At The Corner of Inn and Sane

Week 2 of Holiday-Avoid-The-Poundage Blowout

This week was a GREAT week!! The soreness from last week was gone, and the highlight was when I was doing my P90X Plyometric workout on Tuesday, some random guy came up to me and stopped me to tell me how impressed he was. Thanks, random guy...you made my week!! Of course, I could hardly breathe & was foaming at the mouth to try and tell him thank you.

Since I decided to do this 8-week round of P90X at the gym, I wanted to share why I chose to do it this way. My school opened up a new state-of-the-art fitness center at the beginning of the semester. All students pay approximately $70.00 per semester for fees to use this facility (whether we choose to use it or not), and I felt that I'm already paying for this awesome gym, I might as well use it. Looks snazzy, huh?! I'm a lucky girl.

Here's My Little Corner Of The Gym Every Thursday For Yoga

This week, I'm so very THANKFUL for:

Proactiv - My acne started at age 22, and hasn't stopped since. Great product.
My wonderful children - who told me today that..."You're beauuuful..."
My extraordinary locker. For an additional $15 per semester, I get this lucky sucker. It is so large that it houses my yoga mat, my backpack, shampoo, conditioner, a toothbrush & toothpaste, my ibuprofen, facial and body cleanser, moisturizer, an extra pair of running shoes, AND my P90X workout booklet.

Jay's Birthday Weekend

The Four of Us As Meerkats

Fighting Giraffes....They Were Really Getting After It

Kinds Of Poop

Made & Decorated With Love

The Birthday Boy

Week 1 Of Holiday Avoid-The-Poundage Blowout

I'm always amazed at the immediate results I see with this program every time I do it (this is my third round, although both rounds 2 and 3 were only 8 weeks instead of the full 90 days). Within just a few days, I see definition.

I'm also always amazed at how sore I get. Even though I'm a consistent worker-outer, this program just seems to kick things up to a different level for me. On Friday, I felt so hypoglycemic after the legs/back workout that I was unable to finish the Ab Ripper, and had to get some Gatorade in me along with a shower and a nap before I could do anything for anyone. That hasn't happened to me in a long, long time.

This week started off the event-full holiday season. On Friday, my husband was inducted into the Collegiate Honor Society. The thermostat went out, so we replaced that on Saturday. Today, Sunday, is my husband's birthday (and a cheat meal day...I'm baking a cake here shortly), and then tomorrow I've got an exam that I've been studying for incessantly. I didn't do Kenpo yesterday, and I'm thinking instead of replacing that workout with one of Tracy Anderson's today. They're both cardio and work the same muscle groups, I just don't know if I'm ready yet for the Kenpo. It's one of my least favorite workouts, and I cannot stand the warmup. I'll tack on the Ab Ripper from Friday to today's cardio so that I get it all in.

During this season of thanksgiving, I'm thankful for:

My husband. We've never hid our ups and downs, and we've made a great family together. I'm so very proud that he was honored for his accomplishments. He works diligently at school, and God granted us another year.I hope for many more.
Gatorade - the old fashioned, powder kind. A scoop of that into my empty water bottle allows me to mix it at the gym for a post-workout recovery drink.
Ibuprofen. I keep it in my locker at the gym and also in my book bag. An old lady needs her ibuprofen every now and then.
Tony Horton...who put down onto DVD what most collegiate programs were doing for strength and conditioning and marketing it for the average consumer.
ACDC, Kid Rock, Metallica, P!nk, Alanis Morissette, and every other artist that produced angry music that hits the lower two, most visceral chakras. They keep energy flowing during the really tough exercises. When it's time to hit the pull-up bar, I punch in one of their songs.

About This Time

Monday was Halloween.

Twenty four days later is Thanksgiving, and then after that it's Christmas & finally New Year's Eve. It's already started...first the Halloween candy-eating, then the pie baking, the stuffing recipes, Christmas Cookie baking, and it all gets topped off with champagne at the end....

...and a New Year's Resolution.

Every year about this time, I find it really tough to stay motivated. Why eat well when all of these once-a-year traditions are out and about? Candy corn won't be around for a whole year, so why not take advantage of it now? I cannot stand the taste of pumpkin pie, but heck....it's not Thanksgiving without one, right?

This year, I've decided to repeat some things that I know work well for me through this really tough part of the year.

1. Motivation
I started an 8-week round of P90X on Monday, October 31st. Every time I begin a new fitness regimen, I find that my motivation skyrockets. This is one of the reasons why I try to change things up every few months and do something new...it stays interesting. This year, instead of doing P90X at home, I'll be doing it at the gym.

2. Structure
I calendered my 60 day routine. Day 1 was Monday. Eight weeks later is Saturday, December 24th - Christmas Eve. I feel confident when I plan. I'm able to look ahead at the next week, plan my weeks out around responsibilities including schoolwork, the kids holiday school events, and finals. This season brings about so many events that I know flexibility is key along with structure, and that's where accountability comes in.

I also calendered my cheat meals between now and the New Year. I'm a big believer in cheat meals because without them, we feel deprived. Deprivation leads to binge eating, and that leads to shame. My cheat meals between now and the New Year include: Halloween night, my husband's birthday dinner in November, November Date Night, Thanksgiving Dinner, December Date Night, Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas (all day), and dinner on New Year's Eve. As we'll be heading out of town for the Christmas holiday, I know that last week of P90X is going to be tough so I'm planning ahead and making workout arrangements in advance. In keeping with P90X structure, I'll not be drinking alcohol during the 60 days with the exception of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve. This is how alcohol sabotages weight loss.

3. Accountability
The person who has 3 sources of accountability is much more likely to be successful than the person who has none. So, I'm choosing once again to blog weekly regarding this end-of-year avoid-the-holiday-poundage blowout that I'm doing.

4. Reward
There's nothing like the pot-o-gold at the end of the rainbow, but neither food nor days off should ever be used as a reward. Food is fuel, it's to be used as such. Days off are for rest and repair for the body and mind. One of my favorite health-promoting rewards is a good, deep tissue massage. So, that week between Christmas and the New Year, I'm planning on going and getting me some rubbing.

Won't you join me and we can do this together?

Fall 2011 Photos

If I could have one wish, it would be that our two children remain close as they grow together. We've had an amazing fall with a new semester, Jet's 7th birthday, and beautiful cool weather.