I look back at photos and can’t remember being size 8, but I was! It has been about 20 years since that size moved out and left me for a super model….Then size 10…12 …14 …and… 16 moved in.
I DO LOVE FOOD and I love wine with it too! I have healthy days, junk days, snacking only days…all in the same week.
It’s always been hard for me to get my head around the fact that I could gain weight by not eating enough, or often enough. Today, Septemer 13th I had breakfast at 7.30am and I held out for the right moment to have lunch just so I can eat with out interruption. It’s now 3:00pm and lunch is finally being wolfed down like there’s no tomorrow! I won’t be ready for dinner until at least 8:00pm. Does this sound like you?
It’s become a vicious cycle spending my time and energy constantly thinking about losing weight and shaping up. That thinking has been with me for almost three years now, and remained in thought only. An even bigger challenge has been to work out.
My hate for working out has not made this choice easy… Yes, I said it. I DO NOT LIKE WORKING OUT. Never have and in Europe we seldom did. You will find a bar on every corner, but not a gym.
About 3 months ago, I started trying out local gyms even though I was still in denial… I found another excuse not to join…Did I want to commit to a gym, spend all that money, and then not attend? Or maybe spending money on a membership will make me attend. Who knows?
My job as a nanny did not allow me to sit down much. This past year I hardly moved at all. I would sit at my laptop all day, everyday. My joints got stiff. My back was sore. And I am starting to feel old.
NOW is the time, I need to stop thinking and start moving! It’s now or never.
Ok so another week at the gym and my body is feeling so much stronger, I am changing up my diet as exercise alone is not working on loosing fat. Kelly is working by butt like mad, taking it up a tad more, week after week. I can safely say she has the perfect combination of exercise and torture!!
On a serious note both Kelly and Carolyn are super trainers; both are so different to work with. Kelly fast and furious and at times she will have had me puffing and panting but not in away that I would hate, (most of the time) although I should ask he if has her CPR at this stage!
Then Carolyn, she has a more gentle approach by no means easy but they are both quite different and the combination of the two is a good one and it suits me.
The one exercise referred to as the “dead bug” which is how I looked after trying to achieve this exercise only two in!! In the beginning it was a struggle and like many of you I felt stupid that I could only achieve three or four before collapsing into a heap on the floor! Today I am able to do 30… yep times have changed.
I do believe that all this training is making me so much stronger, but the shape I dream of seems a long way off, and my love for good food and wine often gets in the way, my social life is often on the rd and I don’t always make the right food choices at these times. My schedule often forces me to eat out and once again when I look at the menu and it’s not easy to choose a salad over pasta! if I do, I eat the entire bread basket to compensate for it!! with butter.
Where does the will power come from to switch that food, to eat healthier and smaller portions, to say not the third glass of wine?
If any of you know how to overcome this I would love to hear it I really would… because at the end of the day saying “you can do it” and joining a slim club is not the answer and I know it has to come within but for some reason it’s not coming, and if you think I could not want it enough, well you could not be more wrong I want it more than anything.
So tell me, can will power be bought in a bottle? Will my love for food and wine beat my love for the gym, and my need to have that figure I so desire… that answer will come over time with this journey I guess… I will keep you posted.
I am now at the stage where I question: in order to be slim and healthy must I spend half my life working out… and the other half in pain because of it?
I am without a doubt so much stronger, but I look no slimmer and no fitter. I have switched up my diet and will now put more thought into the food that goes into my mouth.
The rolly polly stomach staring back at me day after day is encouraging. So are some of the regular women at Function Studios Inc. that pass comment on how much I have come along. These are the same women who have watched me struggle and stand up from a sitting position on the floor. I still struggle. They have heard me moan and seen me attempt to keep up with the workout Kelly and Carolyn put me through. They have seen me drip sweat. Okay…so maybe that bit is exaggerated. Kelly told me I was dripping sweat because the heat was not turned down from the night before!!
I am waiting for the moment I will feel like many do… That I ACTUALLY want to work out and feel guilty if I don’t. It did happen once, a while back, but then passed.
Kelly has taken it up a notch and so has Carolyn. I think they have a conspiracy going on right now and guess who the target is?!
I thought the days of pain were over, but today I am a little bit sore. Go figure! For sure I must have worked far too hard! I am told to get a good night’s sleep as Kelly my trainer from Function Studios Inc is about to take it up a notch as of tomorrow. Ugh! I can feel the pain already!
Of course these trainers don’t actually work out like you, have you noticed? They stand there and boss you around with their favourite words: “just another two” Hmmm… I hear it in my dreams all the time now.
I am getting stronger, the rolly polly rolls around what used to be my waistline are still very much there. That’s the tough part of working out. It’s like dieting. I want to see results now……I mean I want to look in the mirror and see what my hard work has done. Well, I don’t see it and that is disheartening.
I do feel better, stronger, and I have more energy. I still need the 3pm chocolate bar, but I’ve now cut it down to half!! Switching this to “hemp and yogurt” will not be easy. Baby steps first… ½ bar… and then a ¼ …and then the switch. I’ll have you know I may switch back too!!
Today I managed to stay on the bike for 20 minutes and no problem. Okay so I did not pedal really hard, but at one time I only made it for 5 minutes! This is a recumbent bike not the dreaded spin bike.
I will get weighed and measured in another two weeks and let you know the comparison.
Send any tips you may have!
Day three at the gym was a little softer, but no slower as Carolyn put me through my cardio work out. Then the floor mat routine followed with a few leg presses…and I was hot hot hot! And sore would be an easy, and the most polite, word to use. I felt like I was dying! All I heard was “it will get better; it’s always like this in the beginning.”
I was moving muscles that had not moved for quite some time. I kept thinking about a much needed soak in the tub….and to be honest… a little something to eat.
That evening, as I climbed into the tub, laid back, closed my eyes and felt the muscles start to relax and loosen, I shut my eyes and wished away the fat! Yep I was lying there picturing myself a trim size 10 and I was looking good. After all, our dreams are for free and anyone can have them. I have them all the time.
There I was for about 15 minutes, and then I tried to sit up…ugh the pain in my abs. I stretched out my arms and they felt like they’d shrunk! No way in hell would my arms reach forward enough to pull myself up. I can think of worse places to get stuck, but I was thankful Frank was home. After 10 minutes of trying to get out, I was forced to call Frank (my husband) to rescue me. He took my hands and slowly pulled me into a sitting position. I was saved, but he got a good laugh. Feeling mortified, I really needed a glass of wine!
I am back training with Kelly and it’s day four. She must know I am dying, that I’m sore, and that I can’t move. I felt that I’d done my work out just climbing the stairs to get into Function Studios inc. That’s how out of shape I was because each step felt like it was a foot high.
Kelly was there to greet me looking alive and fresh as all the personal trainers do. Ever notice that? It’s only bloody 7:30am and she’s ready to go! I on the other hand would like to slow down a tad. I’m no spring chicken, but I am a morning person.
As we headed to the chambers of hell—otherwise known as the “spin bike room” –I prayed I’d be too short for the bike. Apparently they are adjustable. So I was persuaded to climb on. Five minutes is all I lasted and I felt I was getting callouses on my butt and other regions in that vicinity!! I can’t ever imagine enjoying it, but spin classes are the more popular class at Function!
It will be interesting to look back on my blog and see if I change my mind about the spin bike. I wish I’d drawn up a contact with a clause that stated “no spin bike necessary and should not be forced.” Stay tuned for next week’s update.
So this week I am to incorporate 4 cups of of veggies into my daily diet… far easier than yogurt over chocolate! Shhh! I haven’t made the switch yet!’
Eating veggies and hummus will be easy–it’s something I enjoy. But eating often will prove to be challenging as I get so busy I do forget to get that snack in between meals. And then I eat too much when I do eat a meal!
But I have cut back on red wine. I love this as much as carbs so I miss it but that’s ok . Cranberry in a wine glass just doesnt cut it, so forget suggesting that.
Just feel sorry for me, Mamas!
Week #3 at the gym and hate to say it, but you are right! It does get better. I no longer hurt and can walk straight once again. So not sure if I should have mentioned this to my personal trainer Kelly as she took it up a notch today! I was throwing a 25 pound punch bag back and forth. When she told me to lay back with the bag over my head and said to me “ready to do a crunch?” I went back and then could not get back up! We had to laugh. I just wanted to lie there and take a 10 min nap.
I think the last two weeks was perhaps a little warm up. Today I really sweated and puffed and Kelly was right there with those dreaded words “two more… you can do it.” Legs like jelly, we hit the treadmill, believe it or not this was welcomed compared to what I had just been through! I have to be honest, I am feeling better.
My joints are still stiff, maybe that’s age and arthritis, and I hope in time they will improve. I just wish I could see results faster in terms of appearance. I feel I have worked really hard and I want to see more improvement. I know this is not realistic but it’s how I wish it was. I want to look like Halle Berry. Is that asking for too much?
When I see other women at Function Studios working out I am encouraged. I mean, some are older some are younger but we are all striving for the same thing–to look and feel good about ourselves for ourselves.
Today I reached a count of 16 with an abs exercise. Two weeks ago ended in a near heart attack after just two! So for sure I am on my way to becoming stronger and fitter. Now all I need is to get rid of the rollie pollie fat!
So this week, I bought and switched to Ezekiel bread.. Yes I am a bit of a bread monster and Kelly suggested I change over to this bread as it has less of this,and more of that… in other words it’s better for you. (Found in the freezer
section) I could eat no problem as its nice bread, not like some I have tried in the past that could easily pass for cardboard! I also confessed that at around 3.pm I eat a bar of chocolate, I often feel tired and in need of something sweet. Now Kelly suggested a yogurt, I love yogurt but I know I will need the chocolate… so she suggested I add some hemp.
Can anyone tell me if this is a fair switch? I don’t think so…chocolate versus hemp! I know will not curb my need for my 3.pm chocolate and much needed sugar rush, but I will try it.As the saying goes, don’t knock it until you have tried it right
Day three at the gym was a little softer, but no slower as Carolyn put me through my cardio work out. Then the floor mat routine followed with a few leg presses…and I was hot hot hot! And sore would be an easy, and the most polite, word to use. I felt like I was dying! All I heard was “it will get better; it’s always like this in the beginning.”
I was moving muscles that had not moved for quite some time. I kept thinking about a much needed soak in the tub….and to be honest… a little something to eat.
That evening, as I climbed into the tub, laid back, closed my eyes and felt the muscles start to relax and loosen, I shut my eyes and wished away the fat! Yep I was lying there picturing myself a trim size 10 and I was looking good. After all, our dreams are for free and anyone can have them. I have them all the time.
There I was for about 15 minutes, and then I tried to sit up…ugh the pain in my abs. I stretched out my arms and they felt like they’d shrunk! No way in hell would my arms reach forward enough to pull myself up. I can think of worse places to get stuck, but I was thankful Frank was home. After 10 minutes of trying to get out, I was forced to call Frank (my husband) to rescue me. He took my hands and slowly pulled me into a sitting position. I was saved, but he got a good laugh. Feeling mortified, I really needed a glass of wine!
I am back training with Kelly and it’s day four. She must know I am dying, that I’m sore, and that I can’t move. I felt that I’d done my work out just climbing the stairs to get into Function Studios inc. That’s how out of shape I was because each step felt like it was a foot high.
Kelly was there to greet me looking alive and fresh as all the Personal Trainers do. Ever notice that? It’s only bloody 7:30am and she’s ready to go! I on the other hand would like to slow down a tad. I’m no spring chicken, but I am a morning person.
As we headed to the chambers of hell—otherwise known as the “spin bike room” –I prayed I’d be too short for the bike. Apparently they are adjustable. So I was persuaded to climb on. Five minutes is all I lasted and I felt I was getting callouses on my butt and other regions in that vicinity!! I can’t ever imagine enjoying it, but spin classes are the more popular class at Function!
It will be interesting to look back on my blog and see if I change my mind about the spin bike. I wish I’d drawn up a contact with a clause that stated “no spin bike necessary and should not be forced.” Stay tuned for next week’s update.
