I'm starting realize that most likely Thursday will be my hardest day of the week, making actually Friday my hardest day of the week. I go to the gym Tuesdays and Thursdays, and on Thursday I am still sore from Tuesday. And since the soreness is worst the day after the workout, Fridays are the hardest. This Thursday was by far my hardest day yet, which was compounded by Sara waking up at 4:30AM that day and not going back to sleep. But the workout was harder too - I maxed out on reps of lifting my arm over my head. I literally couldn't lift my arm higher than my shoulder! Crazy feeling. I took some Aleve before I went to bed on Thursday in anticipation of waking up sore, but it ended up being so much worse than I thought. Cameron had meetings all morning on Friday, and Sara was getting into everything, as usual. Mostly she likes to try to eat our shoes and electrical cords, so it's pretty important to be on top of her every second. It was getting to be time for her morning nap, but she just wasn't acting sleepy. I was hurting so much that I did something I've never done before - I put her in bed with a toy and sat on the couch. I just couldn't pick her up anymore, and I needed to put her where she would be safe. Thank goodness she didn't get upset, and she actually fell asleep on her own 10 minutes later, so I didn't feel so terrible. As soon as she went to sleep, I did too. When I woke up, the pain was even worse, so I took 4 ibuprofen. Two Aleve and 4 ibuprofen, and it barely took the edge off. I was still hurting. I knew this journey was going to be hard, but man was yesterday hard. I ended up taking another nap after Cameron got home. Then when we were making dinner, I literally didn't have the strength to cut the cabbage, so I had to ask Cameron to do it for me. I'm feeling better today, still taking some pain medicine, but not as much. I should add that my legs and my abs are sore as well, but they just aren't as noticeable because the soreness in my arms is so intense. But climbing our stairs wasn't easy.
**EDIT: In my negativity, I forgot to mention that I'm down 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds)! I also measured myself, I have slimmed down just a little bit in several areas!
Saturday, August 19, 2017
Monday, August 14, 2017
Fitness Goals and Personal Training
I decided that I would make August-Christmas a big push for weight loss and better fitness. We started the Sugar Detox again on August 3, and I started personal training last week. I'm writing this post mostly to have a record of my goals and how I'm feeling at this beginning point.
My Goals:
1. Weigh the same or less than I weighed when I got pregnant
2. For my stomach to be smaller (in inches) than my chest
3. To be able to wear mid-thigh shorts/skirts/dresses without my legs rubbing together so much that it hurts
My Motivation:
1. To be able to run and play with Sara
2. To have more energy
3. To have more freedom in the clothes that I can wear
I was so nervous about beginning personal training, but my former Zumba instructor Margo is doing a lot of personal training now, so that helped me feel more comfortable. I knew that I could trust her to do a great job. I wasn't sure if she had worked with many people my size, but she has been incredible at modifying exercises so I can do them. I know that by continuing to build up my muscles with the modified versions, I will eventually be able to do the full exercise. For example, I've never in my whole life done a proper push-up, and she tells me I will be able to if I keep working. She's so gracious about my shortcomings, but doesn't cut me any slack about what I AM able to do. I've been pretty sore and tired, but I know it's all for my good.
I haven't done the Sugar Detox perfectly this time around, but I'm following it pretty closely. The very few small cheats I've done were not that serious - I had some watermelon when I can only have berries and apples this week, I ate one slice of pizza when I went to a party and there wasn't anything else to eat. Overall, I feel good, and it has been much easier this time around.
I'm not 100% sure if I will continue with the Sugar Detox. Margo suggested that I think about seeing a nutritionist. I'm going to see how things go as is for a few weeks and then decide if I need to change my diet plan.
My Goals:
1. Weigh the same or less than I weighed when I got pregnant
2. For my stomach to be smaller (in inches) than my chest
3. To be able to wear mid-thigh shorts/skirts/dresses without my legs rubbing together so much that it hurts
My Motivation:
1. To be able to run and play with Sara
2. To have more energy
3. To have more freedom in the clothes that I can wear
I was so nervous about beginning personal training, but my former Zumba instructor Margo is doing a lot of personal training now, so that helped me feel more comfortable. I knew that I could trust her to do a great job. I wasn't sure if she had worked with many people my size, but she has been incredible at modifying exercises so I can do them. I know that by continuing to build up my muscles with the modified versions, I will eventually be able to do the full exercise. For example, I've never in my whole life done a proper push-up, and she tells me I will be able to if I keep working. She's so gracious about my shortcomings, but doesn't cut me any slack about what I AM able to do. I've been pretty sore and tired, but I know it's all for my good.
I haven't done the Sugar Detox perfectly this time around, but I'm following it pretty closely. The very few small cheats I've done were not that serious - I had some watermelon when I can only have berries and apples this week, I ate one slice of pizza when I went to a party and there wasn't anything else to eat. Overall, I feel good, and it has been much easier this time around.
I'm not 100% sure if I will continue with the Sugar Detox. Margo suggested that I think about seeing a nutritionist. I'm going to see how things go as is for a few weeks and then decide if I need to change my diet plan.
Wednesday, August 2, 2017
Packing Cubes
If it drives you crazy trying to find your stuff in a big messy suitcase, packing cubes may be your new favorite thing. They are definitely mine. I had read about them on a clothing blog and wanted to get them for a long time, but I finally bought some from Amazon while I was at my parents' house. I used them to pack my suitcase (which also included everything for Sara) for our conference last week. It was incredible how helpful they were to keep our things separated, not only for packing, but for the entire duration of the conference. I never had to dig around for something I thought I had packed - everything was in its place. I'm probably never going to go on a trip without them ever again.
First, I laid out potential outfits for Sara. I had to reuse some of the pants, because I didn't have enough for every day, but it worked out fine. (Even though it is summer, Sara wears pants every day so she doesn't hurt her knees crawling.)
Normally, I put clothes in my suitcase my category, but at my mom's suggestion I decided to pack Sara's clothes by putting outfits together. I also added a few dresses/rompers, just in case, and fit everything perfectly into one packing cube!
I also put Sara's bibs, burp cloths, sweaters, socks, and bathing suit into a smaller sized packing cube.
Sara's toiletry box fit perfectly inside her bath seat, and putting her towels on top kept everything together. I was able to fit the packing cubes around to make it all fit nicely in the suitcase.
For my clothes, I put together some outfits (I was in a hurry and didn't take photos) and put them in a packing cube. I put my tank tops, undergarments, bathing suit, etc. in another packing cube.
The packing cubes also came with a laundry bag, which I used as stored in the inside pockets of the top of the suitcase. I used the packing cubes all week long - if I planned to re-wear an item, I put it back in the cube, if not, I put it in the laundry bag. It helped keep me from just throwing things in the suitcase and then later struggling to find them. It was incredible! Kind of like having drawers inside a big suitcase.
First, I laid out potential outfits for Sara. I had to reuse some of the pants, because I didn't have enough for every day, but it worked out fine. (Even though it is summer, Sara wears pants every day so she doesn't hurt her knees crawling.)
Normally, I put clothes in my suitcase my category, but at my mom's suggestion I decided to pack Sara's clothes by putting outfits together. I also added a few dresses/rompers, just in case, and fit everything perfectly into one packing cube!
I also put Sara's bibs, burp cloths, sweaters, socks, and bathing suit into a smaller sized packing cube.
Sara's toiletry box fit perfectly inside her bath seat, and putting her towels on top kept everything together. I was able to fit the packing cubes around to make it all fit nicely in the suitcase.
For my clothes, I put together some outfits (I was in a hurry and didn't take photos) and put them in a packing cube. I put my tank tops, undergarments, bathing suit, etc. in another packing cube.
The packing cubes also came with a laundry bag, which I used as stored in the inside pockets of the top of the suitcase. I used the packing cubes all week long - if I planned to re-wear an item, I put it back in the cube, if not, I put it in the laundry bag. It helped keep me from just throwing things in the suitcase and then later struggling to find them. It was incredible! Kind of like having drawers inside a big suitcase.
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