W4 Month Mark Tuesday

Why is it now that it is so imperative to 'eat clean' I am not doing so good these last few days????? I'm letting a little of everything in... mayo, provolone, sangria... pasta twice today...I gotta quit it...

Breakfast: Cinnamon Organic Oatmeal with 1 banana mixed in
Lunch: 1 Chicken Salad Sandwich on Whole Wheat (light mayo), a small side of pasta with red sauce
Snack: Red Globe Grapes, 1 Activia yogurt
Recovery Meal: the rest of my nuts and raisins mix
Dinner: Cheese tortilini (1 serving about 400 calories) with olive oil, basil, tomatoe, salt and racked pepper. I wanted to eat the whole package of pasta (2.5 servings, but the calorie count stopped me from doing it and 1 serving actually ended up satisfying me) 1 bag of baby carrots (35 calories)

Sal's doing a great job subbing for Rudy. He was so motivational last night and just real tonight. The group had a fun time I think laughing with him and I really enjoyed his extra explanations of the moves.

Tonight I challenged myself with going up to a higher dumbell than before. I left the 7.5 lbs and looked for the 10 lbs... none to be found, so I said to myself, 'What the heck? Let's go for the 12.5 lbs. Crazy? Possibly! I actually took the 7.5 with me too just in case.

I actually was able to hang with the 12.5 on the shoulder presses and the axe/chopping movements. I should have switched to the 12.5 on the hands together, chest presses on our back because it has gotten a lot easier even with the 7.5! I needed to switch to the 7.5 though when we did ab work flutter kicks and dumbell chest presses a the same time. DARN THOSE FLUTTER KICKS! I struggle so badly with them. I'm going to try to do the Crunch! Fitness Pilates 10 minute abs on my off days, because it seems my abs just aren't showing too much improvement... they're barely in existence!

Sigh! I'm going through an emotional slump in my life right now. It's the first time that something like this has crept in since I started the program. I can apply the same attitude that helps get me through the pain during the workouts to this emotinally painful time: I know it won't last, I just have to keep on keeping on, keep doing what I am doing, keep working and it will be through and I will feel better afterwards, I just cannot give up. I must keep moving. I can do it... I am doing it. All this pain is worth it because I am only becoming stronger while getting rid of all the excess weight that has been stressing me out and making me unhealthy; I am building up a new me.

So, I didn't know how this 'bummer outeness' would affect my workout. Would I increase, decrease of keep the same productivity? Well when I go there, my attitude was different, just wanted to get started, get going... no real spark in me, until we got to the one-two-punch and two knees. I was rapid fire, murderlizing it! Afterward, I told Amy that it really helped. I wasn't fighting anyone in particular, just fighting the disappointment, the unfair judgements and my own anger. One other aspect of the workout that really helped me was the difficult floor work. It was really hard, but I was still doing it and when I was accomplishing it, I realized that that is where I was. I felt good getting it done and pushing myself. I felt good about myself, just being in the moment, under the stars, everything working, surrounded with like minded people sharing a simiiar experience, thinking of nothing else but there.

Tomorrow is a day off from the gym.

W4 Month Mark: Monday

Breakfast: 1 Gala Apple; Flaxseed Organic Oatmeal
Lunch: Miso soup with seaweed and tofu, Japanese Beef (with a little teriyaki sauce, 6 california rolls, 2 pieces of albacore (My favorite sashimi!), small salad
Recovery meal: Nuts and raisins
Dinner: Tortillaless turkey tacos (2 deli slices of turkey with, sprouts, tomatoe, and 1 slice of provolone); 1 blueberry Actvia yogurt

Oh my goodness! Tonight's workout!

So we started with a warm-up run outside, I don't know how long it was, but I felt great that I was able to run the whole time. I used my mp3 for the very first time and it really helped! I loaded it with a bunch of random songs from my younger sister's music collection. It's a great investment!

Oh, at first when we were running, I noticed this dog bounding around and I got a little nervous because I know of people who have been bitten by dogs who got excited when someone ran past them, but then someone mentioned it wasn't just any dog, it was Sal's doggie! So, I totally relaxed and then really enjoyed having the cutie around.

After the run, we did some jab crosses... slow and then for speed. We did some weaving to work the legs and we did some more major steam engineage. But what I was not prepared for wer slow, controlled squats... and then HOLDING THEM! I kid you not, I was almost brought to tears. You know the kind, you exert so much effort, that once you are done, you start to kind of hyperventilate and cry a little. Long horsestances are my bain and these were so similiar:
We stood with our feet a bit wider than our shoulders with toes slightly turned out. Our arms reachings straight out in front of us. We did 10 squats and then held for a count of ten. Then we did more jabs, and steam engines. Here is where I about cried. Sal had us do something like this-about 10 squats then hold the last squat for a count of ten, then 10 squats and hold for a count of ten, then 5 squats hold for 5, then 5 and hold for 5. Something like that, my squats got less deep and the effort to stay squatted was just so much work. Phew though! I did it.

I was one of the last people to head up to the spinning room, because it took me awhile to recover. I guess that is what I get for missing Sal's killer beach workout on Saturday. I heard it was great, from Adam.

I really liked today how great Sal was in the spinning room. He checked each and every one of our bikes to make sure we were at the right tension. That helped me with my confidence today to know I was with everyone. So one really great thing I think he did was while we were doing 30 seconds hard tension, 30 seconds recovery, he kept calling out the time during the hard tension and said, "It's only thirty seconds! See? Ten already just went by!" He was so encouraging and kept things in perspective for me. I think I personally was able to go harder today because of it. Although, I still swear I am pedaling a lot slower than everyone else. I think that I'm just a fish out of water on a bike. It can only get better.

Now what about that combat yoga I kept hearing about in the beginning? :) Bring it on! More seemingly impossible hard stuff that I somehow end up being able to get through anyway;) heehee

I've been going to the night class so much lately, I think my body is more pleased with it. I was so afraid of missing a class, that I always wanted to try for the am, but pm has been working out fine. I'd like to try to get to an am class again though so I can see the progress some of my friends are making that I haven't seen in awhile.

One last thing. I really want to give props to all of the participants who are going through extra challenges. I live fairly close to Encinitas living in La Jolla, but there are people travelling from Chula Vista, Escondido and Orange County! That is amazing to me and our attendance is at 97% Also, I am pretty healthy other than the regular muscle soreness, I am fine. But there are people with shinsplints, aggravated knees, hurt backs,hurt ankles, you name it! But here I am doing fine and STILL getting worked. However, I must keep on the mantra to 'WORK THE PROGRAM! DON'T LET THE PROGRAM WORK YOU!"

Week Three! Sunday

Breakfast: scrambled egg with tomatoe and onions
Snack: Grapes; Activia Yogurt
Lunch: None :(
Dinner: ZPizza MEXICAN: Homemade salsa, mozzarella, spicy lime chicken, green onions, red onions, fresh avocado, NO sour cream, and cilantro (personal 10") Chocolate unsweetened Almond Milk

I'm just off today... My only exercise was carrying the books and stuff for the church bookstore.

I'm a little bit in a funky, funk funk mood...

Week Three! Saturday

Breakfast: Activia Yogurt
Lunch: Organic Oatmeal (meant to eat it for breakfast, but kept forgetting it in the microwave, so it got heated three times before I actually ate it at noon)
Dinner: I was bad. :( My friend turned 30 and her mom is from Spain and her mom made homemade Sangria. Me loves good sangria. So... I had a glass! At least there is fruit in it. I also ate two dark crackers (made sure to pick the dark ones) and had 4 cubes of hard spanish cheese (I love cheese). I ate two medium shrimp, a small salad, chicken in filo dough and cream sauce, half a meat in bread thingy, and some herbed rice. I passed on the incredible cakes they had and the ice cream. I gotta work EXTRA hard now cause 1st month pictures are next weekend! Sigh!

I was going to go to workout on the beach today, but my stomach was giving me some problems and I was concerned so, I decided to workout indoors today (sorry if that was too much information).

So, the cool thing is that I decided to challenge myself and create a warm-up based on what Rudy has taught us to far.

I jogged in place, did trunk twist, open/close, elephant trunks. Then I did 4 intervals of the following:

-10 inverted full pushups (I can't go all the way down, but think it will help to work me up to full pushups in class. I still do them on my knees)
-10 squat push, presses
-20 ab exercises

I felt really happy that it made me start to sweat like in class. I really feel like I am taking away something that I can do regularly whenever I just want to 'move' and work up a sweat.

I finished with my kung fu 'form exercise' (a series of offensive and defensive moves strung together as 1 exercise) and a few self defense techniques and a few of my kicks. My form exercise still really gets my heartrate up, easily. I hope in time I can get through it without too much trouble. I really need to practice my kicks and practice them with keeping my belly tight and the power coming from the ground and my core... after all this time, I still don't think I use my core as where my power comes from yet. I think once I master that, everything will get so much better for me, physically.

I think I will try to challenge myself by picking two kicks that I stink at the most and just do them a million times. Rudy mentioned he picked a couple things, one of them being kicks, that he wanted to get better at, and he just did them many, many times. That is part of what he teached us. "It isn't hard to get into shape. Take something simple and do it a lot."

Week Three! Friday

Breakfast: Small bowl of fruit, 3/4 of a small slice of quiche, 1 slice of potatoe. Water
Lunch: Two Vietnamese Spring Rolls with peanut sauce (only used half). Small bowl of noodle soup.
Snack: Almonds and Banana
Recovery meal: Mixed nuts and raisins
Dinner: I have to explain this one. I went to a friends house and all they had was kentucky Fried Chicken. 1) I dont' eat meat on Friday. 2) They workout hard, so they binge hard nothing was 'clean' but a weak tomatoe/iceberg lettuce salad. So after, I went to Rubios and chowed down on a mahi mahi health mex burrito. Didn't eat the rice


I started the day on the USS Midway for the Red Cross, Real Heroes Breakfast. It was very touching, I wasn't really expecting it. The Keynote speaker was the firefighter in charge of the NY FD during 9/11. He actually was second in charge, but when the Chief died after rushing in to help save some trapped firefighters, Daniel A. Nigro was named Incident Commander that afternoon. He survived both collapses. What an amazing man. He spoke so well. He said, that he wanted to do best service to the local heroes being honored that morning, so he told us a story. He said that most Heroes believe that anyone would have done the same thing that they did if they were in the same position, but he said, that that is just not true. He told us a story about a man who lost conciousness at a subway station and fell to the tracks below. A train was coming and one man jumped down onto the tracks. He could not get the man out of the way on time, but he was able to maneuver the mans body to the center of the tracks and he lay on top of the other man while the train rushed over them. They both survived. That day, there were many bystanders, and only one man acted to save the other man's life.

Oh my gosh! Stories like these all morning were choking me up and tears were being fought back as many managed to escape and just run down my face. HOW BEAUTIFUL people can be when we act the best that we can be.

I was honored to be in the presence of so many heroes. People who made choices to extend themselves, even to the point of risking their own life, to help another. How beautiful is that?

That is some Hero Living. I wonder why this theme of Hero has been following me so much lately. A couple of weeks ago, I was at a Girl Scouts benefit and the band that was playing was great! They were called the Heroes... no joke, folks.

On the exercise note:

My abs be killing me! I laugh or stretch wrong and I am feeling it! That's a good thing :) My belly is my biggest problem area and I need to blast the sucker. I know they say that you can't really 'spot' exercise, and that you need to just lose fat all over, but it feels good to have some soreness there again.

That deep pain I had in my thighs is gone. Not sure if it got worked out through the bikes, or because I tried to do a little splits training last night before bed.

( I will add to this tonight after my workout)

Boy, Rudy sure is a successful bottom whooper... I am whooped!

Friday night, I was introduced to the Bosu ball. Half ball, half platform, all intimidating...

So we warm up the usual way, run in place, steam engines, open/close, elephant trunks, most of us have the drill by now. Once again, LOVED the boxing part. He showed us a really cool move that is just so much more fun and exciting than anything I ever learned at White Dragon for sparring; and it was fairly simple but when he first showed us, I think we all kind of laughed, like when you go to dance class and they show you this awesome move and they say, 'Now you!' And immediately you think, hahahaha, yeah right that looks so complicated, BUT part of you is still excited and like, wow really, I might be able to do that sometime soon and you are going to show me how? Bring it!

So, it was a simple jab, punch combo, with a duck to the right and a right cross, then a duck to the left and a left hook (as Rudy emphasizes ALWAYS THE LEFT; but I dont think he said why) and a right uppercut. LOVED IT! Felt great. Katherine was totaly agreeing. I think most of us girls really like the boxing parts.

Now to the balls. Rudy likes them fliped over, so the ball part is on the floor and the platform is face up. He jumps right on with the ease of a chinese acrobat jumping on his partners shoulders to stand. Aha! See no problem! Now YOU try! :) ahahahahahaha Needless to say, my mount was not as graceful. This was not one of those exciting 'yeah rights', more like the kind yo have when you are pretty sure everyone else can do it, but you might not be able to.

Okay, one foot on til it teeters all the way to the floor, now the...oth.. now the othe... now...now the other! Conslusion: YOU'VE GOT TO ME KIDDING ME! By now, Katherine, who has had the delightful bosu experience before has been balancing for quite some time now. She is good. so, I am inspired and I am determined. I finally get on and Rudy is leading us in squats.

We get off and put our hand on the platform and proceed to do mountain climbers. I suspect my booty is not supposed to be so high in the air, but that's how I can do them. I think once my core is stronger, I'll be able to do it without the gluteous maximus high in the air.

Now we are jumping back on. This time with weights! Rudy wanted us to challenge ourselves and go up 2 lbs. I started with 2.5 the first time, then went to 5 and now am at 7.5. I really think I wasn't ready for 10, but hope to move to it some time next week. There is a point though, where I don't want to go any higher, cause I really just want to be slim and tone, I don't want bulk. I can imagine that I'd be just as frustrated being too big with muscles as being too big with fat. I hear women cannot get big like that, but I have seen it... not what I want. Actually Rudy had a friend workin out tonight and I think I heard she was doing twenty lbs. She looked small still. Anyhow, I guess I am getting ahead of myself. Perhaps I should be more concerned with the extra flap of skin I have on my arms right now rather than worrying about being too much in shape, right? ahahahaha

So the rest of the class, we alternated from standing on the platform and squating with weights, push presses, and sitting on the ball and doing ab/core exercises (some with weights in hand). The 7.5 were enough in the class, my triceps had had it by the end. Had to use two hands for one weight during the last tricep extensions.

We ended with some Tai Chi breathing.

Went to hang with some old kung fu buddies. Two of them had just gotten back from their backpacking trip in Europe, so they had the pictures running the whole night. Morroco, France, England, so many places...

I head to Switzerland right after this program finishes. No kidding, we end the last week of November, my flight leaves the first week of December. I hope it is enough to improve my Europe walking survival, and to improve what little snowboarding skills I have. I will have less fat, so that might be a negative in the snow laden country, but I guess that is what clothes are for :)

Week Three! Thursday

Breakfast: Activia Yogurt, bag of baby carrots
Lunch: 6" Avocado, Turkey, sprouts, cucumbers, onions, lettuce and tom
Snack: 1 Vitamin Water, Natural Almonds
Recovery meal: I forgot it!
Dinner: 1 Tortillaless Turkey taco and 1 chicken breast

I didn't get to bed on time the night before. A friend called me and so I was up past my bedtime, but thank goodness for night class.

We warmed up with steam engines, open and close stretching, and elephant trunks.
I really enjoyed the shadow boxing and knees are getting easier. I try hard to thrust with my hip and not just my knee. Rudy asked us to improve our form and to work the program, not get worked byu the program.

Our pushups were killer! It was a basically a move that I learned from my Wii balance board, but we did like 50 reps, ten at a time: push-up = down and then up while reaching one arm to the sky, then down and then up reaching the other arm to the sky, opening your body to the side. That is one rep. Between reps we shadow boxed, then did crazy ab work, which I NEED! Flutter kicks still kill me, especially the whole 6 inches off the ground thing. We do crunches and in and out type v situps. My legs were still smoked from Tuesday, so the spinning was torturous and I felt slow like molasses again, except I lightened it up when we were going for speed instead for hard resistance. Note to self, shorts are okay for the beach workout, not okay for gym workout because you never know when youmight be riding a spin bike. My shorts rode up and were so uncomfortable. I almost got to tray a cool seat pad, but then I saw Katherine and remembered how torturous the seats are for her, so I let her have it. I'm not a fan of the seats, but it doesn't get to me so badly.

I was expecting the bosu ball, because some of the AM crew had some stories about how challenging it was. I think Rudy said we will get it Friday night.

He also mentioned that Encinitas Frogs is offering discounted memeberships to his participants. I guess it is $51 a month for 12 months, sign-up fee waived.

Sorry this is a rather dull, episode, I am a wee bit fatigued.

Week Three! Wednesday

Breakfast: Organic Oatmeal
Lunch: Tuscan Chicken Sandwich from Vons Deli on Country Wheat bread (Chicken breast, artichoke hearts, lettuce, tomato, red onion, herbed mozarella, light mayo (bad! I know!) Water
Snack: 1 piece of beef jerky, 1 handful of almonds, 1 Activia yogurt
Dinner: (Rudy says our dinners should always involve some kind of food that 'has a face'; like chicken, fish, cow, etc...)Ate at a friends house, so the food wasn't totally clean, but it was delicious! It was some kind of yummy meat dish and incredible mashed potatoes (so I am sure there was all kinds of 'good' stuff in it!) and some steamed yellow zucchini

My exercise consisted of helping my friend put up about 10 wall hangings, pictures, etc... up after dinner. She has 6 children and right about my age, maybe younger, so as silly as it seems, this was a much needed helping hand. I think I am inspired to fix up my own walls now...

Oh, did I tell you mylegs are on FIRE?! I swear there is a little radiator in each of them radiating heat. I have that deep muscle sore inside them that no real stretching nor self-massage can get to... The workout on tuesday night killed them more than I had originally thought.

Bodywise, I am at the point where I can kind of suck in my belly now and 'fake it'. hahaha, funny that getting to the point where you can fake slimness is now an accomplishment in and of itself! But, I would love to get to the point that when I sit, I cannot push in my belly with my fingers and have my finger disappear halfway. So, gross, I know! But this will help me when I look back and see how far I have come.

Week Three! Tuesday

Breakfast: 1 Banana and an Activia yogurt
Lunch: Stir Fresh: Tofu, Chicken, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, pineapple and noodles (more meat than noodles)
Snacks: Natural Almonds, Rice Cake
Dinner: Chicken Lettuce Wraps from 'West'

Darn my 'meeting' mode on my phone. I set it to meeting mode so it doesn't make a sound during my meetings at work, but if I don't take it off of meeting mode, my alarm doesn't make a sound either. I woke at 645am today. This means night class for me.

So today was Rudy's first day back after having to travel to support his brother Mike, in a fight. It was good to have our Rudy back. Sal 'whooped it on' for us, but like Rudy says, Rudy is Daddy. He comes home and we are glad, 'cause Sal was not sparing us any. He worked us hard! They're a great team :)

During our warm-up, Sal called us each aside to weigh us in. At first this took me aback because they said that we shouldn't look at the scale. It turns out that this is Euro's request (the ad agency doing the infomercial). We will do our weigh in and measurements etc... in a couple weeks as planned. Sal, said we shouldn't even look at the number, just hop on and hop off and get to working. I looked, I think I gained like 3 pounds! But, I am trusting and believing that that 3 lbs is muscle. Rudy said that muscle weighs about 3 or 4x's as much as fat. That is good news.

Okay, so steam engines. I think last time I said that they weren't so hard anymore. Try them for five minutes! My legs were moving through molasses by the end, but I really think that I am mentally better about things not being so long anymore and just continuing to move even if I think I cannot anymore. It doesn't seem to last as long.

One cool thing Rudy pointed out today was that, getting into shape isn't hard. You can pick one thing and just do it several times. He said that he did that with Kung Fu. He picked kicking and after awhile, he was great at it.

So we did a lot of that today. Endurance. We did the squat, lift, press for a minute straight and then we did something else, probably axe chopping and then we did the squat, lift, press about 50 times. Rudy and the boys can do it with Kegs. Yes, they actually have kegs at the school to lift. Interesting...

After the strength endurance exercises, we went to work out abs. I NEED to start doing that on my own because... well, it's just sad. The exercises he has us doing, I used to be pretty good at. I take little breaks, even though I really don't want to... I have to. So, I will add ab exercises to my pushups on off days to help out with that. At least from the grunts and groans that I was hearing in the room, I may not be the only person who needs to strengthen their core. If I can achieve the 'line' on my belly by end of week 12, I will be uber-stoked! I had that once, a long time ago. I'd like to have that back. No need for a pack of anything for me. I just want my line :)

Day off tomorrow. Maybe I can catch up on my reading :)

Week Three! Monday

Pre-workout: 1/2 Banana (about 40 minutes before the workout)
Recovery Meal: 1 Tiger's Milk Bar
Breakfast: Two scrambled eggs, a large spoonful of country style potatoes
Lunch:Filet Mignon Rice Vermicelli Bowl (Vietnamese)
Snack: Two handfuls of dark chocolate Raisinets (BAD!), 2 Rice Cakes, 1 Activia yogurt, 1 sheet of dried seaweed
Dinner: 1 chicken breast (kosher sauteed in garlic, salt and pepper) and whole wheat angel hair with olive oil, basil and tomatoes (1/2 Revive Vitamin Water)

Hey, thanks to everyone who has commented on my blog. It helps to know that this is helping others more than just myself.

Today was a great workout! Sal has really gotten into the groove of leading the class :) Sometimes he is still a little softspoken because in the back we didn't hear him one time, but he got us going good! Loved the rythm, loved the exercises and the encouragement!! Personal progress notes: Steam engines and hindu squats are not as tortuous. I used the next dumbell weight up and it might have been a little light! Might try one weight level up next time or the time after next.

We were in the room the whole time, but it felt good, not as hard as Saturday. I think the Saturday workouts helped make today not so bad. Everyone, try a Saturday if you haven't yet!

One thing I loved was that Chris Cornell was playing! "Like a Stone". I think that song gets me going! I got to see him perform it live and ever since have loved the song. Maybe that's why the day was easier?

Oh fun news! Katherine told me my face looked slimmer! Hooray! I think we can see that everyone is looking and doing better than week 1 for sure.

"Second Week" Sunday

Breakfast: Organic flaxseed oatmeal with half a banana cut up (Flaxseed is good for you. "Flax Oil as a True Aid Against Arthritis, Heart Infarction, Cancer, and other Diseases". http://www.healingdaily.com/detoxification-diet/flaxseed.htm )One strawberry/banana activia yogurt. (I am taking the 12 day activia challenge. Basically just healthing up my digestive system) I'm all about detox right now...
Lunch: HealthMex Mahi Burrito from Rubios
Dinner: Was challenged by eating at an 'all you can eat buffet after Mass. Ended up eating half of a Seabass filet. 4 pieces of different sushi. Some seaweed. three slices of white meat chicken and snow peas. For dessert, 1 triangle of watermelo. three cubes of honeydew and 1 cantalope cube. 2 squares of jello (1 green and 1 red). 1 half of an orange. WOW! That sounds like a lot! But I probably cut my regular plates down by four times....


I tried to do some exercise today, but it was really a weak attempt. I started some of my old self defense techniques, but stopped after doing about four of them... I did however challenge myself to do twenty regular pushups. I always do pushups from my knees in class because I'm afraid I will just not be able to do them... I think by doing them on my own the standard way, I might have confidence later to do them that way in class. I just have always had such a weak upper body.

So, I am really into the documentary book that chronicles Rudy's Recon Missions. If you don't already know, it's a book that has won many accolades. An embedded reporter wrote about his experiences with the recon marines when the Iraq war first started. Our very own, Rudy was one of those marines.

I am reading it to redevelop my appreciation for the military and the people who go to war. So far, I have laughed out loud a lot because the writer can capture the character of these marines so well that you feel like you are seeing them and hearing them. If you haven't been around many marines, many of them can be funny clever and just endearing, despite the rough edges and sometimes very foul language. He just captures them well. I haven't gotten far, about twenty pages or so. They JUST introduced Rudy. It's neat to read and imagine what it was like.

This is the first book since 'Lord of the Rings' that I am taking with me places. I tucked it under my shoulder today and read while I ate at Rubios. Just from the first few pages, I have a feeling that it will be with me a lot, like that.

I was such a LOTR geeek! I was on a mission to finish all three books before the first movie came out so that I could have my own experience and imagination with the scenes and imagery before the movie could sway my imagination. I would take it to everywhere! I remember once I took it to a beach party. I spread out my blanket and plopped myself down with the book. I got a lot of grief for it, but I was determined! I had a deadline.

Anyhow, it's a good read so far.

Rudy has only been gone for a few days, but I miss him... My workouts are still great...I can't expalin what it is, but whatever it is, I miss it. Do any of you feel the same?

Second Saturday

Recovery Meal: 1/2 Muscle Milk (Will look into getting Muscle Milk light next time. Ava says we can find it at Costco)
Breakfast: None (not sure how that happened)
Lunch: cup of tomatoe bisque, a Shrimp and Avocado salad with greens and vinagrette, 2 small pieces of squaw bread
Snack: Apple, Vanilla Danactive
Dinner: Large Tabouleh Salad, Tortillaless Turkey Taco (my own little concoction/innovation once I realize my 7 grain sprouted bread was all moldy. Two slices of turkey, 1 swiss cheese slice and sprouts rolled together like a 'tortillaless taco')

+++

If you plan on attending the workout session on the beach at 9am on Saturday, get there early. Last week, it was overcast and there wasn't a problem finding parking space. Today, it was sunny and gorgeous. Plus, they had their annual Woodie convention (Very cool by the way, I saw a 1966 mini coper woodie, very cute little thing. A driving deathtrap, but cute.)

When I arrived at nine, there were only about six of us there. Sal, Courtney, Anna, Sydney and I think Bernard was already there too. While we waited for others to join, I mentioned to Sydney how it was kind of weird, but I was nervous for the workout today. I think that perplexed her, but once we were well into the workout, she knew what I as talking about. I might say we were about 12 or so. We were about half the size of last week.

The workout was generally the same, but with noticeably less rests in between. We started with a light jog back and forth about 6 times then, we did lunges one way, basically we did four sets that had a formula similiar to this; changed up a bit but generally:

Sand Sprints-Jog lightly about 50% from one marker to the other and then go into a full sprint once you are halfway there. Turn around and jog back lightly. repeat and repeat then,
-Gradually get to a full sprint one way, sprint back, then jog lightly back and forth four times. repeat

By this time, most of us are already dying, but we move on to the second part of the set up by the low wall. There we proceed to do the following:
-20 pushups
-20 step/knee ups (10 on each leg)
-20 dips
-20 crunches where we sit like a 'v' and pull our legs into our stomachs as we crunch in

After this we jog back down to the starting line to do another set of sprints. We repeat this process four times. It's amazing that I manage to pull this off, but we all do it. Someone said, "I have never felt so out of shape before." Another said, "I feel like I did on the first day!". Sal said, "Sand does that. It makes you work harder. It's a great humbilizer."

It is soooooooo a mental game. At least for me it is. You know what I have to do?
- When we jog back down to the starting line for sand sprints after doing our 80 strength moves, I say to myself, "Drift lightly down to your water bottle, liiiiike a snowwwflaaaake." I have NO idea where I came up with that nonsense, but it HELPS! It helps me 'drift' down to my water bottle.

Wanna know what I do when we have to jog lightly (50%) between markers? I look for the 'holes' or footprints and leap from one to another, almost in the same fashion that one might rock climb. Why do I do that? It feels more like a 'game'.

Wanna know what I do when we have to all out sprint? I don't so anything. I just book it. Actually on the very last sprint, Saleem was right next to me, and I decided to race him. I hadn't raced anyone because I don't want to be pooped, but knowing it was the last sprint and we were neck and neck, I pushed. I think it was a tie. I told him what I had done when we finished and he said, he had his eyes closed, but he was glad he could motivate me like that :) Hooray for motivation!

Speaking of motivation! Ava showed up near the end (she was doing her own biking thing today) and she asked if I was noticing any changes in me. I responded that I felt like I was performing more athletically than the beginning, but I hadn't lost any weight. She said that she had noticed a change in me. WOW that made me glad! I guess others are seeing what I cannot see. She also made a great point to Sydney and I and all of us to just not look at the scale and wait until we are measured. So many others chimed in that it's in the inches we will see it, not the weight per se. We have to realize that our muscle we gain is heavier than the fat we lose. Someone even said to give our scales to a friend for safe keeping! hahaha so instead of a 'keymaster' we should have scale masters!

So, Sal did another good job standing in for Rudy. One thing that almost broke me, but this is a mental thing I have always had to work on, is that he kept saying, "Last one", when it wasn't really and then we had to do more. I have always had that as a pet peeve, it's like insta-bad mood/attitude generator in me. It doesn't matter what it is, workouts, prayer, whatever... if someone says 'last one' and I soon learn that it really wasn't the 'last one'. I lose momentum and motivation, I get deflated. I think though, it is good for me to experience it and learn to deal with it anyway and not let it get me like it does. I think I did so so with it today.

Once again, I remained after the class to just sit and cool down and take in the beach. It's sad that I live so close to the ocean and the only time I really hit the beach is on special occasions and now on workout days. Anna, Tracey, Bernard and I had a nice talk.

Bernard offered that if we really want a GREAT workout, that we attend his boxing class at 6pm and THEN go to Rudy's class at 7pm. The reason he gave was that in the first hour of working out, we burn 'glycogen' (I hope I am getting this right) and the second hour we will burn fat. Back when I would do martial arts, I had crazy Tuesdays!. I would get to the school at 7pm, take two 1/2 hour classes of punching and kicking, then go to sparring, then go to grappling! I was trim to say the least. I MIGHT take him up on the offer... at least I will have Wednesday to recooperate. Anyone other takers?

Hope to see more of you on Saturday sometime! Just come! Just do it! It's all about just getting out there and getting it done and learning about yourself in the process. I know I am learning a lot.

Now, I'm gonna get ready for bed and start reading my new book, "Generation Kill". :)

Thus ends week two! I hope you enjoyed this blog.

The Desiderata- By Max Ehrmann

My mother shared this with me when I was young and it, along with a lot of other motivational sayings, books, my faith, etc... helped formulate a bit of how I think today...


Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.


With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

"Week Two" Friday

Recovery meal: Tiger's Milk . Water
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with spinach, tomatoes, onions and red/yellow peppers. I piece of plain 12 grain toast. Water
Lunch: Grilled vegetables (portabella mushrooms, peppers, onions, zuchinni), Mexican green rice, two corn tortillas, fresh guacamole and green hot sauce. Passionfruit ice tea (unsweetened)
Snacks: 1 rice cake, 2 low cal cookies (the size of a ritz bit), 1 rubios fish taco
Dinner: Grilled Salmon over mixed greens with vinagrette dressing. 1 glass of unsweetened chocolate Almond Breeze

I know you are anxiously awaiting to find out if I did it or not, right? Well, I did it! I almost didn't but I did it! I woke up on time for the workout today! Woohoo! back in the saddle again! Yeehaw!

I admit, I was a little late and almost gave up when I realized I was in my car at 6:08... Did I have enough time to get to Encinitas by 6:30? Well, I applied a little bit of the mindset we get when working out, and I just decided to go for it and try even if I think I might not be able to.

I arrived shortly after the warm-up walk started. Yes, I said 'walk'. I was surprised, but fine with it. When we starte to jog, I ended up jogging alongside Adam. Yes, good ol' Adam who volunteered to spot me on my pullups the very first week. I guess he was out for two days due to a, what was it now? A back injury? I think that is what it was. Anyhow, he is back and planned on going to this morning, tonight AND Saturday! God bless him! Perhaps I will report on how he is doing when I see him tomorrow morning.

After the jog, we did some of the basic warmup stretches. One where we twist. This one is hard to explain, but basically we stand feet apart with one hand straight in front of us, parrallel to the ground, center line of our body. Then, we swing the other hand, coming from the side of our body to hit the first hand, this sends the other hand flying inthe opposite direction. Causing your upper body to turn, then you repeat back and forth until you are twisting your trunk along with and somewhat because of the inertia from your arms.

Another warm-up stretch is the 'elephant trunks'. Basically you swing your arms from side to side. From very high up to the right, swooping down and back up to very high up on the left. The movement is similiar to that of an elephant truck swishing back and forth.

Trying to remember an element of 'play', as well as serious focus, while working out is probably a good idea. Most of us never really complained when we were in elementary school playing on the playground, about how long recess was, right? HAVE YOU BEEN ON A PLAYGROUND LATELY?! Swinging is hard work now! Monkey bars aren't messing around. No wonder I was a little pipsqueak back then. I was FIT! Or maybe I didn't have the mentality that the sun was too hot or I was sweating too badly or that my playtime was too long.

Now after the warm-up, we went into the spinning cycle room. I went to the same bike I had last time. Again we alternated between high tension for a period of time, and then lower tension, and then back to higher tension. I usually just focus forward and don't really look around, but today I wanted to look around because there are some people in this program on facebook, that I don't recognize. So, I'm looking for them in class.

Now, the reason I don't look around is because I don't want to start comparing myself to other people. Actually Ava gave me that advice during the first week. There will always be those lesser and greater than I. (I will post one of the 'poems' by Max Erhman that relates to that, that my mom introduced to me in middle school and I have liked ever since). So what happens? As I was looking around, I noticed that everyone was spinning a whole lot faster than me. "HELLO?", I think to myself, "Do you people have the tension as high as I do?? I thought we were supposed to turn it two whole rounds to the right???". hahaha Okay, maybe I am just imagining it, but boy, I felt slllloooooowwwww. This is one kick butt group of peeps, I tell ya.

All in all Sal did a great job leading the group in place of Rudy. Tough shoes to fill, so I commend him! I noticed he isn't quite as vocal during the warm-up but once we got in the spin room, he got right in there and called us to WORK! I was pouring sweat.

Oh it was so funny! In the locker room, I think it was Pamela who made the funny. She said something like, "You guys, you know how people drip sweat? Well, in these classes, I don't drip, I flow." I laughed as I visualized a scene from a funny movie. Ever seen 'Airplane'? If so, 'nuff said. (If you haven't seen it, go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdEmmXiB7ew Look at 2:26)

Okay, another locker room story from today. I was talking to Nicole about vitamins. She has a great product she recommends called All One Green Phyto Base. Thanks for the tip, Nicole! I have to check it out, because I need to do something!

See, I mentioned that I am taking a multi-vitamin but my (sorry for the graphic-ness) urine is really, really yellow. The Pilate's Director happened to be right there, Corinne, I think is her name. She overheard me and said it may mean that I am not absorbing the vitamins and it is just passing right through. they could be low quality! I had no idea this happened. So, I am greatful to Nicole and others who have given me ideas on how to stay nourished! Corinne recommended type of vitamn (biopharm?) that uses nanotechnology. She was super sweet to take the time to tell me all about it and how her husband who hates taking vitamins, will take these because he notices the difference in him when he goes a day with out. For me, I am a little wary of nanotechnology. Since it works at the cellular level, I want to wait a few years before I try it. I won't even use this new hair product I got from Pureology because I just read the label about it using nano-technology. It's kind of like me and Lasik. I am in no way an 'early adopter'. I wait to see the years of results. I'm better about the Lasik thing, but not quite there yet with it personally.

Oh yeah, last thought. One of my best girlfriends who goes all the way back with me in kindergarten wrote me and beseeched me to have see a thyroid specialist. She begged me to get it done because in her words:

A normal doctor will give you a blood test and if you are within a standard range, they will tell you nothing is wrong.
But seriously, even if you're .0000000001122 off, your body knows it and it doesn't work right. Any accumulation of stomach fat is a sign that something isn't right. Hopefully I am wrong but it is so worth getting yourself tested once a year.

Essentially, they take blood and run tests on your t3 and t4 levels. http://thyroid.about.com/library/links/blthyroid.htm
You should also get a sonogram on your thyroid to see if it is enlarged. That is what caught my problem.
I went from 120 lbs to 155 lbs in a year WITH working out. I hired trainer after trainer and they all told me I was gaining weight and to quit closet eating! Arrggh.

Anyway, I'm sure this has been a tough time for you and that adds to it but it also helps to know if your emotional issues have manifested into physical problems as that is what usually happens.
I wish all trainers required a thyroid test!

A lot of what she says resonates with me. I so hope I do not have a thyroid problem! My decision is to wait and see the results of the 1 month mark weigh in. If I do not see a change at all, I will seek a thyroid specialist. It might be possible that my problem is thyroid. What hit home is that I took the test on about.com and I am 33% possibility of a thyroid problem. Also, I did have two years of one incredible emotional rollecoaster. My friend made some good points. My family says that I seem slimmer, so maybe I am making progress and I just can't tell. I guess I will know better in two more weeks when we get weighed in and measured again.

Well dear readers, as my mom and sister say, "Keep on Keeping on!"

Saturday beach workout, here I come!

"Week Two" Thursday

Breakfast: 1/2 PB and Honey sandwich
Lunch: Lean NY Steak with Chimichurri sauce (off the healthy grill selections at work) a tomoato and fresh mozarella salad H20
Snacks: I was bad again! I ate two handfuls of whole grain goldfish. I know I am kidding myself, how good can baked whole grain Goldfish be? At least they are fish! :D Ate a ricecake and an orange. H20
Dinner: Turkey, tomatoe, sprouts, swiss cheese, mustard on 7 grain bread. A handful of trailmix. 1 glass of unsweetened chocolate Almond Breeze.
I feel like I am eating too much, but the truth is, my appetite that I lost after my break-up is back and back with a vengeance! I want to eat everything! I have resisted all kinds of crazy snacks at work, Skittles, Kit Kats, dried sugary mango, peanut M&Ms.. Oh man, you don't even know what kind of yummy dead food we got lying around my desk. I have to literally 'move' food to other parts of the office when I get severely tempted.

Okay, this blog is good because I am held accountable. I woke up at 5am so I could go to my 630am workout. I looked at the clock and decided I could sleep another 15 minutes. I rolled over and when I rolled over again, it was 855am!!! Oh my gosh, NO IT WASN'T!!! Oh yes, it was...

Sigh! I really wanted to go to the AM session so I could go to my first belly dancing class... you know, balance the feminine with hardcore testosterone pumping workouts. So, I debated... what should I do?

I ended up calling Sal, Rudy's 'right hand man' and our faithful attendance keeper. I asked him if me going to last Saturday's workout could count towards me missing today... he said it should probably be the Saturday AFTER you miss and not any of the ones before. So... I fully intend to go this Saturday and I wanted to get my sweat on in a different way tonight. I let Sal know I would see him on Saturday.

Oh yeah, on an aside...a few days back, I saw an snippet of Generation Kill on HBO. It was the football scene. Guess who I saw there? None other than our very own, Sal! He was flexing, taunting and laughing in the background with his team. So crazy to see someone you 'know' show up unexpectedly in a movie scene. haha. Rudy is expected, Sal was not. I couldn't help but giggle to myself, "Woah! There's Sal!"

So... guess what? You can never really be sure of much in life. Especially traffic. Yeah, I missed the belly dancing class today! Arg for traffic! So, no Rudy program workout and no BD. :(

Instead, I went home and got to work on organizing my bills and some "very important" Facebook postings. Seriously though, it was kind of good that I had nothing else to do but the bills because having that out of the way gives me peace of mind. Kind of like the feeling of doing the laundry after it has been way too long. Maybe it was an underlying strressor and I didn't even know how it was affecting me. Two months in a row, I kept getting a 'late fee' on this one bill. Now, I KNOW I have been paying this. I haven't been late once on any payments, so I meant to call the creditor but it wasn't that pressing because I knew I had back-up; my bank statements show I paid. Turns out I was sending in my payments too early, so they sometimes posted to the month prior, making it out like there was no payment or a late payment for the month I was paying for. In any case I got that squared away, so there's my lemonade from the lemons tonight.

I wanted to go for a run to get some exercise in, but it was already too dark and in Martial Arts, we learn 'positioning'. Which is basically, don't put yourself in a position where you could get into trouble. A female running at night alone, might be bad positioning. So, I did squats and high knees indoors.

MAN! I better never 'snooze' again!

I'm refocused and ready for my two more workouts this week. I am making Friday and Saturday. I wonder if someone goes two in the same day if that counts as two of the four you need to do in one week?

Dear Reader, don't be like me and take it for granted that traffic will be on your side and don't try to pick up those extra ZZZ's there will be plenty of time for that once we hit December ;)

"Week Two" Wednesday Non-workout day

Breakfast: Organic Oatmeal
Lunch: Chicken Breast Sandwich, lettuce, tomatoe and Grey Poupon, no mayo and a small sid eof spiral pasta
Snacks: LARGE Granny Smith Apple, Rice Cakes
Dinner: Two Baja Fresh tacos and a 1/2 Mahi Salad


So for my exercise on my day off, I took a walk around the mall with my Mom. Went to bed 'early' 10:30pm after starting another game of online Scrabble. I don't know why I am addicted to that game. Not too much to report here.

"Week Two" Tuesdays Workout

Tuesday Meal
Recovery meal: 1/2 Peanut butter and Honey Sandwich on 7 grain bread; 'Alternative Energy' function Juice Drink
Bfast: the other half of the 1/2 Peanut butter and Honey Sandwich on 7 grain bread
Lunch: Turkey, Swiss and Sprouts on 7 grain bread with mustard. 1 apple. (and a small bag of sunchips... I know! I needed the crunch. I was a little weak...not really considered 'live food' I think)
Snacks: Handful of almonds, Dried Apricots
Dinner: Again, I was kind of bad... I was hungry! I got the new fire-grilled taco trio at Baja Fresh with black beans and rice... I ate it all...but not the chips! I estimate the meal was about 1000 calories... http://www.bajafresh.com/index.php Holy moly, the chicken one with pineapple... the spicy beef... the shrimp with lime squeezed all over it!

So today was a first. I worked out last night from 7pm to 8pm and then, less than 12 hours later, I awoke to workout at 630am. I have never really done that before and I probably didn't get quite as much sleep as I should have.

So the morning started out fine, I rolled out of bed and after morning prayers, I made my sandwiches for the day. PB and honey for my recovery meal and turkey, sprouts and swiss with an apple for lunch.

I headed to the gym and as I was walking in, Rudy was driving in. Make that another first for me. I don't think I have been early to a morning workout let alone make it there before Rudy. Improvement already!

Okay so today's workout consisted of a warmup run and some KUNG FU! Yes, that's right, my old stomping grounds! It was very cool to learn in a different way and from a different teacher. With Rudy it was very cool, because I got to watch while I did it too. In the past, I am shown it once and then I just keep doing it based on the one time I saw it. And hoping they can catch if my body is doing something wrong through my baggy Kung-Fu wear. It was just fun to finally see rudy do some kung fu moves. He is known as a champion, but until today, I had never gotten to see him move much in a martial way, needless to say, his form and balance are excellent and beautiful. Oh yeah, on an aside, last night, Ryan, one of the guys that works as Frogs showed me a very cool desktop background that he photoshopped of Rudy and Bruce Lee next to each other! It was very cool. I wonder if Rudy got a kick out of it too. If you haven't seen it yet, I bet they will show you the next time you are at the counter. Back to the workout...

One thing that stinks is that my legs are just NOT what they used to be. My horsestances are so high and my balance is pretty bad, probably because I lack leg and core strength/endurance, but it felt great to do. One of the exercises was to go from one end of the parking lot to the other alternating left/right punches while sinking into a horsestance. Then on the way back, we did alternating snapkicks. I think we were supposed to just do straightlegged kicks, but I was snapping. It felt good!

Next was some taichi. My taichi skills are very minimal. I think I learned one small 12 step form three years ago... so this was very cool to do.. it burned!!! Rudy said what I think everyone was thinking. It LOOKS easy, but it's not! One of the girls in our group was like, "I see old people do that in the park everyday!" Yes, we had no idea how 'badass' those old people actually are!

I had a hard time keeping my weight in the right place and holding my stances, but like I said, it felt good to do it again. CHALLENGING! He did a few moves I had never even heard of... "poor man's bicycle"? That was one of the moves that I actually lost my balance on. Everyone else seemed to be doing great. If I saw right, I was one of the only people who had to hop around to maintain balance. I look forward to learning more and building from there so I can keep doing taichi until I am one of those old people in the park :)

So after our first Gung Fu lesson, we had about 15 minutes left... so we ran. We ran and ran until Rudy would call us out to do our sprint up the Trail of Tears and down again. I partnered up with Sydney. We met on the first day and just had some good conversation last night and again that morning. So it was good to have her as my partner. We encouraged each other by laughing a little. We were both in the same place, first time for a night to day back to back workout with about four hours of sleep in between but we decided to cheer and laugh instead when we might have wanted to groan and swear. hahaha You do what you gotta do! She even once said, "I could do this all day!" So we booked it up the mountain and on the way down, it was very cool to have Rudy there to give us a high five.

I went to work. Mostly sat at my desk as always, except for a few restroom breaks and fedex mailings or other errands. After, I met up with my sister for our Salsa Class in la Jolla. That was a great way to get moving. I look forward to gong Thursday night for my first belly dancing class. I think I need the dancing to balance me out. We go hard all week, kinda 'running with the boys' and dance might help give me so grace so I don't get all 'tough'. Actually, I noticed my Salsa has gotten a little 'rough' around the edges, it took me a bit to get my dance back on. I can't explain it...

So have I made any physical progress? My dad wrote me and said when he saw me at church on Sunday, I didn't look as 'bloated' and lookd happier. That was good news :) and tonight my sister said I looked slimmer. Yeay!

Tomorrow is a non-Rudy workout day, but I will do my ten minutes in the am and 30 when I get off work. I might work on my old kung fu kicks in sets of ten in the am and then maybe take my mom to the mall so we can walk around for awhile. She and my Sis are also changing the way they eat and move during the day and they are making significant strides.

The Inside

So, I have spoken a lot about the exterior changes, now how about the interior?

You know, I used to be super open and friendly, greeting people, looking them in the eye...but in the course of the last two years, I had put horse-blinders on. I wasn't free to look around, smile and engage with people, I didn't write in my journal or emails anymore. I think that it had been suppressed for so long and now that I feel free to be myself again.

This program is sush a big part of my life. It has become the center focus. I mean, I have to think about it every time I eat, which should be at least 5 times day. I have to plan my grocery shopping, meals, prepare my gym bag, plan my drive time, my sleep schedule, my social schedule all with this program taken into consideration.

Basically, I participating 'religiously'. 4-5 times a week for an hour (how often do I go to Mass during the week?) Every meal, I used to pray before I eat but now first I have to assess the food and if it is nourishing and alive me or dead and taking from me.

During the day, I think about Rudy's words and teaching, I make choices based on them sometimes. Like today, I took the shuttle to one of our other building where I volunteered to man a booth at the Environmental Expo. I could have taken the shuttle back, but as I waited for it, I decided... why don't I just walk it? I even remembered to 'move my arms' because that's the way Rudy reminds us to 'use our bodies' during our cool down laps...

So, an odd thought hit me in the shower (I do some good thinking in the shower, have been that way since high school), I thought... I need to really watch myself and balance things a little more. Is Rudy and his program starting to hold more priority and encompass more of my thoughts, influence my decisions and take more time in my life than what I devote to God and my Catholic faith? Oooo... it kind of was a close one almost 50/50. Really. I know that sounds weird, but it's true. I don't think it was too far gone cause I caught it.

The First Commandment says, "Though shalt not have any other gods before me." Now a god can be anything you worship or put before God Himself (like money, drugs, food, a significant other, anything...). I wondered if I might be putting all this program before God, even if ever so slightly. I still pray my morning, meals, and evening prayers. I still am doing my novenas and daily rosary, but... I still needed to put myself in check. So... I just did a quick prayer and asked God then and there to help me put everything in the right context. I thanked him for Rudy and his program and being blessed to participate in it.

The next workout I had, Monday night, on top of being motivated by Rudy and the group, I said to myself, "This is for you, God. You gave me this body and I am going to take care of it." It was a cool feeling. I basically will just continue to give Rudy and the program my all, yet remember that all the good in it is because of God. So my appreciation and praise goes to God first and I can glorify Him by appreciating the program and continueing to use my will to do it well and appreciate it well. I feel now, everything is being appreciated in the right order and the right context. In this way, God stays central and first. My motives stay good and I am better guarded against vices such as pride, vanity, selfishness, despair, etc..

Another thing that is happening is that my family and friends are being just so supportive of me. They believe in me and want me to succeed, so I feel that is also why I am staying up and with a good attitude. Even though I am not seeing them as often, I feel a little more connected with friends and family now, than I have in the recent past. It's like I see them less, but it's more quality time. I feel more present when I see them.

"Week Two...DING!" Monday's Workout

Monday Meals
Bfast: 2 pcs.7 grain toast with PB and a cup of cantalope and melon. Water
Lunch: Yellow Bell pepper with brown rice and sun dried tomatoes. Carrot Juice
Snacks: Handful of almonds, 3 sheets of dried seaweed
Dinner: California Roll Water

I did not get up on time... :( Too much dreaming for me! Sooo... I headed to my second pm class. Again, tough, but not impossible! I just kept moving. I felt stronger in the warm-up. Ava gave me props afterwards and that is a huge compliment because she works HARD! In the warm-ups. We did sprints in the parking lot, going 50% one way, then 70%, then 50, then 70, then 50 turning to 70% midway, then high skips, then shuffles...Then we circled up and did some shadow boxing.

Rudy gave us a few tips on form for our shadow boxing today. Okay, so yes I used to spar, but no one ever really broke it down for me really. I keep my thumb parralel to the ground for my hooks... Rudy says thumbs go up. I like how he reminds us to 'use our body'.

I am sure going to miss hearing his voice yelling out reminders, suggestions and minor chatisements to help us while we workout, maybe by the end of the 12 weeks, it'll just be a part of me and his voice will run through my head. "Let's Exercise!" "It's only 5 minutes" "You CAN do it... you ARE doing it" "Push Yourselves!" "Work Hard" "Believe!"

The second half of the class, we entered the spin room. Basically, stationary bike (cool ones) room. There are four handbikes (check this cool site: http://www.krankcycle.com/) and the rest are traditional and you pedal with your legs. We basically alternated with minutes of speed (standing up and going at it while we pedal for speed), then high resistance where we pedaled slower because the resistance was higher. I liked it. It was really different than I thought it would be, but I am far from mastering it. I think I know how my body is supposed to do it, but I lean a lot on the handle bars instead of letting the power come from my core. I will get better with practice and as my confidence in my abilities improve.

After the class, Rudy reminded us how important hydration is because some people were cramping early on in the night; not drinking enough water was probably the cause. He mentioned that we may need electrolytes too. So supplementing with powerade a little might be ok (not Gatorade though). I asked him if Vitamin Water was okay and he said yes, just to watch out for the sugar. I remember bringing water for my Sifu sometimes when I would work out, so I offered Rudy the Vitamin water and he was again super considerate and asked if I had one for me before he accepted it. Turns out the one I gave him has caffeine, so he'll drink it tomorrow. I guess I need to check my labels more thoroughly.

He also showed us how to roll the lactic acid out of our large muscles, back and legs... we can do it with a foam roller, a rolling pin, a water bottle, really anything. Just put pressure and roll. He got on the floor and rolled his leg over the waterbottle. I will have to try it soon.

He reminded us to eat our recovery meals. I tried a Luna bar, never again. I just don't like bars; except 'Tigers Milk', but I used to eat those as candy back in the day, so it's kind of strange to eat it to help my muscles recover. I guess I will just have to try to get over it :). So far trail mix and PB and honey sandwiches have been working for me.

End of Week #1

"Hero" refers to characters (fictional or historical) that, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, display courage and the will for self-sacrifice – that is, heroism – for some greater good, originally of martial courage or excellence but extended to more general moral excellence. (Wikipedia)





Rudy is my hero.





After only one week of working with Rudy, he has demonstrated integrity and keeping to his word. He told all of us participants that he will work hard and push himself right along with us, for us. All week long, he has done this. He is giving of himself for others good. He is helping them to make a change in their life and believe in themselves. 45 of us are participating in his 12 week program to serve as testimonials in his upcoming infomercial. This blog will serve to chronicle my experiences and progress.





Just spent a moment getting to know Rudy and you will learn that his message is about living like a Hero. He wants to makeheros of us all. Rudy comes from a background filled with adverse situations and challenges. However, he has risen above it, continues to face his challenges and time and time again puts others before himself.





He believes in the mind/body connection and is helping us to become heros in our own lives, overcoming our own challenges, by improving our bodies and consequently improving our minds. Every workout, we are faced with ourselves.


My challenge when I started this program was that I was 20 lbs overweight and steadily climbing. I used to be a fit blue belt in Kung Fu, but hadn't really been training more than 1 day a week if even that, for the last 2 years because I fell in love and spent all my time with that love. Here is the ad I responded to and the initial letter I sent to Karen Reif of Euro RSCG when first inquiring about the program:

LOSE WEIGHT AND LOOK AND FEEL BETTER Free 12 Week Program with Celebrity Trainer We are seeking committed weight loss testimonials for a television infomercial. Our 12 week program is a breakthrough fitness formula designed to remove obstacles that kept you from success in the past. This is a mind/body approach that helps people overcome and succeed no matter what your fitness level. You will be put on a custom eating plan and workout 4 days a week with a top celebrity trainer. With this program you are guaranteed to lose weight. You must be 20 to 60 years old, 15 to 100lbs overweight, motivated and able to commit to workouts 4 days a week at a gym in north county coastal San Diego. So if you want to look great and transform your body & life, email us at karenreif@earthlink.net Please include some basic info such as name, age, height, weight, occupation, and a few sentences describing why you want to participate. Please attach a recent photo.

Dear Ms. Reif:

My name is Arlene Paraiso. I am 32 years old and 5'4" tall. As an Executive Assistant at Sony Electronics, I sit in front of a computer for the majority of my day.

I used to be very active with martial arts, but once I met my now ex-fiance, I stopped working out because we wanted to spent every moment outside of work together. He is a US Marine and still in great shape because 2 hours of his workday always included exercise. Now we have broken up for over a week now and I am left feeling very fat and unattractive at my all time high of 140 lbs! I want to get back to 118 that I was when I met him 2.5 years ago. It is so hard now that I am in my thirties to get rid of this weight. Now that we are broken up and he has moved away, I have all the time in the world to devote to your program. My biggest obstacle is that I have never been this big before and weight was never an issue. I am not sure what to do. It is really hard to get back into martial arts at the level I was at when my endurance and energy is so low.
Please pick me! I have the desire, commitment and discipline. I won't let you down.

Sincerely,

Arlene T. Paraiso

P.S.The attached picture was taken this Monday. I try to wear baggy outfits to hide my stomach, but it is still obvious that I need to make some real health changes.

+++

I got the call from Skye the next day. I had to wait a week for my interview with Karen and then I had to wait another similarly semi-excruciating week to hear if I got into the program. Needless to say, I was ECSTATIC when I got the call!

This first week was already an incredible journey. I was losing sleep the week before it started. I must have been really anxious to get going. Wow! Looking back, every week was like a mini-journey in and of itself.

Day one: Weigh-in, measurements, before picture and interview

So C street is a weird one and I got lost in the alley looking for a 'bamboo gate' when I should have been looking for a silver gate with bamboo behind it... but once I got in, it was great. I wasn't sure where to go and a nice girl kind of pointed the way. Very soon I saw Karen and she got me started with paperwork. The nice girl that had helped me was sitting there talking with her friend and they looked like they were in great shape! So, being myself, I just straight up asked why they were there when they already looked so fit. It turns out that she (Alicia) and Cheri (spelling?) had already been through the program and were back for more! This was very promising news! I already knew I was in for something good because people were back for more! Weighed in and met Sal. I am 30% fat if I recall. Hard to believe that 1/3 of me is all just fat. Can't be good for me. Sal was nice, felt badly for him to have to stay in such a hot building. Met the makeup artist, also very nice. Powder needed to be very powerful because it was a HOT day! Finally the time came where I got placed in a group of six and got to meet Rudy Reyes in the interview. He certainly was just as nice in person as he seemed from his website. The interaction was positive and the group felt already pretty close.

When we had to say our name to the camera, Rudy actually recognized my name from an e-mail I sent him a few days prior, that made me feel very happy! It showed me we were going to be working with a genuine person who really gives a care about people. Everyday this week, that has been proven to me again and again.

We broke for lunch and already Rudy was working out. I guess he never eats unless he works out or he makes sure he works out before he eats. Something like that. I remember catching glimpses of his workout and thinking, nah! We won't be don't anything like that. That's just his own thing...but now looking back.. I bet we did those same kind of exercises this week. Wow!

The last thing I had to do was my 'before' shot. YUCK! But even that was kind of pleasant because once again, the people were pleasant. What could have been very harrowing, wasn't quite bad. Plus just trying to imagine that in 3 months I most likely would be back and looking F-I-I-I-NE! Or as my sisters like to predict, I will look like a "Victoria's Secret" model. hahaha Wow! Could you imagine!? Not many Filipino VS models, but hey maybe thanks to Rudy Reyes, there might be one very soon! After the program, if I just grow 5 more inches and lose 10 years off my age, I may have a chance! I kid I jest. BUT I am looking forward to wearing some old favorite dresses of mine again. I wonder if we will have a 'wrapup' party? That'd be fun! I guess I may be getting ahead of myself being that we are only on the first week...

9/8/08 Monday: First Workout

When Rudy said 'just move', he wasn't kidding. We just moved! For an hour or so with nothing more than our bodies, a floormat and a pair of dumbells. That day, was the sorest I can ever remember being from just a 1 hour workout. My legs were done! I could sit and I could stand, but I needed the assistance of my arms to get from one position to the other. Rudy broke us in good. He didn't everything right along with us. I was still excited for the nest day.

9/9 Tuesday: Second Workout

We met outside and were placed in groups. I got to be with two guys and some of the awesome returning girls. We rotated three stations and never really stopped to rest.

1. 10 dips, 10 pushups on med bar; 10 dips, 10 pushups on low bar; 20 mountain climbers on the lowest bar. Run the parking lot back and forth. repeat. End with 10 pullups
2. 10 dips, 10 high-knee step ups, 10 two footed jump-ups on each leg on low tire, repeat on high tire
3. Trail of Tears. Run up and down the mountain until time is called.

All the while, my group was so motivating. Poor Adam helped me with my pullups and I think he got more of a workout than myself! Saleem and all the other women just were so encouraging and motivating. We got through the stations and then Rudy had one more challenge for us. A sprint in pairs up the trail of tears! Incredibly, I was able to burst up the hill faster than any of the other times I had done it that day. I was spent, but felt accomplished. Body was still super sore!

9/10 Wednesday: No workout

9/11 Thursday Workout of Week One

We warmed up outside and then worked out in the room inside. The big problem this day was that I got a cold! By the time I was at my desk, my throat and eyes were burning! I didn't know what to do. Rudy told me that he works out and keeps doing all the things he likes to do, except he rests more. I took this advice and skipped the morning session on Friday to rest more and then prepped myself for the 7pm workout that night. I was worried, but knew all I had to do was keep moving, even if it wasn't going to be great.

9/12 Friday: pm session

I don't know how or why, but the soreness was gone this day and the workout seems not as tough as Monday. It was amazing! I am not sure why, but I heard the morning session did spinning and during the night session we stayed in the room and did free weights and matwork. I don't mind. It was still a great workout. Love hearing Rudy give us all assurance and cheering. It's also great to watch him as an example.

9/13 Saturday Morning

Hey, I still had a lingering cold, but I only get 12 weeks with Rudy as my trainer/teacher, so I'm going to push myself to learn and experience all that I can. There are only 40 or so people in this program and I get to be one of them, and there are some people in SD right now wishing they had this opportunity, so yeah, I headed up to Moonlight beach and workout on the sand. It was great, crazy hard! Challenging yet fulfilling. We did sprints in the sand and then a set of 20 pushups, 20 step-ups, 20 dips and then 20 crunches. Then back to sand sprints, then back to the sets of 20, then one more round after that! I think since I am not all about 'having great form' and more about 'just continuing to move', it takes the pressure off of me performance wise. I just keep going. One my body is stronger, I will work on form more. Ava was my group leader, she was the bomb. I was really proud of everyone in our group. Afterwards I was able to just sit and chill on the beach, watch the waves, talk to people...introduces Tracy to Shannon. Shannon is an actress/voice over actor and Tracy is a cartoonist/voice over actor as well. Turns out Tracy and I actually have the same buddy too. A local comedian names Dat Phan. Small 'world' San Diego it is. Had breakfast at Naked Cafe in Solana (LOVE THAT PLACE, gotta go back there. I will tell more people about it!), then the rest of the day was mine! Usually I have to jet to get ready for work or something else so Saturday was just an all around good time. Even if you don't have to make up a class, you should go sometime! I'm going to try to go whenever my schedule will allow.

So, that's it for week one.

I feel the group pulling together in class and via e-mail. I just got Karen's last e-mail about her excitement for the after pictures. I am really excited too! I can't wait to see the 'new' everybody!

I hope I can lose it... I am one of the smallest in the group with about 15 to 20 lbs to lose... they always say the last ten is the hardest... I hope I can do it! I am generally small with very small wrists and ankles, so I used to fool myself about not needing to lose weight or that I look alright. I'd say, "Women NEED curves." "Fat is good, we need it in case we get pregnant." "I'm voluptuous, that's just my body-type now that I am older". I know all of those reasons are really only half-truths.

I also used to be able to fool myself about what I put into my body. Something like a dozen cookies was just a treat because 'just once in awhile doesn't hurt. It's not like I eat it all the time'. This program is really ingraining it into my head that it so DOES matter what you put in your body! I look to eat 'live' food and avoid all fried and processed foods. I see food and take a moment to ask myself if it is going to help me or hurt me.

I really look forward to the day I can no longer grab my belly with both of my hands and shake it around. Yeah, I can do that... hopefully after this program I will never be able to do it again.

I only have 11 more weeks left with this fabulous group, fabulous Rudy and his fabulous support team. I gotta give it my all! I hope that positivity and hope stays!

I feel stronger and but tighter, but I still have a long way to go. I don't 'see' results yet , I am only just beginning to feel them.