16 down, 14 to go

The PCOS caused me to gain around 20 lbs. (or so–it might have been more) last year. Despite exercising regularly, I couldn’t lose it.

I decided to go on the Weight Watchers program about two months ago. I had heard amazing things about it, and some of my family members have used the program with great success. I didn’t sign up for the meetings because I don’t have the time, and, frankly, they’re really expensive. So, I used the online functions to track my eating habits.

I started cutting back and stayed at or under my allotted points, and low and behold, I lost 2 pounds the first week. And then another two the next week. And then 3 more. And then another, and another, and another. And, two months later, I’ve lost 16 pounds.

16 pounds!

I feel amazing. My old clothes don’t fit anymore, and even my “skinny clothes” (pre-PCOS clothes) are starting to get baggy. My goal is still another 14 pounds away, and, if I’m feeling ambitious, I may even go for another 10 after that, but I would be pleased as can be if I can get back to 145 lbs. That will put my squarely in the healthy weight range for my height (120-150 lbs. for 5′5″). I may be shorter, but I am bustier, so getting back to 135 lbs. (what I was when I graduated from high school) would probably be a bit on the unrealistic side. And staying realistic is what has helped me to get to this point.

This also means I’m more than halfway to my goal.

Another (happy) dilemma–I need to find a dress for an upcoming wedding! This is where I’m going to debut my new body. Well, it’s a work in progress, but that’s OK–aren’t we all?

And with my heart palpitations, losing weight was recommended. I know it’s been easier on my heart, and the rest of my body. My cardiologist was/is so proud of me when I saw her back in October. And I’m proud of me, too.

Another Week Gone

I spent the last week getting caught up on life, which included getting my master’s project proposal all set (it’s been approved! Yay!) and getting the University Human Subjects Review Committee request all ready (it’s ready for review for tomorrow–Ann will be taking care of it then).

I also cleaned my filthy condo (OK, it wasn’t that bad, but it was still driving me crazy) and went scrapbooking on Friday and Saturday. It was nice to get out of the house, and I got 32 pages done over the course of the two days. That’s a lot considering I hadn’t worked on that scrapbook (my childhood one) in about two years.

I also worked out with my personal trainer, Jon, for the first time on Thursday, which went really well. I wasn’t even that sore the next day, and I assume that’s because my form is perfect (or better!) during the workout, and it doesn’t put as much strain on my muscles as it would if my form was off. Well, that’s the assumption I’m making. Might be true. Might not. I just know that I’m going to keep up with my workouts now. Yay! I’m working out with him again tomorrow.

Yoga is going well, too. I have it every Wednesday night, and I always feel great after. I’m glad I’m finally investing in my body–I’ll keep y’all updated on how that all goes.

I know I haven’t been exactly thrilling, but I thought I would let you know why I’ve been a bit MIA. It might be quiet on here again come this weekend because I’m on deadline for the second index, but I’ll be back after the 14th on regular basis again. Such a busy time of year, but I’ll make time for you all. Because I love you, of course. Cheers!

Waxing and Yoga

I always forget how incredibly painful it is to get one’s legs waxed. I mean, I know it’s been a little less than a year since I had it done last, but seriously, does it really have to feel like I’m being murdered via hot wax and ripping?

Why do I do it then, you ask? Because having to shave once every three days sucks. Bad.

And now that we have a membership to a gym, my legs are going to be in the public eye more often than they have been in years. It’s also motivation to just go to the gym on a whim, if I like. I won’t have to plan ahead because of shave time. Since I’m taking a yoga class, as well, I’ll be ready each Wednesday to contort into new shapes and stretch muscles I didn’t even know that I had.

Did I tell you how much the yoga instructor at Fitness 19 rocks? She’s awesome. Her name is Danielle, and she’s a former gymnast with arthritis in her knees, but you’d never know she has problematic joints. She does yoga to keep limber since working out must be tough with her rusty knees. She’s really young and isn’t one of those hoity-toity yogis who believes yoga is everything. She’ll talk to you during the session, and she encourages us to ask questions, as well. The only other person I’ve met so far is Dan, a 50s-ish man who is trying to get in shape after a bout with colon cancer a few years back. It’s neat to see how much he has advanced in just two classes. Nice fella. Said he was happy to see me come back to the class. I think he didn’t want to be the only one there!

I have to reschedule my personal training because I was supposed to start this last Monday, but the flu bug hasn’t allowed me to do anything more strenuous than yoga and walking up stairs, and even that’s a stretch. I’m almost back to normal now, though, so I’m going to schedule the appointment for early next week.

I’m really excited to learn what exercises I should be doing to get the maximum out of my workouts. It’ll be nice to finally be doing something right–for my body and for myself.

It looks like we might go with Fitness 19. I was really impressed with the cleanliness and professionalism of the person we dealt with. Anthony, the general manager, is proud of his gym, and I can see why. It’s really inexpensive–$32.90 a month for the two of us–and their personal training is really inexpensive, too. We can get two sessions for $80.00, and though the hubby probably doesn’t need it–he took a weight-training class in college–I’m a little behind in what would work best for me, especially since the weight gain from the birth control hormones.

They include a free nutrition and fitness assessment with a membership, and the March special for the membership fee is $49.00 each. As much as I hate to put out $160.00 up front for a gym membership and a month’s worth of working out, even I have to admit that’s pretty darn cheap. And they offer yoga, pilates, and kickboxing classes for $7.00 a piece. Not bad! Most yoga classes are between $15 and $30 each, if not more. I’m interested to see if their yoga instructor is worth her salt–I haven’t yet had a good yoga instructor here.

So I’m off to try their yoga class tomorrow night, and the hubby and I are going to work out with two free passes this weekend. We’ll see if the equipment is high-quality. I like the clientele they have their–business people, mostly, and some young people like us–not roided up or dancing around in skimpy clothes. They look like people who truly want to keep in shape. How refreshing.

The hubby and I are on the hunt for a gym/fitness club. There are only three in the area that seem to be decent, and we’ll be off to check them out in the next week or so.

I have a free (well, not really free; it’s included in my student fees) membership to my school’s gym, but talk about grody. It’s just…nasty. And with all the skinny, snotty college women and roided-up, self-important college guys running around that place–especially when they don’t think about personal hygiene all that much when they come to the gym–it’s enough to keep a girl off exercising for a long time.

So we’ve decided to invest–in ourselves, in our bodies, and in our future health–together.

There’s only two “name-brand” gyms in the area–Powerhouse Gym and Fitness 19. Anyone know of those two at all? We’d have to drive what feels like half-way across the state to get to a Bally Total Fitness, and there was no 24-Hour Fitness listed anywhere in our area.

There is a local gym listed–Lakeside Health Club–and I’m almost leaning more towards that because it’s local.

We’ll check all three out, and I’ll report back on my attempt to battle the bulge.

Lifting the Male Weight

We purchased for Nate a membership to the Rec Center. It, so far, has been a good idea. We really enjoy going there, especially when it is quiet, like it was last night. That makes it fun because no one is looking at you funny in the weight room, and you, most likely, won’t accidentally steal the bench from someone when they’re on their break.

There is something strange I have noticed about the Rec Center weight room. When I would go by myself last year, I would get looked at by all the big guys lifting there. No, not because I’m overly attractive (I’m really not that pretty; not in that stare-at-me way), but it was because I am female and lifting lighter weights than them. I’m also a great deal smaller than them. So the lifting lighter weights falls under the “duh!” factor. I use to be buff. I could bench press with the best with them when I was in high school, and the guys then never bothered me. They actually called me their “good-luck charm” and helped me to get my presses set and all that.

Here, though, they used to look at me funny. They would say snide remarks to their friends about me and chuckle under their breath like they were the funniest damn thing in the world. So I stopped going into the weight room unless it was quiet.

Then the first time Nate and I went, about a week ago, we stepped into the weight room, busy on a week night, and they looked at me, saw Nate, and then looked away. It was the strangest feeling. It was as if having Nate there validated my use of the weights. I suddenly felt secondary, as if they were thinking I was there to help Nate, when in reality, we were there as equals, though I did do more lifts than he did that day because he wasn’t feeling very well.

That night, Nate told me he felt kind of funny in the weight room because he felt as if everyone was looking and comparing him to themselves. Since he’s just getting back into lifting after about six months off, he is starting with lighter weights and building up. He’s looking to be lean, not bulky, so he does more reps with lighter weights. He’s taken a class and I used to lift weights consistently for track, so we both know he’s doing what he should do to achieve his goal. But the guys looked at him like they had looked at me a year ago. As if he was unworthy of being in their massive presences. He said he was uncomfortable at first, but then ignored the other guys because they were being dumb if they were going to compare themselves like that. He also said having me there helped to get over that my-penis-is-bigger-than-your-penis mental competition that always seems to occur around other men who think they are better. It was good to hear that I helped.

We’ve decided to try to always lift together. I’ll spot him, and then he will for me. For us, at least, it doesn’t matter if you’re male for female. We just lift to lift.