My Life as a Dancem0m

Get Hawt, Week 3 Round-up

29 Jan 2012 2 Comments

by Sarah S. in Get Hawt

This week, we were asked to write about what tools we use to help us in our goals to Get Hawt. Some people said in previous posts that they were tracking their food, and we’ve seen apps such as Runmeter being used on twitter, but it’s nice to know what people are using and/or what they’ve tried that they didn’t care for.

I’ll start by summarizing my partner’s post from the week. Jen McCown (@MidnightDBA) is using her fabulous graphing tool, logs her weight and food intake at LoseIt.com, and is using MapmyRun.com to track mileage. She has started using 2 programs by the same company – 200 Situps, and 100 pushups. She is also using twitter to complain, get help and get kicked in the butt (oh, and to do the same to me). She is sick of the weight going up and down by 5 lbs. Read the rest of what she has to say here.

Wendy Pastrick (@wendy_dance) had one of those weeks that we all hate to blog about. Halfway through the week, she found her motivation, and got to the gym twice. She’s using the myfitnesspal app to log her activity.

Next up, Stacia Misner (@StaciaMisner). Stacia is in China right now. While she has been doing a ton of walking, and trying not to overeat, she has seen a frustrating weight gain. She didn’t quite get in her water consumption, and is working to do better there. She is using MyNetDiary to track her food. In the past she has also used Weight Watchers.

Yanni Robel (@yannirobel) is quickly becoming known as the mountain climbing, marathon (half and full) running, cancer survivor. In fact, she is running the Tinkerbell Half Marathon at Disneyland as I type this round-up. She is highly goal orientated, and takes the idea behind Get Hawt to the extreme. She tweets out what her goals are, and looks forward to the twitterverse to kick her in the behind when she “just doesn’t wanna” go. She uses the RunMeter app, along with Daily Miles. She used to track her food, but no longer does.

Our first guy of the week, Tracy McKibben (@RealSQLGuy) (a fellow Minnesotan) has been braving the bitter cold to get some walking in. He and his wife, Missy, are working together to get in shape. They are using the Runkeeper app on his phone to keep track of their progress. In addition to walking, they are using Their Wii Fit to track their weight. Tracy also says the blog and public accountability are going to be a great help in keeping them motivated.

Kathi Kellenberger (@auntkathi) has not yet begun blogging her progress, but she is working towards her goals. Her progress is found in the comments sections. She has walked a whopping 84 miles this month! WOW! She has lost 2 lbs. Kathi is using the Livescape app for her Windows 7 phone. She says she can track everything there. She also has a spreadsheet in Livescape she’s using to keep track of all her miles.

Tamera Clark (@TameraClark) kicked in this week with a whole list of tools she uses. She started out by showing us some correct portion sizes. She also told us about the Kinect and EA Sports 2 that she’s using for workouts. She also has a treadmill, FitBit, and Nutrition Data site. She wrapped up her post with some tips she has learned along the way.

Tim Mitchell (@Tim_Mitchell), is working toward losing 40 lbs by the time he turns 40. So far, he is making good progress. This next week, he is kicking up his routine into high gear. He’s going to be using his treadmill and meal replacement shakes to help him.

Finally, I am using the Noom app on my phone. It’s helping me to keep track of my exercise. I’m starting to feel like I am making some progress.

If I forgot anyone, please don’t forget to link back to the invitation for the week, and/or post your link on twitter with the hashtag #gethawt. We want to include everyone who is working hard at achieving fitness and/or weight loss goals.

Get Hawt – Week 3

27 Jan 2012 3 Comments

by Sarah S. in Get Hawt

This week, I decided to do sort of a live blog each day. People seemed to like it when I did this during my training for The 3 Day.

Sunday: I ate decent. Drank lots of water. Went to the gym where I walked for about 45 minutes, doing intervals of 1 -18.5% incline. I upped my speed to 3.3. Then, I did some bicep and tricep work, chest press, and lat pull downs both in front and behind my back. I came home and had a fruit/yogurt smoothie. Recipe? Ice, OJ, banana, strawberries, and 1/4 cup or so of yogurt. It didn’t quite tide me over, even though I had 2 huge glasses. I made 2 pieces of cinnamon/raisin toast. I think I may have forgotten to eat dinner tonight, which would explain why I was so hungry. Tonight, I made my lunch and dinner for tomorrow – left over fried rice, and left over ravioli from Saturday night’s dinner at the Olive Garden. I also put snap peas in a baggie, threw in a yogurt, and a container of raspberries.

Monday: I worked from 8:30 am to 8 pm. Didn’t do any walking or anything. I ate ok, though probably more fat/grease was included than should have been – fried rice left-overs for lunch, also snap peas, and raspberries. For dinner, left over ravioli, more raspberries, a breadstick, and the rest of the snap peas. My water consumption was not awesome, but I did have some. I also drank one can of pop over my self-imposed limit. The last one was cracked open much later at night than it should have been… I’m a bit concerned about how quality my sleep will be. Tomorrow, to the gym! I also did 60 standard form crunches for the initial test for the 200 Situps Program my accountability partner Jen McCown (@MidnightDBA) suggested.

Tuesday: Today was an up and down sort of day with my #gethawt challenge. I woke up to discover a 2 lb weight gain again. That put me right back at square one. As the day went on, I decided to try not to get my panties in a bundle over the daily ups and downs. I’m trying to just focus on the lower weight days, and ignore the gains (as long as they aren’t all gains). In the afternoon, I shoveled for an hour. 1 1/2-2 inches of snow for an hour takes some muscle, my upper body was achy by the end. I ate so-so. After dropping Grace off at dance, I went to the gym, where I walked on a different style treadmill (that didn’t have a magnetic key at belly height that I could knock down). I walked at random intervals (Level 1) at 3.3 MPH. The first half hour seemed really easy, so I upped the level to level 5, then 6, to get the incline at a challenging place. Next time, I think I’ll try same speed, level 10. Also ready to move up a notch in speed, but don’t want to change too much at the same time.

Wednesday: Woke up to a new low weight since we started this blog party. I worked from 8:30 – 8 pm again. It wasn’t a horrible day outside, but there was some fresh snow, and my stomach didn’t agree with something I ate. I think it was the mandarin oranges for snack, and then yogurt for lunch. I’m thinking those two don’t mix well in the stomach, when eaten too close together. No walking, no situps, but we’re all allowed a free day once in a while!

Thursday: I went to bed early, and actually slept somewhat decent last night. I was up 1 lb from yesterday, but still down overall. I can handle that! I did Week 1, Day 1 of the 200 Situps challenge. That meant I did a set of 15, then 18, then 10, then 10 crunches. Last, I was supposed to do as many as I could to wrap up the day. I did 30 (for a total of 83). Not bad for today. I took Duke out for a 2.5 mile walk. It started out feeling a bit chilly out, but a mile in, I was glad I opted for the fleece jacket and light gloves. A lot of snow is melting today, so my feet got pretty wet. I’m wondering if other people who live in climates like MN have a certain pair of shoes they were for snowy/wet conditions, and one for dry? Or maybe one pair for indoor, one for outside?

Friday: Weighed myself today, and was at the same weight as yesterday. That’s 3 days in a row of being under 150. There I said it, the weight that had me disgusted to look at. I had a sick daughter home today, and it was crappy weather outside. I did manage to get my crunches in today. I did 15, then 18, then 15, then 15, then 25, for a total of 88.

Challenge: This week, we were asked to blog about tools we use. I have downloaded the Noom app for my android phone. I searched for pedometers in the android market, then read the reviews on several. This one, and the family of apps it is a part of, had great reviews. This one is free, but does have a “pro” service you can pay for. I only have the free service, but it does exactly what I want it to:

*I can start a workout, and it will map my walk. While I’m walking, it plays the music loaded on my phone. I didn’t have any before, but now I’ve loaded Lady Gaga, and it keeps me trucking along at a pretty good pace. About every 2 minutes, it will tell me how far I’ve gone, and the amount of time I’ve been walking. Alternating with that, it tells me my speed.
*You can enter about 25 different types of exercises from yard work to yoga to treadmill walking under the “Log previous” button in the logbook. The only thing I don’t like, is that there isn’t really a way to account for things like incline changes on a treadmill walk, and that you can’t just enter the speed you walked at. You only can enter the intensity level, amount of time, and distance walked on the treadmill. I just ignore the whole calorie counter part because of that. I don’t really count that calories in what I eat anyway, so that doesn’t bother me.
*You can track your weight, and it will graph your progress.
*There are daily challenges you can earn points for completing. I’m not sure what the points are for, but you can earn them. Often, they tend to include weighing in, tracking something you ate, reading an article, or completing a challenge (such as replacing a pop with something without sugar – like water).
*For people who like to track their food and calories, it has options for that.
*At a glance, (in the status bar on your phone), you can see how many calories you’ve burned in the last 7 days. It also shows what days you have logged some sort of exercise, and what type of exercise it was.
*Features I have not played with at all (thus, don’t know much about) include “Coach” and “Forums.”
*You can also create your own profile, which I haven’t bothered to do either.

I have begun following the 200 Situps Program. Even though it is called 200 situps, it actually refers to crunches. I thought it wouldn’t be a big deal, since I tend to do close to 100 crunches fairly often. What I do though, is move my legs into different positions to work all different ab groups. By working on this program, I realized that it is much more difficult to do that many when you are using all the same muscle groups. Ouch! I have not purchased the phone app, as I find the website frustrating to use. When I first tried to set up my profile, it kept freezing up. A couple days later, it worked, and I was able to enter my initial test, and the Week 1, Day 1 total. Week 1, Day 2, I was not able to enter my totals. I think here on out, I will just follow the recommended numbers without worrying about tracking it.

Other tools I sometimes use is the Your Shape Personal Fitness game on the XBox. Admittedly, I haven’t spent much time with this yet, but I plan to.

I also have hand weights, exercise bands, and a few videos that I have used in the past, and may pull out again. I have used the exercise bands to work my arms a bit, but don’t have much experience, so I don’t really know what to do with it. My mom gave me some suggestions, but I haven’t checked them out yet either.

For now, I’m feeling good about seeing that I’m doing at least something pretty much every day. Having a partner helps push me when I need it!

Get Hawt – Week 2

20 Jan 2012 2 Comments

by Sarah S. in Get Hawt

This week, Jen challenged us to partner up with someone; to hold each other accountable. Jen McCown (@MidnightDBA) and I partnered up. She was a much better partner than I was. Hopefully, I made up for it in the last couple days. We have been partnering through twitter – asking each other our goals, giving each other a nudge, and commiserating together about our slip ups.

This week, I felt pretty good about my success. At least, I did until yesterday. I was down 3 lbs. Then, yesterday, mid-day, I stepped on the scale, and was shocked to see a number much higher than in the morning. I had hardly eaten, so I was a bit surprised. I begrudgingly went to the health club to work out. I could have easily not gone, but my son begging to go to the kids’ area, and Jen’s voice in the back of my head made me go. I was glad I went. I did intervals on the treadmill for just over a half hour. I ended up walking about 1.8 miles with a maximum grade of 18.2%. The tops of the “hills” were tough! My legs are aching today, but it was worth it. I also did a little bit of upper arm work, and then came home and did about 100 crunches. This morning, I stepped on the scale, and to my surprise, the number was still the full 3 lbs I had lost over the week! Talk about disheartening! Luckily, my partner and I experienced the same thing this week, so we talked about it.

Things I learned this week:

* Before I walk, I should double check the windchill! On Tuesday, I walked 1.3 miles. The temp outside was “15 degrees”. It was so windy and bitter cold, when I got back, I checked the temp again. It was 15, but the windchill put it at 1. No wonder my legs were red from the wind biting me through my jeans! I was bundled up, but long johns underneath would have been helpful with that wind.

* If I weigh myself right away in the morning, the number is lower than later in the day. I like seeing a lower number, so that’s the one I’m using on my graph. Weighing yourself at the same time every day really does make a difference – oh, and you need to have the same amount of clothes on each time. Hopping on the scale before your shower might give you the best results.

* I sleep better now that I cut some of the caffeine out of my day. I used to drink my morning coffee, and then have 3-4 (sometimes more) cans of Mtn Dew or Dr Pepper the rest of the day. I have cut down to 2 cans after my coffee, and then water. While I am much more tired at the end of the day, I also don’t have as hard a time falling asleep. I have to think that cutting down the pop is a good thing!

* This partnering up thing was a great idea! If it weren’t for Jen asking me “What are you going to do today?” It would have been easy to do nothing with freezing cold temps.

* Fiber/coffee/juice – anything that keeps things “moving” shall we say, is your friend! Don’t underestimate the extra weight that waste can put on you.

* Finally, being lazy is easy. Getting up and moving is not. But, you won’t regret it if you just do it!

Get Hawt – Week 1 Round-up

14 Jan 2012 2 Comments

by Sarah S. in Get Hawt

Here we go! We got several posts in the first week of our blog party. I will try to recap the posts I saw. If I missed anyone, please feel free to post a link in the comment section.

Jen McCown, in her utterly honest way, gave us a peek of where she was at. She showed us on a chart on WebMD.com where her stats were from a medical point of view. She also showed us a graph she’s been using to track her weight. She was kind enough to share her great tool with anyone who cares to use it. Her goal is to end up with 25 lbs lost in 3 months. She also plans to eat better, and to make exercise a regular part of her routine. With the Get Hawt Blog Party, Jen wants to partner up and kick each others’ butts when they are slacking.

Geek Girl, Stacia Misner posted what worked and didn’t work for her last year. Mostly, it came down to keeping track of what she ate. She also increased her intake of fiber and water, something she learned the importance of in a nutrition seminar she went to. She focused on exercising more, using apps on her phone to help track it. This year, she is planning on trying one new recipe a week, to add to the repertoire of foods. She will continue to track her diet and exercise.

Jules, of the Lazy Pi Farm, is joining the efforts as well. She doesn’t have a lot to lose per the WebMD chart, but she does want to lose 10 lbs. She plans to cut out soda, get rid of candy, and do some sort of movement (walking or yoga).

Rebecca Mitchell, the tsqlprincess, struggles with issues of lactose intolerance. This has had the positive effect of helping her lose weight in the past, but as many of us do in the winter (especially those of us who love chocolate), she has slipped some. She talks about her goals of losing 20 lbs, keeping her sanity, cutting down on dairy again, eating more fruits/veggies, and exercising.

Tim Mitchell (@Tim_Mitchell), no relation to Rebecca, plans to drop 40 lbs before he turns 40 in September. He plans to spend 5 days a week doing some type of exercise, and work at eating better.

Jeff Rush was inducted into the Get Hawt club by Jen. He posted his “origin story” with how he got to where he is at. Through a series of other posts, he explains that he needs to lose 7 fat babies’ worth of weight. So far, he is ahead of his goal.

Denis Gobo (@DenisGobo) was inducted to the Get Hawt Challenge (unknowingly, perhaps) by Tim. His goal is to drop about from 188.6 to 160 lbs by Memorial Day. He is going to change up is work out routine (and keep track of it), track both his weight, and track what he eats. He is also keeping a list of “banned foods.”

Yanni Robel expressed that she wanted in on the Get Hawt Blog Party. She is currently in Florida celebrating meeting her big goal for 2012 (though, I’m sure she will have more that we will hear about soon). She blogged a recap of her amazing first marathon at Disneyworld. Keep in mind, she sprained her ankle 9 days (or so) before her big race!

Kathi Kellenberger (@auntkathi) plans to walk 100 miles a month (WOW). She also wants to drop 30 lbs this year. She does not currently have a personal blog, but wants to be part of the public support group!

Though I didn’t make much progress, I did set some goals. I’d like to lose 15 lbs or so. I want to look and feel better in my clothes. I plan to exercise more, drink more water, and just make better choices as to what I put in my body.

Get Hawt – Week 1 (my lack of progress)

13 Jan 2012 2 Comments

by Sarah S. in Get Hawt

Jen McCown (@JenniferMcCown) and I are alternating hosting the Get Hawt Challenge. Week one was my turn. Writing the initial post was about as far as I got. Oops.

The challenge for this week was to write our goals, and what steps we plan on taking to get there.

Goals
My goal is to feel better in my own skin. Not really a measurable goal. If I were to pick a number, I’d say I’d like to drop at least 15 lbs. If my weight didn’t change much, but I dropped some of the fat that’s accumulated on my stomach and legs since walking the 3 Day, and built muscle instead, that’d be ok. I’d like my clothes to fit me better too. It was pretty sad when I had to hang a pair of jeans back in my closet this week because I couldn’t get them on. I’d like to fit into those jeans again. I’d like to NOT look 5 months pregnant in pretty much all my clothes. I want to sit down, and not feel that small roll on my belly. I’d like to catch my reflection and not see 2 chins. Also, I am starting my training for The 3 Day early this year.

Steps to Success
As I mentioned in my previous post on my fitness/weight loss goals for the year, I got a fitness game for the XBox. Being on the edge of illness, and worrying about my son’s health issues has brought me to not being very motivated to do much fitness-wise. Yes, that’s mostly an excuse. Once I find my motivation, watch out. This week, I am admitting, it’s just not there. I plan to use the game, my membership at Lifetime Fitness, my training for the 3 Day, and being more aware of what I am putting into my body to meet my goals. My goal is to walk several 15 mile walks during my training. Getting to that point alone will make a difference.

How’d I do?
My week 1 wasn’t awesome. I did get out and walk about 2 miles one day, and did about 100 crunches another day. Other than that, I was sick, and took care of a sick kid. Oh, and I also flew to Colorado Springs, hung out with a bunch of SQL Peeps at their SQL Saturday, and flew home. Coincidentally, I had a baked potato for 2 meals in CO. I don’t feel I did too bad out there eating wise. I’m making slight improvements in cutting down on the pop, now to increase the water intake…

It’s Time to Get Hawt!

05 Jan 2012 9 Comments

by Sarah S. in Get Hawt

It’s that time of year – time to Get Hawt!! Jen McCown (@MidnightDBA) and I are co-hosting a new round of Get Hawt blog parties. As Jen said when she hosted the first round: “The best thing you can do for your fitness and health goals is to make them public…to be accountable to somebody else. So this is the open invitation to participate in a weekly group blog.”

You might be setting weight loss, diet, fitness, or otherwise health-related goals. You may or may not call them resolutions. Join us in this group to hold each other accountable. Tell us in your blog post what your goals are, and what steps you plan on taking to get there. Anyone can join us at any time.

Mention in your post that you’re writing for Get Hawt Friday, and link back to this post. Have your post up on Thursday or Friday of next week to be included in the wrap-up post with links.

To once again steal from Jen: “MAY THE HAWT BE WITH YOU!”