Where Am I At?

Ok, I know I haven't really been on track the last week or so. I didn't post my weigh-in last Friday - mainly because I was really ticked off! I weighed in and lost NOTHING... that's right - nada! How in the world can I lose nothing - especially after walking nearly 40 miles on the treadmill and eating super healthy. I was really depressed about it and so Saturday and Sunday I ate whatever I felt like eating and I did not exercise... I didn't really OVER do it - but I did eat more than I would have usually. Oh, and Sushi on Sunday was AMAZING - I swear I felt so much better afterwards... probably because I had been CRAVING it like a crazy person for more than a week.

Workout Wednesday 02/09

My weekly workout:

Thursday: 90 min on treadmill at 3.5mph - 5.25 miles
40 min walk with the kids - 1.75 miles

Friday: DAY OFF!

Saturday: 120 min (yes, a whole 2 hours) on treadmill at 3.5mph on incline 1 - 7 miles!!!

Sunday: 90 min on treadmill at 3.5mph on incline 1 - 5.25 miles

Monday: 85 min on treadmill at 3.5mph on incline 1 - 5.25 miles
40 min walk with the kids - 1.75 miles

Tuesday: 85 min on treadmill at 3.5mph on incline 1 - 5.25 miles
30 min walk with the kids - 1.6 miles

Wednesday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.5mph on incline 1 - 4.5 miles
30 min walk with the kids 1.6 miles

Total time: 9.75 hours
Total miles: 39.2 miles

This week's challenge? I'm going to try and do one of my Jillian Michaels videos at least one day this week. Those videos are tough - so wish me luck!

New exercise for this week... Walking Lunges
Courtesy of ABC of Fitness.com

The Lunge tones the legs and can give you wonderfully toned inner thighs and buttocks. But you should never do this Fitness Exercise if you have knee problems. The Lunge strengthens several muscles: your hamstrings, gluteals, and quadriceps.

The Walking Lunge is a variation of the Lunge. This exercise enables you to strengthen your muscles more. When doing the Walking Lunge, make sure to keep your back straight, your torso upright, and your abdominals tight. Don’t lean forward. Let your knee pass forward your big toe in the middle position.

STEP 1: Stand with feet hip-width apart. Keep your arms straight and hold your dumbbells at your sides.

STEP 2: Move your right foot forward, bending both knees and with the left knee pointing towards the floor. Keep your upper body straight.

STEP 3: Slightly straighten your legs and do another Lunge. Step forward using your left foot and bend both knees. Keep your arms and dumbbells at your sides until you finish the exercise.

Workout Wednesday 02/02

My weekly workout:

Thursday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.5mph - 4.25 miles
40 min walk with the kids - 1.75 miles

Friday: DAY OFF!

Saturday: 85 min on treadmill at 3.5mph - 5 miles

Sunday: 85 min on treadmill at 3.5mph - 5 miles
5 min weight training

Monday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.5mph - 4.5 miles
35 min walk with the kids - 1.7 miles

Tuesday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.5mph - 4.5 miles
35 min walk with the kids - 1.7 miles

Wednesday: 60 min on treadmill at 3.5mph- 3.5 miles
5 min weight training

Total time: 8.92 hours
Total miles: 31.9 miles

On Saturday and Sunday I felt amazing - I could have kept going and going. I was so proud to complete 5 miles! I keep encouraging myself to do more and more... but the reality is I should be taking it a little easy, especially as I'm just getting started and used to a routine. This is my third complete week of exercising and I really feel like it's helping with my mood swings.

I finally incorporated my weight resistance/training to my workout. I'm starting out slow with the weights because I don't want to overdo it and hurt something. I did the Dumbbell Squats I posted on last week's Workout Wednesday and the Bicep curls from the week before that. I also did Chest Flys - which is this week's focus...

Chest Flys
Courtesy of ABC of Fitness.com

The chest is made up of pectoral muscles - major and minor. The pectoralis major covers the front of the upper chest and is attached to the upper arm. This muscle is responsible for major arm movements such as flexion, rotation, and adduction towards the body.

Strengthen your pectoral muscles by doing exercises that target those muscles. The Fly is one of those exercises. When performing the Fly, don't bring the dumbbells down in such a way that your elbows are much below shoulder level. Keep the same angle of your arms through the whole movement.

To prepare your muscles and reduce the risk of injury, make sure to do some warm-up exercises before doing the Fly, or any type of exercise for that matter. Learn how to do the Fly in this section:

STEP 1: Lie on the bench, with your arms and weights extended to your side and your elbows slightly bent.

STEP 2: Move your hands above your chest. Then extend your arms out to the side. Alternately open them and bring them together above your chest.

The number of repetitions (reps) and sets you should do will depend on both your strength and skill level. It is important to use weight that is heavy enough to perform the desired number of reps and sets for your skill level while using good form. Try to increase the weight you lift by 5 - 10% as you increase your Fitness level. Depending on your Fitness goals, you may maintain certain weight and reps rather than increase them to build more strength or muscle.

Workout Wednesday 01/26

My weekly workout:

Thursday: 70 min on treadmill at 3.2mph - 3.5 miles
35 min walk with the kids - 1.7 miles

Friday: DAY OFF!

Saturday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.3mph - 4 miles

Sunday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.4mph - 4.15 miles

Monday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.4mph - 4.25 miles
50 min walk with the kids - 2.35 miles

Tuesday: 80 min on treadmill at 3.4-3.5mph - 4.50 miles
50 min walk with the kids - 2.35 miles

Wednesday: 75 min on treadmill at 3.4mph - 4.25 miles
40 min walk with the kids - 1.7 miles

Total time: 10.33 hours
Total miles: 32.75 miles

I didn't add the weight training exercises as I had hoped to add - so that's my goal again for next week - to add at least 2 days of weight training exercises - for at least 5 minutes!


This week's exercise...
Dumbbell Squats
Courtesy of ABC of Fitness.com

Squat, similar with Lunges, is a great all-around exercise for the legs. This Fitness Exercise is a tried-and-tested lower body exercise for anyone without knee problems. Squats focus on your hamstrings and gluteals, and also target your abdominal muscles and lower back since they are used for balance.

The Squats come in many variations. One of them is the Dumbbell Squat. This exercise obviously makes use of dumbbells as you do the Squat. Learn how this exercise is done in this section:

STEP 1: Stand with feet hip-width apart and keep your back straight. Your arms should be straight on your sides, with each hand holding a dumbbell.

STEP 2: Slightly lean forward. Bend your knees and lower your upper body. Be sure to keep your heels on the floor and your arms straight on your sides.

Workout Wednesday!

I'm officially introducing Workout Wednesday!

Every week I will post my workout results for the week and I will try and introduce a new type of exercise or activity we can all do.

I started working out on Saturday, January 15th... here are my results so far:

Saturday: Walked on the treadmill 1 hr 50 min - 5.5 miles
Sunday: Walked on the treadmill 1 hr - 3 miles
Monday: Walked on the treadmill 1 hr - 3 miles and I took the kids for a walk to the part for 30 minutes
Tuesday: Walked on the treadmill 1 hr - 3 miles and I took the kids for a walk through the hilly part of our neighborhood for 35 minutes
Wednesday: Walked on the treadmill 1 hour - 3.25 miles and I took the kids for a walk through the neighborhood for 40 minutes

Total time: 7.5 hours!


This week I'm hoping to incorporate a little weight training - at least 2 days. Here's an at home exercise anyone can do...

Arm or Biceps Curl (Training with Free Weights)
Courtesy of ABC of Fitness.com

The Biceps Curl is a very popular exercise which works on the biceps brachii muscles. These muscles are located on your upper arms. When you do this exercise with your palms facing the ceiling, it is called an Arm Curl or Biceps Curl. However, if you rotate your forearms in such a way that your thumbs are facing the ceiling, you call this exercise a Hammer Curl. This Free Weights exercise is called a Reverse Curl when you hold the weights with your palms down or facing the floor. Each variation you perform strengthens the biceps in a slightly different way.

You can do the Biceps Curl in different ways using different pieces of Fitness Equipment. You can do this while standing or sitting on a bench. As for the equipment, you can use dumbbells, barbell, cables, or biceps machine. In this section, learn how to do the Biceps Curl with the use of dumbbells.


STEP 1: Stand with legs slightly bent and feet hip-width apart. Place your arms straight and close to your body.

STEP 2: Bend your elbows up to your chest. Straighten your arms and lower the weights to the starting position.


The number of repetitions (reps) and sets you should do will depend on both your strength and skill level. It is important that you use a weight that is heavy enough to perform the desired number of reps and sets for your skill level while using good form. Try to increase the weight you lift by 5 - 10% as you increase your Fitness level. Depending on your Fitness goals, you may maintain certain weight and reps rather than increase them to build more strength or muscle.