February 10, 2008 06:01 pm

What I've learned

TOP TEN THINGS I’VE LEARNED FROM THE FITNESS CHALLENGE
10. The gym is not filled with supermodels. Me and my thunderthighs fit right in.
9. The gym makes a meal replacement drink called “Through the Lips and Off the Hips” that is to die for. (285 calories)
8. Trainers, just like us, come in all shapes and sizes. They all have something unique to add to a fitness program.
7. The more musclebound the trainer, the bigger the softie he is at heart.
6. It’s hard to chase a fifth grader around in a game when your pants are so loose they are about to fall off.
5. Yes, you do lose weight in your feet. You’ll need new shoes. You also lose weight about everywhere else. You’ll need new underwear, too.
4. Perseverance, perseverance, perseverance. ‘Nuff said.
3. You can sweat clear through your shirt from a grueling workout, yet leave the gym refreshed.
2. As you pound the treadmill, or pedal the bike, it helps to pray.
Maybe one of those prayers blessed my son in Afghanistan, or my grandbabies, or my family and friends, or my country during these turbulent times. They have certainly blessed me.
1. Everything comes full circle. My first blog talked about the joy of a brand new start, and about what a sucker I am for new beginnings. My sister and I committed to keep working with Kirby, our trainer. We intend to continue our journey to a healthier lifestyle minus the notoriety of a weekly newspaper article. As humbling as it was to be a public dieter, we are going to miss it. It was a blast. The Fitness Challenge is over, but the rest of life begins anew. And I’m still a sucker for new beginnings.

May 03, 2008 09:39 am

Time to hit the playground

It’s spring. Just ask any 5th grader. No matter how hard I prepare my lessons, no matter how totally thrilling my presentations, I simply cannot compete with the view outside the classroom window. You can see forty little eyeballs glaze over with every mention of fractions and long division. Yet, those same faces light up at that incomparable word “recess”. Nobody suffers Spring Fever quite like an eleven year-old.
Well, I have a touch of spring fever, too. Mine may not be centered on swimming pools, baseball, and playgrounds, but it is definitely a chronic case. A new body that is several pounds lighter caused me to come down with it. I caught my fever in the gym from Kirby and Becky and all the fitness challengers and trainers who insisted that I work hard-- much harder than I had ever worked before. They infected me with more energy and strength than I thought I could possibly have.
My symptoms are increased energy and smaller clothes. I “suffer” from an outlet for tension when I worry too much about my son in Afghanistan. I have a case of lower blood pressure. I’ve even been diagnosed with “Eatinghealthyitis”. I have the side affect of craving any kind of stroll through the park. Sounds like Spring Fever to me, all right. So, what do I do about it?
Kids, let’s close the math book for a while. I’ll hit the playground with you.

April 26, 2008 12:37 pm

Hillbilly wisdom

HILLBILLY WISDOM
I am not ashamed in the least to say that I come from good ole’ Hillbilly stock. I refuse to be insulted by that by that term. You see, I know all about an Arkansas work ethic, hillbilly ingenuity, and the beauty of the Ozark Mountains. You bet I’m a hillbilly.
I also proudly claim some of the Hillbilly wisdom passed down from my father. I repeat one of his favorite sayings every time I think about just giving up. Every time I want to quit, or am just too tired, or would rather sit in front of the television, I hear my father say, “Deb, you never see a fat racehorse.”
I just let that proverb settle in for a little while. You can tell just by looking, a racehorse has places to go, things to do, victories to win. It’s obvious in his carriage, his build and his manner. He’s got too much to do to eat hay all day.
Well, I would like to become a racehorse too. I may never be Kentucky Derby material, but I can be an obviously trained and athletic grandma. I can get up every day and focus on “doing”, eating well, and eating right. I can spur this old nag on for a few more laps. Whether I cross the finish line first, in the middle, or dead last won’t really matter. I’ll finish as a racehorse. And as Daddy says, “ You never see a fat racehorse.”

April 18, 2008 09:09 am

Tim the tyrant

This week, my sister and I had our first experience having a training session with someone other than Kirby. We have had group sessions with most of the other trainers, but Kirby has always trained us personally in our twice-weekly workouts. Well, Kirby came down with a cold this week and so we encountered Tim “The Tyrant” Howell.
Now don’t get me wrong. Tim looks deceptively sweet. He talks very nicely to you, introducing himself and telling a little about his background and training. He is very nice, very friendly. Then he begins by saying, “ I am a real nut about form. I want you to do it right.” Okay, Tim, no problem. Such a nice young man, we two grandmothers think to ourselves.
He then proceeds to show us various exercises using the free weights, balance bars and machines. Now, this is how tyranny began. We did not just “lift” weights. Instead we “maximized” (one of his favorite words) the benefits of each move. In other words we make sure that each lift effectively expands the right muscle and contracts the other muscle. You don’t just jerk a weight up off the floor, you do it with correct form so that each and every muscle feels the burn.
We “maximized” 65 pounds of dead lifts 30 times each. We “maximized” 30 reps with 200 pounds on the leg press. We “maximized” all those shoulder curls, bicep curls, etc., etc. Do you get the drift? We even had to maximize that medieval torture device known as the plank. No, we did not do a one-minute plank and just hold on to survive. Instead, we did 3 thirty seconds planks, in perfect form (that means butt down). In fact, if you dared try to stick that butt in the air and gain a few seconds relief, he pushed you back down to “maximize” the plank. That’s when the name “Tim the Tyrant” started flashing through my mind.
After we cooled down, we realized that we had just had a great workout. Yes, I did call Tim a few mean names as I lay with sweat running down my nose, plopping onto the mat. But, I have found that in order to have a good workout you’ve got to hate your trainer at least part of the session. Now, a few days later, I am back to thinking of him as “such a nice young man” again. And he is really.
But if you want a “maximized” workout, call on Tim the Tyrant.

April 11, 2008 08:19 pm

Her best foot forward

1. Of all the places I wanted to slim down, my feet were not at the top of the list. However, now that I have lost a significant amount of weight, I find that my shoes are too big. In fact, a week or so ago, I was complimented by a very good-looking man on my weight loss. Being the extremely cool and suave person that I am, I responded by thanking him and then proceeding to walk right out of my shoes as I left. Hmmm, have I been walking around with fat feet all this time?
2. I didn’t realize that a long period of eating correctly will actually change your taste for food. I honestly CRAVE water now and not diet soda. I can walk by a donut without drooling (well, not too much anyway). The last time my husband opened a bag of Cheetos I did not go into crazed attack dog mode while ripping the bag apart in a frenzy. Instead, I didn’t even want any! They didn’t even sound good to me. Hmmm, should someone warn Frito-Lay?
3. We all hear about the kindness of strangers, but it doesn’t really sink in until you personally become a recipient of some that good will. I can’t even begin to count the number of people, totally unknown to me, who have stopped in the middle of the busyness of their own day, to encourage me, congratulate me, and wish me well on this journey. Hmmm, are Hoosiers some of the friendliest and kindest people on the face of the planet?

April 11, 2008 08:18 pm

Watch out Erin

IMPORTANT POINTS FOR WEEK 9
I.
Well, here we are on the downhill slope of the Fitness Challenge. We have 4 weeks remaining. Erin has entered and has challenged that she will “kick our respective butts” by losing more in 5 weeks time than we have lost in the whole 13 weeks. Can she do it? Chad is going to train her. She is very self-motivated. She already teaches fitness class five days a week at the gym, and she has been through the Challenge once before. She might just pull it off --- but not without a heck of a struggle from me! Erin, watch out girl—with age comes a little bit of wisdom, too. I may be old and fat, but I am also older, fatter and WISER! Watch your back, girl. Grandma has got it on!
II.
My son, Sam, is currently in Kandahar, Afghanistan. He has been deployed for about 2 weeks now. He is doing all right. He says the base at Kandahar is nicer than he expected (but he didn’t expect much!) He has E-Mail, but rarely will be able to call. His wife and son in North Carolina are doing okay. Meantime, we get to babysit the “granddog” for them! Sam will be returning around October. His 2nd son, Seth McDaniel, will be born in the meantime.
I am taking a positive attitude. I hit the gym instead of eat, and I walk the dog a lot! Both are good for my worries and for the Fitness Challenge. Beware, Erin!
III.
My fifth graders have noticed that I am losing weight. Several have mentioned it. They also want to blog,too. Sounds like a good writing assignment to me. However, I may do a lot of editing—5th graders tend to be a little too truthful, sometimes. I can just imagine comments like, “Mrs. McDaniel’s booty shakes less now than it did before.” As I said before, 5th graders are very honest. BRUTALLY honest.
IV.
Good-bye plateau! Would you believe I got off my plateau by eating more? My trainer advised me that I am NOT EATING ENOUGH for my strenuous workouts. My body has gone into protective mode due to working out and cutting calories so strenuously. I am now upped from 1200 to 1500 calories a day---and it WORKED. Almost immediately after upping my calories, I lost another pound and a half! I am now at 16 _ pounds lost. Thank you, Kirby. You really know your stuff!

March 28, 2008 04:19 pm

One step closer to fitness

Webster’s Dictionary tells me that a plateau is “a relatively stable area; a leveling off.” Ha! Goes to show you just what old Noah Webster knows. I am officially on a plateau in weight loss, and let me tell you there is nothing stable or level about it! It is pure frustration.
A plateau is running (yes, running!) 20 minutes out of an 80-minute workout and finding the next morning that you have GAINED a pound.
A plateau is being good, passing up the KFC, opting instead for grilled chicken with steamed vegetables, then standing on the scale the next day and watching it stubbornly stuck on the same number. Ditto the next day. And the next. A whole week of no weight loss. None, zero, zilch, nada--need I go on?
A plateau is stripping off every item of clothing, filing your nails, using the bathroom, taking off your make-up, checking for lint in your belly button, cleaning your ears, spitting, and blowing your nose before you weigh-- all in the futile attempt to nudge that little red needle just a tad to the left. Then, once again, finding that needle hasn’t budged. Kicking the scale doesn’t help, either. That’s a plateau.
My trainer has told me repeatedly that plateaus are a natural part of a fitness program. Muscle weighs more than fat. I am gaining in muscle weight. I am toning. I know all this. I also know that this is the point I would have given up before. It’s no fun to do something that stubbornly refuses to show results for a whole week.
This time, though, I won’t give up. I’ll keep working. I’ll stick to my eating plan, making a few adjustments at Kirby’s advice, and I’ll turn this plateau into a step. Not a “leveling off”. Not a “stable area”, but instead, one more step on the road to fitness.

March 21, 2008 02:42 pm

Motivation in the middle

It’s official that we are in the middle stages of the Fitness Challenge. At this point we are all trying to find things which will motivate us beyond the usual 15 pounds everyone loses on a diet. Here are a few of the things that have motivated me.
• Compliments — I have received so many compliments!
• Looser jeans — I am about to be forced to get some new ones, the old ones sag to the point that I can hardly keep them up.
• Pride — I am beginning to feel proud of what I can do and how I am shaping up!
• Anticipation — Wow, what size will I be by the time school starts next year?

March 14, 2008 10:40 am

Toughness

Toughness is a matter of the spirit, not of muscle… Alex Karras

As we approach the mid-point of this challenge, we face the true test of our resolve. Gone are giddy congratulations upon being one of the “chosen few” to compete. No longer are we front-page news. Each of us has marveled at how far we’ve come, but each of us has also been disappointed at least once by what we are unable to do yet. Each of us has had opportunity to slack off, to eat a little too much, to skimp on a workout. Now is the time that this challenge becomes a matter of spirit, not of muscle. The glamour is gone.
This is the mid-part of the journey, the seven-year itch in a marriage. This is where we decide not to be content with the same 15 pounds we’ve lost on every other diet we’ve tried. It is the time when the spirit takes over and demands something better from a body lulled into complacency from years of inactivity.
The Apostle Paul spoke quite eloquently of this point when he said, “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” My flesh is definitely weak. My spirit has taken a beating or two, also, but it is not broken. I am not content with the status quo. I want something better. I will discipline my spirit and my wayward body will eventually follow.
Toughness…. a matter of the spirit. Yeah, I’m working on that. The rest will come.

March 11, 2008 08:20 am