I try to live my life with at least one 'Karate Kid' reference per week.
I've been rocking the P90X2 for the past 45 days (half way through) and I'm feeling pretty great! There are so many new kinds of push ups and pull ups in this program and I have some new goals that I'm shooting for. I've never been very big on goals, I usually just do stuff and hope I get good, but now I see the importance of setting them. I've set a few main goals for this 90 day period and have already reached a couple of them.
My first goal was being able to hold a Crane pose, which I did this past weekend. Now I would like to be able to hold it for a full minute. Also, I've been trying to get back to 180 lbs. for the past 2 years (my diet always gets in the way). I'm finally 1 lb. away. I've lost 10 lbs. in these 45 days of X2 and I feel great! I've gone from 191 to 181. My other main goal is to be able to do 25 pull ups/chin ups by the end of the 90 days. This one is proving to be a little harder. I can do 9-12 depending on the day. I'm doing negatives and will be starting a pyramid rep routine.
Having these goals is really helping me move forward and be more positive about my workouts. There's something in X2 called the Impossible/Possible push up. The first time I tried it I fell on my face with a total rep count of ZERO. The next week I got 2 and yesterday I was able to do 10! Maybe I'll post a video of it because I'm sure it's hilarious to watch.
If you read my blog you've noticed a few new recipes going up. I'm trying to go the 90% healthy, 10% indulgence route. I usually pretend that's what I'm doing but in reality it's more like 70-30. The quote 'Abs are made in the kitchen' is proving to be as true as it is annoying. I'm starting to see them poke through again and I know it's because of my change in diet. Another one of my goals is to cut out sugar and incorporate Agave Nectar into my desserts. It's working out well so far. My birthday is coming up next Friday though, and that means the annual trip to Morton's. Who doesn't love a good Filet?
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
A Few C-Notes Later
This has been a stressful week! Last Thursday Ollie starting throwing up and hacking. We were pretty worried about him so I took him to the Emergency Animal Hospital at 1 a.m. They said it was Kennel Cough and gave me some meds for the low, low price of $400. He seems fine now, other than the fact that he is extremely jealous of Paige and thinks all of her toys are for him.
I've been plugging along with P90X2 and I've lost 8 pounds in these first 30 days. I can't say enough about how much I love this workout! I thought I was pretty awesome at pushups and decent at pullups until the other day. At one point I slid off of my stability ball and crashed into the floor loud enough for Shelly to come and check on me. It was a learning experience that I will share with Paige someday. Sometimes it's a little tough working out while trying to do my part with Paige. I really like to get my workouts done right when I get home but there are bottles to be washed, diapers to be changed, and now and then she needs to eat.
Tomorrow is payday and I've never been more excited about it! I can't wait to go to Costco and actually have food in the house. I tried my first Vegan recipe ever: Tony Horton's Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies. They weren't half bad. I have no intention of becoming Vegan but I definitely want to cut a lot of the processed components out of my eating habits. That way, when I want a burger or a slice of pizza, I can go to town. Again, it's all about balance. And Power. Which happens to be one of the X2 workouts.
My February Challenge group is going great. I've got some great ladies in the group and they are sharing their experiences with their workouts and I think they are enjoying the accountability. I'll be starting up a new group on March 5th so if you're interested and want some more information, just e-mail, call, or message me. This weekend Shelly and I are going to try some new recipes to put into our arsenal. And we're getting haircuts.
I've been plugging along with P90X2 and I've lost 8 pounds in these first 30 days. I can't say enough about how much I love this workout! I thought I was pretty awesome at pushups and decent at pullups until the other day. At one point I slid off of my stability ball and crashed into the floor loud enough for Shelly to come and check on me. It was a learning experience that I will share with Paige someday. Sometimes it's a little tough working out while trying to do my part with Paige. I really like to get my workouts done right when I get home but there are bottles to be washed, diapers to be changed, and now and then she needs to eat.
Tomorrow is payday and I've never been more excited about it! I can't wait to go to Costco and actually have food in the house. I tried my first Vegan recipe ever: Tony Horton's Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies. They weren't half bad. I have no intention of becoming Vegan but I definitely want to cut a lot of the processed components out of my eating habits. That way, when I want a burger or a slice of pizza, I can go to town. Again, it's all about balance. And Power. Which happens to be one of the X2 workouts.
My February Challenge group is going great. I've got some great ladies in the group and they are sharing their experiences with their workouts and I think they are enjoying the accountability. I'll be starting up a new group on March 5th so if you're interested and want some more information, just e-mail, call, or message me. This weekend Shelly and I are going to try some new recipes to put into our arsenal. And we're getting haircuts.
Monday, January 30, 2012
The Ballad of the Rav 4
On New Year's Eve Shelly, Paige, and I were on our way to pick my brother Brian and his Fiance Sara up from the airport. We hit some debris on the freeway and really didn't think it was a big deal. After picking them up we proceeded down the freeway and slowly noticed some odd things going on with the car. It ended up dying right as we pulled off on our exit. We figured it was just a hose that leaked all the transmission fluid. No fun. Our friend Melissa picked up the ladies while Brian and I waited for the tow truck.
A couple days and uncomfortable car rides later (imagine me, Shelly, Brian, Sara, and Paige's carseat all jammed into my Saturn Ion) we found out the engine was totaled. After all the insurance quotes and inspections we found out Horace Mann wanted to charge us $287 on top of our deductible for 'Betterment'. That meant, since we used the car we had to pay for a percentage of the use of the engine before they'd fix it. We canceled and went to State Farm, saving $85 a month on our insurance.
We were told the car wouldn't be fixed until mid February and only had a rental until January 20th. This was getting fun. Luckily, the parts got to the dealership and we were only stuck in my Saturn for a week. We got the car back and celebrated by going to Starbucks only to find out the window was automatically rolling itself down about three inches. Pretty hilarious. We made an appointment to get that fixed and went to run some errands (which means, buy stuff for Paige) and found the car idling in a bad way. Engine lights came on and we literally did not think we were going to make it home. We did. That was yesterday and we are back in the Saturn, again.
In Paige news, we just bought the (Baby) Bullet so Paige doesn't have to eat disgusting canned baby food. Our friends who have babies have reccomended so it better be great! After Paige rolled over I've noticed myself telling a lot of people about it. Not only am I telling them but I act like I had something to do with it. Thus begins me taking credit for anything great Paige accomplishes. Her four month check up went great up until the point where they gave her three shots and sent her home with us. She's not too happy about it and I think she blames us.
I beat the cold and am back at P90X2. Excited for my Challenge group to start next Monday!
A couple days and uncomfortable car rides later (imagine me, Shelly, Brian, Sara, and Paige's carseat all jammed into my Saturn Ion) we found out the engine was totaled. After all the insurance quotes and inspections we found out Horace Mann wanted to charge us $287 on top of our deductible for 'Betterment'. That meant, since we used the car we had to pay for a percentage of the use of the engine before they'd fix it. We canceled and went to State Farm, saving $85 a month on our insurance.
We were told the car wouldn't be fixed until mid February and only had a rental until January 20th. This was getting fun. Luckily, the parts got to the dealership and we were only stuck in my Saturn for a week. We got the car back and celebrated by going to Starbucks only to find out the window was automatically rolling itself down about three inches. Pretty hilarious. We made an appointment to get that fixed and went to run some errands (which means, buy stuff for Paige) and found the car idling in a bad way. Engine lights came on and we literally did not think we were going to make it home. We did. That was yesterday and we are back in the Saturn, again.
In Paige news, we just bought the (Baby) Bullet so Paige doesn't have to eat disgusting canned baby food. Our friends who have babies have reccomended so it better be great! After Paige rolled over I've noticed myself telling a lot of people about it. Not only am I telling them but I act like I had something to do with it. Thus begins me taking credit for anything great Paige accomplishes. Her four month check up went great up until the point where they gave her three shots and sent her home with us. She's not too happy about it and I think she blames us.
I beat the cold and am back at P90X2. Excited for my Challenge group to start next Monday!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Roll Over
Paige rolled over for the first time last week. This occured at the babysitter's house so when we got home, Shelly immediately put Paige on the floor. The next thing I know, before I could even get over to see, she rolled over again. I missed it twice. Now she's a pro at it and it's pretty cute. She's also decided to get up at 5 a.m. now, which is fun. We get up a 6 a.m. so she's right in that time frame of 'good job Paige, you slept through the night' and 'really Paige? Just one more hour.'
I probably don't need to tell any of you that being sick is no fun. I'm not feeling too great and I haven't been able to work out in a few days, which makes me pretty cranky. Last Thursday I felt it in my throat and was hoping I could fight it. Now I have the headache/body aches and I'm not liking it. I only use two types of medicine for when I'm sick. Alka-Seltzer and Hot Toddy's. I swear by them and this cold could be a lot worse without them. Just try those rememdies, you'll thank me.
Right before I got sick I completed two weeks of P90X2 and I lost 5 lbs. I'm pretty happy about those results, so far. I really like this new program a lot, and as I said before, it deals a lot with balance and core. Balancing on a stability ball, medicine balls, and one leg is a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. By the end of my workouts I'm pretty beat.
I'm starting my first Beachbody Challenge group on February 6th. I already have a group of about 8 of our friends who are going to be participating. Basically, everyone is going to do their own workouts at home or the gym and we'll have a private facebook group for everyone to check in to help motivate each other. The person with the highest weight loss percentage gets a sweet prize! I, for one, like working out by myself but it's nice to know that there are others to help you keep it up. I'm pretty excited about it and I plan on starting new groups every month with either 30, 60, or 90 day Challenges.
I probably don't need to tell any of you that being sick is no fun. I'm not feeling too great and I haven't been able to work out in a few days, which makes me pretty cranky. Last Thursday I felt it in my throat and was hoping I could fight it. Now I have the headache/body aches and I'm not liking it. I only use two types of medicine for when I'm sick. Alka-Seltzer and Hot Toddy's. I swear by them and this cold could be a lot worse without them. Just try those rememdies, you'll thank me.
Right before I got sick I completed two weeks of P90X2 and I lost 5 lbs. I'm pretty happy about those results, so far. I really like this new program a lot, and as I said before, it deals a lot with balance and core. Balancing on a stability ball, medicine balls, and one leg is a lot more difficult than I thought it would be. By the end of my workouts I'm pretty beat.
I'm starting my first Beachbody Challenge group on February 6th. I already have a group of about 8 of our friends who are going to be participating. Basically, everyone is going to do their own workouts at home or the gym and we'll have a private facebook group for everyone to check in to help motivate each other. The person with the highest weight loss percentage gets a sweet prize! I, for one, like working out by myself but it's nice to know that there are others to help you keep it up. I'm pretty excited about it and I plan on starting new groups every month with either 30, 60, or 90 day Challenges.
Monday, January 16, 2012
The Facts of Life
I've never been one to prepare for things. The only thing I ever practiced for was football and I wasn't very good at it. I never studied for a test, read a book in college, or paid much attention at my wedding rehearsal. That turned out great. I almost passed out as Shelly walked down the aisle. Basically, I don't prepare and I look perfectly calm. Then I suffer the ramifications. I decided to follow the same path with the baby.
However, with a baby I really think people should tell YOU what to get ready for rather than have to ask. (This is very different from people telling you things AFTER your baby is born.) Let's start at the beginning. (I'm going to do my best to be completely appropriate for all my young readers. Katy.) I had no idea that pregnancy could only occur in a specific amount of time during the month. I thought a woman could get pregnant at any time, except for the obvious. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Sometimes it just makes you look like an idiot. Shelly thought I was an idiot. I'm not going to go into the details of what I specifically didn't know about baby production, and a woman's body, but let's just say nothing. Minus about 15% of key information.
I did know one thing. Puking is not fun. Puking in a car is worse. Our friends have shown us that. I never thought my lunch box would ever be puked in. Thanks for telling me people. Shelly puked a lot and it was not fun. I should have guessed this. The first main thing I wish both of us knew is, that immense pain you feel in month 8 ladies, might be your gall bladder. Get a doctor who knows something about pregancy and you won't have to suffer. And guys, you won't have to suffer either. Another tip fellas: A pregnant woman is always right, no matter what. Not a big change from normal life. I learned this one very fast.
I think movies have been completely irresponsible for they way they portray births. It's nothing like that, at all! If I had not had the presence of mind to look away, I could have seen some un-erasable images. The pushing did not last for two minutes. It took over an hour. There are no stirrups, only husbands and family members. And those babies don't come out looking all cute and perfect. They come out covered in goo, with a bulbous head, but still perfect, because they're yours.
I think the main thing has to do with the milk coming in. I thought as soon as Paige was born, milk would spring forth abundantly. Not so, my friends, not so. It takes a few days for this to happen. No biggy right? I mean, it's not important for babies to get food immediately. BIG TIP: If your baby is not getting enough food in the first 48 hours, he/she will become dehydrated and you'll have the scariest visit to the emergency room of your life. Brand new baby + Emergency Room = ZERO FUN! Thanks nurses and doctors for telling us to supplement with formula.
Oh, and that first night was murder! I remember, through a sleepy haze, asking Shelly if we could take her back. She said no. I still don't know very much. I have to ask Shelly when Paige is going to walk, talk, crawl, and pretty much do everything else. Shelly still thinks I'm an idiot but I change a mean diaper! One thing for all you future dads, it's not as hard as people say it's going to be. But Paige isn't a teenager yet so that statement is probably way premature.
However, with a baby I really think people should tell YOU what to get ready for rather than have to ask. (This is very different from people telling you things AFTER your baby is born.) Let's start at the beginning. (I'm going to do my best to be completely appropriate for all my young readers. Katy.) I had no idea that pregnancy could only occur in a specific amount of time during the month. I thought a woman could get pregnant at any time, except for the obvious. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Sometimes it just makes you look like an idiot. Shelly thought I was an idiot. I'm not going to go into the details of what I specifically didn't know about baby production, and a woman's body, but let's just say nothing. Minus about 15% of key information.
I did know one thing. Puking is not fun. Puking in a car is worse. Our friends have shown us that. I never thought my lunch box would ever be puked in. Thanks for telling me people. Shelly puked a lot and it was not fun. I should have guessed this. The first main thing I wish both of us knew is, that immense pain you feel in month 8 ladies, might be your gall bladder. Get a doctor who knows something about pregancy and you won't have to suffer. And guys, you won't have to suffer either. Another tip fellas: A pregnant woman is always right, no matter what. Not a big change from normal life. I learned this one very fast.
I think movies have been completely irresponsible for they way they portray births. It's nothing like that, at all! If I had not had the presence of mind to look away, I could have seen some un-erasable images. The pushing did not last for two minutes. It took over an hour. There are no stirrups, only husbands and family members. And those babies don't come out looking all cute and perfect. They come out covered in goo, with a bulbous head, but still perfect, because they're yours.
I think the main thing has to do with the milk coming in. I thought as soon as Paige was born, milk would spring forth abundantly. Not so, my friends, not so. It takes a few days for this to happen. No biggy right? I mean, it's not important for babies to get food immediately. BIG TIP: If your baby is not getting enough food in the first 48 hours, he/she will become dehydrated and you'll have the scariest visit to the emergency room of your life. Brand new baby + Emergency Room = ZERO FUN! Thanks nurses and doctors for telling us to supplement with formula.
Oh, and that first night was murder! I remember, through a sleepy haze, asking Shelly if we could take her back. She said no. I still don't know very much. I have to ask Shelly when Paige is going to walk, talk, crawl, and pretty much do everything else. Shelly still thinks I'm an idiot but I change a mean diaper! One thing for all you future dads, it's not as hard as people say it's going to be. But Paige isn't a teenager yet so that statement is probably way premature.
Friday, January 13, 2012
14 Stone
After Paige was born I was up to 197 lbs. and for me, that's way too close to 200. I committed to eating right and working out, up to Thanksgiving. I think we can all agree that the holidays are the hardest and sometimes, I just call it a wash. I knew that I had to get on track before that time came. That gave me from the beginning of October to the end of November to drop some weight and tone up.
I decided to try Shakeology just to see how it worked. At a whopping $119 for a 30 day supply, Shelly first thought I was out of my mind. It's not like we had baby to buy things for. We got the Shakeology and liked it, but did it work? We'd find out. I kicked up my workouts, doing a combo of P90X and Insanity, and dropped that baby weight. In those six weeks, drinking Shakeology once a day and working out 5 days a week, I dropped 13 lbs. I was pretty happy about it. With Turbo Fire and Shakeology, Shelly lost 25 lbs., 6.8 of it being Paige. She was ecstatic until the Gall Bladder reared it's ugly head.
Our conclusion was that Shakeology definitely worked for us and it made packing a lunch a lot easier. Since I pack the lunches, I was all for that! Then my big brother and Uncle came for Thanksgiving. As much as I wanted to keep working out, it's pretty rude to go upstairs and jump around for 50 minutes while you have guests. I put it off for a week. We ate like kings and had a great time. Mike is the number 2 best guest that comes to our house! The day Mike was leaving, thus the day I was starting my workouts again, I slipped in the garage and smashed my side into the car. My ribs/muscles were injured and this postponed my workouts for 5 weeks. Not cool.
I kept up with the Shakeology and I'm sure that's the reason I only gained 6 lbs. from Thanksgiving to January 9th. Is weight gain a reason to celebrate? No, but last year during this time period I gained 12 lbs. and I was still working out. It's that darn diet and those tasty holiday treats.
I'm back to hitting it hard with the X2 and I'm really like it. P90X is all about push ups and pull ups, which I love, while X2 is more about Balance and Stability. I drank Shakeology twice a day for three days this week and I lost 2.5 lbs. in those three days. I feel great and also joined a Fit Club that meets here in Henderson.
I decided to try Shakeology just to see how it worked. At a whopping $119 for a 30 day supply, Shelly first thought I was out of my mind. It's not like we had baby to buy things for. We got the Shakeology and liked it, but did it work? We'd find out. I kicked up my workouts, doing a combo of P90X and Insanity, and dropped that baby weight. In those six weeks, drinking Shakeology once a day and working out 5 days a week, I dropped 13 lbs. I was pretty happy about it. With Turbo Fire and Shakeology, Shelly lost 25 lbs., 6.8 of it being Paige. She was ecstatic until the Gall Bladder reared it's ugly head.
Our conclusion was that Shakeology definitely worked for us and it made packing a lunch a lot easier. Since I pack the lunches, I was all for that! Then my big brother and Uncle came for Thanksgiving. As much as I wanted to keep working out, it's pretty rude to go upstairs and jump around for 50 minutes while you have guests. I put it off for a week. We ate like kings and had a great time. Mike is the number 2 best guest that comes to our house! The day Mike was leaving, thus the day I was starting my workouts again, I slipped in the garage and smashed my side into the car. My ribs/muscles were injured and this postponed my workouts for 5 weeks. Not cool.
I kept up with the Shakeology and I'm sure that's the reason I only gained 6 lbs. from Thanksgiving to January 9th. Is weight gain a reason to celebrate? No, but last year during this time period I gained 12 lbs. and I was still working out. It's that darn diet and those tasty holiday treats.
I'm back to hitting it hard with the X2 and I'm really like it. P90X is all about push ups and pull ups, which I love, while X2 is more about Balance and Stability. I drank Shakeology twice a day for three days this week and I lost 2.5 lbs. in those three days. I feel great and also joined a Fit Club that meets here in Henderson.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
There's the Head
Basically, for the whole Shelly's pregnancy the doctor was kind of an idiot. His staff was worse. If you know how to put a blood pressure device on your wrist correctly, you know more than his nurse did. Long story short, false blood pressure readings lead to the decision of Shelly being induced a day early. I, still knowing nothing about this whole process, thought we'd be in and out. With a baby.
We arrived at the hospital on Thursday night around 9 p.m. so they could start the process. (Induction process? Not sure. It isn't the hall of fame. But then again...) They told us she would start having contractions the next morning. This is probably the last time they would be right about anything. During this time I learned that Shelly had to get all the way to 10 centimers. I did not know this. Hearing the distressed calls of pain she was in around 11 a.m., I was sure she had reached that point. I text some friends that the baby would be here around noon. Then the nurse informed us that Shelly was just shy of 4 cm. Cue Epidural.
The doctor who administered the shot for Shelly was like a magician. One minute there was pain and the next, Shelly forgot an entire episode of 'The Office'. Somewhere around 4:30, after a Chipotle burrito and multiple texts updating friends and family that the baby would be here soon, the pain seemed to return for Shelly. This was not pleasant. For her either. She started to push around 5:15 and I think we were both pretty confident that the baby would be out in a few short minutes. There was one small problem. No doctor in sight.
Pushing was not fun for either of us. If you want to see a reenactment of the great pains I took to avoid looking, I will gladly show you. 6:10, still no doctor. I was starting to get a little worried. After all this pushing, the nurse told Shelly to take a break. That seemed, and was confirmed by Shelly, an impossible thing to do. The next thing I now the nurse is telling me to pull the Emergency Cord in the bathroom. We went from 0 to 60 in seconds. I pulled that rip cord and the room filled with people. As the doctor (not our doctor) put her gloves on, Paige's head emerged rather unexpectedly it seemed, but since they were there to deliver a baby, I feel like they should have seen that coming.
Paige was born at 6:18 with no doctor in sight and a pretty large hematoma on the back of her head. We were worried at first but the nurses assured us it was normal. I really can't describe the wave of emotion I felt when I first heard her cry, so I won't. Hopefully everyone gets to experience that. I learned a lot in that hospital room. Mainly, when you think you're baby will be delivered, add 10 hours. Another thing, newborns sound just like birds.
We arrived at the hospital on Thursday night around 9 p.m. so they could start the process. (Induction process? Not sure. It isn't the hall of fame. But then again...) They told us she would start having contractions the next morning. This is probably the last time they would be right about anything. During this time I learned that Shelly had to get all the way to 10 centimers. I did not know this. Hearing the distressed calls of pain she was in around 11 a.m., I was sure she had reached that point. I text some friends that the baby would be here around noon. Then the nurse informed us that Shelly was just shy of 4 cm. Cue Epidural.
The doctor who administered the shot for Shelly was like a magician. One minute there was pain and the next, Shelly forgot an entire episode of 'The Office'. Somewhere around 4:30, after a Chipotle burrito and multiple texts updating friends and family that the baby would be here soon, the pain seemed to return for Shelly. This was not pleasant. For her either. She started to push around 5:15 and I think we were both pretty confident that the baby would be out in a few short minutes. There was one small problem. No doctor in sight.
Pushing was not fun for either of us. If you want to see a reenactment of the great pains I took to avoid looking, I will gladly show you. 6:10, still no doctor. I was starting to get a little worried. After all this pushing, the nurse told Shelly to take a break. That seemed, and was confirmed by Shelly, an impossible thing to do. The next thing I now the nurse is telling me to pull the Emergency Cord in the bathroom. We went from 0 to 60 in seconds. I pulled that rip cord and the room filled with people. As the doctor (not our doctor) put her gloves on, Paige's head emerged rather unexpectedly it seemed, but since they were there to deliver a baby, I feel like they should have seen that coming.
Paige was born at 6:18 with no doctor in sight and a pretty large hematoma on the back of her head. We were worried at first but the nurses assured us it was normal. I really can't describe the wave of emotion I felt when I first heard her cry, so I won't. Hopefully everyone gets to experience that. I learned a lot in that hospital room. Mainly, when you think you're baby will be delivered, add 10 hours. Another thing, newborns sound just like birds.
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