECAUSE YOU'VE BEEN RUNNING THROUGH MY MIND ALL DAY!

WHAT KIND OF A PARADE IS THIS?  

On Johnson Street we reached the 1K sign, and I thought...wow, 9 more of these to go.  Better get a move on.  This is how it works for me, generally I take quite a while to get started...but in this case I knew I wasn't walking as fast as I had when I was with my Crystal Fool buddies.  Mom and dad are fast walkers, but I was just caught up in the excitement of it all...there were tones of people around and I was even slowing down to take pictures!  Haha...

When we hit Vancouver, a very special thing happened to me...a lovely curvy girl came up to me, and asked me if I was the girl from the Times Colonist Health Challenge.  I answered yes, of course, and she proceded to tell me that I had inspired her to get fit and healthy.  I'm only on kilometre 2 and I'm crying like a baby...this is not a good sign.

The entire time I was racing, I was also listening to my super workout playlist in one ear...I find it next to impossible to exercise without tunes...but in this case, I found in next to impossible to hear what my parents were saying with music being piped into one ear.  Haha...sorry guys!  The weather was just perfect as were the cherry blossoms through Fairfield.  And then the water station...where I could have downed about 7 times the amount I was handed, that's why I brought some with me in my giant spiky backpack.

Along the route, there were bands set up to entertain us and volunteers a plenty...as a Crystal Fool, I intended to run up and hug a volunteer and thank them, but I completely forgot.  Sad face.  One thing I did get to do was help a blind woman "see" my backpack.  As we pressed on against the heavy and chilly wind on Dallas Road a group from Pearson College were guiding a blind racer.  Apparently, the guide had been describing my backpack, and so asked if the blind woman could touch it...of course!  My grey, snake-skin, spiky packsack constantly sparks conversation on buses, in rec centres, and in general...so, I wasn't surprised when its spikes acted as descriptive braille.  And, wow...walking a 10K without sight, THAT is inspiring.

We walked, walked, walked and walked along the water until we hit the curve around Fisherman's Warf and past the park.  Nearly there, nearly there!  Random spectators cheering us on and telling us to push harder...so I burst into a jog.  What?  Yes, I did.  My mom and dad were still with me...walking strong...and my backpack was flapping around wildly, so I decided to break back into a walk, but before hitting the straight away to the finish line I told my parents that if they crossed over first, I would kill them.  Bad daughter.  And, in the excitement of it all I ran the last 10 feet and jumped over the finish line.  I even heard the announcer say, "And here comes Suzie Spitfyre!"  

Around 1 hour and 59 minutes after the very first person crossed over the starting line in the TC10K  - I finished the race, me..the fat chick...I just walked 10K!  And in 1 hour and 49 minutes, according to RaceDayTimer.com.

So now what?  I'm happy and sweaty and hungry!  Stéphane runs up and hugs me shortly after I finish.  He speed walked the race in 1 hour and 24 minutes, I'm so proud of him and my parents...and of myself.  And, so is he...he tells me so as we embrace.  Just after the finish line, there are juice boxes (juice punches...and I don't usually drink my calories, unless the fruit juice is gape, and those grapes are fermented), full fat yogourt (and I prefer fat-free, thank you very much), and several types of cookies (Really?  Okay, not everyone is as strict with their food as me).  I had the lesser of 3 evils...punch...because Ferris' Oyster Bar & Grill beckoned with après race brunch.  And by brunch, I mean oysters, and by oysters I mean raw, and by beckoned I mean I heard a champagne cocktail call my name.  Huge thank yous to the movers and shakers behind the scenes at Ferris' because they bent the rules and got me something that wasn't on the menu until 11:30 AM...well done, seasoned professionals, well done!   It just go to show that if you go somewhere and habitually order the world's most amazing deep fried oyster burger and fries with a mayo sampler for years and years, they might just make an exception, if you're really nice.  The experience was great, not only did we get the extremely intimate and dark booth at the back (which I now fit into quite comfortably), but the food was superb...if I were going to order brunch, may I recommend the Louisiana inspired poached eggs with chorizo on red beans and rice, it smelled deeelish!  And I know the 3 other parties at the table thoroughly enjoyed it.  Please tip your server generously.  The buzz in the restaurant was decidedly 10K.  All the diners in our section had run the course, and were excited, loud, and content...like us.

22 Days Later -  Here I am writing about this experience, and I'm so sorry not to have done so before...because what an amazing day it was.  Now I fear I have forgotten so many details.  Argh!  Such is life!  It gets in the way of true documentation.  Please kick my ass, dear reader!  Haha...