Friday, February 1, 2013

A Little Catch Up

It’s been 9 days since I’ve been able to hear anything out of my right ear. It sucks, but I’m pushing through. When I exercise I actually think it is helping me and I swear for seconds at a time I can hear out of it. Thank goodness I feel better and don’t have the pain any longer, but I will really be glad when my hearing returns.


I think I’m finally getting into a workout routine. I feel strong, motivated, wanting to do more. I started working out right after I get home. Waiting until the boys were in bed kept pushing my bedtime later and later. I did this to gain more sleep, not to keep the same amount. This does put a little more stress into dinner as I’m forced to choose quicker meals and stay 100% on task if we want to eat by 7pm. Not easy to do with pretty constant demands of drinks, the little man wanting to change boots every 2 seconds, and screams of "I'm done!" coming from the bathroom.

I’m not sure how much experience you all have with p90x, however, I hate to say this, but I lived fearing it for a long time before I jumped into it. I thought it would be too hard, too many pull-ups, too much weights, etc. Now that I’m in it, I know how wrong I was. I’m actually thinking I need more. Don’t get me wrong, the pull-ups, hard freakin work (I am up to 3 unassisted pull-ups. My goal is 10), but the other stuff, not that hard. To challenge myself a little more and save time, I actually started fast forwarding through all of Tony’s jabbering after sets. I know he probably strategically did that to allow rest time, but I was getting cold and needed to keep going and keep sweating the entire workout. This definitely did the trick. My muscles are burning like crazy and I work up a good sweat.


Since my last two weeks of workouts are a little off schedule due to my sickness, I actually ran on the treadmill last night. Just 2 miles, but my goodness, it was hard. My legs are sore. I’m also noticing, for a while now, that my left upper hamstring is extremely tight. Just stretching it is uncomfortable. I hope to work that out over time. I have been doing ridiculous amounts of lunges, so maybe that’s the culprit. My booty loves them, my left hamstring does not.

It’s official that I will be running my first half in my life in June. Training for that will be interesting. I think my top consistent mileage in a day has been 9 miles. Here goes pushing my limits, getting out of my comfort zone, and realizing what my body actually is capable of. I’m not going to put a lot of pressure on myself as far as an excellent time. I want to survive without walking, which I will no doubt do, but I also want to push myself a little all while keeping my strategy, which will be determined as I see how training goes. I’m sure you’ll hear all about it. I'm not starting that training until the end of Feb/beginning of March.

The other day my sister posted a pic of her amazing abs during the midst of her second year as a Figure competitor.  She posted some really good information about how to get them and some myths out there about what to do and what not to do to achieve those amazing abs. I think it is important to share so you’re getting it here as well:


She's awesome, amazing, inspirational, very down to earth, and knows what she is talking about.  It's her career.  Check her out on FB. 

Lately I have been surrounded by a couple of messages that keep coming to me from different areas. Usually when that happens I try to pay attention because it usually means I need to hear whatever it is and incorporate it.

The first one is eating better. Eating clean, eating healthy. Messages about this are everywhere. And if you want some of those chiseled amazing abs they say it is 80% kitchen, 20% in the gym. I’m not shooting for amazingly chiseled abs at this point, however it would be cool to show those suckers off at one point, but the healthy standpoint overarches all of it. This is an area I really struggle in. I can control portions, stay away from the high fructose corn syrup and high sugar contents, but to say I always choose the superfoods, eat carbs at just the right time, and incorporate Kale and Spinach at least once a day, that just probably isn’t going to happen unless I decide to step up on a stage. (To compete, not dance – just to be clear – no pole involved) Pay no attention to me hiding in my bathroom shoving Valentine heart cakes down my throat so I wouldn't have to share.  That only happened once last week because I found Dale's stash, promise!

The other message has been about the boys. I’ve been surrounded by messages and thoughts of validating their feelings because their feelings are 100% true and valid for their little lives. Too often I actually say, I don’t care what you want right now… How horrible does that sound. I might as well push them in the freakin ditch and tell them they don’t matter to anyone. Geesh.

I’m actively working on this. A dear friend of mine posted about how she teaches her little man to calm down when he is showing anger or when he is just upset. You can check her post out here. Such a simple technique that they can use for a lifetime. I can just see them as young adults going back to what mom taught them about controlling their emotions. Deep breath in, deep breath out. So simple, so effective. I will be using it myself when I need it.

I tried this out on the boys, however, I twisted it up a bit because I was in a weird mood and their extreme crying over their brother choosing to play with a toy that was considered theirs that they weren’t even playing with was extremely laughable to me. So I pulled Wyatt to the side and talked to him a little about slowing down before he responds strictly based on first reaction and that I would like to show him a technique to use. Smell the fart (deep breath in) Share the fart (big blow out). He laughed hysterically and completely forgot what the issue was. In the meantime Waylon came over so we all practiced together. You all know it was right up their alley.

I do, however, take Amanda’s advice very seriously and recognize the need to teach such simple basics such as this. Stuff we should know and use in our lives today, but some of us just don’t. Like when I’m stomping around in the morning because I’m late and I’m mumbling and yelling that it doesn’t matter what time I get up, what I cut out, what I prepare the night before, I’m always freakin late and how the FREAK does that happen. Maybe I replace freak with a much harsher word, but maybe I don’t.

On the homefront lately:

Wyatt made a little laptop at school (an orange piece of construction paper with the alphabet on it and a space bar folded in half). It is the cutest thing ever. Each day he came home from school he asked where his computer was and he typed away and hit enter and the space bar so strategically. His face was serious and he was getting some mad work done. I even had to watch the hilarious video he made the other night. He waited until I was ready, hit the enter key, and I had to strategically laugh in hysterics. Good times, funny video!

Waylon got a day at home with just daddy this week. I love opportunities they get like this. Such memorable times even with nothing big on the agenda. That night as I was cooking dinner when Waylon came in the kitchen on a mission. He headed straight for the Victoria’s Secret magazine I just got and sprinted away as fast as he could. Pretty soon he came back into the kitchen. “Waylon, where is my magazine?” “In my closet” I just had to shut my mind off right then and there. I’m not going there. I finally got it back after Wyatt handed it to me with a “I can’t believe my brother did that” grin on his face. “Did you look at it?” Wyatt infatically said no. Waylon on the other hand had no problem admitting he did, but refused to tell me what he liked about it while having a very indescribable smile on his face.


Weston turned 2.  Que the crying, sobbing, slobering, snotting "where is my baby going, he's not a baby anymore" dramatics. I was still sick, but Grandma saved the day with dinner, cake, ice cream, and balloons.  We ended the evening with cake and ice cream, then popcorn, and my mom over to watch movies.  I think he was completely satisfied with the outcome.  And his new thing he finds HILARIOUS is running into the room with his brother's underwear on over his clothes or on his head.  Hilarious, I tell you! 

Sprite and the Ipad, all a newly 2 year old needs.  What a great example.  BTW, there were drops of that Sprite left, but he owned it like it was full.  Such a big man. 

Happy weekend, all.  Hope you are staying healthy!!!

1 comment:

  1. Nice to read your post T. When will you hear out of that ear again?? YIkes. Congrats on deciding on your first half. AWESOME! I bet you will love it. And thanks for the shout out. Gosh, I need to read my own posts because I"m certainly not doing such a good job at following my own advice today. Sheesh. This boy thing is hard for me. Or this one particular kid. My heart is often in my throat ...tight..stresed. ahh. Okay, off to deal with him now.

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