My First 5K-November 21, 2009

At a service project a couple of months ago, a friend and I started talking about running. She told me how she had run a couple of 5k's and was thinking about training for a half marathon. I expressed a little interest in doing a race myself (5k) and she asked if I wanted to join her that very weekend in a high school swim team fund raiser 1m/5k race. I told her to let me know details and I would decide. That was on Wednesday.

On Friday evening, I still had not heard from her and the race was Saturday morning, so I assumed she had decided not to race. I got up on Saturday morning and did my normal routine which consisted of strength training for about 45 minutes, followed by running on the treadmill for about 15 minutes.

I had just come upstairs from working out when the phone rang. It was her. She said she had tried to reach me a day or two previous, then had seen the weather report and figured it would be too yucky to want to participate. So she gave up on the idea. When she woke up on Saturday morning, the weather looked ok and she decided to go for it.

I told her about my just finishing working out...to which she replied that it was great to follow strength training with some cardio and it would be good for me!!!! So, like a fool, I consented!

It was interesting. I finished in 33:17 minutes (which I didn't think was horrible, especially considering my workout an hour before!), and came in 5th in my age group and only 1 minute (almost exactly) behind my friend. I wonder how I would do without exhausting myself first!

Family Biggest LOSE-ORR Contest and Newspaper Article

This is an article done recently about my brother-in-law and his amazing weight loss story (well my entire family's weight loss saga). It's unbelievable!!! Check it out! Way to go Stephen!

Update on "30 day Shred" by Jillian Michaels

Ok, I just wanted to let you know that I have been doing this exercise video now for 3 weeks now...several times a week. Sometimes I do it twice a day (it's only a 20 minute workout) and sometimes I do 2 levels of the workout in one session (for a total of about 40 minutes). I really like it. It's tough! I have been using 5 lb. hand weights (which isn't very much, you know) but with these exercises IT IS ENOUGH and sometimes TOO MUCH!!

I like the 3,2,1 system of 3 minutes strength, 2 minutes cardio and 1 minute of abs repeated 3x for 1 session with a warm up and cool down. I think it keeps your heart rate up enough to burn extra calories the entire workout.

I like that there are 3 levels. I think I would be bored with just one. Each level has different exercises and increases in difficulty. If I do 2 levels of workouts, I just skip the cool down from the first session and the warm up of the second and go right on with the circuits. I also have used cardio from one of the easier levels for part of level 3 because I don't like the "rock star" jumps....they bother my knees. I figure cardio is cardio.

I love that it is only 20 minutes. It's easy to work into a busy day. Sometimes I do it in the afternoon before I make dinner. Keeps me from snacking a lot too, as afternoons are my "eat everything in sight" time of day.

I have lost a total of 8 lbs. so far (although I joined weight watchers 2 weeks ago, so the dvd can't take all the credit) but I sure think it has helped.

Exercise....who me?

For as long as I can remember (which at my age isn't too far back...) I have gone to the gym to work out almost daily. I love it! I know, that's weird, but I do. You'd think I'd be really thin. Ah, well.

Anyways, since my Costco "career" started (I start work at either 4 or 5 a.m.) I haven't been going very regularly. It went from almost daily at 6:00 a.m., to two or three times a week after work or evenings or on days off, to hmmm..... not since October!! So, with the new year and all-recommitting to my old exercise routine has been on my mind. Or at least, trying to maintain SOME kind of exercise routine.

I saw an info-mercial on Turbo Jam (which apparently is like a dance party in your living room! :p). There was so much hype and freebies and "if you call in the next 18 minutes..." that I couldn't even tell how much it was going to cost. Then I saw Jillian Michaels on the Ellen show. You know the tough coach from tv's "The Biggest Loser". I have been researching her dvd's. They are rated fairly high. People seem to like them. She's tough, but effective...so they say. So I took the plunge. I spent that whopping $9.00 at Walmart for the dvd "Jillian Michaels 30 day Shred"! Here is a link to a video clip of the workout at Amazon. I would be interested to hear if anyone has tried it. I watched it (literally...I laid on my bed and watched her workout. That's how motivated I am!) She looks pretty buff, and it looks a lot like some of the things I did when I went to the gym and took some pump classes, so at least I think I should enjoy it. We'll see. I'll update you if anything of note comes from it. First, I guess I need to do more than lay in bed and watch it! Wish me luck!