Thanks anele for keeping us on track.

I have been good about exercising everyday...if you count taking down trees, cutting them up and hauling wood exercise which we did both days this weekend....

However, I seem to keep slipping up on the plank and squat business....somehow it's off my radar screen so I just haven't been doing it. I'll set my goal for this week to go back to a committed effort on both of them. I would really love to be able to squat by the end of this cycle.

I have been forgetting to post. I did my usual higher mileage last weekend and also took a Pilates class last Thursday. That was the first time in a long while I had been to Pilates and I did a lot better than I thought I would. My instructor has a group class on Thursday nights now so I'm excited about that. I missed a run last night - the heat index was out of sight and there was very high pollution so I said no. Plus I got up at 4:30 yesterday morning to be at work for a very early telecon so I was beat when I got home. Oh well...the humidity is supposed to be lower starting tomorrow and I am off tomorrow so I plan to make up for my lack of progress the past few days.

I finally returned to exercising this week after having ankle surgery 3 weeks ago. I'm not doing anything that involves my feet, but the trainer is getting me going pretty good anyways. I missed the feeling I get after exercising and the sense of accomplishment it gives me. Can't wait to get this cast off and actually do something useful.

ÃÂ

I'm not an individual exerciser so what motivates me is having others to work out with - guess I'm more of a team person so to keep it up I need to have others to do things with. I'm generally pretty active on my own as in always doing stuff and moving around which is much harder now and it is driving me bonkers.

Have missed two weeks of workouts due to life being complicated.. Starting back tomorrow and I'm fighting the anxiety of how hard crossfit will beafter2weeks away..
Had an epiphany.. I'm not where I want to be physically, but I'm greatly enjoying the feeling of improving. I like weightlifting because I see consistent quantifiable improvement..

Thank you kiki...you got me off my duff and I actually lifted weights today...I've been "slacking off" by walking instead. Good exercise, but definitely not the same.

I just got in bed, with a vodka soda and some fritos.

My gym moved and I will try to check it out on Tuesday.

Sometimes the world interferes. That's ok. I'm looking forward to starting
Up again when I can. Taking care of myself feels good, I love getting stronger. Sometimes bologna has to take precedence. Or fritos.

Glad it helped, Annie. : )

I was just listing for myself some of the things that have improved since
January,and I decided to list them here:
(I've done a cleanse for 14 days.. Dropped gluten almost completely for 2 months so far, an having a green smoothie for breakfast every day, and I'm exercising daily at the gym, walking or doing crossfit.
1. Although I've actually gained 1.5 lbs, I've dropped 2 pants sizes..
2. My a1c (blood glucose avg) has dropped significantly..
3. Whatever muscular imbalance was causing my feet to pronate-- I has resolved itself. I went to get new tennis shoes and orthotics and was told my foot position was completely normal.
4. I've always has keratosis pilaris (bumpy skin) but after giving up gluten and taking an Epsom salts bath each night for soreness, it has completely gone away.
5. My dental hygienist commented that I had absolutely no plaque on my teeth.
6. I no longer have intestinal bloating or discomfort after dinner.
7. My eye dr has been trying to fit me with bifocal contact lenses.. Difficulty getting a good result.. Turned out that my vision has improved almost a diopter in each eye, so apparantly he was trying to match an evolving prescription. When he found out that I had been on the cusp of being diabetic he said it made sense..
8. I had little commas high on my ribcage, indentations that might have been
Abs, now they are dashes! (I'm still chubby, but I have dashes!! )
9. I'm sleeping better. A whoooole lot better.

10. I have more energy.

Simply fabulous, Kiki!

Annie, you are so close! You can do it!

Outside, do you have any more organized runs or races coming up? Maybe the weather is not conducive to it now, though?

Lyfia, I am glad to hear you're on the road to recovery! This has to be the worst part, though . . .the waiting! How much longer with the cast? I bet you will be back in no time since you are putting effort into the recovery, which many do not do.

Interesting about the team motivation. I am the opposite! I am not competitive and don't like disappointing others, so I prefer to do it alone.

Kiki, how did your return go? That is quite a list of changes! A huge congrats to finding and sticking to what works. That is really amazing!

Oh, Beth! There isn't a thing wrong with vodka and bologna. My only thing would be not to think of starting/stopping. Think of how you can make permanent changes that you do not want to stop. A real lifestyle change. If that means taking a few weeks off of the gym, then that is OK. Vodka for bed? Fine. But make that be your plan, not a stop.

You have to make this so easy and right for you that it works and you are constantly succeeding (or 90%, as we've been told here). If I had to go to the gym to work out, I would fail. I think it would actually be cheaper for me to go in the long run, but I could not do it because it's too complicated. If I had to use the treadmill, I'd fail. I've tried and it's so boring. Things that work for others would not work for me. It's so individual and personal-- different for everyone.

If I had to work on what I eat, I'd fail. During these weeks, I briefly tried to improve my diet, and you know what? Totally made me eat worse. I have been OK with how I eat for years, and I do not want to mess with that.

What works for me is my set time (morning), easy place (basement), and am making sure I add a lot of challenge and variety to my workouts (love the kettlebell and just got heavier hand weights), it is great. I didn't know that if things got too easy, it actually got BORING. I thought I needed to be perfect to move on, but no.

Thanks, everyone, for commenting. It is really more fun knowing others are in this!

I just came across this blog . . .FUNNY!

Here is a link that might be useful: Cranky Fitness