Getting It In

A few years back when I started training for the Indianapolis Mini Marathon (aka half marathon) and before I realized that I had WAY over extended myself (read, I was in my final semester of grad school), I was part of a training group and our coach reminded us to, among other things like "Have fun with it!", to "get it in". At the time, "getting it in" meant to do your best to meet your mileage goal for the day and week. 

I have been seriously slacking on eating what I know is healthy and nourishing for my body and working out. So, with that, I am working on "getting it in" by eliminating the gluten I have been sneaking in that has been making my body feel awful and by working on trying to get some kind of workout in at least 3 days but ideally 4 to 5 days each week.  

In addition to having a happier mind and body my hope is that I can get back into the weight loss groove. I am sharing all this with the intent of making myself more accountable which is always a good thing. 

So what do you do to help yourself meet your health and fitness goals? 

Rockin' the Michael Jackson Experience

Contrary to the title of this blog, I do like to workout, move my body, and maybe, just maybe... feel the burn. While I am not a runner and thanks to genetically inferior feet, never will be, I love biking, hiking, I LOVE swimming, and I have always had fun dancing.

I started ballet at the age of three and kept up with it adding tap and jazz, for 10 years before committing full time to swimming. In high school I was in the show choir and on the dance team and have always enjoyed the fun and art that is dance.

So fast forward to Christmas vacation this year when I got the Michael Jackson Experience for wii. When I was little I knew all of Mr. Jackson's moves and would even make up my own dances to his songs so I thought, this will be cake! Yeah, right! It kicked my butt and it has been kicking my butt in a very good, fun, and often sweaty way whenever I play ever since. So, as a result, it has become part of my regular workout routine. It's great because I can do as many or as few songs as I want, I then combine it with strength training, yoga, or some other cardio or if I'm short on time just stop after a few.
Yes, I look silly. Yes, I have been known to kick my husband and cat out of the room while I do it. Yes, I have a great time and get my heart rate every time, and ya know what, it NEVER feels like a boring workout!

I've heard lots of friends say that they use wii games, other than wii fit, as their primary workout or as part of a workout routine. What about you? Do you use video games as your workout? Which ones are your favorites?

Happy New Year!

I started the day off with a 2 mile run/walk (I walked of course!) in the beautiful and unseasonably warm day in Indiana January morning followed by a nice little yoga practice and now for some relaxing with my husband and kitty.

I wish you all a healthy, happy, and prosperous new year!

Yoga, Yarn, and Fall is Finally Coming....

So my words for this fall are; calm, breathe, and enjoy! I love fall so much and every year I get more and more excited for cozy sweaters, apple cider slushies, and that crispy smell in the air!

So, we start with yoga! I have always enjoyed the stretch, strength, and breathing involved with yoga and since moving to Indy 4 years ago, I really haven't found a yoga home. So I decided to take matters into my own hands and go the DVD route. Thus far, I have been enjoying a lot of Rodney Yee videos from Gaiam. They are the closest thing I have found to being in an actual study class in DVD form. Ahh.. yoga!

On to yarn... As promised, below are pictures of the slightly modified Marian cowls that I have been clicking out in no time flat. I also included a little picture of the grey alpaca shawl I have been working on nearly all summer. I think it is almost ready to bind off thanks to finishing several rows on our overnight to French Lick Springs Resort this past weekend....

Which brings me to fall (again)! We welcomed fall this Labor Day weekend by visiting French Lick Springs Resort. It is a beautiful historical resort that was brought back to life by a revitalization project in 2006. I highly recommend it for completely relaxation!

So there you have it.... a good start to my fall of calm, breathing, and enjoying!!

Ahh.... swimming!!!

I was a distance swimmer in high school and while I wasn't great, I was pretty darn good. Maybe, it's because there aren't a whole lot of distance swimmers in high school? Anyway, I love to swim and I love to just get in the water and zone out. Plus, it's a fantastic workout!

In an effort to save money we only swim in the summer at our apartment complex's little recreation pool. There are no lap lanes (or laps for that matter) and there are almost always a bunch of kids there but we enjoy our time in the pool nonetheless. I take my kickboard and goggles and just swim. I have a feeling we may eventually break down and get a Y or other pool type membership but for the time being, the apartment pool is where it's at.

Today was our first visit to the pool. It felt fantastic to just get in the water and go! We were only there for about 20 minutes because a birthday party was going on and the pool was starting to fill up but it was great! Ahh... here's to another summer at the pool!

Tools

The weather is amazing here in Indiana! It's been between 75-85 degrees most days and the sun (not my favorite thing actually) has been shining nonstop. Thankfully, my body seems to really respond to this change in weather and wants lighter foods and gets the itch to move. I've also been looking at new spring and summer clothes and I have several friends who have had great success at losing weight as of late. All of which is very inspiring to me to get my act together!!

Now if you know me at all, you know I hate numbers but I love games. Weight loss is really just a number game in a lot of ways so I decided today was the day to see my numbers. While I won't bore you with the actual numbers right now I will share what I took. First I used a web tool to determine my

- Basal Metabolic Rate

- Total Calorie Need to maintain weight based on The Harris Benedict Equation.

Both of these tools are free and can be found at BMICalculator.com .

I then took measurements in inches of my;

- Arms

- Bust

- Waist (around belly button)

- Natural Waist

- Hips

- Thigh

- Calf

So now I have a baseline of what I currently weight and what my measurements are and I also know how many calories my body needs to maintain and lose weight. I have also whipped my food & exercise journal back out to use starting Monday. Since it is a holiday weekend and we have friends here for part of it I am going to just use my best judgement and work on making healthier choices until Monday to "ease myself in" if you will. It's good to me to have a baseline, goals, and a plan. Yah!

Cleaning Up!

I hope to throw up some sock progress pictures just as soon as I cast on and actually make some progress on the yoga socks because I FINALLY got my 9inch circular needles!! Woo Hoo!!!!

I also spruced up the blog a bit for spring although, I may play with it some more? I've also added links from a few of my favorite bloggers in a proper blog roll.

I had the day off from work today and worked on cleaning, organizing, and other things that make me happy. I really am a neat freak so clean = wonderful!

Finally, I have to report that I am super proud of myself for getting up at 6:00am and hitting the gym while on my work trip to Baltimore this past week. I honestly think once we do move into a house and put together our equipment in a proper gym I will do this daily. It was so nice to roll out of bed, workout in a half sleepy haze and then relax after the work of the day was done. In the apartment I feel like if I workout I'll wake up Shane who gets up later than I do and he is definatly not a morning person that I could coax to workout with me before the sun comes up. We'll see...

Okay, no more rambling for today I need to get those new needles clicking!