As if...

It seems like forever ago...but it was probably 9-12 months ago when Matt (my trainer) and I were running one (0.1 mile), two (0.2 mile), three (0.3 mile) laps around the track...him always encouraging me to push myself to go faster and be better. One of those days, he made a comment, "Imagine this. You're running 50 second laps now. Some day, for warm up, you'll be running a mile." (He requires me to do a 10 minute warm up before training, so in essence, doing a 10 minute mile.) I rolled my eyes at him and probably said, "As if."

Again, Matt has proven me wrong. I am now running a mile for warm up, but it's not a 10 minute mile, rather it's a 13 minute mile. I guess I've come a long way; I just wish I've had a better attitude about it.

Hawaii

I was in Hawaii for 11 days and had a blast. Below is a current picture of me, I used to never be able to do this angle because of my double chin, guess that's going away!

The Nike+ Human Race

I had been meaning to blog about the Nike+ Human Race for quite some time now, but my traveling schedule was overwhelming, between being in Tucson for about week, in Austin a week, in Atlanta for a week, in Austin two weeks, and finally in Hawaii for two weeks. I'm catching up now on it!


This race absolutely AMAZING! It was incredible seeing everybody wearing the same color running around corners and up and down hills. The concert afterwards wasn't too shabby either. Our start time in Austin was 6:30 pm the day before Labor Day. Since I knew this, I started training outdoors whenever I could because I knew the heat would play a huge factor for me. In my outdoor training jogs/walks, I was doing a 16.6 minute mile after work in 95+ degree heat. Usually with a morning start time, my goal has always been a 15 minute mile, but with the heat, I changed it to a 16 minute mile. My average race day? 15.9 minute mile! Here were my times:

First 2.5K: 9 minutes, 30 seconds / km
Second 2.5K: 10 minutes, 20 seconds / km
Third 2.5K: 10 minutes, 02 seconds / km
Fourth 2.5K: 9 minutes, 45 seconds / km

It was my first chipped time event, so no guessing this time! A few other interesting facts about my race:

1. I came in 215,394th worldwide.
2. I came in 9,790th in Austin.
3. I came in 73,957th among women runners worldwide.
4. I came in 4,867th among women runners in Austin.

So who's up for it next year? :)

Nike+ Human Race

The Nike+ Human Race is exactly that, a human race for the human race. Think about it, the concept is fantastic: People uniting for fitness. In 25 cities across the world, everybody will be running a 10K at the same time on August 31, 2008. How cool does that sound? Well guess what, even if there is not a 10K race in a city near you, you can still participate at home!

My start time in Austin, Texas is 6:30pm , and it will no doubt be a hot one! But I am still going to run as much as I can of it. I ran a mile today on the treadmill (a first) in 12:10, my fastest time yet (I've jogged a mile before in races). The cost is minimal for a lot of blood, sweat, tears, and fun (there's a concert afterwards). I'm super excited!

Friends who are in town, I'll be sending out an e-mail to see if anybody may interested in joining me. Yawhoooooo!

Motivated...

You wouldn't think that I was motivated by the fact that I skipped the gym today, BUT...I sure did go shopping, and I am SUPER stoked! Depending on the cut or style of the clothing, I can now shop at regular stores. Holy crap, did I nearly poop my pants when I tried something on at Bass today and it fit. IT FIT. I know, I know, some store clothing lines run a little big, but I'm glad I decided to try it on anyway, something I normally wouldn't even attempt. The only frustrating thing is that I'm not losing the weight proportionately, so there are many things that just look hilarious on me. I'll take pictures next time...if they allow photography in the dressing rooms. Do you think they'd care?

Wednesday Weigh-In: 7/30/08

Weight Statistics
Starting Weight (1/1/05): 366.00
Weight Started with Matt (5/14/07): 342.00
Current Weight (7/30/08): 282.50
Weight Loss To Date: 83.50 lbs
% Body Weight Loss: 22.8%


Measurement Statistics
Starting Total Inches (10/26/06): 258.25
Total Inches Started with Matt (5/14/07): 247.50
Current Total Inches (7/30/08): 219.25
Total Inches Lost To Date: 39.00 in


The FANTASTIC
I'm back on track! I've lost 10.5 lbs in the past 3.5 weeks!
I feel like a girl, I can cross my legs!
I'm going to Hawaii! It'll be my first real vacation since I started working 4.5 years ago!

The Good
I'm almost down another size!
I'm pretty sure I'll be doing the Nike+ Human Race 10K on August 31st. I'll blog about this later.

The Bad
I'm exhausted, and I feel like I don't have a life again, but I'm making it work.
I'm still not getting enough calcium, I think I'm going to have to supplement. I hate supplements and whole-heartedly believe you should get all your vitamins and minerals through diet alone.

The Ugly
The chocolate and salt cravings have been unreal lately. I'm unsure about the salt thing, but if your body craves something, you usually need something that it offers.
WORK........

Race Day: Texas Round-Up

I participated in the Texas Round-Up 10K yesterday morning, and I definitely have a few thoughts...

1. The course was more difficult and challenging than the Capitol 10K.
2. The Capitol 10K had more "cheer" support along the way.
3. The Capitol 10K had more music along the course; although the Texas Round-Up did have more music at the end of the course (I believe).
4. We got to see and hear the governor at the Texas Round-Up. I loved hearing how passionate he is about fitness and health.

I'm not going to lie, I found this 10K extremely challenging for a couple of reasons. First, I lacked a good night's rest the night before, I won't dive into details, but I had a blast Friday night! Secondly, it was humid. Thirdly, the course was tougher!

My accomplishments:
1. My first mile was faster than the 5K (but this first mile was slightly downhill compared to the other one). At the 5K, I did it in 14:15, this time, 13:20.
2. My overall two mile was faster than the 5K. At the 5K, I did it in 30:30, this time, 30 minutes even (maybe a bit quicker than that). Now I do have to say, the second mile was really slow for me, but it was continuously uphill, so the fact that I was till ahead of pace was great!
3. I hit the 5K marker at about the same time as the last race.
4. I finished the race in 1:40:00, pretty much on the nose. Much slower than the first 10K when I was chasing Matt (he timed us at 82ish minutes, I timed us at 93ish minutes), but there are several reasons why. The course was much more hilly, and I have not been training for hills as big as these. In addition, due to the hills, my heart rate got into a range in which I was not comfortable with, so I had to slow down a few times. On the hills, if I was jogging, it was in the 85-90% of my maximum heart rate, which is never the case when I'm at the gym.

I'm not sure when my next race will be, it may be the Lone Star 5000 mid-May...we'll see!

Challenges...

I tend to meet challenges from friends head on, as if I have to prove to them I can do it. I'm not sure why I always felt like I needed to prove myself, but I have.

My trainer, has on occasion, "challenged" me to a few different things. About a month ago, I won $5 for completing my last set of jumps, and last week...well, I won a sort of different challenge.

Matt has this habit of making me do something so much, I end up hating it. Something I hated one month can be easily replaced with something else. For the longest time, I hated shoulder presses because he made me do them ALL the time. I would groan and moan every time he made me do them. Well, a few months ago, this was replaced with girl pushups, we started out small, three sets of 10, then three sets of 12, three sets of 15, and then last week three sets of 16. I was PMSing pretty bad last Wednesday and put up a stink about doing them, so he made me a challenge: If I could do one real pushup, I wouldn't have to do three sets of 16 girl pushups. I quickly made the deal. I got down on the ground and did a single pushup. He said a deal was a deal, and we walked the track and did my second favorite thing in the world (sarcasm): shoulder presses. We got back to the mat, and Matt says, "A deal is a deal, you won't be doing three sets of 16 of girl pushups, I want three sets of 10 of the real thing." My mouth dropped, and I slipped under my breath, "Jerk!" He kept his end of the deal, now I had to keep mine. I didn't get three sets of 10 of real pushups in (muscles fatigued), but it was a start. Next time I won't open my big mouth, OR...only accept a challenge after I really think about the aftermath. :)

First Non-Scale Victory: Race Day

Today I had to give myself my FIRST Non-Scale Victory (NSV)! I wanted it to be ultra-special, and that it is!

I participated in the Schlotzky's 5K Bun Run '08 this morning. I wasn't going to do another race until the 10K at the end of April, but I got talked into it, only for her to have to cancel last minute, life happens. So I decided to do it on my own anyway, and had a blast! Matt (my trainer) wanted me to run the whole thing; I told him I would try, but after waking up to a slightly sore knee, I knew I had to alter that goal. My new goal was to jog a mile, walk a mile, jog the last 1.1 miles. (For those who don't know, a 5K is 3.1 miles, a 10K is 6.2 miles.) This, of course, would be a challenge all on its own because the furthest I have ever jogged on the treadmill was 0.6 miles straight. I also planned it strategically because the "hill of death" (as I would like to call it) was in that second mile, and I knew I'd have to walk up that anyway...

Seeing that we are celebrating my first official NSV, one would assume that I met my goal. In fact, I creamed it! I jogged the first mile with hesitancy, but made it. Once I got into my rhythm, it was quite easy not to stop. I walked after the first "watering hole" which was at 1.1 miles, picked up my jog again until I hit hill #1, which is followed by a nice downward slope (runs pretty nice), with the hill of death just as you round that corner onto 15th street. The hill of death kicked my butt during the Capitol 10K a couple weeks ago, but I knew about it and was ready for it! Overall, I estimate that I jogged 2.6 miles (may be a conservative estimate). So again, here's that fun math stuff; this time I actually remembered to wear my watch:

Mile 1: 14:15 minutes
Mile 2: 16:15 minutes (clock read 30:30)
Mile 3: 15:00 minutes (clock read 45:30)
Finish: 01:30 minutes (clock read 47:00)

Originally I wanted to do it in 42 minutes, after the first mile I said, nope, should be 45 minutes... Turned out to be 47 minutes, but that's okay! I jogged for at least 40 minutes of this thing, and dammit, that's something I'm going to be proud of because the most I ever jogged on the treadmill in intervals was 16 minutes (averaged 4.5mph).

That's my FIRST NSV... Actually, it should be my second because I proved Matt wrong at the gym last week. Now that's a funny story I'm going to have share very soon...

And for those of you who are interested in seeing how wet and miserable I looked during the Capitol 10K a couple weeks ago, click here. I'm in the green tank top. My favorite photograph, by far, is the second one, where I'm racing to the finish line while Matt's high-fiving another friend's success.

More about the 10K

Now that my head's screwed back into place, I can tell you a bit more about my first 10K!

There was a 30% chance of rain, but the weather guys always say that and it NEVER rains here in Texas, so I thought they were lying to me again. For those who don't know, I read somewhere that 30% means 30% of the viewing area, and in Austin, the weather is very different in South Austin compared to North Austin compared to West Austin. Anyway, it was super humid (near 100%), and as we waited for the timed runners to take off, it started to sprinkle then rain steadily. By the time we crossed the start line, it was already 20 minutes into the race.

The Capitol 10K encourages people to dress up, so we got to see a few interesting costumes along the way. My absolutely favorite part was when we were by the University of Texas stadium, we started hearing chanting behind us, you know, soldiers jogging in formation kind of chant. Eventually they pass us, but it was Austin Police Department cadets. They "sang" some interesting tunes for us. OH! And how can I forget, there were bands throughout the course playing for us! It wouldn't be Austin otherwise!

The rain ended about half way through. While the rain was refreshing, I just felt like I wasn't sweating because of the humidity, not to mention the roads get slippery when they're just wet and not soaked. I also had no hand-mouth coordinator when I grabbed water either! I literally spilled half the water down my chest and drank the other half. I guess I have to work on my transitions!

Matt asked me something interesting today: "Were you proud of yourself when you crossed the finish line?" I actually had to think about it because I wasn't sure - but yeah, I was proud. I wish I ran more of it, but there's always next time? Who's up for the end of April?

My First 10K

I completed my first 10K a couple of hours ago. Notice how I said first? I suppose there's more coming my way! I spent most of the race "catching up" to Matt, Terri, and Leslee (sp?), but we all finished. (Just a quick update, we did a run/walk; my "catching up" was always a jog because they were walking so fast!) I meant to time it by my watch, but I forgot my watch at the car, so we had to rely on the race clock or Matt's cell phone. Matt calculated that we did the 6.2 miles in 82 minutes, meaning it was 14.4 minutes per mile, or 4.4 mph. My calculation, though, was based on the time clock, and I got we were doing 15 minutes per mile, or 4 mph. What can I say, I'm a math geek; I do it for my day job. As usual, I think I'm right...I'm a woman after all. :)

I've decided not to do the Bun Run in mid-April, but rather skip over it and do the Texas Round-Up at the end of April. I have a month to train!

I also have to state the fact that Matt did not have to do the 10K with us, but this is just one thing that makes him, as a trainer, above the others. Even though I give him crap all the time, what sister wouldn't?

Wednesday Weigh-In

Weight Statistics
Starting Weight (1/1/05): 366.00
Weight Started with Matt (5/14/07): 342.00
Current Weight (3/5/08): 289.50
Weight Loss To Date: 76.50 lbs
% Body Weight Loss: 20.9%


Measurement Statistics
Starting Total Inches (10/26/06): 258.25
Total Inches Started with Matt (5/14/07): 247.50
Current Total Inches (3/5/08): 221.00
Total Inches Lost To Date: 37.25 in

Monthly Total Inches Lost: 1.5 inches


The FANTASTIC
I'm getting back into the swing of things when it comes to weight loss.
Matt is giving me new things to work on at the gym.
I'm under 290lbs!

The Good
Matt worked me out so hard on Thursday, I could barely walk on Friday.
Matt, another client of his, and I entered the Capitol 10K at the end of March. I will also be entering the Texas Round-Up Challenge 10K at the end of April. I'm hoping these "competitions" will motivate me to work harder, and I always like to improve, so that's my goal between races.
This guy at the gym is encouraging me to train for the Austin Marathon next year. I find this unrealistic, but I'm up for the challenge. First thing's first, though, let me run a 10K!

The Bad
Matt worked me out so hard on Thursday, I could barely walk on Friday. Needless to say, I skipped cardio on Friday.
Soup and liquid diet this week...

The Ugly
Strep - need I say more?

Wednesday Weigh-In: 1/23/08

Most of the bloating is gone now, so my life's getting back to normal. Today I weighed in at 293.5. Not losing a lot these days, but I've been slacking in the diet (see below).


The FANTASTIC
I haven't missed a day at the gym and I did three double sessions.
A friend is going to cycle from Austin, Texas to Anchorage, Alaska with the Texas4000 club to raise cancer awareness.

The Good
I got to see Five Times August last night at Stubb's.
I'm going to bed soon, I can't wait to sleep!

The Bad
I'm getting another cold.
I worked on Monday even though it was a day off.
Lots of deadlines at work.
My shins aren't doing well.

The Ugly
Ugh...chocolate chip muffins and french fries. Thankfully there isn't any football this weekend.

I LOVE ME

I'm catching up on blogs tonight, and came across Krissie's "I LOVE ME" list, so here it goes...

1. What do you absolutely love about your body?
Of course, the hardest question has to be the first one. I really had to think about this one while I was at the gym. The answer? My growing muscles. I've been impressed with how strong I have become physically (did 20 pound bicep curls today!).

2. When did you surprise yourself with your physical strength?
A year and a half ago, I was doing bicep curls with 5lb weights. Depending on the type of curl, I'm either using 15, 17.5, or 20lbs. My trainer helps me realize my physical strength all the time when he pushes me on the track, running two or three laps for a first time. He's always so proud and excited when I do hit a new goal like that; I may not physically show my excitement, but I do express it inwardly.

3. When were you braver than you ever thought you could be?
When I moved to Texas without ever visiting the area.

4. When did your self-control blow you away?
There was plenty of times in the past year in which I would go out to eat and only eat half of my meal. I'm slowly beginning to focus on the people I am with rather than the food consumption part.

5. What is your proudest moment ever?
The first time I was ever proud of myself was last month when my weight dropped below 300 pounds, reaching my first goal.

6. When was the last time you felt absolutely beautiful?
Five (maybe four...) guy personal trainers and my trainer's wife took me to a bar to celebrate reaching my first goal before their Christmas party. I bought a black dress the day before, wore heels (never do), and just felt absolutely beautiful. We were the only group in the bar, but eventually other groups of guys were coming in, so pretty much it was just me and my trainer's wife for females in the whole place. I had to go to the ladies room a couple of times, and I just felt these gazes follow me. Usually, I would think these gazes were because I was too fat or had toilet paper on my heel, but I felt like they were checking me out. The last time I went to the bathroom was right before we left the bar and it was just something special to see the crew standing, waiting by the door for me. I just had so much confidence that night, I think that was the key.

7. Why do you deserve to meet your goals?
I deserve to be my first priority in life. It's the first time I have ever done anything like this for me.

Wednesday Weigh-In

Just a small reminder, my last weigh-in was on Friday, so it has not been a full week yet.

Weight Statistics
Starting Weight (1/1/05): 366.00
Weight Started with Matt (5/14/07): 342.00
Current Weight (1/9/08): 295.00
Weight Loss To Date: 71.00 lbs
% Body Weight Loss: 19.4%

Five Day Weight Loss: 1.0 lb


The FANTASTIC
Today, I turned the corner out of my office just as Cindy did down the hall. Cindy works in a different area of the department, but we have chatted a bit here and there. As we approached the door to the hall, she exclaimed, "You've lost weight!" The only person in their section that knows I'm losing weight is Carrie, so it was nice that somebody noticed.
While at the gym today, Destiny, a trainer, grabbed my attention with a "How much have you lost so far?" (I think her male client was curious but didn't want to approach me.) I asked back, "Since I started with Matt or overall?"

The Good
I got two double sessions in this week (which is good since I'm sick).
I ran 6 laps at the gym on Monday.
I've been very productive at work.

The Bad
I have been sick for almost a week now.
I'm stressed for a variety of reasons: deciding about Boston, deadlines at work, and confusing men.
Three beers on Sunday (one per half).
I should be eating more protein (I really should add this to resolutions list).
Instead of doing four weight training sessions (two with Matt, two on my own), Matt and I only did two full body workouts.

The Ugly
I'm a big klutz. I fell on Sunday, bruised my hip and left quad. Still really sore when I run.
I was way under in consuming my calories today (busy at work). I tend to then "overconsume" when I get home...trying not to tonight.
Sweets and salty stuff - need I say more?
My water consumption is not as high as it should be for the amount of exercise I'm getting (I should be drinking a gallon). I cramped up pretty bad last night.

Wednesday Weigh-In (On Friday)

Weight Statistics
Starting Weight (1/1/05): 366.00
Weight Started with Matt (5/14/07): 342.00
Current Weight (1/4/08): 296.00
Weight Loss To Date: 70.00 lbs
% Body Weight Loss: 19.1%

Bi-Weekly Weight Loss: 1.5 lbs


The FANTASTIC
After about two weeks of traveling, I actually still lost weight!
I got to see snow and feel really brisk air for the first time in almost two years.
After showing a guy how to order a beer at the bar on New Years, it kind of felt nice that he watched me walk away with confidence. (There's definitely more to the story.)

The Good
I got home in one piece.
I went to the gym once in Boston and actually looked forward to hitting the gym as soon as I got back.
People seem excited that I'm back in town.

The Inbetween
I ran into my old trainer at the gym on Wednesday. I found out he stepped down as manager at the other location and is back into training at our facility. Obviously it's my choice who I train with, and I am staying with Matt, but it's just strange to see Scott around again.

The Bad
The Boston dilemma (see yesterday's post).
I ate out a lot while in Boston, BUT it was mainly seafood.
I sprained a toe (don't ask how).
We didn't get to go snowboarding as planned. :-( We would have had to go to New Hampshire and weren't in the mood to drive that far.
I probably will not hit my next goal (30lbs in about two months).

The Ugly
My alcohol consumption was pretty high while in Boston (I drank all three nights).

Wednesday Weigh-In (on Thursday)

I waited until today to post my "Wednesday Weigh-In" because Matt and I were doing measurements this morning. So here are all my statistics!

Weight Statistics
Starting Weight (1/1/05): 366.00
Weight Started with Matt (5/14/07): 342.00
Current Weight (12/20/07): 297.50
Weight Loss To Date: 68.50 lbs
% Body Weight Loss: 18.7%

Weekly Weight Loss: 2.25 lbs


Measurement Statistics
Starting Total Inches (10/26/06): 258.25
Total Inches Started with Matt (5/14/07): 247.50
Current Total Inches (12/20/07): 224.25
Total Inches Lost To Date: 34.00 lbs

Monthly Total Inches Lost: 2.75 inches


The FANTASTIC
I am happy.
People are being inspired.
Based on 24 Hour Fitness measurements, I have lost just over 80lbs of fat and gained almost 53lbs of muscle (since I started training in July 2006).
I forced myself to go to the gym on Tuesday, even though I fought it soooo hard. I wanted to continue my streak (haven't missed a day in over a month!).

The Good
I realize I let my guard down when I drink and tend to have binging episodes.
My shins are currently not bothering me.
I'm learning (and Matt's quizzing me).
I created a "plan" for holiday gym time when I visit friends and family. Matt reviewed my weight training schedule.

The Bad
Pizza. I love it, but my hips don't.
Relied on "convenience" food (ie, processed) rather than fresh food.
I'm avoiding the stair monster (rotating stairs).
I need to increase my variety for cardio.
I'm still comparing my weight loss to those on the Biggest Loser (they lost 80+ lbs in 7 months, me: 44.5 lbs).
I still don't have all my Christmas shopping done (hmmm, maybe this should be filed under "ugly."
Because I wore higher high heels than I'm used at the festivities on Saturday night, my calves were torn up through Monday (meaning, I didn't have *the* best workout with Matt on Monday).

The Ugly
I still don't have all my Christmas shopping done (Yep! Fits better here.)
Drank way too much at the 24 Hour Fitness Christmas Party. Since I like being honest with y'all, I had (I think) 4 Vodka and Diet Cokes, 4 Vodka and Red Bulls, and a Jager Bomb. While I haven't done something like this since probably graduate school, no excuses.

Tip #4: Reward Yourself

I'm sure y'all have read this plenty of times, but reward yourself when you hit certain goals or have completed something you never even imagined doing. Really make these rewards a treat (not edible!), and something you usually wouldn't do for yourself. Make it special and memorable; you deserve it after all! A few ideas:

Massage
Pedicure/Manicure
Facial
A new outfit
A night on the town (in that new outfit)
Trying something new (skiing, snowboarding, etc)
Take a class
Mmmmm...peace and quiet for an hour
Skip town and go somewhere you've never been
Hire a cleaning lady for a day
YOUR CHOICE HERE

So what's my reward for hitting my goal? I'm going to buy a new outfit and possibly get a well needed pedicure/manicure. My trainer's allowing me to drink Saturday night when we go out! First time in about a month!

How do you reward yourself when you achieve the unachievable?

Wednesday Weigh-In

Starting Weight (1/1/05): 366.00
Weight Started with Matt (5/14/07): 342.00
Current Weight (12/12/07): 299.75
Weight Loss To Date: 66.25 lbs
% Body Weight Loss: 18.1%

Weekly Weight Loss: 2.25 lbs


The FANTASTIC
I hit my first milestone goal. AND I did it ten days ahead of schedule.
I am officially under 300lbs and haven't been here in many years.
I am proud of myself for the first time. (Please see this post.)
I ran three consecutive laps (0.3 mile) with Matt at the gym in 3:03 (a first).
I went to the gym every day.
I had to bump up my resistance levels on most of the machines I use.

The Good
I didn't have seconds during Thursday's potluck dinner.
I ate pretty well during Monday's potluck dinner.
I'm getting better control of trigger foods that I would binge on.
I got new sneakers. :)

The Bad
I attended three potlucks.
I had cake (a small slice of two different kindse) on Thursday.
I was nibbly while baking on Sunday.
I had Mexican food last Wednesday (tamales and salsa/chips).

The Ugly
Today's potluck. While I don't think what I ate was all that bad for me, I ate WAY too much. I'm still full and my body does not know what to do with the excess food. Mental note: Never, never, never fill my plate again, no matter how good it was. Stop overeating with my eyes.

The Gym

Saturday is a HUGE gym day for me, I'm usually there 2.5-3.5 hours, and that does not even include showering! I lift for about 1.5 hours, which is intermingled with some cardio on the track, and then I do at least 1.5 hours of cardio after lifting.

I was using the short block (stool) while using a leg resistance band, one end tied to my ankle and the other end tied to the block. I would use the leg that wasn't "tied" to step up on the block, lift my other knee up (the one tied) then kick my leg back, step down, and repeat ten times. I switch legs for a total of 30 reps on each leg. While doing these, an older woman comes up to me inbetween sets to inquire what areas on the body that exercise was working. It takes a lot of balance (which I'm slowly getting) and works the core, legs, and gluts. It also gets my heart rate up. She inquired about the color coding of the bands. Now here's the really cute part, she goes and gets her husband to show him what I was working on; he comes and watches a set. Three trainers (Scotty, Mike(?), and another) were training in the same area, so they probably got a kick out of this.

The exercise mentioned above is something my trainer had me do once, and well...I just couldn't do them during that session with him. A few weeks later, I tried them on my own and have put them into my training rotation. I am extremely happy that Matt's going to look over my training schedule that I'm going to plan for Christmas. As we keep talking about, this is a learning process for me and this is a big step for me.

Mike (I think that's his name) gave me a great compliment today, he said, "You're doing great." I know, I know, he's a trainer at the gym and he sees me float in and out all the time, but we don't chat like I do some of the other trainers, so I'll take this one! :)