Update!

Hello my cyber family!! It is time to update you on my progress thus far! Now I have to be honest, I have yet to see the Biggest Loser-style results that I have so been craving which is disappointing but has made my resolve that much stronger!

JR and I had a heart to heart about a month ago because I could tell that I was losing inches but not losing any weight. After taking my measurments and chatting, we realized 1. due to me being a "sweater" we've realized the body fat percentage machine is just a waste on me! ha of course and 2. I need more cardio. At that point, we decided to step up my cardio to five times a week in hopes of burning off some of the fat that seems to grow so plentifully on my sweet bod. Weeell, after about 2+ weeks of that I still wasn't seeing different results so Matt and Jonathan stepped in to help me out also!

About a week ago, we went out to establish my maximum heart rate. And by "maximum heart rate" I of course mean "try to make your heart explode" because that's about what it felt like. So after I dodged my first heart attack, we now have an idea of what range I should be in while do my cardio workouts. I have since invested in a heart rate monitor (which is about the coolest toy I've picked up in a while!) and I hope to be dropping some serious lbs soon! In addition to having more targeted cardio workouts, I have almost doubled the intensity I was doing before and I'm shooting for 7 days of cardio a week with a combination of running and swimming. Now...if THAT doesn't do the trick I'm saving up for lipo! haha Kidding.

So now I present to you my stats! I've lost 6.5" over my midsection, hips and thighs which is a good start, but I just hoped to be a bit farther along after a few months of getting ripped! Not to worry my dear readers...it will only be a matter of time before you open up the newest issue of Victoria's Secret Swimsuit catalog and see my smiling face! haha Okay...or maybe just see a skinnier me at Central Market... :)


Note: The second set of measurements listed I was wearing street clothes so if some of the measurements look a bit crazy (i.e.- chest) its because I was wearing a sports bra on the first and third and a regular one on the second! No, I really just stuff my bra... HAHA! Kidding!

GA...and I don't mean Georgia.

Ryan: - Hello everyone. My name is Ryan and...
[queue tortured pause]
- and I'm a gymoholic.

Group: -Hi Ryan!

[End Scene]

This dialogue was quite similar to my first meeting. It wasn't until about a week ago that I truly realized I had a problem. They say that's one of the first steps, you know- admitting you have a problem- so I suppose I'm on the right track. Well here goes... I do have a problem America, I'm... I'm a gymoholic. Yes, that's right... you heard me correctly. Feel free to cover your children's ears, shield your face from its horror, or simply hang your head in shame. I can't help it! I'm an imperfect person and I admit it! Now I know some of you might not be as familiar with this disease as others so let me enlighten you:

gym-o-hol-ic:

Pronunciation: jim-a-haw-lik or jĭm-a-hô'lĭc

adj.
1. Related to or resulting from multiple gym usage.
2. Suffering from gymoholism.

n.
1. A chronic disorder characterized by a person who uses multiple gyms habitually and to excess or who suffers from gymoholism. Results can be fatal.

Now that we all understand the severity of my problem, I will tell you my story. It was a day like any other day, a Wednesday I believe, and I was on my way to the gym after work. My mind was aflutter with planning out that afternoon's cardio session when it dawned on me. This was the third gym I'd been to today. I sat in my car in disbelief. I could feel the muscles of my face tighten as the horror set in. "There has to be some mistake," I thought to myself. You hear stories like this on TV but things like this don't ever happen to you.

I began recounting the day's events desperate to prove my epiphany wrong. I woke up and headed to the new AMLI gym like I do three days a week to my training session with Katie and JR. As soon as we finished, I headed over to the SMU gym seeking a warm shower and a chance to get ready for the day. From there I headed to my office to muddle through the unbearable tedium of the workday, and upon my release from my cement cage I headed straight to Uptown Energy Fitness to squeeze in a cardio session before it got too late.

"Sweet mother of..." my thought trailed off. Moments pass and I immediately began rationalizing what had happened. "Well it was just two...and I was going to cancel SMU because I never went there but then we relocated to the AMLI and I needed a shower so I went back to SMU and I still use Uptown for cardio because I'm not a "resident" at the AMLI..." As my rambling thought came to a close, I realized that all my justifications proved was that I was in deep, deeper than I'd realized. They say its a slippery slope between recreational use and full blown addiction but I guess I hadn't realized how true that statement was.

So here I find myself...using three different gyms daily. Trying to pick up the pieces of my life while wondering where things veered so sharply off course. I now attend Gymoholics Anonymous (GA) meetings three days a week for support. I think with a little time I'll be able to pull myself out of this vicious circle of addiction and take back my life and the freedom I once had of having only one gym membership. But until then...when you drive by a gym think of me, because...well, there is a good chance I'm a member of it. Until tomorrow... :)

Disclaimer: Gymoholic and gymoholism are not real disorders and are a complete fabrication birthed from my own imagination. Once again, if you believed anything I wrote please enroll yourselves into educational classes at a higher learning center (or perhaps remedial in some cases) near you. Thank you and have a great day! :)

New Discovery

Ok so I have found a fun little website that you all might find interesting. It's called The Daily Plate and it is associated with the Live Strong Foundation.

I was searching for online nutritional information when I stumbled across this little beaut. You can sign up and it is an online food and work out journal. Not only does it have nutritional information for lots of restaurants and brands but you can also set caloric goals for yourself based on your age/weight/weight loss goals. These are all great but what I really like is that you can look at your progress from a daily, weekly and monthly perspective and can track it from anywhere. I think it's pretty user friendly. It's only my second day of using it so I'll reserve judgment until later, but so far so good!

http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/

Alright already...

No need to shout - I'm here with some blogging nuggets for ya!

All is well on the weight loss front. We are continuing to train 3 days a week and getting some additional cardio in on our off days. We had our weigh in/measurements last week and now I have a benchmark for how the things I've been doing have been working. Overall I have lost about a 1/2 inch all over in measurements. With the move and consequential change of scale, we think I've lost +/- 7 lbs and per the BMI scale, it's 100% fat. Good news that I'm toning up and losing some fat, but I was hoping for a bit more on the weight. Physically I can see differences. My clothes fit better around my waist and I can see the definition in my arms and shoulders.

While this news was a little disappointing, it only inspires me to be a lot more driven and dedicated to my cardio and eating habits. I know I cheated here and there and that is all on me. I'm going to completely cut out the alcohol (well except for a particular pub crawl coming up next weekend - I'm Team Captain people!!!) and push harder on my workouts.

Stay tuned peeps!

I'm Baaack!

I apologize for the lack of posts the last week or so things have been a bit busy in the department. I'm starting to think they actually expect me to work for my paycheck. If that is the case, I'm not so sure how much longer this "arrangement" will work for me! I need at least half a day in order to stay current on my blog posts and online TV watching! I mean, come on people?! Haha I'm kidding, but I will try to be more diligent about posting in the future. :) And I would like to also remind my blogger in crime, Katie, to get into gear with her posts as well. One post every two weeks isn't going to cut it woman!

Whew, now that I have all that off my (meager) chest...let's get to today's post: our new gym!

Now where to begin...our new gym is swanky! Those of you who know me well probably wouldn't really peg me in a gym like this but on my quest to getting ripped there is little that can stop me! The gym is located on the first floor of the AMLI Quadrangle apartments in the Uptown area. It's about half the size of our old gym but still plenty of space for the three of us! It's actually kind of nice having the entire gym to ourselves every morning. We can pretty much do or say whatever we want which results in a lot of rambling jokes/stories from me which I inevitably act out. I mean what's a story without visuals? A novel? Does anyone still read those? Do they even still make those?? Kidding, kidding! You guys don't need to leave comments informing me of the existence of novels. I'm at Half Price about once a month. Geez, learn to take a joke! ;)

Sorry...I digress. The look and feel of the new gym is pretty sleek. It has a very contemporary/modern design in regards to its carpet, paint, and fixtures. I actually find myself staring at the fans quite often. :) They kind of look like this...

but they're clear!

I think their mesmerizing qualities now speak for themselves so I will move on. Another nice perk of our new gym is that JR can control the A/C which once again, anyone who knows me well realizes this is HUGE! I'm what you call "hot-natured" or what I have more accurately termed "a sweater." And no, I'm not talking about the warm fuzzy you wear in the winter...I'm talking about the unbecoming "oh my God is it possible for one human being to sweat so much" kind of sweater. Case in point: today we were doing our warm-up on the treadmill. It was already a bit steamy in the gym and JR asks, "Is it a little warm in here?" I of course say that it is seeing as I'm already sweating...a lot. And after JR darts aways for a few quick moments it was only about 10 minutes before that teeny, wonderful gym was comparable to an ice box. It was AMAZING.

This look might work for a guy in a band... but let me assure you that it doesn't work for a girl, well, EVER.

So all in all, I think our move has been quite a step in the right direction! Until tomorrow...

There's No Place Like Home...

This past Halloween I decided to sport a Dorothy costume with the ruby red slippers and all. Fun right? Well if I'd known then the extreme foreshadowing that one decision would have on my present-day life and my current homelessness, well I should say gymlessness, I probably would have opted for something safer like a banana suit. I mean what could a banana suit possibly foreshadow?? Delicious fruit for breakfast?? An ice cream sundae?? What a horrific future...

The good news my dear readers: there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. It seems our pilgrimage is coming to an end and next week we should be able to sculpt our bi's and tri's (among other body parts) in our new gym!! HOORAY!

We are trading in our nomadic ways for a hunter and gatherer lifestyle. We are setting down roots again and I'm excited to see what the new gym will be like! Unfortunately for me though, old habits die hard and I will not be able to give up all nomadicism (yeah, pretty sure I just made that word up) from my lifestyle.

The only downside to our new facility is that it does not have showers so after each workout I will still have to make a small trek to fulfill my my hygienic needs. Katie is lucky to live close enough to our new location where she can go home and shower... I unfortunately do not have the same luxury. I figure, worse case scenario, I can find a garden hose somewhere and give my bod the ol' once over but hopefully for my sake (and my co-workers) things won't come to that. :)

I'll be sure to post next week about our new digs! It will be the new era in our fatty coup d'état. :) Have a great weekend everyone!