Burn Baby Burn

Yesterday, I was so tired. I felt like I had barely any energy to do miniscule tasks, like stay awake for work. I was falling asleep whenever I had to sit at my desk. It was unbearable, so I left 10 minutes early and just went home. Once I arrived, I went straight to my room and took a nap. I eventually woke up again at 19:30, and I proceeded to eat dinner in my zombie like state. As I slowly woke up more, I resolved to do the p90X workout of the day. Boy, was that a mistake. Legs & Back was so difficult. My thighs and calves were screaming from the pain, especially during the leg lift wall squats and the sneaky lunges. The only thing that got me through this workout was the idea that I would have a beautiful butt and thighs. Also, the inner geek in me was praising me for increasing my sneak level (that’s for all Elder Scrolls Fans out there). Once that work out was done, I did Ab Ripper X. I was pleasantly surprised to see that I was better at certain exercises, such as: Oblique V-ups, bicycles, and the leg climb. However, I was still hopeless with the Rollup/V-up combos.

Overall, I was happy that I did the workouts. Not only did I feel proud that I stuck with it, but after my workout,  my chocolate milk recovery drink tasted like ambrosia! So it was definitely worth it. It also helped that I stuck to the diet, but I’m starting to think that the diet is the reason why I’m so tired and lethargic. Protein does not provide enough energy for these intense workouts and daily function. But, I guess if I want to shred fat, I need to stick with it. So far I’ve been really good with the P90X plan. I’ve been following the diet and pushing myself in the exercises. Today for example, I’ve already planned and prepped all my meals so that I meet my goals for the day. I’m really sore from last nights workout, but I’m definitely looking forward to Kenpo X tonight.

First Step to Becoming a Yogi

I just completed YogaX, and boy was that difficult! After the first twenty minutes I couldn’t wait for it to end. Even though I’m as flexible as a chunky Thing, I’m hoping to become strong, centered, and as flexible as Mr. Fantastic! I made sure to try all the exercises, and I face planted while attempting the crane. However, I stuck with it, and even though my thighs are screaming at me, I feel accomplished and a lot more relaxed and centered. It was a good balance between strength and stretch. I always thought yoga was low intensity, but I was sweating up a storm. Tony really made me work gard, and I’m loving P90X so far.

But with such a tough work out today, I’m a little apprehensive about Legs and Back. My thighs are so sore from today’s workout, and I can only hope that I can bring a high level of intensity tomorrow. I know Tony frequently says, “Do your best and forget the rest.” But I can’t help be concerned about my end result. I have been watching his Bring It online streams, and they have helped me put some of my habits and thoughts into perspective. However, I can’t stop thinking about wanting to get fit and toned. Part of my motivation is of course for vanity and ego. Often, I am concerned with my body image, hey who isn’t? On the other hand, my family history doesn’t allow for a positive outlook on my later years. Between congenital heart failure, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, and cancer, who would look forward to aging and possibly dying young. My main motivation this time around is to become healthy in order to avoid these conditions later in life. But the idea of becoming a more fit and healthy person in 90 days time both excites me and worries me. I don’t want to set myself up for failure. Well, I guess I just need to push as hard as I can everyday and the rest will follow.

Days 2 & 3

So the passed two days have been quite interesting. Yesterday, I made sure to eat really healthy and follow the diet plan. I really noticed how much protein it takes to be 50% of your daily intake. It was a definite struggle to fit it into my day, but myfitnesspal definitely helped. But, the diet was nothing in comparison to plyometrics. Dear God, words cannot describe the difficulty of that workout!!! No matter how many youtube videos or blogs I’ve seen or read, nothing could have prepared me for that workout. I had to take so many breaks whether to drink some water or to pass out on the ground. But even though I paused that DVD around 7 times or so, I kept on pressing play. I kept on saying to myself, “Get up, and finish this. Go big or go home.” Because honestly, if I want to see results or get the body of my dreams, I have to put in the effort. However, once I was done, even though I felt sore and kind of miserable, I also felt accomplished. So later that night, I went to NYC with my friends, and I even enjoyed the dancing. My legs felt like lead, but it was definitely fun. I told myself that the dancing was just another form of cardio, and I enjoyed myself even though it hurt to walk.

So this morning, after my very late night in the city, I woke up with the worst hangover that I had in a while. I could barely move without feeling nauseous, and this just caused me to be a lazy bum! I pretty much slept for the majority of the day, and ate like crap…I felt horrible for doing these things, but it did motivate me to give today’s workout my all. I did it later in the night, when my nausea was minimized. Even though my day, nutrition wise, was bad, I made sure to push myself in today’s workout especially during the abs portion. I can already feel it in my arms, shoulders, and abs! It seems to be a fitting punishment for the naughty behavior of today and last night.

As for tomorrow, I’ve already planned out my meals. Breakfast will be the usual 1/2 cup egg beater omelet with mushrooms, spinach, and a little bit of pesto. I made myself a salad for lunch tomorrow to take to work. I grilled a whole bunch of chicken tenders, going to scramble up some egg beaters, chopped up some mushrooms, red onion, tomato, and red bell peppers, and I’m going to dress it with balsamic vinaigrette. I still need to figure out what I’m cooking for my family tomorrow, but I have time at work to figure that one out. I’m actually looking forward to the menu so far, and I’m even looking forward to Yoga X. I heard that the majority of people hate it, but we’ll see how I feel about it tomorrow. I want to keep an open mind about it, and I definitely want to follow the schedule to a T.

One Down, Eighty-Nine to Go.

I just received P90X this morning. I’ve been looking forward to it since I purchased it, and I can say that I wasn’t disappointed. I completed Chest & Back and Ab Ripper X, and it was as challenging as I expected. So many times, I wanted to give up, but I kept with it. There was a tie between the most challenging part of the exercise. I couldn’t decide whether dive bombs or declined push ups were the bane of my existence. The abs were borderline ridiculous, but I’m looking forward to improving. Therefore, I decided that I love and hate both of them. I’m definitely looking forward to improving in the amount of reps that I can do and the increase in strength. I’m so dedicated that I even planned out all of my meals and stuck to the macromolecule requirements for Phase 1, and created a spreadsheet to keep track of the amount of reps that I can do.

The exercise was definitely as intense as advertised. At first, I thought that I was only getting an arms workout. However, I just started to feel the soreness in my chest and back, and I’m feeling strangely satisfied. I’ll probably be more satisfied when I see improvement from the pictures that I took today, but that’s to be expected. As for being satisfied with the pain, I don’t know if that makes me masochistic, but I’m eerily pleased and even enjoying the pain. I can’t wait to do plyometrics tomorrow so that must mean I’m crazy. Here’s one day down 89 more to go.

Do or Do Not. There is No Try

So it has been two years since I last posted on this blog. Well, I guess that just makes me a bad person. Yes, I did finish the Master cleanse. I stuck with it, and I didn’t eat any food for 10 days. I didn’t do the salt water flush because I couldn’t stomach it. With the completion of the program, I proved to myself that I had enough self-control to deny myself food. However, I would spend hours on end looking up restaurants that I would try once I finished the program. Through the cleanse and subsequent diet, I lost 10 more lbs. I was so proud of myself, and I finally was in the 150s. I even managed to keep it up for 23 days!

But the good times only lasted so long, 23 days to be exact…After those 23 days, I went back home for the end of the summer. To better understand this situation, let me give a brief background on my family. In every single family reunion, our mantra is that “We eat for sport!” It is horrible. No matter how hard I tried to control myself, I was slowly slipping down a slippery slope of delicious yum-yums. In my deluded thoughts, I would allow small concessions because I believed that I had an iron willpower. Obviously, if I could not eat for 10 days, I could stop myself when I needed to do so. Well, that bit me in the behind. I eventually gained back all the weight I lost, and that was the end of that.

Fast forward two years, I took an easy science class called Physiological Chemistry. Being a chemistry nerd, I figured this would be fun! It was full of nutrition majors… It was basically the simplified, and I mean very simplified, version of Biochemistry. However, it was successful in making me reconsider what I was eating. It also motivated me to work out every day. I started Jillian Michaels’ 30 Day Shred, and I stuck with it for about 2 months resulting in a 10 lb loss! I was once again 155 until I, unfortunately, had to go home…I swear, home just sabotages all my carefully laid out plans and throws my self control to the wind. I fell off the band wagon again, and gained the weight back over the next couple of months.

Now it is August, I have already graduated from college in May, and I even have a full time job as a chemist! Everything is slowly looking better, but I am once again upset with my body of 165 lbs. So now that I have some money, I made the biggest impulse buy of my life. I bought P90X. This in and of itself is a death sentence. I know I won’t be walking like a normal person for 90 days. But this time, I am committed to doing it. I told everyone I know that I am doing it. My family, my friends, and even my coworkers are expecting me to wobble and hobble around them as I penguin walk through life. Today, I installed the pull up bar in the door way to my bathroom. It stares me in the face everyday as a reminder. There is no way for me to avoid it now! I get the DVDs tomorrow, and I am excited yet anxious about the pain. Here’s to hoping that I finally apply and live by the wise words of Master Yoda. Do or do not. There is no try

Its the mind that makes the body

And so the madness begins…I never really thought that I would ever write a blog. I’m not a skilled writer nor am I particularly eloquent. I usually stumble over my words, ramble, and turn into a bumbling mess, but I needed to start this. I needed to be held accountable for my actions. No, I am not doing anything illegal or particularly evil. I just needed to commit to pen and paper (or is it electrons and the internet?) my diet in hopes of this blog keeping me on track.

So here is my weight loss journey…apart of me wants to liken it to Dante’s Divine Comedy because when it first starts out I’m pretty much in hell. It starts out bad, and for the first couple days the cravings and the hunger pains are steadily getting worse, but after that initial hump as I slowly progress, the diet and my health will become something much greater, and I will come out of this journey a changed person. However by looking out and planning this journey, apart of me already wants to abandon all hope.Well I can’t really do that now can I?

I’m Michelle, I’m 19, 5’7″, 165lbs, and I’m a food addict (Can I get a Hi Michelle?). It really hit me two weeks ago, when I found myself going to McDonald’s almost every other day to get a Large Iced Caramel Coffee and a medium number 15, and when I was feeling particularly healthy I would go to subway to get a foot long sub with everything on it. I don’t know how bad it got or how much I gained, but I decided to put a stop to it. I resolved to go on the Master Cleanse to condition me for the hunger and my new change in lifestyle, and when I finally got a scale at the end I was 165lbs.

I’ve just finished the master cleanse, and from here I start my new life. My goal is to get to 125 lbs hopefully by the end of October. That’s 18 or so weeks to loose 40lbs. I know that loosing 2lbs a week is the maximum anyone should lose, but I’m ready to push it.

I’ve started my plan. I’ve already bought groceries, mostly consisting of fruits, vegetables, fish, turkey, yogurt, and some nuts. I’m going to weigh myself every week, drink my 64 oz of water a day, eat six small meals spaced three hours apart, and exercise. ¡Ay Dios mío!

I’ve already started exercising. I did a 1.4 mile walk around my apartment and lunges and squats. Tomorrow, I’m going to try to get up early and go for a jog before I get ready for my day. I hope to get 2 miles in before work, but we’ll see. I’ve read that exercising is best in the morning because the effects usually last for 10 hours, so I’ll try to sacrifice sleep to work out. I absolutely abhor exercising. I’m fine with dieting but I hate running and the like. However, in order for this to work, I need to exercise.