Jiggle Challenge Week 4

So this week I am down 2 lbs!! I am very excited for this loss--although yesterday was very busy and kind of an emotional day so I had a very small appetite and therefore did not eat a whole lot (I was under my calorie count for the day) so I feel like some of that will come back on when I eat again today... I'm still very excited to have lost this much this week.

I also ran a 10 minute mile on Saturday morning (which was one of my goals for this 8 week challenge as well)! It was on the treadmill, so as I texted my sweet friend Nicki, I just have to transfer the skill to the outdoors and probably speed up a little to be able to run with her when she visits in July :) I also did my longest distance on Tuesday evening when my kickboxing class was cancelled so I jogged 2.5 miles on the treadmill with no walking.

I am excited for the things I have accomplished this week and ready for another week of trying to make better decisions for myself

For a Purpose

My sweet friend Erin posted about how yesterday was just One of Those Days. And I just have to second that sentiment.

My day at work was filled with tiny frustrations that piled on top of each other and got out of control. I tried hard all day long to put the little things in perspective and I was grateful for the conviction of the Holy Spirit as I have prayed diligently to be joyful in my job and perform it to the best of my abilities. It was one of those days where I could have easily been defeated, but felt carried by Him all day--what a blessing (not that I handled all of it perfectly or even well... there was definitely a conversation with a co-worker where I told her I just wanted to quit).

And then I got home and my phone started going with phone calls, alerts, and messages.

First news about a sweet baby I have prayed for since before she was born. Life-altering news. New that has absolutely devastated her family. And yet as I spoke to her Grandmother yesterday evening she was quick to remember God's faithfulness to walk them through the journey they have already been on and the journey they will continue to walk with Him.

Then news from a good friend and co-worker whose father is battling cancer. News that after a relapse and months of treatment, his tumor is deeper than originally thought and they are not sure it is wise to operate. News that I've walked through before in my own life in a similar way. And I am just broken for her and her family.

So as I was awakened at midnight for no apparent reason, I was grateful for the reminder of my God who is ever drawing me closer to Him. Who calls for our burdens and accepts and listens to every single plea I make. And I know that I was woken up this morning for a purpose. To spend this time with Him... sitting at His feet... reminded of His goodness, His grace, and His mercy even in the midst of disheartening news. Reminded of His sovereignty in the situations that seem absolutely out of control. And reminded of the fact that as I felt so helpless having these conversations last night, the greatest help I can be and thing I can do is to bring these sweet friends before my Jesus who is able to do all things, who brings healing and peace when doctors, friends, and others cannot. Knowing He will carry me through tomorrow no matter how little sleep I get, because spending this time in His presence will bring more rest than a good night's sleep.

New Layout

Yes I realize it's 2 in the morning and I just changed my blog layout. I was startled awake by something (don't even know what) at midnight and am nowhere close to being able to fall back asleep. So when I got out my computer and went to my blog, imagine my surprise when it tried to block me saying that my site contained information from cutestblogontheblock.com a site known to distribute malware. Now, I have no idea if it does or not, but I do know that I can't handle seeing that warning anytime I try to open my page.

So, I decided to change to a template from Leelou Blogs and I absolutely love it!

Just wanted to point that out for those of you who just read it google reader and don't visit the actual site... come check out my new blog layout, I think it's pretty cute :)

The reason today means so much

To the Cross I Cling

from the Village's God of Victory Album

No day of my life has passed that has not

Proved me guilty in Your sight

The best that I have to offer are these filthy rags

And yet You love me

All things in me call for my rejection

All things in You plead my acceptance

I am guilty but pardoned by grace I’ve been set free

I am ransomed through the blood You shed for me

I was dead in my transgressions, but life You brought to me

I am reconciled through mercy,

to the cross I cling

No more am I a slave to sin but

Bought with a price

Redemption that was purchased through the blessed cross

That You bore for me

The cross is where I find death, is where I find life, where mercy found me

Jiggle Challenge Week 3

Let me just start by saying that I did not exhibit very much self control this past week. We had a Bridal Shower for one of my best friends on Saturday, Sunday I spent all day with the youth at my church and had no control over what meals we ate. Monday started my week with good intentions, but quickly I went downhill. I didn't necessarily eat terribly all the time, but I definitely had more than my fair share of not-great for me food.

All that to say that when I stepped on the scale this morning, I was fully expecting to have gained some weight. I did manage to not gain, I lost 0.4 pounds since last Thursday. Not a great loss, but heading in the right direction.

I can tell you that the only reason I lost any is because I did much better with my exercise this week than usual. So while I didn't necessarily work very hard toward my weight loss goal, I did make some other big strides. I have said before that I really don't enjoy running. At all. But I also know that it is one of the easiest and quickest ways for me to burn calories and drop pounds. So I tried to get back on my running program this week. Building up to yesterday when I ran 2.25 miles consecutively--which is more than I have ever run at once. I actually could have kept going, but didn't have enough time. I'm not running very fast, but am sticking to a good pace that is faster than my first miles a few weeks ago were... and I figure by extending my distance I will someday maybe be able to pick up the pace!

For now, I am sticking the treadmill instead of running outside. As much as I would love to run outside, I am terrible at pacing myself... so while I am still getting started I need the treadmill to help with my pace. I think I kind of figured out why it helps so much too (because I should be able to pace myself regardless haha). Like I said, I don't enjoy running... so when I start, I just want to be done. Which means that when I am outside and running a certain distance, I will go faster to finish but end up not having the endurance needed to finish strong. When I get on the treadmill I pick my pace and my distance so I know exactly how long I will be running. So I just have to do it and stick with it and go that amount of time before I can be done, no matter how fast I go.

Anyway, that was my week! Hopefully I can do a little better with the eating plan this coming week and continue to exercise well and continue to head in the right direction!

A Weekday Getaway

Once a year my company has an all day All Staff Event. We have training for half the day and then activities in the afternoon. This year our morning training was about grief of parents of children with disabilities. It was led by a child psychiatrist who has a son with PDD and followed by a panel of previous ECI parents discussing their experiences and needs. It was a very good morning and a good reminder of why I do what I do--I absolutely love getting to work with parents!

In the afternoon we headed over to the Heard Museum for and afternoon outside! We had options of activities--about 5 co-workers from my office decided to climb "big bessie" which is a 110 foot tree with "rock climbing" steps to get up.

Here we are all harnessed up and trying to take our mind off of the task that awaited us! I love the ladies I work with so much and we had a really great time together! A couple of my co-workers made it pretty far up (the 1st picture is of my co-worker Jill, not me!). When you are actually climbing, you don't have a good concept of how far up you are--they told me I made it pretty far but then I slipped--whoops! Glad I was harnessed in!

Here I am after an afternoon of sweating and climbing! I had such a great time. Last year we got to try out the zip line and I was glad for a different challenge this year!

Jiggle Challenge Week 2

Weight Lost: 1.3.83% lost
I feel like this week was off to a good start. I did fairly well through the week with sticking with everything until yesterday--when I slept through my alarm, so I didn't get to work out and then was on the road all day and didn't plan well enough to eat healthy. :) But glad that I lost some this week and hoping to be able to stick with the plan now that I am back on track a little bit!
Now off to an All Day Staff event.

False Advertising

Let me just start by saying that I am loving today! It is the first Saturday in quite a while where I did not have to set an alarm. On Saturday mornings, my gym has an 8:30 Step Aerobics class that I love to go to, but haven't been in over a month because I've had somewhere to be on Saturday mornings. All week I had been looking forward to going, but when I went to the gym Thursday night they had signs up advertising a free Ab Class this afternoon at 1:00. If the classes had been closer together I would have gone to both, but since they weren't I had to choose--my tried and true Step Aerobics or a new Ab Class (which by the way, as much as I try to stay in shape.. my Abs are soooooooooo weak and definitely an area I need to focus on). So I opted for the Ab class.

This morning I got up and took my puppy to the dog park for her exercise--it was such a beautiful morning. Then I brought her home, did a little grocery shopping and decided to head out for a walk/jog before the class.

One of my favorite places to work on my jogging is a bridge over the lake that is 2 miles long. They have it marked off by 1/4 mile increments so it easy as I'm building up to jogging longer distances (as in a mile instead of a half mile--I didn't say long distances, just longer, but you gotta start somewhere right?) So I did the 4 miles, mostly walking, but jogged about a mile and a half of it total mixed in with the walking. The wind was crazy, but it felt good to be outside and moving.

Then I headed to the gym for the new class. Imagine my surprise, when I looked in the group workout room and they not only had mats a weights set up for everyone, but also bikes. Yeah, it was 20 minutes of an Ab workout and then a 40 minute Spin Class. Like I said, false advertising. I am still very glad that I went, but thinking my legs will probably be a little sore tomorrow.

Oh well, I guess that's one way to work towards my goal--to be blindsided by my exercise classes! I also sat down and tried to plan out my meals for this week and then bought the things I needed for those meals. I'm hoping to stick with that list to help me get a better handle on my eating habits!

Jiggle Challenge Week 1

I know I've written a lot about my weight loss journey over the last year or so. I started 2010 with the goal that I start almost every year with--the goal to lose weight. And for whatever reason, in 2010 I stuck with it.
I've tried to lose weight several times, even going back to my High School days, but with my lack of willpower I just never stuck with it. In my mind, I've always ideally wanted to weight between 140 and 145 (I know numbers are just numbers... and it is definitely different for everyone--this has just always been, in my head, where I'd like to be). But when I started my weight loss journey in January 2010, those numbers seemed extremely daunting. So I set small goals of 10 lbs at a time. Knowing that being under 160 puts me in the "normal" BMI range, I knew I needed to get at least there, so I set my goal for 2010 at 150. Still daunting, but I felt like it was attainable.
And it was. I got down to 150 in September 2010. As I approached 150, I thought several times that I just needed to push a little further and get down to 145. But by the time I hit 150, I was so tired of counting everything I ate that I just wanted a break. So I decided to take the rest of 2010 "off" from dieting and focus on maintaining (which I am happy to say I did maintain even though the Holidays!)
Then comes 2011 and I started the year ready to knock off those last few pounds. And so far I have managed to not get serious about it. I've been able to maintain fairly well, but have even gained a couple of pounds back from September.
With summer coming, there is the added motivation of swimsuit and wedding season to get myself in gear.
So when my friends Nicki posted about this challenge yesterday, I knew I wanted to join up!

So over the next 8 weeks I would like to lose 10 pounds. I plan to do this by getting back on my weight watchers tracking, eating lots of fruits and vegetables, and working out at least 5 times a week. By the end of the challenge, I also would like to be able to jog a 10 minute mile. Right now I can only do a mile straight at a 12 min-mile pace. I got out this morning and was able to do half a mile at the 6 mph pace, but still have a ways to go. So I want to add jogging in with my regular workouts of step aerobics, kickboxing, and weight training.
I'm excited to get back on track and check in each week (on Thursdays, I know I'm joining a little late!) to reach my final goal. I've always heard the last few pounds are the hardest, but I'm ready to take them on!

Lately

I realized I hadn't posted since the beginning of March. The reason? Honestly, there's not a good one other than I have no idea where March even went... I'm pretty sure yesterday it was February and now it's April. So here is a glimpse of what my march consisted of:

1. Work. Always. Work has been very busy this month. We had been in a slow spot, but this past month things really picked up and I enrolled a lot of babies in our program and have been busy getting everything set up for them as well as coordinating things for all of my other kiddos. I like it being busy though... just been lots of work this month.

2. Walks. For the most part, we had some beautiful weather throughout March--with the exception of some ridiculous wind... I feel like this year has been windier than others, but maybe I just forget past years. But I have been enjoying lots of walks with my Allie monster--most of them at 5 am, but some in the evenings as well with it staying lighter later.

3. Wedding. I have been busy with my MOH duties for my wonderful friend Erin. I know that her month has been absolutely crazy, and I was glad to be a part of invitation making, reception planning, dress fittings, guest list discussions and bridal shower planning. I am looking forward to all of the rest of the planning to come as the big day approaches in July!

4. Wednesday Classes. Even though we had 2 weeks off of my wednesday night class in March, I still have spent quite a bit of time getting ready for my final projects in both my night class and my online class. Lots of reading and paper-writing going on here!

5. Working with the Youth. Lots of my time this month has been spent at lock-ins, sunday school, youth and girls bible study with my wonderful youth. We are gearing up to start our next series and I am really excited to get everything going!

And that's what March looked like for me.