Sometimes I even amaze myself

I can't believe that I just did what I did! First of all I just walked my longest walk yet...6 MILES!! It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I did struggle some with the last mile. My left hip decided that it had enough and tried to stop working! It started to feel a little like bone grinding on bone. Ouch! But it wasn't quite so bad that I had to stop. I only had a mile left so I pushed through the pain. Hopefully as the miles increase my hips will adjust and the pain will subside (I've had hip and lower back issues for many years).

Now the more shocking part of this walk, I got up at 7 am!! If you know me, you know that I am NOT a morning person! I don't do mornings well. I hate getting up early. Well, I broke my own 'sleep as late as possible on the weekend' rule and got up for this walk! I knew that to get in my miles I would have to. I didn't get to walk yesterday because it stormed all afternoon & today it is supposed to do the same. So I knew that I had to get up early to walk. The temp would be better too. So I did it!!! I left the family snoozing in their beds and went for it!

It actually worked out well. Temp was okay. Still really hot but not 95! Too early for any of the neighborhood dogs or kids to be out & very little traffic.

I hoped that the fam would sleep right through & they pretty much did. They had only been awake about 15 minutes when I got back and were still in bed. So they still go their sleeping late in so I would be the only one with cranky pants today from getting up too early. LOL! [Hope not]

Now I'll just have to see if this was a fluke or if I can continue with this morning walking thing (well on weekends). I'd have to get up at 5 to do this during the week...ummm...not gonna happen! Ha!

Wow I just walked 6 miles before 9am...amazing! ;-)~

Lightning!

I only got in just over a mile today. I was hoping for a nice long walk. It was ovecast with a nice strong breeze so I was enjoying it. I didn't know it was gonna blow in a huge thunderhead (very quickly)! I was just hitting a mile when I saw a huge lightning bolt. I mean huge! Luckily I was in site of my car so I quickly headed back with 'lightning' speed. Ha! I love watching lightning storms but from a safe location not while walking on a tree lined trail. I'll make up the miles during this nice long holiday weekend! Yea!

Indoor Track

I decided to try the indoor track today because it is so hot outside at noon. I got there and found the lap length sign - 1 lap = 1/10 mile. Oh good grief! It is a very short track! But I walked it anyway. Wow was it ever boring. Even with my music and people watching, the time really dragged on. Oh well, the temp was nice. I did fine until about 4 miles and my feet started hurting. I think the floor is too hard. It felt like I was walking barefoot. So I knew I wouldn't be able to go too much farther but it worked out because for some reason the rec center was closing early today and they kicked us all out at 2. I got in 4.5 miles though. I felt pretty good just a little pain in my feet from the hard floor.

I'm not sure if I will keep using that track or not. It is nice not to get heatstroke when walking but it is so boring and that floor is so hard. I'll see how my feet feel tomorrow before I decide.

BS Sub

I can't lift my arms. Our sub apparently loves to workout arms not that we didn't do legs but man she was brutal on the arms!!

Next week starts the new workout schedule, looks like BS will now be on Wednesday so I'll have to adjust my training schedule [just when I was getting into a routine].

Isn't this supposed to get easier??

maybe when I quit walking at NOON!!!

Barely managed 3.8 miles today, it was soooo hot!!!

First injury

Only got in a mile today... I apparently injured my left calf. Not sure when or how. May have just overdid it yesterday when pushing the girls. Oh well, I didn't want to make it worse so I quit after a mile. Bummer....

New Training Partners

Today was the first time that my girls joined me on my walk. Well, I walked, they rode. They both did so good! Zoe asked questions about everything along the way which kept my mind off of the extra 50+ pounds that I was pushing & Fiona played with her elephant and looked around until mile 2 when she fell asleep. She slept the remainder of the walk. I am so proud of both of them. They had a good time and I got a good workout!

We'll see how they do tomorrow. I hope they continue to like it. It sure would make scheduling walks easier if I could take them with me.

Yea for the Reeves Girls!

4 MILES!

I just complete my longest walk to date...4 miles! I did this on a new route at a new time. It was tough! The last half mile thought it would defeat me but I prevailed! Barely! It was soooo hot out today and I forgot my hat! My face was purple when I got done! However I wasn't as tired as I thought that I would be. Yeah!

This is week 2 of my training. So far so good. Monday I did 3 miles & Tuesday I did an hour of BS. Both went well. Oh except that I got to BS class late and had to be in the front of class! So I didn't even notice the workout because I was too worried if anyone was noticing me work out! Ha! Never be late to class again!!

My new route for walking has been named the swamp route. I leave from work and walk around a swamp that is on the outskirt of USA campus and back to work. It is a nice walk. Mostly shaded but about 80% off road which I will have to get used to. I did enjoy it though. I have added it to my collection of routes!

The new time...noon! It was hot! But I had to walk early today because of after work obiligations today and I thought I'd go for the longer distance today because we will we going to visit friends outta town on Friday (my usual long day).
So I am now 4 miles closer to the 3Day! Yippee!

1 measly pound!

How can this be?? All this exercise, walking, water drinking & food reduction and the result is a loss of only 1 pound! 1 measly little pound! Needless to say I am just a little disappointed! BooHoo!

Oh and I've heard 'you are building muscle & muscle weighs more than fat'! Maybe so but I have so much extra fat that I thought for sure that some of it would fall off along with all this muscle building! Ugghhh!!

I had really hoped to be able to wear some shorts since the weather is getting so hot! Oh well, I guess wearing long pants has the benefit of causing more sweat so more calories burned so more weigh loss...right?!? Bah! Not with my luck!

Week 1 Complete!

I completed my first week of training today!! I logged 3 miles today...12 for the week! I keep thinking 'wow, I walking 12 miles this week!' that is so hard for me to grasp! I have so many more miles to go but I really feel like I did something this week. I haven't logged any kinda miles like this since training for high school track tryouts (didn't make the tryouts though...tore ligaments in my ankle 2 weeks before tryouts...ugghh)!

Today's walk was my first at home. I walked our street (it is a horseshoe) for the first time. It is about 1/2 mile so I had to do 6 laps to get my 3 miles. It was an interesting walk b/c the part of the street just past our house is in really bad shape so I had to weave my way around the small ponds. I felt like I was trying to hide my path from anyone who might follow. By the end of 6 laps though I pretty much had a path figured out. It should be better when it isn't full of water. At least I know that I do have this route if I need it. It may be repetitive but at least I have a place to walk.

So one week down and 23 to go. I am ready for week two. I hope my body is!

Trail Walk

This was day 3 of my training. I decide to take a different path today one that included a mile or so of trails. Trails that I have never been on before. It was very nice but tough at times. I don't think I'll be taking that path again anytime soon though. I nearly slid down a couple of times. My shoes just aren't made for trail walking apparently. I did enjoy the walk though.

I got up close to a family of geese. 6 adults and at least a dozen babies. I wanted so bad to scoop up those babies and taken them home but the parents were very protective....hissing and posturing at me! I was very cautious as I passed them. I didn't want a goose bite in the bum!

I made it through unscathed, however a few minutes later, a bug flew down my throat and I thought I was going to choke to death! As I was hacking and coughing, the headline flashed into my head 'Fat girl found on trail with bug in her throat and goose bites on her bum!' Not a pleasant thought! LOL!

Mother nature has a sense of humor...enjoy her beauty but be cautious, nature can be dangerous [& not necessarily tasty]! Ha!

Anyway, I did survive this walk. Logged another 3 miles. Yippee!

Oh yeah, tip of the day: Don't skip lunch! A powerbar is not enough to sustain you through a 3 mile walk. Even with a little extra bug on the side!

BodySculpt

Did BS (I like that acronym...lol) again today. I wasn't as sore as I thought I would be. Our instructor decided to change things up today to give us a break from the brutality she put us through last week. [so kind of her] No step today, instead resistance bands. I wouldn't say they were easy but I did much better with that than with step. We did a lot of upper body too. I have next to no upper body strength. My arms are gonna be noodles tomorrow. Over all it was pretty good though. I didn't pass out or fall down. She even complimented me by asking if I was a student! Ha!

Second time doing BS - check.
Second day of training - check.

On my way....

RIP Robyn

We lost one of the beautiful ladies that we are doing the 3day walk for; Robyn Shaffer. She lost her battle with breast cancer this morning.

Damn cancer sux! We have got to find a cure!

Official 24 week training

I started my 24 week program yesterday. Walked 3 miles in 60 minutes. It was very hot but I did okay.

Today is bodysculpt. I hope I can do it. I'm not sore anymore but I still 'feel' my muscles when I move certain ways. All I can do is try!

Yoga

Today was the day to take on Yoga. I am still so sore so I didn't know if I would be able to do it. Again, I tried figure out an excuse not to go but my co-worker had decided to join me so I couldn't abandon him. It was his first time doing Yoga as well. So off we went...

I was pretty shaky at first b/c of my leg soreness but I managed to stay upright. A few of the moves really push my muscles to their limits. I was stretching muscles that I didn't know even existed. It was very calming though. I enjoyed the relaxing breathing. I could really feel my body loosening up. Toward the end I was starting to get a little tired but then we got to the best part... Corpse pose in the dark (nap time)! I actually felt very good when we finished. My legs even felt better. That was very beneficial and I will go again! Yea!

My first 3 mile walk!!

Well, to add to my pain, yesterday was to be my first full 3 mile walk. I honestly didn't think I could do it. I really didn't want to even try. Just getting outta my car was a challenge! But I went anyway, I crawled outta my car and went for it. The first 5 minutes was brutal. I couldn't get my stride right. My legs didn't work like they should. So I stopped after a few to stretch, oh wow was that horrible! I really wanted to just go back to my car but I didn't give in. UGGHHH!!

I got to moving again and gradually it got easier. I took a new path to extend my time and just hoped that I didn't end up a mile away from my car and my legs would give out. But they kept going, well for a while. I could start to feel the fatigue at about 2 miles which was the longest I had done up to this point but I pressed on. I had to, I wasn't anywhere near my car! ;-) I really started to struggle at about 50 minutes. My body was done. I slowed my pace but had to keep going! Where was my damn car?? I made it through that last 10 minutes and there over the hill was 'black magic'. [Yep my car has a name!] LOL! I had made it! I tried to stretch out but all my legs wanted to do was sit so that's what I did. The ride home was nice! AC blasting, no shoes, 28 ounces of water. Ahhhhh!

BodySculpt Results

So yesterday I was sooo sore that I could barely move! BodySculpt apparently kicked my butt! My legs were (I should say are b/c the pain is not gone) so sore. Sitting down, standing up, walking up & downstairs...normal functions that are now nearly impossible!! I had to laugh at myself trying to get down the 3 flights of stairs at work yesterday (& so did my hubby and my coworker...turds). Anyway, the hurt is crazy but I feel good about it. I keep telling myself that it will all be worth it when I have a wonderfully scuplted body! HA!

I will go back...crazy I know!

BodySculpt!! OMG!

Well I did it! I just made it through the BodySculpt class! Barely made it through I should say. That was just plain painful! I am soooo outta shape! It was lunges & squats & crunches & weight lifts & I don't even remember what else! My parts were tremblin & shakin! I thought they would revolt but I held it together. It was really tough but I did it! I am actually pretty happy with myself. I held my own with a group of college kids. I don't think I had to stop any more than anyone else.

I am stoked. I will go again next week. My body will be sculpted! Ha!

Oh on a side note...I have had 32+ ounces of water already today (ugghhh). I really dislike drinking water!

Short walk...

I got through my walk in the park today. I only did 30 minutes. That was all I could do. My chest started hurting & I felt like a headache was coming on so I didn't overdo it. I'll sure be glad when I'm over this sinus crud.

Tomorrow, I'm going to try a strength training class at USA. It is called BodySculpt. Sounds painful to me. ;-) Hope I don't chicken out....

Not a good day for walking...

I'm suppose to walk today. This week I was planning to begin my official 3Day training program. I want to do the 24 week program since my fitness level is so low & this is week 25. However, I have a horrible sinus infection. I missed my Friday walk because of it. I thought I would make up for missing Friday by walking this weekend. I didn't. I felt so bad all weekend that I couldn't walk from the backdoor to the garage without becoming winded or coughing. I do feel a little better today but I my head is still stopped up, I can't breathe through my nose and I get winded quickly. I'm gonna try to walk anyway.

If the rain holds off, then I'm gonna try to walk in the park. If it doesn't I'm gonna see if I can find the USA campus indoor track. Hopefully, I can find it and not get a ticket for parking on campus without a parking tag.

Caught up...

I think that brings me up to date. I could go on & on. As I'm sure you have figured out, I am a talker! ;-) If you made it through all this, I hope you will come back and follow my continued journey. At least from now on, the posts should be shorter.

Back to money makin'

I really hate to ask people for money but I know this is for a good cause. This research needs to continue. A cure must be found. So I finally got back to my letter (that I created weeks ago) to send to family and friends (have to start somewhere). I never did get envelopes so that is on my weekend to do list. Oh and stamps too.

Theresa and Susan have suggested several fundraising ideas. They are looking into auctions, raffles, speghetti dinners, etc. I guess I need to get back to that too so that I can contribute some ideas!

Welcome aboard Susan...

Earlier last week, we added a new team member! Yea! Her name is Susan, she is a friend of Theresa's. We are so glad to have her join us. I can't wait to actually get to meet her in person. ;-)

Not another excuse to quit!

So the walking continued, I was consistantly walking 30 mins(1.5 miles) 3 days a week. However, my foot hurt! I was not happy with my shoes but I hadn't convinced myself that I was dedicated enough yet to invest in expensive shoes. I tried adjusting the laces, different types of socks, no socks, still my foot slid forward, my big toe joint ached and my little toe and his slightly bigger sister would get all tingly! I started to dread each walk. I researched and read and figured out that I needed an orthotic to support the metatasals and arch. So let the hunting begin...

Getting back to it!

I tried to motivate myself by reading other peoples stories, by thinking of why I had decided to do this in the first place, by telling myself that not only does the cause need this but I need this! So I took a new direction. The weather had finally warmed so I decided to try walking in the park (Municiple 'Langan' Park). I had to figure out when I could do this. It wasn't like walking downstairs to the gym. Again I decide afternoons would be best, I had to time it right though so that I could get there, walk and head to get the girls without getting stuck in crazy Mobile traffic. Since I had never actually 'walked' at the park, I had no idea what was there in the way of paths, sidewalks, trails, etc. The first day, I just picked a sidewalk and started walking. I knew that if I walked for about 30 minutes it would be about 1.5 miles so I walked for about 15 minutes then turned around and walked back. I didn't want to go off on some trail somewhere and it take me an hour and a half to get back. Anyway, I enjoyed that walk. The sun was out, the wind was blowing, birds chirping (some where squawking...there are lots of seagulls there). It was nice. The next time I decided to make a loop around and on that walk I found a trail map on a little post so now I could see where the paths met. Cool... Again I enjoyed the walk, I could feel my motivation being renewed. Yea!

In the meantime...

While I was trying to conquer my laziness demons, Theresa and I had to come up with a team name. Wow that was more difficult than we thought it would be. There were so many ideas but we found out that a lot were already registered. So one day I asked Jerry for some ideas, he too came up with lots of good ones. We couldn't decide so Theresa took our top ten and put it to a vote with her co-workers and 'Itty Bitty 3Day Titty Tour' won by a landslide. Jerry gets credit for that one. Thanks Baby! Theresa thought that we now needed some shirts with our team name, etc. so she got to work on that. She spent many days, sample after sample, until she came up with something that she was happy with. Yes, I helped too, but basically I just made a few suggestions. She did all the work. Well, they turned out great! Save the 'boo' bees on the front & Itty Bitty 3Day Titty Tour on the back. Awesome...

We also spent time discussing fundraising ideas, again lots came to mind but putting them into action would be difficult. It was still early in the journey...we still had time. In the meantime, donation were actually coming in, I was up to about $400 in a month and I hadn't done anything. So I had to get back to my walking program, friends and family were doing their part by donating so I had to do mine by walking!

Let the walking begin

So I was ready, I had a place, time, shoes, ipod & motivation. I'm can do this. I actually don't think I did too bad the first few times. I walked for 20 minutes at a time (about a mile), 3 days that week. When my second week started, I was already trying to talk my self out of it. I didn't like the treadmill. I didn't like sharing the gym with others. While I like the people that came in, I just didn't like walking with people being there. I was self conscious I think. Anyway, I stuck with it for about 2 weeks. I had worked up to 30 mins about 1.5 miles. Then I missed a day because of a meeting. Then another day because I forgot my shoes. Then another day because well I don't even remember why. The next thing I knew, nearly a month had gone by and I was walking maybe once a week. Ugghhh! I wasn't supposed to let this happen but I knew why it did. I didn't like it. It was boring. So now what?

Where and when to walk

At the time I started all this, it was still really cold here (we had a crazy way below average winter). And this southern girl so not like the cold! So I started out in the exercise gym at my work on the treadmill. I would go for about 30 minutes at the end of the work day before leaving to pick up the girls. I knew afternoons would be better (even though all I wanted to do was go home) because I am soooo not a morning person (ask anyone who knows me).

Getting physical

I had actually been trying to motivate myself to start doing some sorta activity to get back into shape (hourglass not round) before taking on this challenge. I had spoken to Jackie about some activites. She was doing the C25k (couch to 5k). She was very motivated. She sent me all kinda of info but it is a lot easier to read about it than to actually do it. But now in addition to her motivation, I had this cause to motivate me.

The shoes...

Oh yeah & I didn't own a pair of walking shoes, nothing that I could even attempt to walk any distance in. I do have shoes (lots of them...another blog for a another day) but none for exercise or walking. So I started researching shoes...undaunting! Luckily I had a new friend, Jackie, that had just started her after baby exercise journey. Her baby boy is a month older than my baby girl. She was a shoe research maniac so I quizzed her. She gave me all kinds of info. Anyway, finding shoes wasn't fun. I have high arches, narrow heels and an old injury to the metatarsal head/joint (big toe joint). I finally settled on a pair from one of the big box shoe stores. Thought I would try those for a while, then maybe if I stuck with this, I would upgrade.

Me...a walker?

So while I was waiting on my 'Walker' packet from 3Day, I decided to focus on the physical side of this journey...WALKING! I knew that this was going to be harder than raising the money. I had just had my second daughter in December. I had done basically no real physical activity in nearly a year. I am in the double digits for extra weight. I have never been a big fan of exercise. Oh & I love to eat! Boy this is gonna be a challenge... BUT if these women can battle breast cancer and beat it, then I can get off my lazy fat ass and go for a walk! ;-)

Getting started

First thing I did was to post my intent to facebook, then I sent an email to a few family members & friends and then posted an email to my works electronic bulletin board. From this I got lots of positive feedback and several immediate donations. My sister-in-law, Tracy, gets credit for being the first.