Am I Buff Yet???

Britt and I both went to the gym this morning.. YAY US! We had to tag team since Elijah is home. Britt went first and when he got home, I went for my turn. We are doing the circuit training program at Powerhouse. The workout takes about 30 minutes. You do a machine, then do 30 seconds of cardio (stepping on the low step for us beginners!!). You do the cardio between each machine. It's an amazing program. They have pictures up all over the circuit training room of people who have done the program - it shows their before and after and has written on the picture how much weight they lost.. It's very inspirational. I will hurt tomorrow. My arms already feel wobbly! I didn't do the leg press because my ortho doc said that's not great for my knees. My PT had me do that, but on a low weight and with partially deflated rubber ball between my knees.. Other than that, I did everything else. My goal is to do the circuit training at least three times per week then do cardio (treadmill) for 30 minutes twice a week. We shall see. That is my goal to start out though. Britt and I will start going in the morning on Monday when Hannah is here to stay with Elijah. We ate well this morning and will eat sensibly for lunch. We are going to a crawfish boil this afternoon, so I don't know how good our eating will be there!!!
Prayers for today: health for my kids - not too much pain from my first work out in ages - and a restful weekend

Card Carrying

We are now official members of Powerhouse Gym!!! woo hoo!!! This has been such a long week. I am ready to start feeling better and start looking better too. I am anxious to get in to the gym, but dreading it all in the same breath. I know this is going to require hard work on my part - I just have to stick to it and it will be so worth it. Britt seems excited too. I was thinking to myself that next year when I have to buy my Easter outfit, I won't have to shop in the "big girl" section.. YAY! Won't that be a treat? So much riding on my doing what I need to do. My skin improving, my hair not being so oily all the time, my knees (which feel like they are about to explode right now) - not to mention my moods. I can do this.
Prayers for today: health for my kids, a good night's sleep, and a relaxing weekend.

Do they make rehab for Diet Coke?

So I have made a sort of mini resolution in effort to improve my outlook on life and my job. I have decided to make a bigger effort to dress more professionally at work, maintain a more professional attitude at work, and try to improve the appearance of my workspace to make it a more pleasing environment to be in. Now, I share this office with a co-worker, so I can't just go all out - and I don't want to spend any money for improvements either. I found a lovely piece of office wall art and had maintenance come hang it for me yesterday. That alone has made it more pleasant and less stark. The building that I work in was once an inpatient mental facility. (go ahead, laugh) and the patient rooms are what we are using as office space. It's odd, but it works okay. I think if I had a rug on the floor, it would seem even less "institutional". So far this week I am doing pretty good on my little mini resolution. I have dressed professionally every day (even accessorized!!!), my office is looking nicer, and my attitude towards my working environment is improving ever so slightly. Baby steps, right?
I decided to take a similar approach to some of my bad eating habits. I am a full fledged diet coke addict. I love the stuff. I swear I start to jones for it if I haven't had it for a while. I need to kick this awful habit!!! I thought - I will just not drink them at all anymore. That doesn't work!! My mind stays preoccupied with my lack of Diet Coke!!!! What the heck? So.. I have decided that I will allow myself one a day - for now. I think giving myself permission to have that much will make it less of an issue - and maybe I won't even want it at all some days! ha! I had a healthy breakfast burrito this morning. I think that will be my new morning staple for breakfast. Whole wheat tortilla, 1 egg/1egg white, low sodium natural salsa (good find,Britt!), and I will add black beans tomorrow. It's quite tasty and seems to keep me satisfied until lunch time. It's the afternoons that get me!! I get the munchies around 2:30. I need some popsmart and some fruit. I think that might get me through.
I think the gym membership is going to happen tomorrow.. yee haw!!! Britt and I are ready to get going. I was so sore last night for some reason. my legs just ached and I haven't done anything. I think it's just from being overweight! Isn't that sad? I watched this show called "Work Out" - reality show with these trainers - and the boss was handing out new clients to the trainers. She had files with pictures and bios on all these people and she was assigning them to folks. She had a couple of gals that were my height and my weight (over 200lbs) and it was awful!!!!!! I can't believe I am that big. I never in my whole life thought I would be this big. when I was a teenager, I was so thin that my family used to worry about me. UGH. This is terrible. My knees hurt constantly and I know it's from carrying my big ole self! I am so tired of it.. but I have said that before, and I still eat and sit on my couch watching tv.
I still need a treadmill at my house.

When to start

So Britt and I are going to join the gym, I think. We just have to figure out when the best day to start is. I am thinking that Monday would be a good day - just dive in and get started. I know I will be sore after the first work out - if I do the same program I attempted before we moved to Fayetteville. I was SOOO SORE!!! But I really think it's a great program and have seen it work. The way of eating is pretty simple. Increase protein in the morning, no sugar, no soft drinks (which will be like detoxing off crack for me), and nothing fried. The fried part I can handle - the soft drinks Britt can handle. We are going to Pinnacle today for Elijah's soccer game. We are going to grill before hand at the park with Uncle John - should be a fun day. I wish I was skinny already. I can't wait to buy decent clothes again!

Sleep

I love to sleep, but I don't like going to sleep. Does that make sense? I hate the fact that I always have hundreds of thoughts running through my head when I try to go sleep and I can't get them to shut off long enough to doze off. Half the time I end up scaring myself or getting upset. Silly, I know. I think that's why I stay up too late. I figure if I stay up too late, then I will just pass out by the time I hit the bed and it wont be an issue.

Friday - Finally

It seems like this has been a brutal week for us and for so many of our friends and family too! TGIF! It's crazy that out of so much chaos, comes so much light and goodness. Elijah's scans are clean and I have more of a sense of peace about that than I have in a long time. Britt's mom's surgery went well and she is at home resting, we have a little friend in the hospital who has turned a corner and is doing much better now - hopefully Susan and Chasen will see some sort of great Blessing come out of their recent robbery (I know that sounds crazy, but it will come to pass!). I just wanted to stay in bed all day today!! I am just worn out from so much stress this week! Instead I got up and got to work a bit earlier than I normally do. Part of my newfound attempt to be more professional at work. That's what I am working on now - attendance and appearance. I need to take a more professional approach to my job than what I do. I think I have fallen victim to the "state employee mentality" and I don't like it much. I feel like a slacker! I even put makeup on today!! WHAT?? Crazy, I know.. Next thing you know I will be fixing my hair and wearing pantyhose!! I plan to wash my sheets so they are nice and crisp, and clean our bedroom so that way I can lay in my bed in comfort in the morning.. maybe light a candle so it smells extra nice. Elijah has a soccer game at 1pm so we should be able to sleep in a bit tomorrow.
Prayers for today: Health for my kiddos, focus at work and in class, quiet time with Britt - and to win a contest that will give me maid service for a year.. ha ha ha

Sometimes it's just the small things...

I had a case of the blues this morning, as I have had many mornings over the past week. We ran all weekend long so when morning came, I didn't feel like we had a weekend at all. We had a very full weekend. It was good, but very busy.

I came to the office and sat here thinking to myself "I am never going to get through this day". Just then, my friend from work called and what he said was just what I needed.."I am at Starbucks. Can I bring you something?" AHHHHHH.. Just made my morning. The fact that my friend thought of me was just what I needed.. the coffee was just icing on the cake.