Excuse me, what's my motivation?????

"Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going." -Jim Rohn

Hmm, so I found this quote quite profound when relating it to my Bootcamp Test Group experience.  I'm 7 weeks in and I'm feeling more like this is slowly becoming normal day life.  I tend to gravitate towards the better food choices or putting the effort in to work out.  However,  I have not totally perfected this journey but I'm making a conscious effort to ensure that make healthier choices. I remember how motivated I was to start this journey and must daily remind myself of that to ensure I keep up the hard work and dedication.  I also think of how I enjoy the positive feedback that I've received from my family and friends.  Regardless of all the praise, I have to remember to push myself because it's up to me and no one else. I often think about how I will raise my future kids and will teach them healthy choices. I also was excited to have a friend join me for class.  He's currently starting his own personal Project Healthy, so I was glad to introduce him to Bootcamp at th
 e Underground.  He's supposed to come back next week for more!

Last week, I came up with a "healthy" spaghetti.  The week prior, I'd made a soup that used low sodium V-8 juice, so I had some leftover in my refrigerator.  My old self would put sugar and ketchup in my spaghetti sauce.  However, this time I added V-8 and some hot sauce.  Sounds nasty but actually was really good.  I also used 4 different colors of peppers: green, orange, yellow, and red; along with ground turkey meat.  This turned out to be a wonderful meal and the cayenne gave it a nice kick which caused me to not eat as much in one setting.  One night I found myself a little hungry so I ate a couple pieces of grilled chicken with salsa on top!  Never in a million years would I have pictured myself attempting this things, but now I enjoy them instead of turning my face up at them.

Body-It's quite weird to me that as I lose more weight, at times my body feels heavier.  There were quite a few days last week where I felt like my legs weighed a ton. We had some tough workouts but I pushed and attempted to give it my best each and every time.  My knees were giving me a fit, so I did the modified workouts.  I guess I need to be more careful and continue to focus on my form so I don't injure myself. I was able to get a few extra workout

Learning-The biggest thing I learned last week was to listen to my body.  Even though I wanted to try to do a second class last week, my body said it needed rest, so I had to listen.  I'm also working to trying to do some of the exercises not modified when my body allows.  The last thing I want to do is to injure myself and prohibit myself from being able to work out.

Goals- This week, I'm going to make sure I get at least 2 extra workouts in.  I'm going to focus more on my eating choices and ensure I don't use food as a stress reliever.  I'm going to continue to push beyond the break to ensure that I get the most of my workouts.

"EXERCISE IS MY THERAPY!"

Setback = Setup????

There's a quote that says "A SETBACK IS A SETUP FOR COMEBACK...THE LONGEST JOURNEY BEGINS WITH A STEP!"  I took the first step in this journey by volunteering to join the test group.  I took the second step by showing up for the first class, even after going to my first one a week prior and being intimiatdated by the workout.  I took the next step by preparing for my journey with the necessary tools of good workout shoes, trying to prepare healthier meals and by making healthier food choices.  Yet some where in there I lost my focus on the goal.  I even did an extra Boot Camp class, which a big challenge for me!  So after rebounding and coming back to life last week, I realized that sometimes you have to fall down to get back up harder and stronger. This week I rededicated myself to my goals!

Body:  As most of my friends know, I can be some what of a klutz.  I've been known to bust my butt on ice while walking from my car to my apartment (an injury that is still a pain in the....), sprain my ankle 2 weeks before my college graduation, or even even pull a muscle in my hand.  My biggest obstacle this week was a pulled muscle in my left hand between my pointer finger and my thumb.  I think I may not have had the correct form while I  was doing my pushups or I was putting too much pressure/weight on my hands.  It hurt like heck and it made it tough to fall asleep a few nights, but through ice and pain meds I survived.  I used bags of frozen fruit to ease my pain while at work.  I even noticed that I can now do the stretch where I hold my leg behind me.  I can't hold it during the entire stretch, but I'm almost there.  A feat that I couldn't do when I first started.

Learning- I learned that I can influence others around me, not by my words, but by my actions.  One of my friends said to me "You're influencing me to go to the gym tonight."  Another friend said the same thing and has been pushing to stay sober.  I told her about one of my Test Group friends who had the same goal in mind.  We have linked up our fitness pal accounts and are working towards posting our food to help us monior our calories.

Goals-Next week I plan to get at more workouts in and focus on preparing my meals at home.  It's easy to get lazy but this is for the long term, not just for 60 days! 

but I'm back!

This title explains it all.  I really did flat line..................................................................... I thought that I could handle it all dealing with family health issues, the pressures of finding a new apartment, and the weight loss challenge.  There were many points during this week where I felt like I should just give up and stop wasting everyone's time.  I was going through the motions and had a tough time staying afloat even to the point that I had told my coach that I needed some motivation.  I'm grateful to my friends who would tell me "No you can't quit!" or "You better go to class" which is what I did.  I felt like one of those patients on Grey's Anatomy that had just flat lined and all you heard was "Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepppppppppppppppppppppppppppp!"  While Doctor's all around you scurried to get the Heart Defibrilator set up on you to jumpstart your heart.  I was now that patient laying on that table waiting for somebody or something to save me.  I felt like I was having an outer body experience because I could see everything but not from the point of view of the corpse layin on the table.  I was watching everyone else panic in a rush to save me.  It was like I pertty much couldn't bring myself back without the help and push of others.

The first shock to my heart came from my family and friends.  It was almost like considering suicide because i Iwould tell my friends "Oh, I don't feel like going because I need to do X, Y, Z which are way more important" and they would fuss at  me and tell me that  I better go or remind me of my results so far or how I was on my way to being a healthier me!  Every night I would call my Mom after clas, while she was at the hosptial with my aunt, and her first question would always be "Did you make it to your class tonight?" Each time she would tell me how proud  she is of me and to keep going.  I didn't really tell her my thoughts of quitting the challenge but she has been quite supportive of me.  I usually talk to my Dad before class and he would ask me if I was going which was another push.  As always I wanted to make them both proud, especially now with this new lifestyle change. 

The second jolt to my heart was after the conclusion of our class when Maia had us all gather up front for a Test Group Meeting.  I'm not sure if she saw that we were starting to lose our momentum or what but that meeting was another shock to my chest.  She had us to close our eyes and think about how excited we were when received the email that they were having a Boot Camp Challenge.  Then to reflect on how we felt when we found out we were chosen for the group and the joy we felt the first day of Boot Camp.  That excercise helped me to stop going through the motions.  However, it wasn't quite the shock that brought me alllll the way back to life.

The third and life changing jolt came from my fellow test group friends, Jadira and Flo.  After class on Thursday night we all sat in parking lot and talked for what seemed like forever.  It was nice to know that we all had the same struggles and challenges with this, except they faced one extra one called AGE.  So they were getting on me because I was younger and now is the time to get the weight off.  However if you see these two, you would think we are all the same age because I was shocked when they told me how old their were.  I admired both of their drive, hard work, and dedication to not only the test group but to to making these lifestyle changes.  We talked about our goals after the bootcamp challenges, different health issues we faced, why we wanted to do the boot camp test group, various healthy choice recipes.  Basically we talked and talked and talked but when we finally decided to leave, I left with a smile and new will to be dedicated to my life style change.  I feel like I'm writing a paper where my Spelling word for the life is "LIFESTYLE CHANGE" becasue I've said it so much.  I guess it just reaffirms my committment to doing this for the long haul!

Body:  I was numb to everything this week.  I did my best during the workouts and still managed to burn over 1200 calories on my daily workouts.  The main issue was my mind wasn't there.  I was going through the motions. 

Learning- In spit of it all I still did pretty well with my eating.  I would have a few slip ups during the week but for the most part, I was making better food choices.  I learned that I'm not the only one who was having difficulties but I had to push through it. 

Goals- Next week I plan to focus on my motivatation for doing this challenge!  I won't forget it and will allow it to push me through when it seems like I can't go on. 

As the rap song says..... "I WILL NOT LOSE!" Well I mean, I will lose as I get healthy but I will not lose to myself, mentally! :-)

STRESSED spells DESSERTS backwards?!?!?!!?

So as I mentioned before my life is currently in a state of transition.  My job is moving at the end of October... I'm looking for a new place to live by the end of October...Oh and I'm trying to make a lifestyle change that won't end when the challenge ends at the end of October (that's a mouthful).  It's been tough to stay focused on each of these things as well as dealing with family issues, so at times I tend to get stressed or overwhelmed.  Food has been a comfort and now that my safety blanket is gone...where do I go now?  Last week I made it my business to do what I had to do to focus on being a better Davida!  I may not be perfect but I'm working on taking care of this temple that I've been given!

Body:  Last week wasn't too bad.  I suffered with some Seasonal Allergies due to the changing season.  I noticed that my endurance improved as well as my form.  I'm still having some knee problems when I do the excercies that require me to jump.  I hope that goes away as the pounds/inches dissolve into thin air.  I still haven't figured out how to get enough rest, but I try my best to be in bed no later than 11pm on the week nights.  I was surprised at myself for getting up on Saturday to go walking after being out late from the MEGAXE, which had me quite sore.  I also have a hip injury that has made the sit-up moves tough, but I noticed that I improved in that area as well.  Again, I'm not perfect but slowly working up to doing more and more.

Learning- Even though I was stressed I tried to find other ways to deal with it by going walking to clear my mind.  I even found a mixed nut mix that says the combination of nuts and chocolate would help give you energy.  My boss gave me a small thing of Skittles and because it was in my sight I slowly ate them over the course of a few days.  However, whenever I got stressed I noticed that I would reach for them.   NOT GOOD! I need to be more disciplined and not let what's going on affect my eating habits!

Goals-  I'm still working on perfecting some of my goals, such as getting in  a few more workouts in during my week, especially since I've been spending my down time apartment hunting.  I also plan to push through my workouts and focus on my eating.  I knew it wasn't easy when I signed up and I'm going to make a better use of the next few weeks to help kick off this lifestyle change!

End of Week 3!

Body-Hmmm, not sure what was going on last week, but I was much more tired than usual.  I took naps before class, but my body seemed to crave more rest.  This week, I'm going to work on perfecting my form and maintaining a tighter core.  Entering my fourth week, I've noticed that I tend to hold my stomach in more now that my core is getting tighter.  Yeah, the skin is still flabby around it, but I can feel some improvement.  I'm still working on ways to get more stretching in to help my calves out.  I'm still struggling with pain from my butt injury but I still try to do a modified version of the sit-up moves.  My push-up form has improved greatly.  I think I was able to do at least 5 in each set during the workouts.

Learning- This week I learned how vital water is to my body!  When I didn't get enough, I woke up feeling like my tongue felt like sandpaper or my pee was golden like the sun.  I'm going to work on getting in a bottle each morning when I wake up.  This will help flush out an impurities and refresh my body from my night's rest.  Water is the ultimate hydrator.  The funny thing is that I haven't really been drinking anything but water, yet a few occasions, I haven't been able to get my daily amount in.  I'm going to follow Maia's tip of setting my alarm to go off every two hours to ensure I drink a bottom on the regular.   I also learned how hard it is to plan my eating when I'm off on the weekends.  My daily life during the work week is quite structured.  However, on the weekends I'm somewhat of a flower child.  I have to ensure I get my small meals and water in even though I may not be on my regular schedule. 

Goals-  This week, I aspire to try to get a few more workouts in during my week.  Yes, this was last week's goals, but I am still pushing to get this accomplished.  The change of the season is usually a change in my body as I prepare for hibernation, lol but I'm going to push through that.  I'm going to live my life like I did in Detroit, where the weather didn't effect how I lived.  I kept pushing in spite of the sun setting earlier!

Blood, Sweat, & Tears!!!!

On Saturday, I posted my weekend workout picture with the caption of "Blood, Sweat, and Tears" and there was a good reason for that.  When I did that workout, there were plenty of tears and sweat hidden under those sunglasses.  2011 has been an especially difficult time for my family. We have had 3 deaths so far this year; My Great Aunts' home in New York caught on fire and they were displaced; as well as a host of family in and out of the hospital or that had to go to the nursing home. I know my family is getting older, but it's hard dealing with everything that's going on and not having the power to do much to help those that you love.

Upon arriving home on Friday night, I learned that one of my aunts had been in Intensive Care since Tuesday due to Heart Failure as well as one of my Uncles had been rushed to the Emergency room on Friday.  Granted my Aunt had not been taking her medicine properly which caused her to have a heart attack. My Uncle had severe pain in his knees and swelling in his foot, which had caused him to be immobile for 2-3 days.  They also think that he may have kidney failure and may need to start having dialysis.  Both of them are my parent's youngest siblings, so that was a tough pill to swallow. However upon returning home from dinner with my Dad, I found out that my Aunt Catherine was being taken to the Emergency Room because her blood pressure was up and she was quite disoriented. She's a diabetic and has been on dialysis for almost 10 years due to kidney failure. She's been in and out the hospital since January yet it seems they can't seem to figure out why she suddenly stopped walking.  As I sat in the Emergency Room, it was a painful reminder that I need to do what I can to keep myself healthy.  I don't want to put my children through seeing me suffer through different health issues that could have been prevented by me making healthier lifestyle choices.  I want to prevent as much as I can for their sake and so I can be around for my grandchildren.  Therefore, I commit to this challenge, not just for myself but for my family!  Hopefully I can encourage them to take on healthier lifestyles by choice instead of being forced.  So with that being said, here is this week's B-L-O-G:

Body-This week I really attempted to give it my all at Boot Camp.  Even though I was physically drained due to my monthly friend, I strived to find ways to increase my energy level.  I pushed to try to get in at least one more push-up or arm curl before Maia could countdown to 1!  Every day after work, I took a nap to help get myself re-energized and to ensure my body had the proper rest before my workout.  On Wednesday night, my friend gave me an all natural packet to add to my drink for energy.  Needless to say, using only one third of the packet caused me to pull a muscle in my left lower calf.  In spite of that, I still proceeded to give my all this week.  I didn't let that stop me from staying focused on pushing it to the next limit, even if I had to do a modified version, but I kept moving in order to get my heart rate up. I survived the Kazaxe/Boot Camp Combo class, even though I never had a chance to catch my breath.

Learning-  This week I learned that resting is vital to this mission.  When I didn't get enough sleep then I felt sluggish through the day, so I am going to try to go back to my no later than 11pm bedtime. I also learned to focus on the wall. I know this sounds weird, but I used the  wall in front of me as a focal point which allowed me to tune other distractions around me.  It allowed me to reflect on what I was doing and why.  I would picture myself being healthier and doing more reps some day in the future. I learned that I need to plan my meals in order to ensure I eat enough food during the day.

Observations-I have noticed small changes in my body but nothing to get too excited about yet.  I have been improving my form more, instead of being overly concerned about the reps.  The form is important to ensuring that I don't hurt myself and that I'm working the correct muscle groups.  Since we get to wear the heart monitors for the Test Group, Thursday's combo class made me realize just how much more I could push myself.  Granted I may not have been able to do every portion with the change ups, but I definitely committed to giving it my all.  Each week, I feel myself growing more committed to making these changes, not just for these 60 days but for the rest of my life.

Goals-  This week, I aspire to try to get a few more workouts in during my week.  Initially I said I wanted to do Yoga in the am, but that has been difficult, but I'm not going to beat myself up over what I haven't done. Instead I'm going to push myself to go further in the future and continue to work towards my goals.  I also want continue to keep making my healthy food choices and focus on a lifestyle change.  As my College Chemistry teacher said "Food should only be use for fuel" and I'm trying to change my mindset to see it as this.  Over the past few years, I've realized how comforting food can seem to be at times.  I want to find positive ways to deal with stress instead of eating a carton of Hagen Daas Caramel Cone!  Granted with all that I have going on outside of my Boot Camp Test Group, I want to use things like walking, Kazaxe, or meditation as ways to deal with my stress.  I want to be a testimony to my family and friends so that we can all live healthy!

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."-Mark Twain

Baby Steps!!!!

“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.”

Monday, August 29th marked a new beginning.  My coach said something that stuck with me throughout the week..."You have have to prepare for change, then make changes!" 

With that being said, I prepared for my journey by trying to prepare myself.  There were moments where I had to ignore my thoughts because they were trying to get the best of me. 

"Are you sure you want to dedicate this much time to this with all that you have going on within the next two months?"
"Can your body handle this?"
"Are you ready for this type of challenge?"
"Hell, can you really do this?"

Each time, I looked in the mirror and gave myself the Nutty Professor pep talk:

"YESSSSSS I CAN, YESSSSS I CAN!!!!!"

It's been a tough first week, but I made it! Changing 28 years of habits was tough but I took it one day at a time.  I felt more refreshed and energetic however the workouts presented some challenges for me.  My Body has a lot of weight on it, even though it's in a "nice neat package" as one of my friends says, it has been difficult on my knees.  Also a few years ago when I lived in Michigan, I slipped on the ice and injured by butt, right down the middle. Yes a pain in the you know where, which causes problems when I tried to do some of the sit-up variations in class.  I did notice that I have been able to do very high intensity moderations of the exercises so that's definitely a step in the right direction.  I even walked almost 2 miles on Saturday based on my own determination to succeed!  Woop! Woop!  I've tried to force myself to be in bed by 10pm, no later than 11pm on week nights to help give my body the proper rest it needs to recuperate for the next day.  I even changed my eating habits to fit in 6 small meals per day as well as increasing my water intake.  It was funny because I could tell when it was time for my next meal/more water due to my body's reactions or my short temper.  "FEED ME SEYMOUR!" 

GOALS FOR WEEK 2:

So heading into week 2, I have made the same preparation as week one.  I plan to push myself even further with my eating habits and nutrition habits.  I may try a few new meals just to spice things up as well.  I will not let my "Monthly Gift" from Mother Nature hold me back from achieving my goals.  This would usually be the week I would skip working out and maybe have some chocolate.  However, I refuse to lose and will keep up my determination as much as possible! I have to go to a baby shower back home on Saturday, so I hope to get my parents to workout with me while I'm home.  *fingers crossed* 

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Ready for War!

"I got my mind right, money tight...READY FOR WAR!!! Vida P is...yea I told you before! I got the streets locked, Vida hot as before! You know the game and the name, now I'm ready for war!!!!"

This is one of my motivation songs for the next 8 weeks!  I have 60 days to make a lifestyle change.  Not for my family or friends, but for myself.  I've seen too many family members suffer from strokes, high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, cancer, etc. I definitely don't want to spend the rest of my life on medicene when I could've grasped control by changing these bad habits!  The old saying goes "It take 21 days to break an old habit/start a new habit" but you get what I'm trying to say.  I'm at Day 4, so 17 days from now this should be as natural as tying my shoe! 

I'm taking this opportunity to do this for me!  It's tough focusing all of this attention on myself because I'm usually so worried about everyone else and their needs.  Through the years, I've neglected my own self to do for everyone else.  My motto was "Self-less, not Selfish," but that has to change.  Seriously, you're talking to the person who was voted "Most Dedicated" in her Senior Class....so now it's time to getting back to the love and dedication that I've had for others and dedicating it to myself!  Grace has been lost in the storm, so this week marks a new chapter.  I am Ready for War!  My next post will be about Week One in this journey.  I hope you're ready for this ride!  Hang on!!!