P90X day two and sore already!

I woke up this morning barely able to move my arms! I am still really sore – but it feels good.

Today was an awesome workout! Plyometrics! I love them… Jillian trained me well and I was able to do the whole workout without missing a beat. I did not have to modify at all. It kicked my butt and I still have room to improve, but it was good. I burned 741 calories.

Here is me after the workout – still smiling! I tried to capture the insane amount of sweat that the workout produced, but it does not really show up!

I was trying to hold the camera still while I was still trying to get my breath back!

I planned on documenting all my food today in pictures like all the food blogs, but for two main meals I ate half the food before i remembered I was supposed to take a picture of it. I do not know how these girls to it!

Breakfast: a protein shake made with milk, strawberries, banana and protein powder. I was really good!
Snack: this is my recovery meal after my workout. A half of a Boost drink (delicious) and a half of a protein bar

So delicious!

Lunch was yummy – since I was supposed to eat 6 oz. of meat I had two small turkey burgers. and a big salad (the lettuce came from the garden!!!)

A huge bowl of lettuce and mixed greens from the garden.

Three more radishes from the garden. They were good this time!

My salad and turkey burgers:

Very good - 6 oz. is a bit too much meat for me.

These burgers were delicious. However, as I was looking them up to link them back here I looked a bit closer at the nutritional data – each patty has 330 mg. of sodium!!! wow – this is something I am going to have to be more careful of on this program. Yesterday I had a chef salad with turkey and ham – again, a ton of sodium. I usually do not each so much sodium and do not want to start. I just didn’t realize these had so much in them.

I went to check on the garden and it is doing so great. I found two small green tomatoes on my Black Krim tomato plant:

Two tiny tomatoes

After gardening and grocery shopping I was ready for a break and a snack. I had a protein bar and a glass of iced Yerba Mate tea. I also put in fresh mint leaves from my garden. I was very refreshing.

Cool and refreshing!

After this I basically lounged on the couch for awhile. I was too hot to do anything and I didn’t really have anything to do anyways.

Dinner time! Tonight I made grilled tuna, grilled asparagus and zucchini and a warm potato salad. The potato salad was good – just some boiled white potatoes with a light dressing of olive oil, vinegar and dijon mustard with fresh dill from the garden. Too bad I ate it before I could take a picture! It was a lovely dinner. Although, I have to say, 6 oz. of tuna is way too much tuna to choke down! I am just not a huge fish fan anyways. Of course, I could have eaten twice that amount of potatoes! I stuck to my appropriate portion.

OH – the best part… while grilling, especially on the weekend, I like to sip a glass of wine or a cocktail while I grill. Of course, that is a no-no for the next 90 days. Well, I discovered a really nice alternative. Perrier with lime – and an extra twist of lime. It was very delicious… almost like a vodka tonic… haha.

Bubbly and delicious

Here is me enjoying it while grilling… my and my Bobby Flay glasses – I love them (A wonderful Christmas present from my lovely daughter!)

Cheers!

All the self-portraits today are for you, Dad!! You said I needed more pictures of me, so here you go!!

Day 1 – P90X

On Saturday I started my 90 day challenge with P90X. I have the DVD’s, the equipment, the diet and the food. I am ready to go! For the diet I will be following the Fat Shredder plan and following roughly an 1800 calorie, high protien diet. I get one portion of carbohydrates a day – I will have to make that one a good one!!!

I am starting out following the meal plan that is printed in the book:

It doesn't LOOK like a lot of food...

Seriously? This is a TON of food!

The mushroom omelet contained: 6 egg whites, 3/4 cup mushrooms, 1.5 oz. lowfat cheddar and 2T salsa.
Yes, that is one whole cup of 1% cottage Cheese. The strawberries and cottage cheese are a meal themselves. Towards the end it was hard taking those last few bites. For the omelet I actually tried something different – I bought the liquid egg whites – YUCK! they were horrible. Normally I love egg whites, but these had a horrible aftertaste. I dumped the rest down the drain. Also, as you can see, I made more of a scramble then I did an omelet.

While I let my massive breakfast rest I cleaned the house and continued to read about the P90X plan.

11:00 rolled around and my breakfast seemed settled….. down to the gym. I love my hone gym and now it is even better with the addition of the new equipment for P90X:

The pull up bar with the resistance tube hanging from it.

OUr new mats - mine has the new "Perfect Push-up" things.

Since John and I are both doing the routine I thought he should have his own mat – a new manly black mat. I found them at TJMaxx – they are really thick and they were really cheap! Now that they are open I know why – they have a terrible rubber smell to them. I will have to figure out what to do about that. If I do not pass out from the workout intensity I will pass out due to the rubber fumes!

The DVD's came organized in this little DVD book - we printed out our exercise worksheets to keep track of weights and reps.

Chest and back - workout 1!

Tony Horton, a.k.a. ” my new trainer” (sorry Jillian), calls the Chest and Back routine the “mother of all workouts”.  Yes… I was one of the hardest I have ever done. Even considering I couldn’t really even do most of the moves and had to modify everything. I was sweating like crazy and by the end my arms were shaking and my hands ached. Although I cannot do pull ups he gives a couple of modifications. One is assisted pull-ups where you keep a chair or bench underneath and put one foot on it and use your leg to help assist you up ( I will photograph later!). The other is to use the resistance bands. I chose to do the assisted pull-ups and I am paying for it now!!

By the end of the night I could start feeling muscle soreness set in. Normally I do not get sore until the 2nd or 3rd day affter a workout! So, now it is Sunday morning and I am very sore. By the end of the week my whole body should feel this way! haha

Today is “Plyo X” – plyometrics – which I love. I know it will be tought, but at least I will be able to perform the moves! Jillian’s tapes are mostly all plyo so I know most of the moves.

Today I will also spend time getting the rest of our food stocked. A trip down to the best store in the world is in order. We need some protein powder.  John’s diet is more carb based and mine more protein but between the two of us we will be eating almost a dozen eggs a day is we do not find an alternate protein source. I also need to find a “recovery drink”. I am hoping the Costco somes through for me – it not, I will head over to GNC.

The day before…

The day before starting P90X entails many things… a fit test, measurements, pictures…. Since John and I are both starting the program this weekend we did all of our day before stuff together (except for pictures!!!) Lucikly with my new video camera it comes with a remote contol so I was able to take my own pictures. I also discovered that when I loaded them in Picasa that you can hide folders and password-protect the folder! very nice!

The fit test went well. I could do all the tasks except pull-ups. I couldn’t even to a fraction of one!!! Pretty pitiful. Luciky the program comes with modification options for the pull-ups!

Here are the results of my fit test:
Vertical jump – 10 inches
Push-ups – 15 on knees (that was the minimum amount)
Toe touch – could touch my toes, but not past my toes
Wall sit – minimum was 60 seconds, I did 17 seconds
Bicep curl – minimum was 10 reps with 8lbs. I did 20 reps with 12 pounds – should have gone heavier
In & Outs – an ab move – minimum was 25 – that’s what I did
Heart rate maximizer – jumping jacks for 2 minutes to elevate heart rate then take heart rate again in another minute at rest and then each min after for 4 minutes. Max 170, 1 min = 130, 2 min=115, 3min = 107 4 min=97. Ideally the fitter you are the faster you heart rate will recover. Mine was much better when I was running daily!

I will spare everyone and not post my pictures or measurements!! haha

Tonight we previewed the first workout – Chest and Back. It looks tough!! I will obviously be doing the modified versions of the pull-ups – even so, it looks like a good workout.

More to come tomorrow!

Weeding

I spent about an hour and a half today on my hands and knees weeding my garden. The excessive rain that we have been having has caused the weeds to increase exponentially. They are everywhere. I really should have documented the bucket full of weeds that I pulled from one walkway and two beds. INSANE. All the while the mosquitos were biting me (despite the application of my “natural” bug spray). The tomato plants are BEAUTIFUL. They are lush and fill and seemly pest free. I have lots of little blossoms on them and I am really excited to see the tomatoes that will grow.

I also spotted more radishes and BEETS!!  I think I will end up maybe with three beets – enough for a side dish for me and John! Maybe just me if they do not get any bigger!!

Right now I am waiting for Katheryn and Mollie to get home. They went to visit the boyfriend and I am hoping they will be home soon. Tomorrow she is leaving to go back to college and I will miss her very much!!!  (“Her” is Katheryn!) I will miss Mollie, but nothing beats having my daughter around!

Two more days to next challenge

In two more days my next challenge begins. I ordered P90X and it should be here Friday. On Saturday I am going to start the 13 week program. My plan is to do the program completely as written and follow it as closely as possible. I need to drop these next 40 pounds and I feel my dedication failing lately. I need another challenge. I was really enjoying the running, but my hips just have not enjoyed the last few times out. I really think if I can get the rest of the weight off the running will be much more enjoyable.

So, P90X is tough – so I hear.  Friday I will do the fit test that comes with it – a series of exercises to do before starting that will be done again after the 13 weeks is up. One of the exercises is pull-ups. I ordered the  Iron Gym pull up bar to put in the doorway and the Perfect Push-up kit – hopefully it will help me be able to do a push-up! Also before starting they suggest to take “before” pictures of your body. I will have to take them and save them somewhere top secret.

I am not sure what the diet plan consists of, but I plan on following it religiously. That may mean no free days and no alchohol, but if that is what I have to do then I will. I will learn more when the package comes on Friday.

Recovering from the past week!

I have been so busy getting ready for the birthday party and then having the birthday party and keeping up with the puppy that I have not had time to post in a few days. Katheryn’s birthday weekend was great. The food was wonderful and the company was even better. I love nothing more than to cook a big meal and enjoy it with my family.

With all the rain I have not spent a whole lot of time in the garden. I did take everyone over to witness the harvesting of my first radish. I got it all on film and will post it soon. I takes so long to download that I need to plan ahead, and I haven’t.

A shot of the first radish. At this point it looks like it might be huge... it wasn't!

The radish was not as large as I thought it would be. We brought it home, washed it and I split it up so we could all taste it. Now THAT is a picture I should have gotten. The radish was HOT HOT HOT! I have never had such a hot radish. I could barely swallow it!  So far it doesn’t look like I will have another radish anytime soon. When I do get another one I will leave it in the ground a bit longer – maybe it will mellow out.

I went back to the garden on Monday to find it practically flooded. Thank goodness for my raised beds – it really helped keep the veggies from drowning!

There are motes around the beds!

It was a big mud pit!

Also on Friday I was so happy because I finally found sweet potato slips to plant. I have been waiting patiently for the end of May to come with the garden center said they would be stock. Katheryn and I went to the farm supply Monday and got two bunches of sweet potatoes – a Beauregard and the Red Jewel. I really wanted a couple of different types to see which did better. I got the bunches home – unfortunately I did not capture any pictures… I really need to do better. I found a stock photo – mine were dirtier, longer and more mangled looking.

I planted my two bunches outside of the fenced in area. After some research I learned that sweet potatoes tend to take over the landscape. I certainly did not want them to ruin my lovely garden. Plus, after unbundling the two bunches I discovered I had 50 (yes, FIFTY) sweet potato plants. (I hope everyone likes sweet potatoes!!) Hopefully my sweet potato harvest will look like this:

Will my 50 slips turn into this?? hahaha

Here are the rows I planted:

three rows of sweet potatoes

My garden is looking more lush everyday – the plants are getting larger and the weeds are coming up like crazy. I can devote about an hour each night to working on a bed and a couple of rows before the bugs start eating me!

Happy Friday!

Well, it’s Friday for me anyways! I have off tomorrow, and of course Monday, so I am ready for a nice, long weekend.  Normally Friday is my day off of exercise, but I am going to take advantage of the time off and go to the park for a run. Weekday mornings at the park are so awesome – just some retired people and their dogs. No soccer, no baseball… nothing.

After my run I have to get busy preparing for Katheryn’s birthday celebration this weekend. Mom and Dad are coming over and we will start her birth…week. Generally she has about a week of special days – who just wants one day? Her actual birthday is Wednesday so we can stretch it out. Tomorrow I have to bake her birthday cake and get the food that I am going to make her. I have a theme in mind, but I can’t say here because she might read it and it is a surprise! I hope it turns out as good as I am thinking it will. Today I got some decorations and the last of her presents. She is going to be so happy! I think I like her birthday more than my own!

I still cannot believe she is going to be 20! TWENTY YEARS OLD. That is so crazy. She still seems like a little girl to me!

Tonight I  went for a 30 minute run. I didn’t have my Garmin on – I just ran and listened to my music. It was another busy and stressful day and I just wanted to relax. It was a good run and I felt strong.  Tomorrow I am going to shoot for a more challenging workout.

The garden is looking good. I watered it and pulled weeds – a daily job. The tomato plants are really starting to get bushy. I cannot wait to see what grows!

Right now I am having a bit of Mollie withdrawl. Katheryn is gone right now so I have to wait up so I can see them! I have gotten used to coming home and have Mollie (and Katheryn:)) greet me at the door.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

It’s really weird… I have been very busy every day, but nothing much to write about. I am finally getting back in running shape after my hip issues and feeling motivated again. The hip pain really bummed me out! I was in a lot of pain and really didn’t feel like doing much of anything – it hurt to move. So, now after two weeks off, a couple of good massages and my new stretching routine I think I am back in action. I am burning a lot of calories this week and watching my caloric intake so I hope to lose a few pounds this week!

Why have I been so busy… well, my wonderful daughter is home and I am getting to spend a lot of time with her. I LOVE it when she is here and I want to be with her every minute that I can. Of course, she also brought home Mollie.  Mollie is cute, but bad. Since she is a puppy I suppose that is expected.  I have to admit that I was not thrilled to hear that Katheryn got a dog – I’ve never been much of a fan. Nut, boy is Mollie cute. She and I spent the day together while Katheryn went to her first Nascar race. We stayed very busy all day long. Except for the random nap…. I have decided she has to take so many naps because her sleep is not restful. This series of pictures is within a half hour time span:

This is actually the second postion. She started on top of the pillow.

tomatoes, beans and winter squash

The two heirloom Brandywines

Katheryn’s tomato on the left and the Black Krim on the right

This is the recuperating tomato that I had to replant after the cutworm got it

She is so cute!!! Too bad the pictures are so dark  -with her dark fur it is hard to see. Her eyes are so dark we cannot tell if her eyes are open sometimes.

The garden: The garden is keeping me busy, too. After resorting to using the insecticide I do not seem to have any aphids or cutworms, or anything else for that matter. The one tomato plant that got cut and I replanted is thriving. I still haven’t planted my sweet potatoes, but I have to try to do that soon.   Here are some recent pictures of my garden:

tomatoes, beans and winter squash

The two heirloom Brandywines

Katheryn's tomato on the left and the Black Krim on the right

This is the recuperating tomato that I had to replant after the cutworm got it

Katheryn’s boyfriend gave me 8 small tomato plants and 5 green pepper plants. I planted them in the last few spots I had in the garden.  I decided my potato plants will be safe to go outside of the fence.  I now have 16 tomato plants and who knows how many pepper plants! If everything grows I might just have enough for a roadside stand!!haha

A new week!

This week is already so much  better than last week (knock on wood!). Work was terribly stressful last week but so far, so good this week.  I also spent most of last week in pain with my hips. The last two days have been rough, but today it seems to be better. I am going to take it easy the next few days and just continue with the elliptical. I want to run again this weekend, but I am going to play it by ear.

The garden is going ok. The rain brought loads of weeds that I need to pull. I pulled a bunch tonight but there are still many to go. The beans are on the path to recovery… only because I finally killed the aphids with insecticide. I really wanted an organic garden, but I also do not want to lose all the the plants and waste all of our hard work. I think having an organic garden is a full time job. Since I already have a full time job and have mnay other things I want to do with my days, I think I will have to resort to chemicals. The insecticide worked.

Now I have to investigate what is happening to my tomato plants. The other day I went to the garden to find the German Pink on it’s side. The stem looked like it snapped near the base. It was a pretty clean snap – it didn’t snap all the way through. After some research on forums and reading articles I decided to go the route of burying the broken part of the stem. Supposedly tomatoes are good at creating new roots for themselves…. time will tell.

Here is the German Pink that will hopefully repair itself.

Today I went out to find another tomato plant broken at the base. This one does not look snapped off like the other one. This one looks more withered at the base. It was completely separated and completely wilted. There was no hope for resurrecting it. I pulled it up and found a nasty looking thing  in the ground near the root – John said it is a cut worm. I am going to look into that now to see if it was the cause. Stupid me did not kill it. It is over there in the garden now probably eating my other plants!

Here is the recent casuality - the Roma.

The nasty culprit

A close-up

Now some more appealing pictures… there are a lot of roses blooming….

The picture does not do it justice. It is beautiful and it smells wonderful!

These pink roses are grown all over the place - these are climbing up a tree

Massage day!

I am so happy that I eased up on my running this week and decided to go to the massage therapist. I got really lucky today and ended up with a lady who is a sports massage therapist and has been doing this for years. She was really knowledgeable and I felt like she really knew what she was doing. This massage was different than the relaxation massage that I had a couple of years ago. This one was actually painful at times.

The session started off with a discussion about my issues. I explained how the outside muscles of my right hip hurt and I pointed to a spot on my left hip, in my groin area, that hurt. She pin pointed the exact spot on an anatomy diagram she had on the wall. Apparently the pain and location I described are the hip flexors and she said is sounds like I strained that area. Because of the strain on my hip flexors my body was compensating and adding my strain on my right hip. She said the next step, if I had kept running and aggravating the strain, would have been left knee pain and then potentially a tear in the hip – which would have been really bad.

The pain is right where those circles are - luckily just on the left side.

She said she really could not do much for the actual strain – especially if it is in the tendon. But, she could work on losening up the surrounding area, and my right hip.

I also told her about my left hamstring that has been bothering me for the last few weeks – she said it was all related. When she worked on my left hamstring and hip it was pretty uncomfortable. She said she was being easy on me since it was my first session! She said she was applying “level 1″ pressure. Apparently there are three levels…. I cannot imagine what level 3 feels like!

I started on my stomach and she worked on my hips, hamstrings and lower back. Then she moved to my upper back and shoulders. She asked me if I sat at a computer all day long… yes… then she asked if I was right handed… yes.  She said she could feel all the tightness in my back. Then she said “just wait until I get to  your right forearm”. hmmm.

I flipped over and she started on my quads and hips again. She moved my legs in all different poses. She also pulled on my legs. This is not what you normally think of when you think of massage! Lots of pulling and rocking. Again, the left side was more painful than the right.

Next she moved to my neck and head. Again lots of stretching and pressure.  This was glorious.

Next the arms. ouch. I can’t remember exactly, but I think she started at my wrist and slowly applied deep pressure moving all the way to my elbow. ouch again. It really did hurt on my right forearm – not so much on my left. She said my right forearm and hand muscles were so tight that she didn’t know how I even was able to write! haha She applied Biofreeze to my arm. That stuff feels so good. She said that my arm will most likely be sore tomorrow. In fact, she said I will probably be sore all over tomorrow.

She said ideally I would come back twice a week. (wow – I would LOVE that, but it is much too expensive).  She said it would take a few sessions to get my whole body loosened up. I think I will try to got once a week for the next couple of weeks then go once a month.  She also recommended that I start a stretching regime. She is certified in Active Isolated Stretching and suggested I start following these techniques.

She advised me that for the next couple of weeks I should continue to exercise but avoid things that cause my hip flexor to stretch backwards or sideways. I am going to walk this week and add some slow running combined with walking next week. I think also I will just start doing some circuit training, too. I have tons of workouts that I can do to burn calories that do not involve running or other moves that would require stretching that hip flexor the wrong way.

I realize that she is not a doctor, but I do think she knows what she is talking about and I am going to take her advice. If my hip does not feel better after a couple of weeks then I will go to a doctor. I think I caught it before really injuring myself.

I can’t wait to have another session!