Step 1: Lose 5 Pounds.... CHECK!

Yes, yes, the rumors are true. I have OFFICIALLY lost 5 pounds in my first week! :) Not the best first week on record for me with diets, but definitely going strong!

The difference? I enjoy what I'm doing. The bodybugg has kindof made this into a game. What can I do to burn the calories I need to burn? How quickly can I burn those calories? How can I fit it into my daily schedule? I think I'm seeing the difference day to day of how I'm growing and having fun with this, and it's helping. No day is the same this time around. I'm changing up my workouts, intensity, and food.

More than anything, I have the confidence. Usually this is the point when I say "Oh, I'm just going to go get a hamburger from McDonald's, I just lost 5 pounds! It won't kill me!" But you know what? I don't want it. I don't want to go back to what I was a month ago, or even a week ago!

Better watch out - I'm going to be one hot chick when this is all said and done! :) And don't EVER pick a fight with me. I know how to defend myself now!

"All you need to do is work out and eat right and shut up and listen to me." - Jillian Michaels

The Obsession

A lot of people lately have been asking me what my obsession is with the Biggest Loser. So here's the explanation:

I have been watching the Biggest Loser with my family since it first started. I think it's an amazing show, and an inspiring show, for people like myself who have had a weight problem their whole life. It gives us hope, and helps us realize that we can do it, all we have to do is try. When I went to the casting call with my sister, it was out of character for me. I usually wouldn't do that, I normally would say "Oh they won't take me, why even put myself through that?" But it again represented hope for me. I had worked out with Brenda for almost a year, and though my body has made some pretty serious changes and I had decided that working out wasn't so much a "chore" anymore, I was frustrated that I couldn't get in the mindset to change my eating habits. I felt lost, and afraid that I would never get my weight off. So I read up on casting calls for the Biggest Loser, and read about how people change after attending one. I didn't believe it, but I figured why not try? Why not see if I could make the show? And if I don't make the show, at least I tried and met some friends through the process. So I did, and I am so thankful that I did! Not only did I meet some amazing people through the process, but I decided this was my time to get the weight off.

It's hard to describe attending a casting call for the Biggest Loser. There are nerves all around, excitement all around, and most of all, HOPE. Everyone in the room has hope that they will get a callback and make it on the show. And for once, you're not the "fat person" in the room. You don't feel insecure because of your weight. You feel like a part of the group for once, and you're not being judged by your weight (unless you're thin, and then it's the looks of "Why are they here? They don't need this."). So you let your guard down, you talk to people around you, and you find the confidence that you never knew you had. Truly. I think it's one of those things that you don't understand until you're there.

So what's with the Jillian obsession? Jillian to me represents what we all go through. She was overweight when she was younger, and she lost the weight, and is since one of the best trainers in the world. She gets to the core of the weight problem, mostly emotional, and conquers it in every contestant she encounters. That to me is a trainer. I was fortunate to meet a local trainer that does that for me, Brenda. She is absolutely amazing, and she understands me! That is most important! I have always wanted to have a trainer that would find what I enjoy to do and help me excel in it, and that's exactly what Brenda did for me with martial arts. She is AMAZING, just for the record! :)

So, now that I have explained my obsession, let me talk about my day yesterday, since I was slightly sidetracked last night!

Yesterday was 100% a challenge for me. First of all, I started working at 8AM and ended at 8PM. Um... yikes! I was subbing until 3:30, got home at 4, changed my clothes, and was headed to the gym to work in the nursery from 4:30 to 8:30. My last kids left at 8, so I decided to head downstairs to workout.

Wait..... WHAT?!

Yes, I really went downstairs and worked out! My parents had just finished working out, and I was just starting. First of all, a HUGE round of applause and hugs for my parents! :) So proud! So I plugged in my iPod, got on the elliptical, and started working out. Now, it's Tuesday night, 8:00, um, hello Biggest Loser! So I changed the channel and worked out with the contestants. AMAZING! I have never worked so hard on my own... ever.

I was really tired the first 10 minutes of the workout. I had the elliptical on random setting, level 3. This is a usual for me, it's just challenging enough that I really feel like I get a workout. All of a sudden, I look down, and without realizing it I had reached 25 minutes! I love this! But again, I'm starting to feel fatigued from my work day. I'm so ready to quit and head home to eat dinner (finally, almost 9 hours AFTER eating lunch... ugh). So what do I do? Are you ready for this? I turned it up to level 5! I did the last 15 minutes on a level 5! And I didn't quit! I was so excited leaving the gym, I felt unstoppable! :)

So that was my day yesterday. And again, I'm turning into a bubble bath addict. I got to bed late, but I STILL had my bubble bath. Goodness gracious! Crazy person. Anyways, I have a day off, and I need to finish laundry, but that's my update for now.

I leave you with a quote from the Biggest Loser episode last night. Courtney was giving the white team advice, and I had to quote her today because it's so inspirational.

"You keep going, because every single step that you take, you're going in the right direction. And, when I lost 112 pounds at home, I made mistakes, but I kept pushing through those 1 step, 1 choice at a time. Just keep doing your thing and the weight is going to come off." - Courtney Crozier, Biggest Loser Season 11, so far down over 200 pounds

A New Team White....

I have decided I am the new team white. Tonight I worked out (yes, after 12 hours of work... wah wah wah...) while watching the Biggest Loser at the gym. It was awesome!

I think I named myself the new team white to compete with the teams.. although I don't know, I'm thinking I might just track my weight loss with the teams on Season 12 (the season I auditioned for) and compare results during their finale! :)

I'm a bit scatterbrained tonight, a lot going on around the house (Jazzy is on my lap as I type... true story). So I am going to check out for the night. I will write more tomorrow, granted that I don't get a job subbing tomorrow... more updates to come!

"I'm going to work so that it's a pure guts race at the end, and if it is, I am the only one who can win it." --Steve Prefontaine

To Nap or Not To Nap....

Well, it's official. I gave up a nap today to work out. WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME, PEOPLE?! Yeesh.

The change started today at work. I was subbing for my dad again, and he had his kids doing a writing assignment the past 2 school days. Friday I walked around the school quite a bit to get in my exercise between classes. Today, I came up with a new alternative. I like to call it "desk dancing". Basically, I sat at the desk, read my book, and was kicking my feet all over the place under the desk, marched my feet under the desk, all to burn calories while at work. Crazy, right? It was fun, though, and I burned 1800 calories while at work today! :) You can make fun of my "desk dancing" all you want, but I'll laugh all the way to the scale! Hahaha!

So when I got home from work I was TOTALLY exhausted! Usually what I would do is jump into my bed and sleep for a bit. So, habitually, I went upstairs, checked my email, and went into my bedroom. I turned on the TV, then sat on the bed. All the while I'm thinking... Ya know, I could really be working out right now on the Wii... so I changed my clothes, went downstairs, and popped in the Biggest Loser Wii game! By the time mom and dad got home, I was sweating up a storm! AND I burned like 400 calories in the 20 minute workout. It was awesome!

Mom and Dad and I went to work out right after that, and Mom and I boxed again. I'll tell you, she's a fighter! She was throwing punches at me and it's like shoot I know where I get it from now! She is amazing!

Well, I need my bubble bath now! :) It has done so well for me to take baths at night.. calms my muscles down! So great! And it gives me time to read my Kindle... which is awesome!

I'm positive positive positive today! So here, let me throw another quote at you!

"Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness." -Edward Stanley

"No Workout" Day

So I woke up this morning in the mindset that I was going to take the day off of working out. Yep... that totally lasted. I had barely burned 1000 calories by 11:00, and I couldn't stand it. So I put on my workout clothes, put Wii Fit in, and BAM! 1 hour later I had burned 700 calories.

I found that the best thing to do on Wii Fit to burn calories is boxing. I love it! It is still kindof what I do with Brenda and mom, only it's no impact. It definitely isn't as much of a stress reliever as actually punching a pad, but it gets the job done! I did the advanced level today, and between my feet and punches I couldn't keep everything straight! I was like dancing trying to figure it out, hahaha!

Speaking of dancing, after 30 minutes of Wii Fit, I decided to pop in Dancing with the Stars on Wii, to see how many calories I could burn doing that. I'll tell you what! Do the professional level as the woman partner, you really burn the calories! I was around 150 per "tournament" (4 dances)burned. It worked out REALLY well! And it's fun. Though I won't go into getting frustrated because my remote had given out on me halfway through the 2nd to last dance my last tournament... UGH! Tell me you are low on battery BEFORE you decide to stop working!

I really feel like I had a great workout! I was very sore after working out yesterday, and I took a bubble bath before I went to bed. I must say, I get it. The whole bubble bath thing really relaxes your muscles from working out AND helps you relax before going to bed! It was AMAZING! :) May need another bubble bath tonight.. :)

Now for a challenge - I am going to dinner tonight with some of my friends from college. We went through 2 years of cohort classes together (every class together for 2 years..), and we haven't seen each other since graduation! So we are all getting together and going to a restaurant tonight. Here's my thought - I am going to look at the online menu and figure out calories and stuff before I go, that way I know what to get and there's no guess work! Wish me luck!

Jillian put this up on Twitter today, so I had to make this my quote for the day:

Smart Tip: Most people sabotage themselves because they aren't mindful in the moment. Let your daily actions be governed by your goals & dreams. Whenever you are making an important decision first ask if it gets you closer to your goals or farther away. If the answer is closer, pull the trigger. If it's farther away make a different choice. Conscious choice making is a critical step in making your dreams a reality. - Jillian Michaels

Um... Who are you and what have you done with my habits?

Well, I've done it, I've officially starting thinking differently. I think this time my mind is just SO made up that I'm going to hit 130 pounds... it's crazy!

Yesterday, I had a long day of teaching, and of course I got home and had NO motivation to work out. But, I got in a nap before mom called to go work out, so I was in too much of a sleepy fog to fight it. It was tough, I'm not going to lie, I REALLY struggled to get started. But then I started jogging and I was good to go! I even went on the rowing machine, which I haven't been on since like 3 years ago. I hate that thing... but I'm like checked out 1 minute into it because I'm sweating and feeling the burn! I love it! Mom and I were done before dad, both of us were quite exhausted. Oh well, we got our workout in, right? :)

Today I had to work at the gym. I work in their child area, and I'll tell you what! Saturday mornings in the child area is ROUGH... lots of kids, lots of needs to be met... Yikes! But I did check my bodybugg afterwards just to see how many calories I burned, and I burned 1300 calories just in my 3 1/2 hours up there! :) Then I came downstairs (WARNING: this is totally out of character for me - significant change here!) and... wait for it... I WORKED OUT! I went on the elliptical, turned on my iPod, and 45 minutes later I walked my shaky legs out of the gym.

Now, again, this is totally out of character for me. Usually I would stop and get ice cream (Mr. Freeze is literally right around the corner, it's too easy...) or a burger. I stopped at Subway. Wait, it gets better! I walk in, and my usual mindset is a footlong cold cut and 3 cookies. What did I end up with? A 6 inch turkey on wheat with lettuce, green pepper, cucumber, and oil/vinegar. Who is this new person, and I can I hire her to take over my body for the rest of my life?

Now it's time to relax for a bit... I'm so close to all of my goals for the day (except calories, hello...) that I am going to kick my feet up for a few minutes before I go BACK to the gym to work AGAIN :) There's a kid's birthday party that I signed up for today. Why? I don't know... this is the new me, I guess... I just love the gym so much I can't get out for too long! LOL

Another quote? I think so.

“Is it easy? No! ... It has to be a conscious decision.” - Bob Harper

Sore Muscles...

Well, the soreness is starting to set in. But, I'm not letting it phase me! I pushed through tonight, and we went and worked out as a family again. Too bad I hurt my momma :( Sorry, mom! We were sparring and I may have hurt her with kicks... Bums.

On an amazing note, I started with my bodybugg today! My first full day. To start it off, I put it on last night to track my sleeping. And, of course, my first night with it on I can't sleep. I don't know what my issue was, but for some reason I tossed and turned until about 3AM. The good news? I still managed 4 3/4 hours of "REM" sleep! Not quite my goal of 8 hours, but hey.. I'll take it.

I started tracking my calories burned, my exercise, and my calorie intake. And guess what it told me tonight when I plugged it in? I'M IN A WEIGHT LOSS TREND! Yeah, buddy! Let's see how this shows on the scale!

Tonight was my first challenge! It was, as they call it on the Biggest Loser, my temptation challenge. We had our Winter Guard banquet, and it was tough, I'm not even going to lie! I had a tiny piece of cake, and I stuck with the carbs because I knew they would fill me up and help me eat less. It worked! I stayed under my calorie count! :)

I did lose confidence in my ability to meet my calorie burning goal. I am supposed to burn 3500 calories a day, which to me sounded like WAY TOO MANY! But when I got to work out, I had already burned 1900 from working all day. I was thinking, hey, piece of cake! I will burn these calories with no problem. I got home from working out, and what do you know? I only burned like 500 calories in my 45 minute workout. I know it's a lot, but when you have 3500 calories to burn, it's a bit intimidating! So what did I do? I chased my dog around the house. We seriously ran laps around the house! LOL It was AWESOME!

Well, as per usual, I am going to end with a quote...

"People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas." ~Author Unknown

Hitting my Stride...

Well, the past few days I have been tough about going to the gym daily. It has worked out super well! Since Sunday, when dad had his appointment with Rickey (Brenda's husband), we have been doing the whole "family workout" deal. It's perfect!

Today I really wasn't feeling it, I actually avoided going to the gym this morning. But then dad got home from school, we sat and chatted a bit, then decided we need to go to the gym. So we did! So proud! I went and did 30 min. on the elliptical (stayed between 50 and 55 on my stride, I was on a level 3 random, so it wasn't easy!), then I went and did some strength training with my legs, then some abs, and that was it! I felt so good at the end, and so proud of myself for going!

The only problem is I haven't really buckled down yet on the caloric portion of being healthy. Um... probably should do that. Luckily for me, I ordered a Bodybugg the other day (like they use on the Biggest Loser) and it arrived in the mail today! I can't wait to see how this works! I am super excited that it tracks my sleep. That should be an eye opener, I'm sure! I will definitely let you know when I see how it is! It's charging right now :)

Well, I'm staying positive! This is going to work! I have gotten rid of everything negative in my life. Now only positive! :) Wish me luck!

(And I'm going to finish out every post with a weight loss quote, probably mostly by Jillian Michaels, LOL)

"Only YOU can help you. All you have to do is allow change into your life. Walking and calorie counting is not hard." - Jillian Michaels

I Believe In Me!

I know you're sick of me blogging about myself... but guess what? Here goes another one! :)

As many of you know, I have struggled with my weight my entire life. I was thin for 3 years of my life, at 160 pounds. My goal is to be thinner than I was in high school. I finally have a way of achieving it, and it is working so far! Now I'm really kicking it into gear, in a new way! Last time I blogged about weight loss, I put pressure on myself to write about it every day, to share my story. This time, I'm doing it for me. I still want to share my story, but I am not going to pressure myself to write everyday!

My sister and I auditioned for NBC's "The Biggest Loser" this past February, and though we didn't make it, we did make many friends through the audition process.

When I got back home from the audition, I decided that this was it. I wasn't going to have to audition again, because I was going to do this on my own! I am using a lot of The Biggest Loser technique.

I read Jillian Michaels' book about losing weight, and it really made me look at things in a whole new way. I see it as not only a journey, but a life-long journey. I know once I get the weight off I won't be able to eat whatever I want whenever I want. This is why I gained my weight back after high school, I simply stuck to the same eating habits! Not going to happen again, I'm telling you!

This past weekend I ordered a BodyBugg to help track calories in and calories out. Through reading about the product, I also found that it tracks sleeping habits as well! FABULOUS! I can't wait to see how this thing works! I should be getting it soon! :) YAY!

So far since the audition, I have lost 4 pounds. A slow start to a VERY LONG process! But I'm cool with that! I have been in the gym, thanks to Mom and Dad for exercising with me! Mom and I also purchased pads and gloves for martial arts, which I have been doing for almost a year now. Mom just started it with me this week, and it is SO MUCH FUN! It's nice to have someone at home to work out with, so if I don't want to go to the gym, I can just do it here!

Well, let's show the Biggest Loser what I'm made of, and what they're missing out on! Here's to a long, successful journey!

"Change can happen in seconds... It's about waking up. That's all it is. Waking up to your true potential and strength."-Jillian Michaels