Week 2!

Well this is my second week in to my new challenge and I am feeling great. I am having some fun with this new found fitness freedom. I have started to create a playlist of music to work out to and have started dancing again. Yesterday a really good song came song and I found myself dancing instead of doing my usual warm up. 10 minutes of dancing was was enough of a warm up because I sure could feel my leg muscles working.

Yoga! what can I say but "Oh where have you been all my life?" I am pretty speechless as to the effects I am feeling only after 3 total yoga workouts. I always had this idea that yoga was just for relaxation and composed of easy moves that didn't workout you out because you are basically held in stationary postures. I never dreamed it could work you like this. My muscles are sore and I can really feel them. Especially my upper body, arms/ chest. Someone even noticed my triceps the other day at work and said I am getting some definition. Really? Only after one week?


Of course my arms are not swimming in fat either like my lower body and belly. Is it me or does it seem when the fat falls off it just slides down instead of evaporating? No upper body fat really maybe just a small amount compared to the 10 ton tub of lard I call thighs. Oh why? Oh why? does the fat still shine on these thighs of mine? I can't explain it so I will file this question away as a U.F.O (Unidentified Fatty Object)

Since I am in such good spirits I think I will do a weight in on Friday just for shitz and giggles. I was contemplating on whether or not I should do my measurements but then again it may be image damaging if I don't see any changes in body composition. I know! I know! it has only been two weeks since I started this new challenge, so you know if you haven't noticed by now I can be a bit impatient about things but I do it quietly heheheh. I am slowly learning to accept things as they are and wait patiently for things to change. Easier said than done IMO.

One another level I just want to say that my heart and prayers are with those families in CO. As I reflect on this tragic event all I can say is "What is the world coming to?" are we in total chaos and lost our minds? or is there some government experiment going on and they put something in the drinking water? What have we as people lowered ourselves to? What is this sicko's motive to go and gun down people in a movie theater? Words just can't express my emotions on this and how I view society today. I could go on and on on this subject but I will refrain or this will be an all day post lol.

Sorry for the short post, I wanted to add ,more but my eyes feel like they have bricks on them and I need a nap after a long day. Have a happy Tuesday!!

Fighting Skin Issues after weight lose

If any of you are like me after 3 pregnancy's, gaining a massive amount of weight then loosing it we all have the same problem with stretch marks and or hanging loose skin. Luckily I don't a large amount of loose skin but I do just a bit especially on my belly. Of course I still have fat to burn off in those areas so if it will become a problem I don't know yet. However I do have a mad amount of stretch marks all over my body. Stomach, legs, under my upper arms, hips, butt you name it.

 

 

I have been doing research for the last 2 years on ways to heal my stretch marks and to tighten the skin. The market is largely packed with miracle creams or surgery options. Most of the creams on the market will leave your wallet empty and surgery options are just not in my list of things to try. I don't like the idea of surgery nor do I have the money for it.

I am skeptical about creams because 1) I don't have the extra money to pay hundreds of dollars for a product that may or not work. 2) The harsh chemicals that some of the creams contain. and 3) I don't want to hop from one cream to the next trying to find something that actually works and wasting my money.

I did try Avon's stretch mark cream but I got no results from this product. I have tried Palmer's Cocoa butter formula with little results, just soft skin. I even experimented with baby oil which I did not like because I hate having that greasy feeling on my skin. So I keep searching and searching. I am more focused on something that is all natural and wont leave my bank account crying. So far I have found a lot of good reviews about Emu oil. 

Emu oil is said to penetrate deeper down into the layers of the skin to heal not only the surface but under the skin. It also has a lot of other uses to, it is known to heal acne, ease joint pain, other skin aliments and list goes on. It is a bit pricey from what I have seen but if it works it is well worth trying. I have not yet tried it but I plan to when I get a few extra dollars. I also read that other natural oils can be used and known to heal/ tighten skin is grape seed oil, jojoba oil, and other essential oils. Try doing a search for natural oils that heal the skin and see what you come up with.

My theory on skin is this....I believe with our skin (that is a living organ) there is a way to completely heal our skin. A stretch mark is nothing but a scar and scars can be healed completely or to the point of not being noticed at all. I do not believe the hype that no matter what we do we can't fix this problem unless we have surgery. There is a all natural way to fix this problem and I intend to find it. So I have decided to try natural oils with a combination of exfoliation. If one oil don't work I will try another or I can play mad scientist and start mixing my own mixes. 

In the mean time here are some tips to at least help get our skin on the right track until a miracle has been found for us suffering women.

• Exfoliate with a good body scrub. I like a good body wash with sea salts but St.Ives apricot scrub is good to. I would do this at least a couple times a week, more if your skin can tolerate it. Just don't scrub yourself raw
• Moisturize with a lotion that contains vitamin E, aloe vera, cocoa butter, or collagen. Those seem to be the most popular and widely sold combo's I have seen so far.
• Drink plenty of water. Water will help keep your skin hydrated and help flush out toxins in your body
• Take a relaxing bath in Epsom salt. I hear that it helps to draw toxins out of your skin
• Massage your skin with a good oil like Vitamin E, jojoba oil or any essential oil that helps with skin issues
• Eat foods that are full of good skin vitamins like avocado, mango's, almonds, and oyster's.

I may not have the answer's these are just some of the tip's I have used along the way while loosing weight to help minimize skin looseness and attempting to get rid of these awful stretch mark's. Try doing some searching of your own and see what you can find. There is a wealth of information out there, so much of it in fact it gets me confused on what to do or what to try.

I would love to hear from real people what they have tried and what has worked for them. So what products or methods have you used to help tighten the skin or heal stretch marks?

Sweaty Betty In the House

I got my Sweaty Betty band that I won from a giveaway on Fitville. So here it is for all to see and oooooooooooooooooooo and awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww in it awesomeness.

I tested it and I LOVED IT. I did feel a few sweat bead roll down my face but nothing like it used to. When I removed the band it was soaked after a 45 minute workout. I also have declared that today is officially going to be my first day of my 10 week challenge since last week got screwed up by my ever stubborn bad tooth. Ok here is the break down............

• July 16 - Sept 28 
• Just say no to cardio
• Only work on strength training 

Stats as of today....

• Weight in: 135lbs
• Waist in inches: 34 inches
• Right Thigh: 23 1/2 inches
• Left Thigh: 23 1/2 inches

My workouts will vary so I don't get bored but I will focus on full body workouts as opposed to breaking each muscle up on given days. I will add in 2 days of yoga along with 3 days of complete body weight training with light weights. I want to focus more on form and control then intense bursts of fast pace movement. I feel more controlled movements utilize our muscle more, but that is just my opinion. I hope and pray this works because I have realized that cardio is no longer working for me. Been doing it for 6 months with minimal results. I have to say I am enjoying just turning on the radio and going freely with it instead of having to keep up with an instructor although I do miss my workout DVD's but then again I have my yoga DVD's to cure my withdraws.

Did I mention it is HOT HOT HOT today. I thought I was going to melt away at work. I can not wait until Fall, my favorite time of the year. I also had to refrain from my lime drink after my workouts due to the acidity and I have a raw gum with stitches so I am substituting with green tea, and I can barley eat anything which really stinks. Guess I have to suck it up and deal with it. I was a bad girl yesterday and bought mint ice cream hehehehe. I did not get B-Day cake so ice cream was just as good to me. YES I ate some and it was YUMMY, did I mention YUMMY oh I am so so bad. Shhhh told tell nobody hehehehe.

How is everyone dealing with the heat? Ice cream ^ ^

Lazy Days!

 

Well I been lazy and that's an understatement. Since my drama with my tooth I been laid up in bed looped out on pain meds. Spent my birthday that way but oh well, I am in pain dang it. My gum got tore when they removed my upper back molar so they had to stitch it up. Luckily I got my hubby cuddling with me for the weekend. Monday, pain or no pain I am getting back into action. Can't let myself go for to long even though it has been nice to take a short break.

The weather I have to say has been nice last few days. Raining here a bit. At least it is not 110 degrees outside to where I feel like I am going to melt into a puddle of sweat soon as I walk out the door. I will probably crawl myself out of bed today and take advantage of this nice day to go grocery shopping for a few things. I had some brainstorms as I have been Miss. Laziness and came up with a few topics I want to add to the site. I am sure we are all fighting these same issues and aim to bring us together as a support system and knowledge bank for all to share.

Back to being LAZY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tooth Be Gone!

Just wanted to update everyone that I got my tooth pulled this morning and now I am just relaxing at home with my pain meds and tea. Feeling icky about missing out on my workouts for the past couple days but eh...It couldn't be helped. Feeling much better knowing the tooth is gone now just the recovery period. Living off the congee I made since I can't eat much which really sucks because I am so hungry but at the same time don't feel like eating.

Wish the scale would drop a pound or two hehehehehe. Back to curl up in bed and rest hope everyone's Friday the 13th was a lucky one.

Misery Loves Company

Well today has just not been my day. For a couple of days my tooth that had a filling fall out has been giving me slight problems until this morning. I woke up this morning and did my usual routine before work, made coffee, packed me and the hubby's lunch and ate my cereal. Only thing is I had a hard time eating and my tooth was bothering me till no end. So I popped a couple of Tylenol for my tooth pain and monthly cramps and set out for work. About 3 hours in and the pain was back better then ever. Worse thing is when the whole side of my face decides to join in on the fun. I was a miserable sight today so I decided to head home and look for a dentist.

I knew I was going to have to find one soon for this tooth but not this early on and especially not when all our bills hit and my poor birthday is Saturday. To top things off why couldn't this have happened when I did have the insurance before I got laid off a few months back. Why do these things seem to happen when you know you don't have the money to pay for it and these things cost so much to begin with. Luckily my prayers were answered from a referral service I found on the interne and the dentist they referred me to does a payment plan. So I made the first appointment I could get for tomorrow. I hate to call off work and miss out on the moola that I never get to spend anyway because Uncle Sam and his subordinates wants all my money.

I don't care I can't take tooth pain. Call me a big whimpy butt, but I hate the dentist to begin with (I go regardless) the dentistry tools make my skin crawl when I see them and I hate them scrapping and picking at my teeth. I would rather give birth then deal with tooth aches. They are the absolute worst IMO. On top of everything else I still have the miserable crampies. So I shamelessly dug my way through the medicine looking some old Vicodin from when my son broke his wrist over a year ago because the Tylenol just aint doing nothing for me now. I am slightly at ease now with my hot tea my hubby told me to make.

He told me to make congee since I can't eat anything that requires me to chew. Wish I had some ginger he suggested to make ginger tea and that it really helps with tooth aches, unfortunately I am all out of fresh ginger so green tea and honey is  my new friend this afternoon. Oh and I am never the lucky one to win things only on a rare occasion and today is just such a day. I entered in the giveaway for the Sweaty Betty headband from Lee at Fitville and guess what I won. I was so excited and happy that the pain was forgotten.

Thank you so much Lee you really did make my day.

YogaLicious

I started my first..no I mean second yoga session today. I needed to add in something else with my new routine. I am learning that yoga is great for firming up. I bought the Jillian Michael's yoga meltdown dvd to see how it goes. I am a virgin when it comes to yoga lol. I always had this idea that in order to get fit you had to work out insanely and for long periods of time to accomplish anything. Well..........that idea is not working for me now. So with my hubby's suggestion and adding in a couple days of yoga I am praying for success.

I haven't posted my current measurement's because, well it is that time of month again and we all know the scale is gonna go up. So I shun away from the scale during this time of the month. I almost want to skip my workouts and instead curl up in bed with a bowl of ice cream covered in hot fudge watching my favorite anime after I downed a bottled a Tylenol. NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO not me I work out and deal with the misery of cramps and no chocolate. I have been secretly plotting my cheat day because this Saturday is my birthday and I am gonna splurge on something absolutely sinful, whatever that may be.

So when the ragging, chocolate obsessed Mrs. Hyde decides to recede back into her cave for the next few weeks I will post my current stats for you all to see. Does anyone have a secret on how they deal with this time of the month without disrupting there diets or exercise?

The First Day

Today is the first day of my new training regimen. I didn't do my measurements because I had some running to do after work and when I got home I went straight for the workout and it is getting late. So I will post my beginning stats tomorrow. I really need to sit down and write up a workout plan for this because all in all this is total body and the sets I did in all only gave me about 8 minutes of a workout. So I added in some more strength moves to up it to at least 20 minutes. While I was working out I was thinking of splitting it up on set days for each body part and maybe adding in some yoga 2xs out of the week to give my muscles a little bit of a break. I will post my complete compilation of moves when I get it down on paper.

I will say this, it is scary to completely change a routine but I think my husband may be right on this. Grrrrrrrr... I kinda hate the mere thought of that because I really, REALLY REALLYYYY wanted to get him on something but then at the same time I JUST WANT THIS SILLY FLAPPY FLABBY FAT OFF OF ME DANG IT. I only have about 10 lbs to lose why does it have to be so dag gone hard. It is like walking through the pits of hell with no exit door. Will this nightmare ever end and turn into a paradise of reality?

I was also reading some interesting tid bits on eating more because if you eat less and workout more it will not do any good because your body will go in starvation mode. Guess what? Come on I bet you can guess........That's exactly what I was doing because I READ it somewhere. I guess I still have a lot to learn along this winding path of food, workout like a crazy lady, food, etc.....So I am going to change up my diet a bit and EAT MORE......

 

 You all may think I am crazy...well maybe just a bit....but I am up for anything to break out of this plateau. So now I am totally doing a overhaul on diet and exercise. I pray to the weight God's that this will work. 

On a more lighter and pleasing side I made my lime drink after my workout with a nice salad topped with tuna and "Oh Yeah" that was refreshing since it is a stinking hot day today. I happen to be sipping on it as we speak and I am even looking forward to having one again after my workout tomorrow. I might add it was a nice complement to my salad.    

Image is from https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0CObhLr_YNRVDKETtzsYfX4OODgeYxV3AXWHzFoEKTWbpgNtK8QCLSYtlW0HH5Kz17Lwccbzpx7v8CzswRgqXd6Bn6RqO__n2WBM-uNCTMUej7Mdr1Oi7VNi82jOVHSO1cLkaF3vcE7s3/s320/OMG-Meme-by-Chad-Syphrett.png  

Chanh Mu Recipe

 Image from Nam Son restaurant 

http://namsonrestaurant.com/menu-card/

This is the recipe for the Vietnamese lime drink I was talking about from my previous post. It is actually called Chanh Mu (pickled lime). Originally this is made with pickled lime or lemon that sits in salt water for a few days until pickled but he uses fresh squeezed lime with this.

1 or 2 limes or lemons (if you prefer)

Salt and sugar to taste

Water

Ice

Cut the lime in wedges and squeeze as all the juice from lime into a tall glass. Add a bit of water, a dash of salt and a spoonful of sugar and stir. Add more sugar and salt to your liking, not to much but make sure the flavors are balanced with the lime. Then add ice and more water and stir again. That is all there is to it.

I also might try this with some fresh mint as I read somewhere that some add mint leaves to this and that right there sounded very invited to the taste buds as does the photo above have a sprig of mint for garnish.

Enjoy!

My New 10 week challenge

Ok so now I have a new challenge and this one is proposed by my husband Tan. After watching me relentlessly search the internet for weight lose tips and hearing my whines and complaints about not getting anywhere with my efforts to drop the last 10 lbs he says this to me,

"Baby just do sit ups, squats and push ups and stop doing all that cardio. Cardio aint doing crap for you. Just build your muscle to firm up and the fat will burn off."

My response "But baby I need to do cardio to burn off the fat."

He gives me that look of despair and says "I told you to do that a long time ago but you don't listen."

So I say ok! I am going to take him up on that and do a 10 week challenge. He set out a regimen of 3 sets of 10 for each move and I added in a couple of fav's and my workout is going to be 1/2 hour long each day and as I get used to that I will add more reps and increase as I go. So I am giving up all the DVD workouts and kicking the cardio to the curb...for the time being!

It will look something like this:

• 10 reps and 3 sets of each; squats, sit ups, dead lifts, push ups, lunges, and I may throw something else in like sumo squats, donkey kicks or what ever else tickles my fancy. I am just going to workout in the moment and see where it leads.

This just may be an attempt to finally prove him wrong on something because he is seriously a "Smart Ass" and what I mean by that is he is smart as sh*t and a ass to boot. Not one of those ass's that most men are but a wittingly funny smart ass. He makes me laugh on a daily basis but at the same time piss me off because I can't never seem to get him back on anything.

So if this fails then I can laugh at him and say "I told you so"....but then if it works I will praise him to the heaven's with an "AMEN". he also told me to stop drinking the whey protein after my workouts and drink the Vietnamese lime drink he makes which is oh so yummy and refreshing. I will post the recipe for this. On the plus side I know lime is considered good for fat burning.

So wish me luck and starting tomorrow I will re post my current stats and let the count down begin...

Supplements!!!

I am curious as to see what others think about supplements. I am not talking about the miracle diet pills out there that don't work I am talking about all natural supplements. I have started taking a regimen of supplements I have researched online and so far they seem ok but the fat is not coming off my body as fast as I would like. I will give you a run down of what I take.

• L-Carnatine 500mg 6xs a day
• L-Glutamin 500mg 6xs a day
• A Omega 3 complex with Omega 6 and 9, 2 pills a day
• CoQ10 concentrate pharmaceutical grade 1 pill a day
• Multivitamin 1 pill a day
• CLA 2,000mg 3xs a day

I just started on the CLA not that long ago when someone from GNC told me that when this is coupled with L-Carnatine that it helps to break the fat down faster and also it is suppose to help with belly fat. So we will see what the results are when this bottle is gone. I have read some mixed reviews on CLA so I am not sure if I want to continue with it if I don't see any results.

I know it takes time for these supplements to start working but I have been on everything accept the CLA for about 4 months. I will give this regimen until the end of the year before I decide to discontinue there use. I would love to see what anyone else is taking and what kind of results you are having. I am also working on adding a page for supplements and some links to supplement guides.

Setting New Goals

I have decided to set some new goals for myself for the rest of the year. My old goal was to lose 6 lbs in 4 months, even though I worked out hard and ate sensibly the scale has not moved accept up 1 lb. I have noticed some visible results but i am wondering why my left side of my body is getting smaller and firmer but my left side is not. I work them out equally so why is one side getting results but not he other? It goes from my left arm, waist to my leg all those parts are visible firmer then the right.

Very frustrating if you ask me. Does this go into the category of "You don't choose where your body burns fat?" kind of thing or am I doing something wrong? I really wish I had some help on this but I don't have the money to hire a personal trainer or anyone else for that matter to help me with this. So my new goal is this for the rest of the year.

Don't worry about the scale just to keep doing what I am doing and be patient enough until the flabby fat is all gone no matter how long it will take. My reason for this thinking is this...I have set goals to lose and x amount of lbs or firm up the flabby fat but none of my goals have been met yet to my standards. So I am going to stop stressing over it and just keep working hard and see where my body decides to take the fat of first then hopefully move to the other side.

My work out regimen consists of this:

• Work out 5 to 6 days of the week, depending on my schedule or mood I may get 6 days in but most likely only 5
• I work out anywhere from 20 minutes to hour again depending on my schedule
• I mix my workouts up but always get 3 days of strength and 3 days of cardio in, something like this but not always
• Monday: Jacki Warner's power pyramid for lower body 20 minutes
• Tuesday: Jillian Michale's 30 day shred about 20-30 minutes
• Wednesday: Crunch total re-sculpt 40 minutes maybe only 1 of the 20 minute workouts
• Thursday: Run in place for 45 - 60 minutes
• Friday: Jillian Michale's killer buns and thighs 30 minutes.
• On some of the strength days where I work out for only 20 minutes or so I sometimes add in a 30 minute running in place right after.

So my question is am I on the right track and just keep pushing or do I need to change something up or is it better to just stick to one or two workouts for a certain period of time before changing again? Anyone who has any helpful suggestions I would love some feedback. Also I don't have money for a gym membership or the room for equipment. just a mat and hand-weights is what I have.

Progression!!!!

Trying to burn pure body fat is by far the most hardest and frustrating part of this journey. Now it feels like losing the first  100lbs was the easy part. Now trying to drop the last 10 lbs, firming/toning, and working on firming the skin has been a nightmare thus far.

Last year I slacked off after 1 1/2 intense years of cleaning up my diet and exercising. I started back to my work our routine in January and have been pushing myself for the last 6 months. My progression this far has been minimal but I am still trudging on. I told myself no matter what that I will not quite until I reach my goals.

You really need that mind set and determination when you get down to the last few pounds. Those are the hardest to lose. I have done my homework and spent hours searching and reading on diet and exercise to find out what I am doing wrong. My diet (I don't like to use the word but for this purpose I will) is fine. I eat mainly a Vietnamese diet because my wonderful husband is Viet and I have to admit I love the food. Vietnamese food is very healthy for you aside from the rice. I do however watch my rice portions. Although I eat well and have my one cheat day out of the week the fat is just not burning off fast enough.

I figured I would have 10 lbs off by at least 3-4 months tops. I work out 5-6 days out of the week focusing mainly on strength and a couple days of cardio. I made the big mistake of cardio blasting myself to skinny fat syndrome. Now I'm paying for it because I did not have the arsenal of knowledge as I do now. So I just jumped into it and barely ate and did cardio for about 2 hours a day with some strength training in between. So as of now my stats for this month are:

• Weight in still 136 (scale has not moved in 6 months)

• Lost 1/4 inch of my thighs and waist

I will post this once a month because I only weight and measure once a month. That is enough to at least keep me from getting unmotivated due to the slow progression I am encountering. One thing I will say that NO MATTER WHAT do not give up on yourself if you have a slow peak like I have. Any lose whether it be 1/4 inch or 1 pound is still BETTER THEN NOTHING! 

If anyone has any advice for me as far as working out/ supplements or any helpful advice is welcome and greatly appreciated.