Day 77

Wow, what a day! I knew it was going to be busy, but geez! I left the house at 9 am and didn't get home until 6 pm! First stop was the gym for my core/cardio class and then a little weight training in the weight room. I took a shower and got all "ready" at the gym so we could go right on over to the mall and have lunch and then have the kids pictures taken. The kids did really well with their pictures and the lady ended up snapping SO many shots, that I had a horrible time choosing. I actually ended up buying one of their framed, matted Trilogy things. (3 different pictures of the kids in one big frame). It was a lot($)..but I hardly EVER do that so I justified it. Plus, these are some of the best pictures my kids have ever taken so I couldn't resist. Anyway, for lunch yesterday, we went to Chick-Fil-A (Thanks Rach for the giftcard!). I ordered my usual--The Chargrilled Chicken Salad. I decided to just attempt eating it without any dressing--just a little black pepper on top and surprisingly...it was good! I mean, I didn't miss the dressing at ALL. Plus I was SO proud of myself afterwards! ha ha Sadly, I bit a chunk out of my tongue while I was eating my salad and now I have a very swollen, sore mouth. Like seriously, I had to go home and take some Ibuprofen and have a *drink* to take the pain away. It felt like I had an earache, sore throat and major headache--all from a bitten tongue.
For dinner, I made Matt and I up the chicken salad recipe from Phase 1 and we ate that with some Kashi whole grain crackers and a protein shake.
Not my best day of exercising ever...but not the worst either. I did burn almost 500 cal. at the gym this morning.

Day 76

The road to obesity is paved with good intentions!

I had ALL intentions of doing my work out today. It wasn't until 10:45 pm that I realized--it just ain't gonna happen.
I never quit going from the moment I woke up at 6 am till the minute I dropped into bed at 11 pm. It started out with working for the dr. office, then the kids had gymnastics at 10 then we went with some friends for lunch at Subway. Once we got back home, we put on our swimsuits and the kids played in the sprinkler while I push-mowed the front yard and then got on the riding mower to finish up the rest of our land. Then I hopped in the pool to cool off and then went inside to shower (and bathe both kids) before I started cooking dinner. My mom and aunt came over to eat with us so I needed to tidy up the house a bit too. (crazy how messy it can get just since I cleaned on Monday!) After dinner and doing the dishes, I took Grant and our old dog, Sam, for a walk. When we got back home, Grant went to bed while I did laundry and ironed the kids clothes. (I'm taking them to get their pictures taken tomorrow.) At last, at 10:59, I crawled into my bed. Ahhhhh....................
No P90X---but really...where could I have fit it in? At this point, I am honestly doing the best I can to juggle everything.

Day 75

Well, my posts on this blog are getting shorter and shorter. Not only have I not been listing out all my foods...(don't know why) but I also haven't been doing my P90X work outs either!
I don't know what's going on other than to say Life Happens. I am still eating healthy and exercising...just not P90X style.
Today I got up and went to the gym for my work out. I did a 45 minute pump/core class and then I did 25 minutes interval training on the elliptical machine. I burned a total of 617 calories in that 70 minutes. Not bad. I did take the kids to McDonald's for lunch and TRIED to order myself a side salad--but they were out. Then I asked for a fruit and yogurt parfait and they were out of those too...so I settled for a water and the left over half of a protein bar that was in my purse. Then on the way home, I ate a bag of Bear Naked fruit & nut granola (170 cal) and it was SOO yummy!
For dinner, we took the kids to Mazzios for their buffet. I did fairly well by only eating 2 slices of their Lucky 7 pizza (160 cal. each) and a big salad with LIGHT ranch dressing and only tiny bit of it. But then later when we got home, I ate a yogurt cup with another one of the granola packets mixed in (300 cal. total) and then I felt REALLY guilty about that! Oh well....
Like I said.....Life Happens. I am not quitting p90X by ANY means...but I can't let it take over my whole life either.
Candy is always good about reminding me of this...this isn't just a "90 day thing" like some people like to think. This is my new life style---Forever. In 15 days when I am "officially" done with this program....nothing will change. I will continue on just exactly as I am right now. The only thing that will happen is that I will get back into my bikini and take my "after" pictures so I can compare and if I'm REALLY brave..I'll post them for you to see. Hey...anything would be better than the before pictures!! Ha ha! When I saw those, I KNEW I HAD to do something about my body!

Aw Shucks!

I've heard....that corn is the worst veggie for you.....Does anyone know if this is true? Do ya'll eat it?

Day 73 and 74

Day 73:
Saturday we got up and picked up the house a bit because my neice, Chantel, was coming to visit that night. Then we had a nice lunch and then Matt and I did Chest & Back and I did Ab Ripper X. After that it was time for a quick dip in the pool and then we put some chicken on the grill for dinner.

Day 74:
Monday's are whole-house cleaning days for us...so we stayed busy today. Then after that, we threw on our swim suits and while the kids swam, I scooped dog poop and mowed/vacummed the back yard. I say vacummed because there were a million little peices of white foam ALL over our back yard from where Sadie chewed up Grant's life jacket. If you mow with the grass catch on, it picks up every single bit of that (and cuts the grass!) so when I finally got done, the yard looked great. Never mind the fact that I am NUTS for mowing the lawn at 3:00 in the afternoon when the heat index is probably like 110. By the time I got done, I could hardly see or walk straight. The sweat (and left-over hair spray) was running into my eyes like little streams and I was so OVERLY hot. My face was as red as the tomatos in my garden. I hopped in the pool though in the nick of time and got cooled off. Since me and hubby went out on a date last night, we didn't get to our P90X work out---BUT---I think I probably burned a decent amount of calories push-mowing the yard...so I'm not too worried.

Day 72 I guess...

Errr......I HATE to count today as a "real" numbered day since I didn't get a work out in...but instead I am going to count today as my "rest" day and work out on Sunday instead. I didn't intentionally not work out today...but honestly right now is my first opportunity to work out and it's 15 till 11:00...so I think I'm gonna skip it. I'm reading more and more how important getting in at least 7 hours of sleep is so important, and more preferrably 8. I am really bad about that. I usually average 6 hours...on a good night.
Anyway, today was our "Friday Field Trip" day for our summer schedule thing and the kids picked bowling for their activity. They had so much fun, as usual. I sat this one out because our bowling alley's around here are SO expensive. It's like $2.50 for shoe rental and then like $3.50 per game (per person). BUT.....somehow today, I got out of there for only $4.32!! Hooray!
Anyway, I am not going to list out all my foods, but I think I did fairly well today considering we were out running around for most of the day. I did splurge and buy a bag of Hot Tamales out of the vending machine at the Bowling Alley. I only had half...(110 cal). They were SO good!

Day 71

Well, folks, I'm on a roll! 3 days and counting of good, hard work outs! Today I went to the gym early and did a 45 minute advanced step class and then a 45 minute pump/core/cardio class. I took my HRM and the teacher announced to the class that I would be tracking the calories for each class and then we'd see how many calories could be burned during her classes. For the first class (step) I clocked 320 calories. For the second class (core/cardio/pump) I clocked 412. So total for the hour and a half was 732 calories!! Wow! I was so excited to see a big number finally! My heart rate was through the roof though! Several times I glanced down it was in the 190's and 180's!! My target heart rate is 166 (max) so I was a little concerned that I might have been pushing a little too hard. But geez, I felt pressure to pump out a good number since I was announcing to the whole class!!Anyhow, after the gym, the kids and I went to the sprinkler park in town for a picnic. It was So Stinkin' HOT! I guess for the kids it's not that bad since they are running around in their swim suits in the cold water--but for the mommies who are just laying on a towel in the bright sun...Yowsers! After all that hard work out and then an hour of straight sun and NO WATER (dumb, dumb, forgetful me!) I stood up and thought I might pass out. It was too hot and I was probably dehydrated from all the sweat and no hydration. I packed the kids up and we headed over to Sonic for water. BTW..that is one of my favorite "secrets" now (thanks Rach!)...going to Sonic to get lemon water. It costs .25 cents and you get a large, styrofoam cup full of crushed ice and lemons and water! YUM! For me and the kids to each get one, I spent a whole .81 cents and they LOVE it too!!We came home and swam for about an hour in the pool before we headed in for showers and to cool off.Tonight, since I got plenty of cardio and weights in this morning, I opted to skip Yoga and just do Ab Ripper X. Now me and Matt are fixing to cuddle on the couch and watch a movie called "Definitely Maybe". It looked cute on the box...hopefully it will be.I can hardly believe I only have 19 days of P90X left. I am excited but nervous. I don't want to go hog-wild when its over "treating" myself with things I've been "deprived" of for the past 90 days---and I really don't think I will...but still....I almost wish it wasn't going to be over. Ha!Realistically, I'll probably take a few weeks off and then start up again. I would LOVE to order the Hip Hop Abs DVD's or Turbo Jam to add in some more fun cardio options. We'll see.....Food for today consisted of:Breakfast: 1 Kashi WW blueberry frozen waffle with SF syrup, 1 boal of oatmeal with raisins and walnuts.Lunch: turkey sandwhich on WW light bread, LF mayo, 100 cal. pack doritos, 1 light yogurt cup, 2 fig newton crisps.Snack: 100 cal. pack of chips ahoy, 5 pistaciosDinner: salad, bowl of left over tortilla soup, choc. protien shakeSnack: 1/2 of a 100 cal. kettle corn popcorn, lemon water

Day 70

Another great day. For once, we stayed home (almost) all day. The kids did have gymnastics for an hour this morning, but other than that, we chilled at home and it was so nice. I think the kids even enjoyed just being in our home, playing with our toys, being with each other. I actually even took an hour long nap this afternoon upstairs in the play room while the kids played quietly. It was dreamy!! Tonight after dinner, my mom came over to join us for a swim. Or should I say bath? The water in the pool has reached 92 degrees now!! It feels like you're stepping into a bathtub! Seriously, a few more degrees warmer and I think we can start calling it a hot tub! ha ha After that, I came in and got on my elliptical machine. I did a few minutes on my own and then decided to try out one of the "training sessions" that is built into the machine. It was a 25 minute, 300 calorie interval training where the level of resistance changed about every 5 minutes. It was nice, because I knew exactly how much longer I had left and how many calories I was going to burn. HOWEVER--I decided to wear my heart rate monitor (HRM) too--so I could see how the two compared. Well..obviously according to my elliptical machine, I burned exactly 300 calories. But my HRM said I only burned 162!!! UGH! That is so frustrating! I don't know which one to trust. I honestly do think that my HRM consistently has a lower reading than what I expect. It seems like when I work out really hard, pushing myself to the max for an entire hour or more, I should be able to burn a significant amount of calories (500+) but the most I have ever clocked on my HRM is 321. I would LOVE to go get a different HRM (maybe a Polar) and just try it to compare. Anyway, after that, Brooklyn suggested her and I do a work out together!! So, I couldn't turn that down! I put in Cardio X and we worked our little booties off. She actually didn't do very much of it...but that's okay. I'm just excited that she's excited about exercise! That's my girl. She looked so cute in her shorts and sports bra and tennis shoes. Like a little replica of me! ha ha
Speaking of....I am thinking about doing some research and then an educated post about the effects that exercise programs such as P90X have on children. I'm curious what the children of all these fitness-addicts think. Do they despise the time their parents spend on it? Do they join in? Do they tend to be more athletic and fit than other kids? I'll let you know what I find out!
So...for food today:
Breakfast: Oatmeal with apple, raisins and walnuts mixed in.
Snack: EAS protien shake (110 cal)
Lunch: Chicken salad (from nutrition guide phase 1) with Kashi crackers, 2 LF graham crackers, 60 cal. SF chocolate pudding cup
Snack: 45 cal. Raspberry light yogurt cup with 10 slivered almonds on top
Dinner: Chicken tortilla soup with diced avacado, cilantro and FF mozerella on top with 10 homemade corn tortilla crisps.
Dessert: Homemade apple "crisp" and 1 scoop SF vanilla ice cream. I calculated this dessert to be about 250 cal. per serving including the ice cream.

Day 69

Back in the saddle!!
Well, it was a nice few days off but I'm back and glad to be back! I started off with a bang today by going to the gym this morning for my usual 45 minute core/pump workout and then 20 minutes on the elliptical (interval training-215 cal). And now, Matt and I have just finished doing Legs & Back and Ab Ripper X. I feel great! Even after all that...I still feel energetic! I have no idea how or why...but I wish every day could be like this!
Eating today wasn't the best.
Breakfast: Egg white with FF mozerrella cheese and 1 turkey sausage on a light WW english muffin
Lunch: 1 Combo burrito from Taco Bueno (see my other blog for more about that big mistake!)
Snack: 1/2 an apple
Dinner: Baked tilapia, whole grain brown rice, baked zucchini, salad
Right now I am about to go make us a chocolate protien shake to sip on while we watch our movie: Witless Protection (Larry the Cable Guy). Should be good and dumb. ha ha

See ya on Monday!

We had a big unexpected surprise today! My brother and his wife came to visit! We had no idea they were coming...so it was a total shock (the good kind). Of course, the bad part is...no work outs and not as healthy eating. It's just not realistic when we have a house full to try to do an hour long work out in the middle of the living room where everyone is sitting and talking. Instead of feeling guilty about it all weekend--I am just giving myself the weekend off--no guilt attached. Life is NOT all about my body and I refuse to sacrifice time with my family I hardly ever get to see. I'm actually proud of myself for taking this stand point because normally I would have #1: either tried to find a way to work out still or #2: not worked out but felt horribly guilty about it and talked about it the whole time. So...I'll be back on Monday but until then, I will be enjoying my family!

Day 68 (and a skip day)

Thursday ended up being a "skip" day, unintentionally. I could list out my excuses for you, and they're good ones...but I don't figure you really wanna hear 'em and I really don't want to type 'em either. :o)
So, back on the band wagon today. Today was the last day of VBS at church and I was ready to be finished with it. It was a fun week but I guess I've gotten spoiled to not having to get up super-dooper early and rush out of the house in the mornings. It was wreaking havoc on my sleep-time! Anyway, the church provided lunch for the VBS volunteers today after it was over. It was YUMMY pizza. I limited myself to 2 1/4 peices, though I think I could have easily eaten 4. Since there was a bunch of pizza left over, I took a whole one home for the kids to eat for dinner...except Matt and I both ended up eating 2 peices for our dinner too....so I really didn't do very good on my eating yesterday. Plus, I ate an oatmeal-raisin cookie (not diet). We did Back & Biceps together and then I did Ab Ripper X. After all that, I was was VERY hungry so I ate a bowl of salad with VERY little light ranch dressing and 4 saltines and then I had a light yogurt cup (45 cal.) before bed. Not my most successful day ever...but at least I did get a work out in, and at this point, (being so busy and so unmotivated), that's really saying a lot.
I'm definitely going through an un-motivated phase again right now. Just don't care. TIRED of feeling like I have something I have to do EVERY day before I can finally sit down and rest. It's okay though...I know we're on the home stretch now...and I can hang in there for the duration.
BTW, Matt weighed 176 today...which brings his total # of pounds lost to 24!

Day 67

It was a whirlwind Wednesday! After getting up at 5 am to do my dr. office work, we started out the day at VBS, then came home for lunch and then I threw on my swimsuit and push mowed the yard. I did the whole front and then started to do the back and thought I would put on my heart rate monitor and see how many calories I was burning. It took me 57 minutes to get the back yard mowed (and jump in the pool twice for a quick cool-off) and I burned exactly 300 calories. I figured that I burned at least another 200 doing the front yard...so that's around 5oo calories! That's great! Its encouraging to see that simple, every-day tasks like that can still be a good work out. After mowing and swimming, I came in and cooked dinner. The kids decided to go to VBS at one of the local churches in our town tonight...so we dropped them off from 6:30 - 8:30. While they were gone, we got to sit on the couch together and eat our yummy dinner and watch some of our recorded shows that we like (American Gladiators and America's Got Talent). After we got the kids back home, we threw them in the tub and then into bed. By that time Matt said he was too tired to do the P90X work out...and I agreed. I'm really not that sleepy...but I only got 5 hours of sleep last night so I know I should get some rest. I will just count today as my "rest" day and on Sunday instead of resting...I'll do an extra work out to make up for it. (or at least that's my plan!)
Today's eating went well, I think.

Breakfast: Oatmeal with raisins and walnuts
Lunch: Protein bar and 1/2 banana, water
Dinner: Baked pork chops with apples and sweet potatoes (recipe from nutrition guide-Phase 3--So Good!!), steamed sugar snap peas and salad.
Dessert/snack: 1 light WW toast with strawberry rhubarb, 1 cup "diet" hot chocolate with 1/8 c. yogurt covered raisins and 1/8 c. chopped walnuts

If any of you is interested in the pork chop recipe, it's very simple. You just buy lean, boneless pork chops, a sweet potato and an apple. You core the apple and slice it into about 8 slices (rings) You slice the sweet potato into thin slices. Then on a peice of foil, you layer the sweet potatoes, then the pork chop and then the apple slices. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and cinammon and then fold up and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.
(I used 6 slices of sweet potato and 2-3 slices of apple per pork chop)

Day 66

Oh. My. Gosh. I JUST finished Plyo X and I am EXHAUSTED! That one is always tough for me...but tonight I did a dumb thing and ate dinner first, then sat down and watched a movie that I rented and THEN had to do my work out. I had no energy at all...and then on top of that, right after I got into it, I got a phone call that lasted about 10 minutes...so I practically had to warm up all over again. It was totally a battle of the mind tonight. I kept telling myself...30 more seconds...one more exercise...and before I knew it, I was done. Well, I did skip some of the "sports bonus" at the end. I hate those softball pitch and catch ones.
So...I have tried not to say too much cuz I don't want to sound like a whiny baby...but I have STILL been sick with this dumb sorethroat/headache stuff. It seems like it gets better for a day or two..and then gets bad again. So, I bit the bullet and went to the dr. today. She gave me a shot of Decadron in my tush and put me on a Z-pack. I feel a little better already. Of note though was my abnormally low pulse and blood pressure. She asked me if I've ever gotten really low readings like that before. I said not that I know of. So she brought in another machine thingy and checked it again. She also noticed that I had lost 10 pounds since I was there in February ! (yay!) I told her about this program and that I've been doing a LOT of exercising and eating a lot healthier. Anyway, she said we should keep an eye on it and make sure my pulse doesn't drop down in the 40's. It was 52 today. I have no idea what a "normal" pulse is...but she seemed concerned that mine was low. Also, she said my blood pressure was really low...but I forgot to ask her what the reading was...so I don't know. Maybe I'll call tomorrow and ask..just for curiosities sake. Anyway, she mentioned doing a Halter monitor test if it continues.
It's weird....because in February I went to the dr. for a physical and got everything checked...all my labs and stuff. Everything came back PERFECT except for my weight. Which is what actually spurred this whole P90x thing in the first place. I swore to myself 4 1/2 years ago that I would NEVER let the scale hit the 150 mark again..and when I went in for that physical that day...I weighed 150. I knew it was time for a change! Anyway, now that I've been working so hard and eating so healthy....it seems like my levels should only be improving...not causing alarm. Anyway, I'm totally not worried about this at all...I mean...how can I "keep an eye on it" anyway? It's not like I have a blood pressure machine in my house or something!
Okay...well, I really should hit the shower. I can feel the sweat starting to dry on my forehead and neck and it feels DIS-GUS-TING!
For eats today, I had:
Breakfast: Oatmeal with raisins and walnuts
Snack: 1 small peice of bread w/ butter, 5 grapes (the snack they served at VBS at church)
Lunch: Chargrilled chicken and fruit salad from Chick-Fil-A with Berry Balsalmic dressing (only half a packet) , some of Grant's fries.
Snack: Low-fat cherry yogurt, 2 fig newton crisps.
Dinner: Left over Tostada from yesterday (1/2 as much as yesterday though)
Snack; Drank a medium sized protien shake while watching our movie.
(Burned 383 cal. during Plyo tonight)

Day 65

A busy Monday, as usual. Ate good though and got my workouts done-as well as got the house cleaned, groceries bought and tackled a mountain of laundry-so I'd say it was a productive day. Today was Shoulders, Chest and Triceps with ARX. I am really bummed at the amount of calories I burn during these weight-lifting work outs. I guess it's only the cardio that really gets your heart rate up and burns the mega calories.
For eating today, I had:
Breakfast: 2 slices WW toast with 100% fruit on top, 2 egg whites, 1 turkey sausage

Lunch: 1 chicken sausage (no bread), bowl of fresh veggies with light ranch, fruit and a small low-fat brownie.

Snack: 1/4 of a large cinnamon apple muffin

Dinner: Tostada from Nutrition guide (1 WW tortilla, FF refried beans, Spanish rice, FF cheddar cheese, LF sour cream, cilantro, tomato, lettuce, salsa) This was SOOO Good!!! Matt said it was the best thing we've had YET!

Day 64

Sunday--rest day...but not today. Today I am making up for yesterday doing Kenpo X. It's been a busy day starting out with teaching the 3-yr-old class at church today. Then it was home to make lunch, clean up and then I thew on my swimsuit and took Grant swimming for a little bit. While we were in the pool, the people came by to put a deposit down on our boat. Oh ya, I forgot to mention, when we got home from the lake Friday, we decided to list the boat on Craig's list for sale. Turns out, it's a hot little item and it sold IMMEDIATELY. I'm not happy about this...but it was Matt's decision...and since he is the one who has to "deal" with this boat and all it's issues...I figured he should get to make the choice.
Anyway, after that we came in and I did Kenpo X. It was all I could do to make myself really put my "hips into it" but I did my best. I was bummed to see that I only burned 231 calories though. I really expected at LEAST 300.
Food for today:
Breakfast: Oatmeal with walnuts and raisins.
Snack: Protein bar
Lunch: Turkey sandwhich, fresh veggies, corn tortilla chips with homemade guacamole, low-fat brownie with fresh sliced strawberries.
Dinner: 2 cups of cereal (Life, Multi-grain Cheerios, Low-Fat Granola) with a sliced banana mixed in and skim milk.

Day 63

I would really like to just call today a skip day since I didn't eat great OR do a work out....but instead I am going to pretend that today was "rest" day and I'll do today's scheduled work out tomorrow instead of having a rest day. Since we had family in town today, I cooked a big breakfast (turkey bacon, turkey sausage, hashbrowns, eggs & blueberry waffles). Then after that, we got all ready and went to Incredible Pizza Co. to play games (arcade, bowling, mini golf, go karts) and then we ate off the buffet. I ate a huge plate of salad and skipped the pizza ALL together! (miraculously!) Instead, I ate a peice of cherry cobbler! Yikes! At least I steered clear of the pizza though, right?

For "dinner" I had a bowl of cereal. Then late night, before bed, Matt and I shared a chocolate peanut-butter protein shake and a 100-cal. pack of kettle corn.

Not a "successful" day in the normal sense of the term...but if you knew how I used to eat at an all-you-can-eat pizza buffet...I would say this was definitely a success. Before, you would have had to wheel me out! This time I left feeling satisfied.
By the way...check out my other blog for some really crazy, funny stories and pictures from this day!

Day 62

Another day at the lake = bad eating. I tried, I really did. Despite having company, I got up this morning and did my P90X (legs & back and ARX). Then instead of eating a "bad" breakfast, I just made myself a protein shake. Then I cut up all kinds of fruits to take to the lake with us and packed up (healthy) sandwich stuff. Somehow though, I consumed all kinds of things I shouldn't have. It was a fun day though with our family and any negative I did today, can be worked off tomorrow!

Today, at random times, I ate: protein shake, left over casserole, slice of b-day cake, fruit, 100 cal. pack Doritos, chocolate chip cookie, fresh raw veggies, chicken sausage on WW bun, a few french fries, pasta salad, a low fat brownie with strawberries on top and I drank about 3 cans of diet soda!!! Wow! Now that I type all that out, it sounds even worse than I thought!

Here is a pic of my new shoes. I wore them today during my work out and they felt wonderful!! See the GEL in the sole (the turquoise part)? Well, it actually feels a little like gel when you're stepping down on it, which makes stuff like jumping jacks and plyometricsw feel SO much better.

They also have a really cute "design" on the white parts that you can't see for some reason in the pictures. I wasn't necessarily drawn to these (at first) because of the look....but they really are cute on and they make my feet look small...which is always a good thing!

Day 61

July 10, Day 61, Age 3o, Weight 136, Size 6, 1 happy woman.

Today wasn't anything spectactular per-say but it was still a really nice day. I started it out by getting up early this morning to work. Then it was off to the gym for my core/pump class. Then it was off to the grocery story for a few things, home to clean house, take a shower and then over to my mom's to have dinner with her and my grandma, who made me my FAVORITE food for dinner. I don't know what it's called....some kind of chicken casserole but its sooooooooo good! She also made me a WONDERFUL pear cake with carmel sauce as my b-day cake. YUM!!!
After that I opened my gifts which were ALL wonderful! Since my mom had gotten me a HRM, Matt and I decided to return it while my mom kept the kids. I ended up trading it in for a pair of Asics tennis shoes. They were the most elaborate, expensive shoes in the whole store so I hope I LOVE them. They felt heavenly on my feet in the store. I have 30 days to return them as long as I don't wear them outside, which for that price, they may never see the outdoors! Ha ha....
No really, I have to say...they actually rang up quite a bit cheaper than the tag said so I was pleasantly surprised and once I made sure there wasn't an error, I thanked my Heavenly Father for the wonderful Blessing!
As for eating today...well, for "splurging" I think I actually did really good. I would have liked to eaten more...and tonight (right now) I'd REALLY like to eat something, but I refuse.
Breakfast: 1 1/2 c. Life cereal, skim milk.
Lunch: 2 slices Mazzios Lucky 7 thin crust pizza.
Snack: Homemade chocolate chip cookie
Dinner: Chicken casserole (chicken, celery, water chestnuts, almonds, french fried onions, cheddar cheese, sour cream and mayo) with small spoon of corn and 1 bisquit.
Dessert: Slice of Pear cake (made from scratch) with carmel sauce.

By the way, I wore my HRM to the gym today---BUT I forgot to start it until the class was half over. But...for the 30 min. that I did clock it..I burned 320 cal. (which would be 640 cal/hr--not too bad).

It's a MYTH!!!

that you can burn calories by having sex. Trust me, I tried it and thanks to my new heart rate monitor, I have the stats. At the rate of 3 calories per hour, I think it would take me a lifetime to reach my goal weight! Just had to share that...since I think it is downright hilarious! Sorry if that offends anyone....you know...some people get nervous when the "S" word gets mentioned. I'm probably too blunt and honest sometimes.....but the older I get...the more matter-of-fact the subject seems. Speaking of getting older...it's 12:15 am...I'm officially THIRTY! Yikes! At least I started it off with a BANG! ;)

Day 60

I have a ton of work to do, so I am going to make today's entry short and sweet.
I ate well...I did the work out and pushed myself to muscle failure with EVERY set. (Today was Shoulders & Arms with ARX) I also have to mention that for the first time in P90X history--I did ALL 50 Mason Twists with my legs up! I also did all the in & outs, forward bicycles, backward bicycles and crunchy frog's without taking a single break, which is a first. Those Fifer scissors get me every time though. So far I have not been able to complete all 25 without at least one rest in there somewhere.
Anyway, according to my new HRM, I burned 387 calories during the arm workout and 71 during ARX. Those numbers seem REALLY low to me...but who knows? Candy..is that around what you get on those workouts? Ironically, my average HR was 111 for both workouts.
For eats today, I had:
Breakfast: The usual (oatmeal, apples, raisins, walnuts)
Lunch: Light hotdog with WW bun & mustard
Snack: 1/4 c. chicken salad with Kashi whole-grain crackers
Dinner: Baked tilapia, stuffed baked potato (with spinach, FF cheddar and sauteed onions), asparagus, 1/2 blueberry muffin (made from nutrition guide).

Day 59

Got lots accomplished today--work out wise anyway. I went to the gym this morning for my normal core/weights work out. Then I came home and mowed the yard (acre) since I missed my normal mowing last Thursday because of being too sick. After that I jumped in the pool with the kids for a bit before coming in to shower and then re-heat last nights dinner. After dinner Matt and I watched American Gladiators (recorded from last night) and my doorbell rang. It was the Fed Ex guy. He was bringing me my new Nike Heart Rate Monitor I got off E-bay for $28 (shipping included). I was so excited and anxious to get it out and try it on! I actually might not have done my P90X workout tonight because I started feeling pretty crappy again and had already showered and put on my jammies....but when I got my new HRM, I just had to go change into my workout clothes and test it out. So, despite being exhausted, I did Plyometrics X. What a butt-kicker that one is!! My beginning heart rate was 89. My highest heart rate was 169 and my average HR was 132. I burned 387 total calories during the 50 minutes. That's actually a little less (calories) than I was expecting...but then...I really wasn't pushing as hard as I normally would have been. After my work out, I watched the DVD that came with my HRM and I have come to the conclusion that for the most part, most of the time, I am probably over-training. On the video they explain what over-training actually is and also what the warning signs of it are. I have them ALL. I do exactly what they described. The problem is...while doing the P90X program...I can't really change much. They (the Nike people) suggest cutting out 1 work out a week and getting more sleep...but I can't cut out any of my work outs...and I'm doing my best already to get as much sleep as possible.
Anyway, while I was doing my workout tonight, my mom stopped by. She was pretty disappointed to see my new HRM since that is what she bought me for my birthday! The exact same one!! Except she paid over $100 for it and I paid $28. Guess I'll probably just take hers back and get some new tennis shoes. The shoes I wear are the same ones I've been wearing EVERY SINGLE DAY for at least the last 2 years for EVERY SINGLE work out. While they look great because I've never worn them outside or gotten them dirty...I know for a FACT that they are completely broken-down inside. They do nothing to hold my feet still and sturdy during work outs. Since I work for a podiatrist and he constantly tells people they need to change out their work-out shoes every 6 months (if they wear them daily)--I know I am hurting my feet by wearing these shoes. I need something with some support. I actually found some Nike Shox that I really wanted a couple of weeks ago...but they were $110. I HATE spending that much money on a pair of shoes....but maybe this time...since it's not technically MY money. Do any of you have Shox? and do you like them? Or what other kind of shoe should I be looking at/for? My doc (the podiatrist) usually recommends New Balance. I'm not crazy about their styles...but maybe that shouldn't be as important as the fit/feel.

You may have noticed that I haven't been posting weigh-ins anymore. Well...2 reasons. 1. I decided to only post weights when there was something positive to report (aka--a loss) and 2. I am going to wait until my birthday to weigh and see where I am then. So watch for a weight-post on Thursday!

Food for today:
Breakfast: Kashi Go Lean oatmeal with apples, raisins & walnuts (I'm addicted!)
Skim milk with 1 scoop chocolate protein powder.

Snack? Took the kids to the mall for a minute today. They Begged me for Popeye's chicken. I gave in (since I NEVER do this) and bought them each 1 peice of chicken and 1 bisquit to split. I had nothing. But--then after that--since apparently I was in the "splurging" mood, I let them go to Nestle Toll House and get one of those big M & M sandwich cookies to share. This time I wasn't so good...and I ate about 4 bites of it!!

Later Snack: 5 Kashi whole grain TLC crackers with sliced cheddar on top, light cherry yogurt with 1/4 c. low-fat granola mixed in.

Dinner: Small bowl of last nights left-overs, green salad, chocolate protien shake.

Day 58

Okay...so...once again...starting Phase 3.
Did Chest & Back tonight with ARX. Still not feeling great....but pushing through. Matt opted to sit out again as he was still feeling too weak and stuffy/congested to work out.
Ate VERY good today and actually FEEL lighter!

Breakfast: Kashi oatmeal with apples, raisins and walnuts mixed in.

Lunch: 12 Kashi whole grain crackers with thin, small slice of cheddar cheese on top, 1 strawberry.

Snack: 2 Fig Newton crisps (100 cal. pack)

Dinner: Small serving of dinner (turkey italian sausage, fresh home-grown tomatoes, bell peppers and onions over whole-wheat pasta), green salad.

Snack: 100% whole fruit popsicle (100 cal)

**Side Note** Stayed up WAY too late...but Thorougly enjoyed watching the finale of the Bachelorette!!

Muscle Milk

Weight GAINER!!????? Do WHAT? All this time I have been making our chocolate protein shakes with Chocolate Muscle Milk (aka protein powder I THOUGHT). What I failed to notice was the calorie content on the side! One serving is 600 calories!! YIKES! We went to GNC today to replenish our supply and I saw that they have Muscle Milk Light---which of course got me to looking at the labels. Turns out it has WAY less calories...BUT...costs almost double! Isn't that NUTS? One container of Muscle Milk is $36.99. A container of Muscle Milk Light is $56.99. That's Crazy!
Anyway, the Whey Protein Powder I buy from Wal-Mart is like $12.97 for a container and has only 110 calories per scoop....so I'll be using that from now on. No--it doesn't taste 1/10th as good as the Muscle Milk...but...I'm not in this for things that taste good.
I about flipped today when the guy at GNC said, "ya, that Muscle Milk is really for gaining weight." Huh...maybe THAT could be one of the reasons I am not losing anymore weight. I drink one of those shakes almost daily...if not twice a day!! WOOPS!

By the way, still feeling crappy-ish. Not AS bad as the previous 5 days...but definitely not good either. Don't know what's up with this stuff...but better or not...Reality is here and it wants us to come back tomorrow morning. I'm taking today as my final "resting" day...tomorrow is a new day and a new start.

(disclaimer: When I say I drink one of those shakes, what I REALLY mean is I make a shake and Matt and I split it. He drinks about 2/3 and I drink 1/3---so it's not like I've been drinking 600 calories every time...but still...even 200 or 300 is a LOT for a shake that I am drinking WITH my meal. Yikes!)

One week...down the drain

Well, such is life I guess. This week will have to be counted as a "loss" as far as P90X goes. Starting Tuesday night and up until this afternoon, Matt and I have both been miserably sick. Really, through the middle of the day (as long as we kept popping Ibuprofen), we felt alright....but come early evening--all through the night--and early morning, neither of us could hardly swallow, talk with out coughing and our heads have been pounding. Finally this morning, enough was enough, I drug out our medicine box and fished around for some antibiotics. Sure enough, I found a full bottle of Penicillin and a 3/4 way full bottle of Keflex. Since Matt's allergic to the "cillins" I am taking that, and he's taking the Keflex. We stayed in bed until 1 pm today!!!!! and then got up and both of us felt much, much better than we had! (hooray!) so we loaded up the boat, our new 2-man tube and an ice chest full of food and headed off to the lake for some fun. Our "fun" was off to a rough start...(which you can read about in more detail on my other blog) but by 5 pm...we were finally in the water and going.
Anyway, I actually did get in four workouts this week (since Sunday) but since Matt only felt good enough to do one..we have decided to just take this whole week "out" and start again with Week 1 of Phase 3 on Monday. I think by then, we should be feeling much better, maybe totally better and ready to really give it all we've got. Talk to you on Monday!!

Day 57

BUMMER!!! Matt and I both woke up all night long with major sore throats. By the time morning rolled around, we both felt AWFUL. He called into work sick and I got up and took some Ibuprofen and crawled back into bed. It felt like someone had beat me upside the head with a sledghammer...my head was throbbing! Anyway, after about half an hour, I started feeling better so I got up and got all "ready". We had a big day planned today and I was going to do my best to get it all done. First we took the kids to gymnastics. Then Matt took Grant and went back home while I took Brooklyn out for lunch and to see the movie Kit Kittredge with her little girlfriends. It just came out today and they've been looking forward to going to see it for weeks. It was a REALLY cute and wholesome movie. Anyway, by 5 pm, I had taken 9 Advil in all throughout the day---which my mom said was Not Good!! Apparently you are only supposed to take 1 or 2 every 6 hours and you shouldn't ever exceed 6 in a 24 hr. period. Not only had I exceeded my daily amount, but I was also in miserable pain again. I got home and took 2 Tylenol and then did my best to cook dinner before collapsing on the bed, where I am now. I feel horrible. My head is pounding, my breathing is shallow, my body is achy and my throat feels like it is nearly swollen shut. Everything I do is a major effort and I feel exhausted after simple tasks. I know it would be STUPID of me to try to do my work out tonight....so even though I absolutely HATE to miss now that I am really motivated again...I am going to take today as my "rest day" for the week and resume with my work outs tomorrow. (assuming I feel better tomorrow). For now, I think I am going to go ahead and go to sleep. It's only ten after nine right now...which means I can get plenty of rest before morning if I hit the hay soon.
Here's my eating for today: (not very good)
Breakfast: 1 1/2 c. Life cereal with skim milk
Snack: 1/4 of a chicken sausage (left over)
Lunch: 6 in. Subway ham on wheat with all veggies and a tiny drizze of creamy italian dressing, 1/2 a bag of Light Lays (40 cal)
Snack: Protein bar
Dinner: Grilled shrimp over whole grain brown rice, baked zucchini slices, 2 small breadstics (140 cal)
Snack/dessert: 1/2 chocolate protien shake, 1/2 fast-track blueberry muffin.

By the way, I won a (brand new in box) Nike Imara Heart Rate Monitor on E-bay for $28 (shipping included)! Hooray!! This same model sells at our sporting goods store for $89. I can't wait to get it and begin to track my calorie expenditure and also see if I am working out in my target heart rate. It's already been shipped, so I should get it soon! yay!

Day 56

Ate plenty of calories today....hopefully burned plenty too.
I started the day out by going to the gym for my core/pump class, then I did 10 minutes (fast) on the elliptical machine. Then it was off to do a little shopping before heading home to cook dinner and do my P90x workout--Plyometrics. In all, I got about 2 hours of hard-core working out in today.

Breakfast: Kashi oatmeal w/ raisins and slivered almonds (just a teeny bit)

Lunch: Chick-fil-A Chargrilled chicken salad with 1/2 packet of ranch dressing, 3 french fries, 1 bite of kids cheesecake.

Snack: Protein bar

Dinner: Baked cod, stewed red potatoes with onions and fresh green beans, salad, 1 small slice of bread, fruit salad

Snack: 80 cal. light yogurt, Fast-track blueberry muffin