Start and Stop...moving forward

Welcome back everyone and this is just an update on how things have been going for me w/ the challenges I've taken on (squat, burpee, abs, and sit-ups). 

I'm currently in my third week of my challenges , however, the burpee challenge was a no go for me. As many of you know (if you've been keeping up) I started out doing the modified burpee's and even tried to do the pregnant modified burpee's but to no avail they were just too difficult for me to do at my current weight. I experienced much pain with my knees and many times my right knee did this popping thing (ouch). It kind of hurts me to have to start something and then stop it because I truly did attempt but instead of doing damage to my body I called off the burpee's until I was in good enough shape to even do the modified ones properly. 
A bit of a downer? Sure, but it's also a motivator as well. I'm even more motivated to get to a weight where it wont be so difficult to do them and so I press on. 

Drmarctagon, (my best friend) invited me to do the DietBet which was a great opportunity but being that I don't own a scale I wasn't able to accept. 
Having a scale in my home seems to put more pressure on me because I'll be so focused on the number and I don't want to do that. I like my regular weigh-ins which are once a month and that's what I'll continue to do. 

Speaking of weighing in I did go to the Dr. to get a spur of the moment weigh-in and found I'd gained 6lbs which crushed me (yet another downer) so I'm now only at 91lbs lost. Meaning I haven't made it to my 100lbs lost yet. I'm determined to push myself even though people keep telling me it could be muscle that I'm gaining and not just putting back on more weight. 

So far I'm in my third week of all of my challenges and I'm keeping up pretty well and I've been incorporating some cardio in there as well. My goal is to keep moving no matter what and that's what I intend to do. 

Currently, I've got the worst toothache which is causing me to feel pain and drained at the same time but I want to push on. I can't let anything get in the way of my progress so I continue to pray over that along with the rest of myself. 

There is no time to feel down I have to move forward. I've got this because God promised it to me. 

Let the journey continue forward. Press start again! 

We made it, We survived

When I thinking what to write about for this post , what this past week brought with it, and all that I couldn't do before I began this journey a song came to mind. "We made it"  by Hezekiah Walker. 

Okay so it's just the first week, but let me tell you this song fits this moment and all those that came before. Heck you know the struggles I had w/ squats last month (but I made it) and the burpee's have a choke hold on my entire body (but I made it - well at least the first week). I can only thank God for the transformation in my mind, body and spirit; that's why the song fits so perfectly. 

Check out the song and I'm sure you can think about a time in your life that the enemy tried to come in and push you down. The enemy didn't know how big your God was because you made it through - you survived. 

My next week w/ challenges starts back Sunday (w/ the burpee's), the Squats and Sit-up's challenge starts back Monday (that's only 3x's a week). And I'm going to get through that as well. 

Congratulations on your first week and all the weeks that follow. You've made it! 

Challenge Yourself

Your biggest competitor and critic is YOU! 

Even after all of the magazine ads, commercials, and the masses; you're the only person that has to be pleased with you at the end of the day. This means being your own cheering section and doing things you thought were impossible. That's what got me started when I did last months (Dec 2012) Squat-a-Thon. 

When I first started the challenge last year I didn't even think I could do one let alone make it to 100. From the beginning my form was off, I was beating the heck out of my knees and I was still discouraged that I couldn't do those darn squats. A little less than half way through and I was kicking out those modified, regular and sumo style squats like I was a pro. 

I had challenged myself and I'd won.

If you've read the post before you know I'm taking on another squat challenge (200 squats), the Burpee challenge and have since adopted the Sit-up Challenge as well. 
I'm not doing this to show up anyone but myself because I am the only person at the end of the day that has to be pleased. 

I've just finished my challenge for today kicking out: 49 sit-ups, 71 squats, and 10 burpees. 
Mind you everything is running smoothly except for those darn burpees. I'm 38 yrs old, and obese so even attempting the modified ones are a tackle on their own. I wont lie after yesterday's first 5 I was going to quit - heck after today's 10 I had stated aloud: "This is @#$% not for me" lol. But...I'm not going to quit. 

You know why? 

Because this is my challenge and just like I beat my thoughts on the squat one I'm going to win this one as well. My burpee's are lack luster and my form is completely off, but I'm doing my best and I know as the challenge moves forward all of those things will progress. 

I'm saying all of this to say take on your challenge - BIG or small. You deserve to win and you shall. Fight that: "I can't voice" with a resounding: "I CAN", and be your own cheering section. 

Love and blessings. 

Baby's got back

Well if what's in the title is going to get your attention I'm going to have to start doing more of those. Needless to say there will be no shots of my backside , however, this is definitely about working out the backside. 

 That's right the 200 squat challenge started today and I went ahead and got those out of the way immediately. There are plenty of good things I can say about this challenge and one is: it's only 3x's a week for 6 weeks as opposed to the squat-a-thon which was a consecutive day to day like marathons usually are. Also, everyone starts on a different level of intensity (click the link and check it out). 

The challenge begins with a test which basically gets you started on the path that you'll take 

throughout. Be honest with yourself and remember it's not a competition with anyone other than yourself. 

After doing my initial test I'm still in column one , which is okay with me because I'm sure I'll be 

doing this again and by then I'll have graduated to another column. 

My focus this time around is getting through all of the weeks doing my squats with proper form

and making sure that I'm getting the best workout I can with them. Of course I'll be switching up the style 

with a little Sumo or Dancer style squats.I don't want to try anything else too drastic because as I stated

I want to receive the maximum workout and maintain the proper form when doing them. Trying something 

new usually takes practice and I can practice after my sets. 

To keep track of your sets per day/week there is a Squats Logger which can be set up through your 

Facebook or simply just signing up and logging in. It's a great way to help you stay accountable, stay motivated and look at your progress. 

I'm definitely keeping track on there, MyFitnessPal, and the many weight loss groups I'm in. 

I'm also going to try my hand at the Burpee challenge, but I'm not as psych'd about this one 

and that's basically because I've not done a burpee in ages - like grade school P.E. ages. But of course in the land of YouTube you can find anything so I found a video on Burpee's for Beginner's. I didn't think I could do the squat challenge so I just may surprise myself. I'm definitely going to give it a try focusing on 

doing it so I don't hurt myself but also trying to get the proper form in that my body will go. 

If you're doing any challenges or marathons I'd definitely like to know about them. My friend Drmarctagon

has got a lot going on and I'm cheering him on the entire way. Drop by and see what's going on with him and while you're there wish him a Happy Belated Birthday. 

Note:

Before beginning the challenge (or any workout regimen) I suggest consulting your physician. 

From start to finish

As I'm heading towards the end of the Squat-a-thon challenge I realize I never even mentioned it once in my blog. I suppose that because when I first stumbled upon it I really wasn't giving it much though. Sure I was down a considerable amount in my weight, plus I'd been doing a lot of exercises that I never thought I'd be able to do doing a challenge like this pumped serious fear in my heart. 

I mean look at it! 

Now to the average fitness buff this seems simple, but even with me  having worked out almost 6x's a day since Feb 2012 this seemed like a challenge I just knew I wouldn't be able to follow through with. 

Mostly all of my contacts on Facebook had already begun the challenge being it was about 3 days in already but I muscled up the energy (and nerve) to jump right on in catching up with the days I'd missed plus that fourth day. I wasn't even sure how do properly do squats but after searching YouTube (because you can find anything on YouTube) I found some modified squats to get me started. 

The reason I started out with the modified ones was because my left leg is still pretty stiff from my surgery in 07 so forcing it into submission is always a tough road to travel for me. About midway my knees were really starting to hurt and after speaking to Drmarctagon my trusted friend we figured out just what I was doing wrong. 

From then on I was completing: regular, and sumo/dancer squats  working out my hammies and glutes like the exercise was designed to do. 

So here we are Day 29 and I'm really proud of myself and the strength that God has given me to complete this journey in my life. Having that faith in God has really pushed the fear of doing something to the back and given me ability to move forward because He said I could. 

From start to finish I've gained so much insight about myself, what I'm capable of and what my body is capable of as well. My limitations are only where I place them because even if I start out modified I'm doing what I never thought I'd be able to do in the first place. 

God willing next month I'll be doing the 200 squat challenge again with Drmarctagon  and the rest of my 20by20 crew and you are welcome to join in...actually we'd love for you to join in. 

It's not a competition with anyone but yourself because we're rooting for each other. 

This time I will be blogging about my journey through this one and please feel free to comment how you're doing as well. If you're doing some other challenges I'd like to know about that as well. 

We're on a journey for life and I'm cheering you on because I know you can do it. 

Nothing up my sleeve

Yesterday was my end of the year weigh-in and I was super stoked about it - not nervous like I've usually been in the past. Sister Mother was paying me a visit and I knew she'd take on a few pounds of water weight with her stay, but I wasn't even worried. My weigh-ins have become routine for me so I know either positive or negative what ever that scale reads I'm pushing forward. 

My goal from day one (Feb 15, 2012) was just to lose 20lbs, but as time progressed and motivation increased God continued to bless me. Each month I'd push myself to lose another 20lbs because I knew I could do it - I'd prayed on it. The closer I got the more I wanted to lose it and it hasn't been an easy road. When I got to the tail end of this year I claimed a total of 100lbs lost for this year; no tricks, no potions, no gadgets. Nothing up my sleeve. 

December 20, 2012 I am at a total loss of 97lbs. 
Okay crowd you can go wild now!!! lol 

It's not the full 100lbs but then again this year isn't over so prayerfully I'll sneak in a weigh-in before the end of December comes to a head. For now I'm happy with what I've lost and what I've pushed myself to do. I know that all of this would be possible without my faith and I know that I'll keep moving forward with this weight loss. 
There are things I can do now that I would have never been able to do nearly 11months ago and I'm pretty darn happy to say that. It brings tears to my eyes that God has given me the strength to do something that doctors didn't think were possible even with surgery and I've done this with "nothing up my sleeve". 

This is not to say that I'm against any types of WLS because if that's what's going to help you get to your goal safely then so be it - it just wasn't for me. Plus I proved something to myself and to naysayers. 

With the minor medical issues they say I have nothing is as major as my God. 

Amours Infinity and beyond. 

Merry Christ-mas and a very Happy New Year to you all :) 

Hey there

So this is me 91lbs down. A lot of people have never really seen any picture of me

other than a head shot so I felt if you were here reading at least you could see 

who I am. I've got a long way to go but I've come a long way as well. 

Since this picture I've gained 5lbs but have been working my tail off to get that and the 9lbs

needed off to get my 100lb loss for this year. I know that I can do it because I know my potential

and it's in me to push myself to do it. 

I've got this because God said so!