Terms

We have been learning new terms and their definition with this challenge. Some of my favorite are trans fat (something we don't want to eat), BMI (body mass index) which is a number we are trying not to have in the obese category (mine is still there), satisfaction level (being full to a 5-6 on a scale of 10) which is the point at which you no longer eat the whole portion and lick the plate clean, portion size (a smaller portion will equate to a smaller size you can wear), 5K (not to be confused with a 401K) which is a 3.1 mile race you can run or walk, interval training: which is the time it takes to recover (start breathing again), and many more.
Some of the new terms I am now using are: grandma tax : when the grand kids are eating a donut, cookie, or anything that tastes good that has too many calories, I impose a grandma tax on it which is getting one bite and only one bite (and yes I journal the bite), plank: this is an exercise that when doing it you would rather be walking the plank of a pirate ship and jumping into shark infested waters, and 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and your done: these are the sweetest words your trainer can say when exercising.

Time management

I've almost made it through April and the 7 birthdays. Tomorrow my oldest will be 36 and I am having her and her family over for dinner and dessert, thankfully she is a healthy eater. Saturday we did a birthday party for her daughter who turns 11 on May 1st, she wanted to decorate cup cakes and of course wanted me to demonstrate and help. It was alot of fun and I made it out of there without eating a cup cake (unfortunately, the candy that went on the cup cakes for decoration did not fair so well, I still hear the candy calling my name) but only ate a few pieces of candy.
I wasn't able to make the 5K training on Saturday as my husband and I coach another grandsons soccer team and we play at 9 a.m. I did do my own 5K run (walk) in my neighborhood earlier that morning. With everything going on in the family it seems that I need to do better with time management, so that time works for me and not against me.
I know I'm an early morning exerciser (it was fun to see so many of you at the gym on Friday morning) not only because I feel less pain but I know that after 9 a.m. my day is gone with doing all the zillions of things that are required on a daily basis.
I'm hoping that if I keep exercise a top priority it will just be something that gets done every day, just like doing the crossword puzzle and making the bed.

Thrown out of the nest!

I am just realizing that we only have one more month of this challenge and there is so much more I need to learn. I feeling a little like a baby bird who has been nurtured and now is being thrown out of the nest to test its wings and fly (I wonder if Relief Society arms can keep you airborne). But we have had and still have great teachers and time to learn how to transition into the real world, one without trainers, blogs, weigh ins, and counting calories.
Today in class I found it interesting that some of the worst foods when eating out didn't sound like they would be bad, like grilled chicken and salads. I know now why I don't eat out more. When my husband and I do go out to eat we will usually share an appetizer and entree between us, or get one entree and add soup.
I am looking forward to learning how to maintain weight loss, it hopefully will be easier than achieving weight loss. But for now I still need to focus on achieving weight loss (I wish it were as easy as memory loss, yea I forgot, the memory loss keeps me coming back to the gym because I forget how hard it is).

Baby steps

My husband and I went to Logan this weekend to see our son and his family. They have a 10 1/2 month old little boy and we try and get up to see them every few weeks. The last time we saw Jaxtan was the middle of March and he wasn't even rolling over yet, this weekend he was crawling and walking a few steps on his own. I was amazed at the progress he had made in such a short time and was reminded that this challenge is all about baby steps.
Some of the baby steps I've noticed I've been making are:
1. I know what a portion size of most foods is.
2. I can feel when I am full and need to stop eating.
3. I have tried and like some new vegetables.
4. I no longer fear, doing the 5K. Thanks Traci for the training.
5. I can cook normal food and have it look and taste great without added fat.
6. I can continue to use all that I'm learning in this challenge for the rest of my life. It doesn't end after 100 days.
7. I am stronger both physically and mentally than I thought.
8. Only I can do the work that will make me healthy. (Ok, Dylan keeps me honest.)
9. I don't have any more excuses for not being healthy.
Baby steps may not seem very big, but when you can see the progress they are huge.

Common sense

Today in the nutrition class we learned about fad diets and how to avoid them. The only diet that ever tempted me was Weight Watchers and I did it for 3 months about 6 years ago and lost 10 pounds, but after 3 months my common sense told me that I could not continue to count points for the rest of my life. My weight yo-yo ed after that but never went as high as it had been. Last year I decided that in order to truly lose weight it had to be a life style change, and I revamped the way I shopped for food and prepared it. Since then I was also able to lose another 10 pounds but my cholesterol never went down. I am hoping to lose another 10 pounds with this challenge and lower my cholesterol also. This has been harder than I thought it would be. I love the workouts and learning how to use the weights and machines. My endurance has improved and I am hoping to jog most of the 5K at the end of the challenge, but walking is OK too (I have never been a runner).
It has really helped me to learn how to breath when doing weights and I find I am an unconscious breather now. My granddaughter who is 12 asked me what I was doing when I was blow drying her hair (she is taller than me and I was raising my arms up and using a round brush) and I asked her what she meant. She said that I was breathing funny, and sure enough I was exhaling as my arm was coming down.
My common sense tells me that it is better to be an unconscious breather than eater.

Killer Bunnies!

This was not a good week for me, with three birthdays and Easter. I sometimes wonder why all the good things we celebrate center around food. I tried to stay in my calorie allotment and did pretty good until Easter. I had control of the Easter dinner and ate quite reasonably, but after dinner we have a tradition of playing "Killer Bunnies".
Now to play "Killer Bunnies" I have special bunny candy dishes, bunny cheese and cracker dishes, and of course special bunny treats to go in them. I thought if I allowed myself only one treat it would be manageable. So the jelly beans (I didn't buy any chocolate Easter candy) went into the bunny dishes. I was only going to eat the black licorice ones and the red hot ones (those are my favorites), but by the middle of the game everyone was saying have you tried the green ones, the pink ones with the spots, the light yellow ones, etc. they are so good. By the end of the game the jelly beans were screaming "EAT ME" and I did. Well I lost my will power and the game and will try and do better this week.

Snap, crackle, pop!

This has been a challenging week, more to do than time to do it. I have been trying to plan meals and snacks ahead of schedule so I will be prepared, but yesterday did me in. I didn't eat a single vegetable and had ice cream and fruit for dinner ( I still stayed in my calorie allotment). Today will be better.
I am so grateful for my trainer, Dylan. He pushes me when I don't think I can do any more and encourages me to challenge my limitations. I noticed today in the gym when no one else was there that the only sound I could hear was the snap, crackle, pop of my knees as I was riding the bike. And with some of the other exercises that my lower back will pop. I never thought of myself as a musically inclined person, but my joints seem to have a rhythm of their own. If it helps me lose weight-- it will be music to my ears.

CELEBRATION!!!

I have finally lost 5 pounds (I didn't think it would ever happen.) I too have had some goal numbers in my head with this challenge and one of them was to be below 150 by my birthday, which was last week. Well I didn't make my goal (I am finally under 155 barely) but I still went shopping for a new Spring outfit and was able to buy a size 10 for the first time in 30 years. I knew this would be a slow process but I was hoping for a little faster results from all the effort I am putting in (I truly am the tortoise in the race and this speed bump was a mountain to get over).
I have given over half of my wardrobe away at this time with the goal of never being a size 14 again. (I know that doesn't sound like a big size but when you are only 5'3.5" tall it is.) It has been very therapeutic to do this and the clothes I am wearing now are more stylish (when you have your clothes for 15+ years they really start looking dated). I'm down to the clothes I bought when my youngest son got married almost two years ago and I was sure I was going to be able to wear a size 12 (who was I kidding) , so most of my clothes are orange and black which were their wedding colors.
One day my muscles (which I didn't even think existed) may even thank me for this challenge.
My mind is already thanking me, and overcoming the mental part of losing weight is half the challenge and another big speed bump.

Speed bumps!

As I go through the day I usually will hit a few speed bumps along the way that tell me I need to slow down and pay attention to what I'm doing. In this challenge I am also hitting a few of those speed bumps, some I have control over and others I don't.
This last week I had a baby blessing (grandchild #7) and was tempted with 10 homemade desserts. (I only ate a bite of 4 of them.) My birthday which meant going out to lunch with my Mom and sister-in-law. (I love Mimi's Cafe.) General Conference, which at my house always meant having candy to eat. (I think the sugar helps keep me awake, multi grain cheerios aren't quite the same.) But all of these I have had control over.
The speed bumps I don't have control over are the aches and pains in my body.(I officially have muscles in places that have been hidden for years.) The dreaded scale which hasn't been very kind to me. (There will be a major celebration when I have lost 5 pounds.) And the cold weather which makes my arthritis worse. (Many of my joints are close to being bone on bone.)
As I hit these speed bumps I have to remind myself why I wanted to be in this challenge and of a quote I have had since college many years ago. It states, "An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off the goal you are trying to reach." My goal is to get healthy and the speed bumps are not obstacles but reminders of why I want to change my life.

Ways to tell your on the Heart Challenge

As I try to internalize all the information about nutrition and exercise in my little brain, I've come up with some ways I'm noticing that I am making progress and thought I'd share them.
1. I put multigrain cheerios in my Easter candy dish instead of jelly beans.
2. I go to bed at 8 p.m. too sore and tired to move knowing that I will wake up at 4:30 a.m. and be at the gym bye 5 a.m. (My husband calls this turning into a pumpkin, I wonder if Jalaine will count that as a vegetable.)
3. I am no longer the fun grandma with cookies and candy as they have been replaced with fruits and vegetables. (Grandkids do not want fruits and vegetables.)
4. I go out wearing sweats or workout clothes and no make-up hoping that Stacy and Clinton are not filming secret footage of me for "What not to Wear."
5. Friends and family are starting to bring over cookies and treats as they are sure I am starving because my clothes are fitting better.
6. I have a smile on my face because I was one of the lucky 15 to be chosen for this challenge.