How I Learned To Work My Tail Off

It's "funny" to me how I went from being this active kid, full of energy, riding my bike all around the town I grew up in, couldn't keep me down.....to this Super-lazy person who valued sleep so much, it was all I strived to do. Napping all the time, eating crap - all the time. For instance, I make a phenomenal pot of chilli! I would have a huge bowl of it - full of cheddar cheese, onions and oyster crackers, then I'd have another bowl, sometimes a third. I also love baking. Cookies, brownies and cakes were always a staple in our house. And if I wasn't baking them, I'd still buy them from the bakery at the local grocer, or I'd stock up on yummy goodies from Uncle Billy's Bakery, etc. I have a horrible sweet tooth. Maybe I'm exaggerating a little. The goodies weren't around ALL the time, but in retrospect, it sure seems that way. My sweet tooth is my biggest vice. Still is.

March of 2009, after having lost 65 lbs w/help from the lap-band, I was ready for more. I'd already cancelled the family membership to the Y the previous summer, and I wasn't exactly thrilled about going back. One thing that truly irked me was having to wait to use the equipment, it was *always* so very crowded wt the Y, and it always seemed as if everyone there had their eyes on you. I wasn't willing to be watched anymore. A friend mentioned that there was a new gym in town, and it was in the former consignment shop across from a local flower shop on Broad right down from the Square. (Quite honestly, I still can't figure out why it's called the "Square" when there is clearly nothing square about it! It's a big circle people!! Lol) only, this gym actually *wasn't* new. It had been around a few years, but previously in a much smaller building, and nobody had ever heard of it. I went to check it out and was very, very happy to see its open 24/7!! So, if for any reason I needed to go in at odd hours or on Sundays, I could do it here! The front manager at the time was also a personal trainer there, and an MMA fighter. She was just this tiny little thing w/a lot of hair and real friendly. For someone so small, she had a LOT of strong - still can't over she's an MMA fighter! But anyway, she gave me a full tour of the gym, showed me all the rooms and equipment. Explained how it all works there. I was immediately sold! After talking to the hubs about it, I went back a few days later and signed up for a single membership.

Now, I hadn't technically worked w/weights or machines w/tremendous effort since my junior and senior years in high school when I took Weight Training as a P.E. class. I tried to remember what I was doing when I worked out at the Y years prior. But now, *NOW* I was dead serious about it! I was there to burn fat, lose weight, build and tone muscle, and by golly-gee, I was gonna make that happen! From March thru December '09 - I tried and didn't really make the difference I was wanting. I managed to lose more weight, but I think it was coming more from the long periods of cardio training I put in more than anything else. I would spend equally an hour on each the treadmill (walking only! There was NO WAY anybody was gonna get me running!! Uh uh!!), the elliptical and the exercise bike. Don got me a new stationary bike and a decent treadmill for home so I could do more at home as well. I realized by that fall I just simply didn't know what I was doing. I was alternating leg days and arm days on the weight machines. I was only doing exercises I knew of, and only the ones I liked, and only focusing on a few muscles I wanted to see improvement on. I wanted to lose the "granny flab" hanging under my arms. I wanted to lose flabby belly pouch left from having babies and losing weight. I wanted to lose the gross folds of flab on my inner thighs. I wanted to tone and firm my butt. I wanted my sexy calves back that I had before babies. So, I was targeting those areas only. I wouldn't go anywhere near the floor mats, weight benches or dumbbells. Just the machines, and only certain machines. I started asking friends on Facebook about exercises to do, reps, sets, alternating days, was it ok that I only did certain exercises and only used certain machines, but stuck to the 3 hours of cardio. I was asking a lot of questions about certain diet tricks - like apple cider vinegar, protein shakes, etc.

A friend then stepped in through Facebook and took me "under his wing". We went to high school together, although during high school, I knew who he was, but didn't really affiliate w/him. So, the fact that he was willing to help someone he barely knew was pretty darn cool, and spoke volumes of his character. He's a martial arts expert, used to be an instructor, he's a former Army soldier, is a firefighter in the town we grew up in and is an expert on health and fitness. He volunteered to devise an exercise program for me following the CrossFit program, (which I'd never even heard of) and promised to help me w/a workout plan for that entire next year. I was T*H*R*I*L*L*E*D!! I couldn't wait to see what he was going to set up for me! I felt like maybe now I'll finally learn how to do it all RIGHT!

I started his CrossFit program mid December 2009, using all his expertise. Anything I didn't know, I just looked up on YouTube, including proper form and alignment. He followed through his word and created a new workout plan for me each month from December '09 through May 2011.

I. Learned. SO. Much!

I referred to him as my personal trainer, even though it was all done through cyberspace. He may not have been here physically to work w/me, but he was *such* a tremendous help to me!! I called my workouts "Body by Pat", lol. He answered any questions I had. He was more than happy to help me w/any problems or questions I had. He opened up a whole new world for me. W/his introduction, I was able to learn so much on my own as well, and it was easier for me to know what to look for while doing online research. He helped me to lose I think about 15% body fat, lose 35 lbs on the scale, SEVERAL inches off my body and I developed muscles I'd never noticed on my body before. He helped me a lot w/health and nutrition information as well. I've been learning a lot on my own and through the lap-band support group and from my nutritionist. But, Pat was kinda filling in the gaps for me.

I changed a lot of habits, that I still hadn't let go of after having the band. I was finally doing a solid workout, 2 days on, 1 day off, and working all muscle groups. What I like about CrossFit is it's like an "old-school" P.E. class, only weights are incorporated into it. Some exercises are simply using your own body, some use dumbbells, disc weights, barbells, medicine balls, kettle bells, some use weight machines, and a little bit of cardio is mixed into every round, or set. The idea isn't to do one exercise for 3 sets of 12, then move on to another exercise w/the same pattern. But to do a whole set of different exercises w/different reps and weights at a time, go through the set, then go back and start over again from the beginning of the set. Repeat the sets for several rounds, and you've got your workout for the day. Muscle confusion to keep your body interested. Next day - a whole different set of exercises to do. Then the following day is a rest day....or I would do cardio only, like walking or cycling, etc. This was how I started that first year. Since then I've changed it up. Now I do 2 days of CrossFit w/weights, then a fat-burning-interval workout (lots of sweat, lots of burned calories, burned quick!), then either back to weights or a run. But, we'll get to that another time.

By end of summer of 2010 I had lost a complete total of 109 lbs. I was only 30-35 lbs away from my final goal. By this time, I was turning into a w-h-o-l-e new woman!! I was discovering I had desires, STRONG desires to do things either I'd never done before, or hadn't done since I was a kid. Losing all that weight sparked an adrenaline junkie I didn't know existed from deep within. Suddenly I was wanting to be adventurous, and try all things I was always afraid to try because being so fat and carrying around all that weight made me fearful of all things that could scare or possibly hurt me. I was even afraid to fall on my butt when I was carrying an additional 100# of fat. But now, I seriously wanted to have lots of physical fun! I was seriously craving anything that would get me moving and active! For instance, I wanted to go sky diving, rock wall climbing, rafting, kayaking, skiing, rowing, hiking, cave crawling, etc.

We took our first actual fun-family-vacation that summer. I have family down in the Ozarks, near Bull Shoals, Arkansas. While we were there, we went on a small cave tour at Blanchard Springs Caverns. They offered a "Wild Cave Tour" that required all of us to wear hiking boots/shoes, jeans, hats and flashlights, and we'd have to get down on all fours to crawl through some pretty tight spaces. We wanted to do this SOOO bad, but we just didn't have enough time. 2 years before that, the idea would've frightened me, and there's no way I would've fit through the cave spaces that required you to crawl on your hands and knees. We also went out on the lake where I tread water for over 3 hours, and I even went tubing w/my hubby while my cousin and her hubby drove the boat and pulled us behind. Something else I would never, ever, ever have considered doing before! We went walking through the steep hills w/my dad every morning and I found another brave and decided "hey, I think I'm going to take off running the rest of the path we're on and walk in circles till they catch up to me". And I DID IT!! I ran probably only less than a quarter of a mile, but I didn't care. That was another feat I just managed.

Here's the thing ---- I sincerely hated, loathed, despised and cursed running, the idea of running, and I thought anyone that runs was probably made of foam because I could NOT do it. And then I did. It was just that short little distance down a steep hill, back up the other side of that steep hill, then across to the end of that particular road we were walking on. I suddenly felt like I'd just won a gold medal at the summer Olympics! I * just * RAN!! Nothing was taking that little piece of glory away from me. I HATED running. I told my husband who was always telling me "I think running will be your 'answer', if you didn't have a problem w/your asthma, and knees.....I really think you should do it". My typical response to his craziness?? "NOPE!" I refused to run. I refused to even try. I had every excuse imaginable. Here's my top ten reasons running was a stupid idea, that I couldn't do:

1. I have asthma
2. I can't breathe when I try to run, 10 steps and I WILL pass out
3. I'm still too heavy
4. I'll break my foot, my ankle, my toe, an eyelash....something
5. I look like an idiot when I try to run, it's too embarrassing, I don't want to be embarrassed
6. I don't know how to run right
7. Every time I try the breathing techniques that 10 different people tell me "works like a charm", I'm thisclosetopassingout and having a heart attack
8. I have torn meniscus cartilage in *BOTH* knees, so it's impossible anyway
9. I just can't run
10. I will die. Running will kill me

So for me to have had the sudden crazy idea "hey, I think I'll run down this hill and finish the road" was quite an epiphany for me. I was so proud of that moment! It was the only running moment I had at the time, but it was my one and only running moment of my life. And I owned it. Like a boss.

I really should dwell a little more on what other changes I made to my diet and workout, but I'm going to save that for another post. Tonight, I leave off at the end of summer 2010, and I wish you all a good night, sweet dreams, no bed bugs......because it is, after all, 2:17 AM!!! And my alarm goes off at 6:45 to get the kiddo's up for band camp and to get my butt to the gym for my daily CrossFit. Farewell for a couple days and then I'll continue my story. I hope you're still reading, even if you already know all I've gone through. It means the world to me that you've read this much at this point.

Muah!! Xoxoxo