I never thought I would be so happy about being labeled "overweight". That is what my BMI now indicates. But spending the last 3 months labeled "obese" was so much worse. I'll take overweight over obese any day of the week.

We had our weigh ins this morning for boot camp and I am now down over 9 inches since July. My bra size is down a full 2 inches and all of my pants are fitting better, if not baggy. Woo-hoo!

I am doing one more month of bootcamp and have just started another 4 week course of ball class (which I really think has made a huge difference this past month).

I went to a nutritional seminar last night and while I knew a lot of what I should be doing, but when I saw this replica of what 5lbs of REAL fat looks like - It blew my mind. That coupled with my mom being back in the hospital (due to weight issues). I am more determined than ever to get down to the "NORMAL" range. But I'll take overweight in the meantime!

Labels: boot camp, exercise, fitness

Woo-hoo!!!

Boot Camp #1 is now complete. The stats are in and I couldn't be happier. I have lost 4.5 inches of fat and gained .25 inches of muscle. I've lost 7lbs (although that was by my scale and not the official scale).

And, to top it all off, I shaved exactly 1 minute off my mile and doubled the amount of pushups. My mile time: 11 minutes and 22 seconds! My next goal is to do it under 10 minutes.

I have one week of rest before I start it all over again for Boot Camp #2. Watch out J & J... I may start joining you at marathons (did I just say that? I was just kidding), but I will watch and feel your pain!

Actually, while on the subject of marathons. I will be doing my first 5K race in September if anyone is interested in doing it with me. I'll be running/walking and trying to beat my first time (50 minutes or something) - although I walked nearly all of it.

Above is the group shot of our first boot camp ladies (missing two people though). Some are coming back so it should be a good time again!

Labels: exercise, fitness, weight loss

Well, week two of fitness boot camp is complete and I'm ready for a nice relaxing weekend!

At the end of week one, I ran my first mile (I think ever), last Friday. My official time: 12minutes and 22seconds. I now know what it feels like to be nauseous from exercising.

This second week has been noticiably easier. The crunches are flying by, leg lifts are semi easier, and, god help me, the running is even easier.

Yesterday, we ran through a mini-obstacle course and then came back to our mats and did exercises in between. At one point, as I was sailing through the crunches, I had a huge grin on my face. Of course, that dissipated when we were told we were going to run another mile! This time up-hill. I took a short detour and picked up Clementine at the house and rejoined the group! And I still didn't come in last!

Today was our first hike. It was nice to take a break from all of the normal exercises. We brought Clementine and Buckley with us who joined Clover and Nomar. They all had a blast and are now sleeping quietly!

So how do I feel? Tired, but today, people started noticing a change in my body. Audrey mentioned my chest was much smaller and I've definitely noticed my stomach and inner thighs.
Sooooo, I did a little re-measuring from two weeks ago.

I have lost 6lbs, 1.5 inches in my chest, half an inch in my hips, and a good couple of inches in my waist! Not to mention, my stamina is up so I should be in good shape to get in some SCUBA diving when this first one is complete.

I am far from my goals, but I am certainly headed in the right direction! Woo-hoo!

Labels: exercise, fitness, weight loss

Okay, so I'm not in the Army's boot camp, but the NH Adventure Boot Camp for Women is already kicking my (fat) ass in gear. Did I mention, it just started this morning!

Amanda and I are attending boot camp at 7:30AM, 5 days a week, for an hour of hell. I really didn't know that I had muscles in some places. I know it will show by the end of it all.

All fun aside, I'm very excited. I tried losing weight back in January (our month long stint at the gym), but it really wasn't convenient - 30 minute drive each way. So then, my bad eating habits and lack of exercise took hold and I gained another 10lbs.

I am not quite at the heaviest I have been in my life, but I don't want to get any heavier, that's for damn sure.

As I've been trying to figure out what I want to do for fun this summer (yes, I realize it's half gone), I knew that I wouldn't be able to handle anything that involved exercise. Especially Scuba Diving. In general, you don't have to be in great shape for diving, but you do need to be able to breath well. Huffing and puffing, up the stairs just wasn't gonna cut it.

Anyhow, Amanda's co-worker came to me about a month ago and asked, "Can you build me a website in 4 days?" Of course I can, and I did. And then Amanda called me up and said, "We're doing boot camp, baby"! So here we are at day one and I'm already complaining (I mean raving about it).

And, to help me eat better (or rather be accountable), I'm using TheDailyPlate to track all of my calories, etc. If you haven't checked out the site, it's pretty cool. It's free for all the basic, calorie counting, fitness tracking, basic body measurements, calorie goals, etc. It also does a calculation on how many calories you can eat in a given day based on your weight loss (or gain) goals and your fitness routine. It's a no-brainer.

So, please, keep your fingers crossed for me. I need all the motivation I can get!

Labels: dieting, fitness, weight loss