IT'S ALIVE: The Resurrection of Running My Ass OFF...

So...this has been a long time coming but it needed to happen...
I'm bringing back to life my "get fit" campaign called "Running My Ass OFF"...because I'm tired of being out of shape and allowing all my stress to expand the size of my Ass!
The only thing is I'm gonna roll this in a bit of a different direction and I am no longer going to do it all on my own...
I've decided I needed help and that help is coming in the form of kickboxing classes...

Yes...I am now taking kickboxing classes...HA!

It's funny cause with everything that's been going on, it was my stress that actually gave me the idea...
After finding out my uncle had been diagnosed with lymphoma my stress level hit a whole new high. I found myself mad almost all the time and if I didn't want to cry I wanted to hit something. So every time I went to my aunts house, if I started to feel angry or upset, I would make use of the neglected punching bag in her basement gym.
Not only did I find that punching and kicking the living shit out of it helped tremendously, but I found it came almost naturally to me. I wasn't flaying my arms like a girl, but I was hitting and kicking like I had training and I was enjoying it. I enjoyed how tired I would get after a few punches and kicks, but how I wanted to do more. How I would feel calmer afterward, yet strangely energized and invigorated.
So I started looking into kickboxing classes.

I did the Google searches and asked people I knew, but the one place that kept coming up was ILoveKickboxing.com. At first I was skeptical since the web sight looked like one of those low graphic "as seen on TV" bogus sights that turns out not to be legitimate, but what kept it on my radar was it's multiple locations (one a couple of subway stops from my school), their web deal of 3 classes for $20 including free gloves (no not promoting just stating facts), and finally that my favorite Biggest Loser Tara Costa is there official spokesperson (yea I know...but she was the only person I could stand on that show...lol)
So I put it to the side for awhile nervous if I should take the plunge and if it would be worth it, when my mother comes to me telling me about this sight she found for a kickboxing classes and my aunt tells me she also passed by a kickboxing gym and got me its info. Both of them had found the same place I had on there own, and my aunt had actually gone to the location I was interested in and said it looked good.

For me that was it. Like a sign from the fates telling me to "just do it already!". As you can imagine, when the universe yells at you that loudly, you better start listening, so that night I signed up and the next day I made an appointment for my first class that Friday.
I did it, I took the plunge, so now it's just a matter of seeing if my body can handle it...

I'll talk about my first few classes in my next installment called "Kickboxing my Ass Off"...

"Weight Wars"...

So...It's Official....I lost 24 pounds!
BOOYAA!!!!!

That is...according to my new doctor who I saw August 9th. Can't get more official then that, and my weight was taken during the afternoon, fully clothed....:-))

Awesome!.......

I'm still busting my hump with Jillian's DVD's and stomach crunches "a la Mama" (my mothers stomach exercises which are killer by the way...she has abs of steel), but I haven't been doing much of the treadmill since the DVD's take so much out of me.

I also gave up on my goal for the wedding (since it's unreasonable now that it's a week away), but that doesn't mean I give up on my overall goal of weight loss and healthy living.
I'm still exercising at least 3 times a week and eating healthy has gotten easier. Before it was a fight with my cravings and the emotional aspect of food. Plus food is a big part of my culture as a Puerto Rican, so there's a strong social quality to food for me.

But tricks like serving myself, using smaller plates (both of which help me to control portion size and prevent over eating) , making sure I try to have salad with every meal, making sure there's more salad on my plate then anything else, and eating the salad first so as to fill up faster, are all common sense things that have helped me to lower the amount of calories I consume. I can still enjoy the traditional foods I grew up with, just in smaller portions. I've also almost completely cut out soda, but occasionally, like maybe twice a month, treat myself to a coke if I've been good, almost treating the soda like I would a dessert.

If anything my progress just encourages me to keep going, and my new goal of another 30 pounds by November doesn't seem as impossible now that I'm properly motivated.

I'm so tired of being unhealthy. If it isn't one thing, it's another.
I've never let anything beat me down and I'm not about to start now...
So here it goes...
WOOOHOOO!!!...lol..................................................................................

Next blog "Klutziness Strikes Again!"...........
(Top photo by Ray_Harris, Photobucket and is directly linked)
(Ticker thanks to Tickerfactory.com)

Holy Shit!!! Breaking Myself Seems to be Working!!!!!

This week was the first time I was able to do both exercise DVD's (Jillian Michaels for Beginners - Frontside / Backside) with only a day break in between.
Before when I did the DVD's I'd be incapable of doing much of anything except maybe walk, and that was if I was lucky. I'd normally need 2 to 3 days just to recover because I would be in so much pain even sitting on the damn toilet was an issue.
I mean really...have you ever worked out so hard that the muscles you use to just sit on the damn toilet don't work right anymore. I'd spend at least a day after exercising, falling onto the toilet every time I needed to pee. Not exactly fun...

These DVD's make me use muscles I didn't even know I had, that is until the next day when they're screaming, but what keeps me torturing myself is not a deep seeded masochistic tenancy, but that I'm beginning to see amazing results.
Besides the obvious stamina I've developed, I can see the changes in my body. My ass is melting away, my tummy (especially the lower portion) is disappearing, my arms are getting smaller as are my thighs (which have quite a ways to go), and my face has changed. But the biggest change is the increase in wardrobe.
Now I'm not talking about going out and buying shit (cause I hate shopping...most fat people do) but because stuff I couldn't fit into before, I can fit into again. I went from 1 pair of jeans, to 2, now I can fit (though tightly) into 4 pairs of my old jeans...That was a big hallelujah moment for me cause I don't have any money for clothes, or anything else for that matter.
Granted, these changes are not due to exercise alone. I have changed my diet and am eating healthy whenever I can, but I'm not on "a diet". I'm not eating just salad or organic non processed foods (though I am trying to incorporate more of those into my diet), but I'm using my common sense. I may want the cheeseburger, but the chicken sandwich is a better bet, or I can have a fried chicken wing or two if I make sure to have a heaping of steamed vegetable as my side. I also make sure to eat the healthy stuff first so when I get to the not so healthy stuff, my stomach is already mostly full. I guess you can say I've finally crossed over from wanting to change my life, to actually doing it (**knock on wood**)

Now the question becomes...
Will I loose enough by Auguest 20th to be happy with the way I look in the wedding photos?
Probably not...but I kinda don't care as much anymore.

I realized what I'm doing is more important for the long term then it is for any short term benefits I might get, which is why I'm trying to do this the right way. I've always wondered what my life would be like if I were skinny, but now I wonder what my life is going to be like when I'm finally (mostly) healthy. I know some of my health problems aren't just going to go away once I'm fit (like my Fibromyalgia, my Endometriosis, or being short), but being fit is going to help me get a handle on those issues and that's really all I want at this point.

Now I did the calculations and I will be PMSing for the wedding (OH JOY!!) so all this Zen shit about my weight and not really caring might go out the fucking window on that most anticipated day, but I can only worry about that when it happens, and possibly buy some strong muscle relaxers now...LOL

(Photo of Renée Zellweger as Bridget Jones by Bridget_Jones_photos courtesy of Photobucket and directly linked)

Broke My Ass Again!!!

But at least this time I was able to get my broken ass off the floor...
Today I did Jillian Michaels for Beginners - Backside DVD.
I know my blood pressure went through the roof again cause once I finished, my head was throbbing, and my face was the color of a ripe tomato, but luckily this time I made sure to pace myself.

After almost killing myself on Thursday with Jillian Michaels for Beginners - Frontside DVD, I had to go to my aunts house for my annual family Birthday weekend get together.
Needless to say, I was a mess.
Everything hurt, I was walking funny, going up and down stairs was a nightmare, and it actually hurt every time I went to sit on the damn toilet bowl. Thank God I can laugh at my pain cause I laughed a lot that weekend.
But so far, his time around, I can sit to pee without wincing.

It might just be that my lower body is stronger then my upper body. After all, it has to lug my Fat Ass around all day long. But since I've been doing all that walking/running on the treadmill, maybe I was more equipped to handle the exercises on this DVD then the Frontside DVD.

Either way I'm making progress...
Today's measurements show that since March I've lost:
3 inches off my waist
3 inches off my hips
1 inch off my bust

But it's not just numbers I'm noticing. My face is loosing it's roundness, the rolls on my back are almost gone, my tummy is getting flatter, my clothes are fitting me differently, and I'm feeling sexy again.
If I keep this up, nothing will be able to stop me from out running my ASS!..:-)

Me As "The Human Floor Rug"...

Have you ever worked out to the point that your muscles turn to jelly, your body shuts down, and you can't get off the floor?.....
Well that's what just happened to me after doing Jillian Michaels for Beginners - Frontside(DVD), which was basically 44 minuets of me kicking my own ass.

I did all 6 circuit training exercises (each circuit consists of 3 exercises done 3 times), with the last exercise being a 30 second plank hold on the floor. .
When I finished, I collapsed onto my stomach, waiting for my heart to re-start and my head to stop pounding. While laying there on the floor, my lovely little invalid of a cat Duke decided to take advantage of my ground level position and use me as a floor rug (evidence on the right).

When I finally realized that I wasn't dead, and that I could in fact get up, my body begged to differ.
My legs and arms were too exhausted to do anything other then flap around like land locked fish, and any attempt I made to move any part of my body (other then my head) off the floor, was met by earths gravitational pull.

I couldn't even roll over onto my back!!
A turtle, stuck on his back, had more of a chance then I did...
And of course, it was this very thought that pushed me over the edge into laughter.

There I was... stuck...on my stomach...a human floor rug for the pets...with no way to get up...laughing like an idiot into the floor boards, and again my thoughts sent me into even more laughter until finally I was laughing hysterically!!...LOL!

Thank GOD I had my cell phone to call in the cavalry, otherwise I might still be there NOW!
Imagine having to call and explain to someone in between bouts of laughter, that your stuck, on you stomach, on the floor, like an infant.
Luckily my savor was close by so I didn't have to wait long. But between my laughter and my useless muscles, getting me off the floor wasn't easy. After taking breaks to allow me to gain some semblance of control, I was rolled, heaved and hoed (not the making money kind) back onto my feet.

Once off the floor though things when from funny to foggy as I got dizzy, sleepy, and felt so cold I was actually shivering. I looked so bad that my rescuer sat me down with a bottle of water and bundled me up with a blanket and a heating pad, but it took awhile before I started to feel normal again.

As of now I can move my limbs, but everything (and I mean everything) is stiff and very achy. I'm walking around like Frankenstein, but at least I'm walking, and though my arms are weak, I can wipe my ass....

My only worry is for tomorrow.
What condition will I be in? and Will I  need a bed pan?...lol

Do I regret doing the whole DVD?
Nope...
For the first time in a Long time, I pushed past all my limits and won.
I wouldn't change that feeling for the world...though tomorrow I might be singing a different tune...lol...;-)

The Death of Out Running My Ass (Lost the Battle but I Will Win the War!!!)

So I'm off the C25K Program...
With my health issues I just couldn't keep up. But I haven't given up.

I had tried to move forward with the week 3 program, but I just kept hurting myself, so I brought it back down to week 2 and decided to stay there for awhile, but when my health issues put me on the side lines for 2 weeks, I had to reduce it to just walking for 20 mins or until I reach a mile, depending on how I feel. At least that's better then when I started, so I know it's not really square one, it just feels a bit like it...

The worse part is feeling frustrated and trying not to let things get to me. I was feeling so good running, and the changes that I was seeing in my body made me giddy. But since I stopped, I'm luckily not gaining weight, but I'm not loosing any either, and that's driving me nuts with paranoia.

So to replace my running I'm gonna be doing more strength training and floor exercises. I had intended to add these to my running program, but instead I'll be doing less running and more of this until I can physically run again.

Patience has never been my strong suite, but if I don't practice it now, I wont move forward, and that's not an option...

Hitting Walls while Out Running My Ass(Begining of Week 4)....

Fucking walls........

I'm in week 4 (or the 2nd week of week 2) in the C25K Program (The Couch-to-5K Running Plan) and I'm beginning to hit walls in my training. The whole reason I added an extra week to each single week program was to allow my body to adjust to the exercise and be better prepared for the increase in training, but instead my body feels like it did at the beginning.

Yesterday I felt like I was gonna die running on that treadmill. The only reason I was even able to finish my 20 mins was because I can be a very stubborn Bitch when it comes to being defeated. Where that comes from...you'll have to ask my mother...;-)
I made sure to stretch before my run (like any responsible runner) but from the moment I started running, it felt wrong. 
My knees hurt like hell, my gate was off so I was running with a bit of a limp, and by the time I was half way through I was so exhausted and in pain I wanted someone to kill me. When I finally finished my run through hell, I found I could barely talk, and had pain from the top of my head, to the tips of my toes. I realized (after the blood returned to my aching brain) that next time I might have to give myself more time to recover if I decide to spend another Saturday wedding shopping with my aunts. -_-
 
Granted...the next day I was grateful that I had pushed through the pain because I'm still continuing to see more noticeable changes in my body everyday, and the great thing is, I'm not the only one.
My stomach is flatter and my over all waist is smaller. The 3 rolls of fat that I had on my back (aka my three wise men) are almost completely gone. My saddle bags are smoothing out and my bra band size has gone from a 36 back to a 34. So I haven't even finished my first month of this program and I'm already seeing results. The last thing I want to do right now is slow down....

I know intellectually that I can't push myself like other people, and that if I do, I can end up doing more damage to myself in the long run, but it's so hard to tell yourself to slow down when you finally begin to see the results that you longed for.
I'm doing the impossible, I'm turning back the clock. Forcing back the hands of time. Undoing all the damage I've done, so why would I want to slow that down?

The real question is...how far can I push it?

If I slow down too much, I could end up stalling like a plane, loosing the motivation that my noticeable body changes are giving me. But if I continue to ignore the pain, I could hurt myself to the point of becoming immobile which would definitely bring me back to square 1.

So once again...it's all about compromise.
I continue my routine as usual, but if I notice more pain like I did on Monday, I stop running and just walk the 20 mins. That way, I'm still getting some exercise in but without the risk of further injury.
Will it annoy me? Yes...
Will I want to cheat? Yes...
Will I cheat? No...
Will it be worth it? Yes...as long as I practice the fine art of patience....

Run Fat Girl, Run.....

Well...I've decided on a game plan for my weight loss...or at least I think I have.

Running...

Yep...this former athlete turned couch potato, as of yesterday has started running....

I found this program called "The Couch-to-5K Running Plan" and it seems reasonable. 
20 min every other day of alternate walking and running. As you progress the walking quotient of the program gets shorter while the running part gets longer, until your running for a full 30 mins or running for a full 3 miles.


At first my plan was to alternate Pilates and 15 mins of walking on the treadmill everyday, to build stamina, endurance, and strengthen my muscles, but since I got sick, I'm back to square one and need to jump start my program. 
I figure I'll start off with this program for a week or two, see how my body reacts, add stomach crunches on my rest days, then possibly add Pilates on alternating rest days, that way I get both cardio and slowly integrate some strength training.
It seems like a good plan, but it could all fall apart depending on how my screwed up body reacts...(ha..ha..eh..)


My back up plan is to workout 3 times a week with my trainer friend at Bally Total Fitness. He's a member and has offered to workout with me as my gym buddy, which would truly be a blessing for this natural procrastinating exercise has-been...lol
Now that Bally's finally has memberships with no contracts, I wouldn't mind joining again, but that's only if I can afford the monthly fee. Right now it's a bit too much, but I'm hoping they'll soon have a spring sale for all those other procrastinating bums who are panicking about swimsuit season.


My mother always said that if I wanted to loose weight, running was the way to go, and I wouldn't be surprised if just like everything else, she were right...