Apparently that woman can spin too

The same lady who does the boot camp on tuesdays has a spin class thursday mornings so I dropped in for it and holeywhackadoodlepoof. It was a tough one! She's more my level of fitness than the other spin and sculpt person...good to know there is alternates for things to do when I get bored of the "usual" or want a change like this morning. I just have to watch the stand up sit downy portions and not do it too much to aggravate Mr. Rightgrumpeeknee and all is well. I feel proud after working hard like I did this morning. I mean -I did it! No turning the dial back...no resting. Go me. :)

I'm feeling pretty good about things...I feel like I'm recovering from the holidays a bit. I'm really making an effort to be under control with my food and drink enough water (not just live on coffee and diet coke. ahem.) I'm relearning what it feels like to be full. It takes me about 20 minutes after I eat to feel full, so I need to watch portions and wait. If I'm still hungry after an hour there are lots of things like apples and hummus I can have to top me up that last bit. It seems that mostly when I think I'm still hungry after a full meal a lot it's just being thirsty. It's strange how easily old habits come back... :)

I was teased by the bus driver this morning when I got on the bus...said he'd make sure I got off at the right stop today. And, so I did...all was good.
Just a quick pop in to log this morning's workout. And so, another day another molecular signalling transfer. I must be off to Sciencetown.
Have a great day everyone :)

Note to self: do not get lost in a book while on public transit...

I learned today why it is important to pay attention to the world around you .
:P
It turns out that there is construction starting today on campus where I work, so the bus I take in the AM, instead of turning into campus as usual, drove along the main road in front of campus and had a few alternate stops instead. I read on the bus sometimes and know that when the bus turns in to campus I have 1 stop to get my junk together to get off at the physical activity building where I work out. Problem was - no turn into campus today...and I looked up from my book (A Visit From the Goon Squad) this AM to realise I'd just gone past campus and was now out on the freeway, heading northeast.
Oops.
Luckily, the bus goes every 10 minutes in the mornings, so I could get off at the first stop available, then cross the road and wait for the returning bus and get in to the gym to workout only 10 minutes behind schedule, feeling rather silly and chastised.
I finished my book tho! :)
I still got in 90% of my planned workout. I cut back on a few lunges and a set of crunches, but I still got in nearly all of Workout A with my abfest. Then I hopped on the arc trainer for 25 minutes of sweating on an interval program. I haven't been on it in months and it was nice for the change...I love it and it's tempting to use it more often but I know my knee will argue with me if I do so. It felt good today to do something a bit different - I went full out and burned 250 calories...and now I'm in to work as usual and ready for another day...in which I will try and pay better attention :)
Later taters!

Avoidance tactics 101

Last night was an elaborate procrastination attempt by yours truly. I did eventually force myself to get some solid work done but I wasted a few hours doing everything *but* work...silly I know. But sometimes I just can't focus. I finally did, and then wished I'd gotten to it earlier as I had to quit at about 10:30 as I was tired enough I knew I'd make mistakes if I kept going...I will learn eventually. I am the queen of procrastination! :)

This morning was boot camp madness. Bwaha.
Ah that lady is lovely...she made me sweat. I actually got a stitch in my side at one point...that hasn't happened in a while! My shoulders and abs have that fuzzy feeling they get when you use them a lot. I feel rather invincible at the moment.
Yes. Success.
So I must be off. So very much to do.
Have a great day :)

Old friends

An old friend from high school was here to visit this weekend. It was so nice to catch up with her and just talk out on the deck, sipping wine, getting to know her kids a bit. I love when you can meet up with people and talk and it's like the years just fade away :)

I had honestly planned on having on my own homemade bootcamp saturday, but after my friend's memorial service I was feeling rather introspective, so I spent time with J instead...and don't regret it a bit. I know where my back yard is - I'll just have to make another date with myself for *this* saturday.

This am, despite my late night visiting, I was up and in to work out. I did my workout A with abfest and HIIT biking. I have a healthy lunch and supper for today which is good...it's gonna busy one. I didn't do as much as I should have on the weekend what with visiting with T and J and I spending some time together at Folkfest and then working hard at making a serious dent in house cleaning before T and her kids came (noone should know how we live! :) ). It was all things that really needed to be done...and now I can work without looking around at things I will feel I should stop working to do...so hopefully tonight will be a productive night school wise.

Hope you all had a great weekend.
Have a fantastic day OK :)

Friday finally

This morning at the gym I really pushed myself but it didn't seem like I was working as hard. You know how some days your heart rate just doesn't go up as much as it normally does? Yeah. Like that. I know I worked hard tho and I feel good...I came in to do my workout B plus abfest plus 28 minutes of HIIT biking (which right now is 2.5 minutes fast biking + 30 sec sprint biking over and over again...). I am working on making the non sprinty intervals shorter...I'll get there. It's a great workout.

Tonight we are going to Folkfest, a multicultural event in the city with lots of pavilions from many countries with displays and food. I'm trying to be good with a healthy breaky and a small lunch to give myself a little space tonight...I will do my best to not blow the hard work of the past few days. I will try. I turned down workplace pizza for a healthy lunch yesterday so I know I have it in me. I've decided that when I indulge it's for things I really want. Lame Pizza Hut pizza didn't make the cut. I'm not sure if I'll be able to turn down some of the international goodies tho :)

This weekend I want to try boot camp in my back yard, or down by the river, but we'll see what life lets me get away with. I have a funeral to go to and errands to run and lots of MSc work to do...so I need to really buckle down and get back to the crazy worky life I was in before holidays.
*sniff*
I don't wanna!

Burpees are forever

Heh heh...this morning a coworker just asked me what a burpee was so I dropped and did one right there to show her.
Just like that.
I used to not even be able to do one non-girly one.
Bwaha!

Do the reptile baby!

This morning I was tired - how tired? Well, I banged my shin into the door on the way to the kitchen. Ow. Heh. Yeah...I *did* wake up tho. I had to go outside into the rain to get to the bus :). Despite that, it was a good morning. At the gym I just felt like giving it my all...and was full of energy. I did my workout A, using a slightly higher platform for my step ups than normal, with some HIIT biking plus I added in 3 sets of 10 reptile butt lifts from the Aug 3 Bodyrock workout. They looked cool and I wanted to try them out. I used a bosu ball for it...had to find a wall so I didn't slide and tip over :)

My friend Rachel sent me a link to this bootcamp - she wants to figure out how to do the crazy crawling pushups on it. Me? Yes. Thing is, after watching it I totally want to do the whole damn bootcamp this weekend. They list off things to do for it...and now, so help me, I want to go out in the sun and giver...it might kill me, but man. It could be so. freaking. awesome. The thing I loved about running was being outside...and this would give me that.
Cuz I totally want to know how to do those weird crawly pushup walks too :)

Just let the nice lady tell you what to do

I was feeling moogy this AM...all PMSish and lazy, so I dropped in on the spin and sculpt class so I wouldn't just laze around and pick at things at the gym. It was a good workout...30 minutes spinning plus 30 of mat work and weight work. After boot camp it seemed tame, but it was definitely a solid workout and much more than I would have done left to my own devices. It could have been a bit harder actually...but today - it was good for me. What I needed.
I just wanted to log this and say hi before I run off...must be off - full day of labwork today!
Later taters...

Das boot

I did boot camp again this morning.
Oh lordy...that woman is good. After a 5 minutes warmup she leads us through three 9 minute cycles of 30 seconds of different things...from lunges to skipping to football shuffles to burpees...yeah you get the idea. In the 2 intervals in between those intervals she does upper body arm weight/pushup/strengthening sets...then finishes it all off with some ab/plank stuff and stretching. Brutal...yet fun. Every week is a bit different.
It's crazy but I am loving it. The thing is - it's only 30 second intervals...so if I am hating a move, or am having trouble keeping up with it, it's *only* 30 seconds. I can do anything for 30 seconds. :)

And so...after a shower and breakfast and coffee I admit to being strangely stiff in many places. I know I worked hard. It feels good to push myself. Today is another day.
Here's to another great day :)

And I'm learning that I wouldn't want it any other way...

"You're like a baby, I'm like a cat
When we're happy we both get fat..."

Lyrics to describe my life!

Lovely weekend. There was much relaxing and indulging. We had a fondue and fruit meal for supper...a lovely evening nibblefest as we spent the evening together. Lychee martinis and free evening with my J. Lovely :)
Saturday we relaxed, saw a movie and I made some lemon crepes for breakfast...I haven't made crepes in years. J and I had to work for most of the rest of the weekend, which was a bit more sane food wise...I have learned lately just how entrenched I have made food with happiness and celebration. In the future I need to figure out how to temper the celebration with healthy choices. I'm getting better but there is still more to go if I'm going to keep maintaining. I am sure that this weekend I have not made any dent in my efforts to recover from my holidays but as far as anniversaries go - lovely.

I did penance this morning. Workout A plus my abfest and HIIT biking at resistance 4. Nice and sweaty. Now, a full day of science and jumping back into my research. It's a new day to be good to myself and others. I feel great :)
Have a great day!

"But I don't tend to worry 'bout the things that other people say
And I'm learning that I wouldn't want it any other way
Call me crazy but it really doesn't matter"