February 10, 2008 05:59 pm

An improved quality of life

Well, 13 weeks is over, the Fitness Challenge is finished and as I look back on this experience I have learned so much: 1. The correct term for the torturous series of exercises Jacqui put us through one session is "Juan's", NOT "Wands", named after the lunatic who developed them.
He was later institutionalized, Just kidding. 2. A Bosu Ball is a piece of exercise equipment also used in prison camps for balancing heavy weights above your head. I also believe that they are sometimes used in comedic "stand- up" routines or should I say "fall down" routines. Try balancing you legs on a HUGE ball in the push- up position and then balancing your hands on an inverted Bosu. Then, while your trainer is peeing her pants laughing at you, do push-ups. Jacqui does have a sense of humor, it may be sadistic but it is there. 3. Fiber cereal gives you gas. Let's leave it at that.
4. 13 weeks will fly by whether you are improving your life quality or being a couch potato. Time will continue to move forward and what you do with that time is up to you. You can look at the upcoming 13 weeks in your life and ask yourself, " Where do I want to be in 13 weeks? Thinner? Healthier? More Energized? Stagnate? Sedentary? Unhealthy?"
You can choose to make a change. You can choose to stay where you are. I'm glad, no, I'm thrilled that I made the choice to improve my life. There are still many more improvements to come! I'm not quitting. I've come too far. Jacqui has invested too much into me that I would let her down. I know I joke about her but I've grown to love her these 3 months. I'm stronger. I have more endurance. I have a better self-image. Yes, the number on the scale has gone down also but that isn't my focus this time. My focus is life quality and healthy choices. It's not about deprivation. It's about balance, even the Bosu kind.
The finals tallys are in!! Total weight loss 19.4 pounds but lets just call it 20! Body fat loss: 4.7 % Total inches lost: 11.5!!
thank you Fitness Challenge for equiping, challenging, motivating and changing me for the better!

May 03, 2008 09:35 am

Just keep moving

When I stepped on the scale last Saturday morning, I really didn’t expect a 3 pound loss but that is what I got. I was so excited! One week, no loss, next week, 1/2 pound loss, next week 3 pounds disappear. It’s crazy but I like it!
Our training with Jacqui has been hard as ever and she is showing me how far I’ve come. I realize how far I’ve come when I can actually keep up a conversation with her. Sure I groan and grunt while I am doing the lifting but then I recover so much quicker. I am walking farther than ever before.
I did 6 miles at Jackson Morrow park the other day, 4 in the afternoon and 2 more in the evening. I even jogged some of that, sure it was on the down hill parts, but hey! Every pair of pants that I own, I can take on and off without even undoing them. I was doing these jumping exercises with Jacqui on Wednesday and my pants literally fell down. I had to grab them up and tie the drawstring tight! The brutal plank that in the beginning we couldn’t even hold one minute now isn’t quite so brutal. I can even talk to Jacqui while I hold it. In case you haven’t noticed, Jacqui and I talk a lot!
I am so looking forward to our measuring and body fat calculations. I know I haven’t lost the most weight in this challenge but I do know I have lost fat and inches. This entire experience has taught me so much. I am stronger both physically and mentally for it. I can do things now I would not of even attempted before.
I’ve made some incredible friends. Even though the official challenge is over in a few days, my personal challenge will go on for my lifetime. Don’t go backwards, keep moving forward, heck, just keep moving.

April 26, 2008 12:42 pm

Take the cash, just leave my snacks

Spring is in the air and along with that comes the aromas of softball concession stands. Nacho's, chili dogs, hot buttery popcorn. Need I say more?
Our daughter, Lindsey, is a senior softball player at Western high school. Between home games, away games and travel team games I have become a concession stand food critic. Best tenderloin: Russiaville. Best Nacho's: South Side. Best Coney's: Russiaville again. Best pretzel with cheese: East side. I have tasted them all, which is probably why I needed this Fitness Challenge!
This year is different for me. I am planning ahead for each game. I am packing my own snacks. I take fresh fruit, 100 calorie bars and if I am craving popcorn, I even have the 100 calorie microwave mini bags in my purse. If I am ever mugged they can have the cash, just leave the snacks!
Jim and I are making our workout plans fit into this very busy schedule. We really don't feel complete unless we have been to the gym. Jacqui has been great to adjust our training times.
Unfortunately we will miss a Saturday morning session with our group because of a double header but we will make it up on our own time, we promise! This is a true test for us. Life can get busy and out of control but we have to make time for what is important. Our health is at the top of that priority list.
Before I would come home and collapse just waiting for the next event of the evening. Now I come home and rush to the gym to get a work out in before I am off and running again. It makes a huge difference in my attitude! I feel better equipped to handle the stress of any situation,
I feel energized and more focused. I know all the fitness challengers have said this before but it is so very true, this is a Life Changing experience. My life had definitely changed for the better.

April 18, 2008 09:03 am

A journey together

“Fatty, Fatty 2 by 4”
I bet 90 percent of you can finish that childhood rhyme. I know I heard it enough growing up. I heard the taunts and the muffled laughter when my gym suit was too tight. I saw the pointing fingers and looks of disgust when I sat down at lunch with my too short pants and “hand me down” glasses. Those feelings of inferiority followed me into adulthood. I still find myself mentally comparing myself with those around me. Am I the fattest? Are my clothes in style enough to fit in?
Is my hair o.k? Am I the fattest? Am I the fattest? My entire self worth revolved around that question. Am I the fattest? A few years back I even lost 60 pounds and finally felt acceptable. At a size 12, I thought I had “arrived”. Well, the pounds came back and the people who had often told me how amazing I looked, now, didn’t look at all. Let me pause for a moment to say that Jim and my family have NEVER made me feel inferior. My husband loves me unconditionally, no matter what size I am. It is often a joke that I have been so many different sizes that Jim doesn’t have to get bored because next month he may be married to a different sized Della. He is truly an amazing man. I am blessed to have him.
Even when we had our first interview to be chosen for this fitness challenge, I compared my self to the other contestants. “The beautiful blonde in the corner with the gorgeous eyes, she’ll never like me.
The couple who wants to start a family, their smiles are contagious and they are so full of energy. They’ll never like me. The sister’s seem to have it all together. What a great relationship they must share. They’ll never like me. The mother/daughter team. You can see how much they love each other. They’ll never like me. But, guess what? They all do. We were all chosen and we all like each other! We care about each other. It doesn’t matter what it is. Whether it’s a pet having surgery or a son in Iraq.
We support each other. We have come together as a group of over weight strangers, not quite knowing what to expect of this competition or each other and we will leave as a group of friends.
Perhaps this isn’t the “Survivor Club Fitness” mentality that other challenges have been but this one has been life changing. What better motivator for the public is there than a person who has struggled all their life with weight to finally be able to see a brighter future! A person who can get off so many medications because of learning how to exercise and eat better! I have faced enough criticism in my 46 years about my weight, enough harshness, enough shame that I believe this fitness challenge has been a type of oasis in the usual world of health clubs.
Here is a place I can go to feel welcomed and encouraged. My fellow contestants don’t taunt me with their successes while I may struggle. They don’t shove my face in the scale to gloat over their weight loss while I have hit a plateau. They don’t get angry if I miss a session to spend time with my family, they ask if we had a good time! We are in this together. We will be in this together for some time to come.
Even after the challenge is over. The final weigh in is tallied and the “winner” announced, it still won’t be over. It is a journey. It is a journey that my husband I are enjoying together and we have some amazing travel companions.

April 10, 2008 09:05 am

Hitting the plateau

Well, I’ve hit it. Not the wall. Not the road. Not even Jacqui. Nope, I’ve hit the plateau. I even did double workouts this week! Going to Zumba and then turning around an hour later and facing Jacqui is nothing short of suicidal but I rolled the dice and lived to blog about it. I took a normal Thursday and jazzed it up by doing back to back Turbo Kick and then Group Power. Feeling pretty smug with my accomplishments, I stepped on the scale Saturday morning to see the numbers stay the same. I stepped off, gave the scale a little pep talk and tried again. Still, same number as last week. Feeling pretty down, I went into our Group Session to work out with the gang and Nick.
Seeing everyone really helps lift my spirits. I love going into the gym and walking next to Terri or Jeremy. I love seeing Barb’s smiling face and laugh with Courtney about the latest blogging news. I truly hope we all can maintain these relationships when the challenge is over.
So, back to the weigh in and Saturday. Nick worked us hard. The Tribune was there recording for a live audio slide show to put on the web page. I hope they edited the flatulance reference I made to Erin.
It was a great workout and I left feeling better about not losing.
Monday’s Tribune held a wonderful surprise for me. I always read the comics, especially Arlo and Janis. On this particular date, Janis is pictured taking a very brisk walk, leaping over park benches,sweating, ( I bet Jacqui was chasing her), and headed into the house and stepped on the scales. After viewing her weight her reply was, "I’m going on another walk!" Arlo’s come back was," I don’t think you have the right attitude about this." I haven’t had the right attitude! Jim’s pants are falling off, his sugar is down 200 points, his cholesterol is amazing and my favorite jeans are too big. To quote my trainer,"It’s not about the number!" So, the weight will come off. The number will go down but, I’m not going to make that my entire focus. My focus will be on keeping my husband around for many more years, feeling better, having more energy and doing something for myself that I really enjoy and making wonderful new friends. Who can ask for more?

April 02, 2008 01:01 pm

Made it through Easter

Easter Dinner, need I say more?
Actually I would give my self a B- on the day. I am not going to beat myself up over enjoying the day with my family. Even when enjoying the day includes a brownie, potato salad and a burger off the grill! What Grandma could deny her little grand daughter a taste of the brownie she baked herself?
Only a cruel, cold hearted one...which I am not. I was very successful in portion size though. I only had 1 brownie verses several with ice cream which, before the challenge, would of been my idea of a “taste”. It was a great day.
Then came Monday...with Jaquie. Have you ever wanted to sprint up the side of a 15 percent incline mountain at 6 miles an hour? ME NEITHER!
What I want and don’t want never factors into our training session. It’s all about Jaquie, Jaquie, Jaquie. After putting us in bungee manacles for the first part of our work out she took us to the tread mill. I was thinking (first mistake) that we were going to cool down.
When will I learn? We started speed walking with an incline, then to just make things interesting she increased the speed to six miles and hour for us to sprint for 1 minute. 46 years of my life passed before my eyes in that 60 seconds! We didn’t do this just once! Jaquie’s sadistic side has us do it three times!.
As if running isn’t enough on a fat girl, but add the incline and I was going off the end! Jaquie did say I was scaring her by getting too close to the end of the tread mill. My response was for her to SLOW THE THING DOWN! Her response? “ Use the side rails and Hang on!” Sadistic, pure and simple.
I make it through only to be put in plank position for our finale.
Sweat dripping off me, pony- tail flipping on her, what a team we make.
And I really do mean a team. Jaquie is my coach, cheerleader and team mate. I wouldn’t be where I am today without her.

March 26, 2008 03:04 pm

Say cheese!

Today we go to get our "half-way" pictures taken. As all of my other female Fitness Challengers would agree, that called for a new outfit!
So, off I go to find a work-out outfit that would make my rear and thighs look like my trainer, Jaquie's. No such outfit is out there girls!
But, I did try on a pair of work-out pants that I picked up in my usual size only to find that they were TOO BIG!! That was so exciting!
I passed on the pants...I'm going to keep losing, right?...and settled for a cute top that I hope shows the weight loss I have achieved. So, stand up straight, lift the "girls" high, think thin thoughts and say,"Cheese!"

March 21, 2008 02:38 pm

Beware the princess with the wands

Let’s play word association. I’ll say a word and you reply with the first word that comes to mind.
Wands:....any thoughts? Keep in mind that our angelic trainer, Jaquie, comes skipping up to us, blonde pony tail swinging happily, dimples in full force, smiling with eager sweetness, innocently wondering if we had done wands. Well, “no” we reply. But, wands sound easy. I mean, good fairies use wands. Sweet, little, plump, magical God mothers use wands. Glenda, the Good Witch, had a wand. How bad could they be?
BAD! BAD! BAD! Never, ever trust a blond pony tailed, dimpled, innocent trainer. Especially if her name is Jaquie!
Wands are the tools of the devil. They are sets of excruciating steps up, lunges, squats, etc. After these wands, we had completed 100 each of squats, step-ups, lunges, and then 50 squat jumps. Do you know how hard it is to get 197 pounds off the ground without a fork lift?
Hard!
After leg work we thought, whew it is finally over. NOT! Arms now.
Grab the weights and off we go. Ladder time. 1 biceps curl, 1 shoulder press, 1 row, 1 push up. 2 biceps curls, 2 shoulder presses...up to 10 and then back down. Yes, 100 in all.
Princess Jaquie was happy with herself for making Jim soak his shirt from his chin to his belly-button and we were pretty happy with ourselves. We survived. We even excelled! I couldn’t do 5 push-ups when this Fitness Challenge began. Jim and I left knowing we had come far.
Next time our Princess Jaquie mentions wands, I may crown her myself but we still love her.

March 20, 2008 09:44 am

Tulips don't help

Fact #1: Taking your personal trainer a house warming gift of potted tulips which happen to be her favorite flower will not deter her fromkicking your butt in your session.

Fact # 2: Recognizing that your personal trainer has recently had her hair done and commenting that is looks amazing will not in any way, form or fashion give her cause or incentive to "go easy" on you during your session.

Fact # 3: We adore her.

If variety is the spice of life then our trainer, Jaquie, is a master chef in the field of personal training. Monday night we rolled in, bearing gifts (the tulips), for our 8:00 session. On the floor before us is a pieceof equipment we have never seen except perhaps in the SAW movies.
Jaquie, then proceeded to tell us that what we are about to do is the only exercise that she has even come close to crying in. Great.
We did ladder lifts. Big weight, big lifts, big breathes. 1 lift, 1 big breath, 2 lifts, 2 big breaths, all the way up to 10 and then back down.
I didn't cry...yet.
Then off to the track. We were strapped into these bungee cords and then hooked up to the metal fence. We had to run toward Jaquie and stretch the bungee as far as we could and hold it there while we ran in place. You've all seen the cartoons where Tom is just about to get Jerry and he runs into the clothes line but keeps going...when he just about to grab Jaquie by the throat...Oh I mean Jerry...Jaquie yells time and we are snapped back against the fence. Both Jaquie and Jerry escape.
I tell the truth, it is never boring. It is hard, sweaty and exhausting but NEVER boring. Who knows what lurks in the hearts of men on Wednesday evening at 8 p.m. (Our next session)
Jaquie knows!
hahahahahahaha (diabolical laughter)

March 18, 2008 05:03 pm