Ooh! It's official! I'm now part of the Tuscaloosa Track Club! Sweet. Oh, and here are the race results from my Turkey Trot back in November.

I'm planning on running the Mercedes BE5K with smooochy on February 9th in Birmingham. I'm going up the weekend before to practice the route with Chez (I always like to run the route beforehand, because I'm crazy like that). Plus, I'll get to test out my nifty Garmin Forerunner 305 (which I absolutely love by the way). I plan on either staying the night with her Friday night (the race is on Saturday) or staying with Mr. Tim (depending on how that goes). I'd hate to have to drive so far and get up so early otherwise.

Took my first step class at the YMCA as a paid member. I sure do like the instructor on Tuesdays.

Did Jiggle Free Buns last night.

Oh, and since I haven't posted them in awhile, I'm posting progress pictures below, that we took Tuesday night before class.

168



BOOTY!

Oh, and musikluver can attest that this t-shirt is a size Medium, as she was with me when I got it! I'm not a Medium, but still, I'm WEARING a Medium shirt! hahaha

With my step buddy and co-worker!

On Friday I had to go to the mall today to get a cookie cake for the new assistant who has been here for 6 months now! We just HAD to celebrate that! Haha. Anyway, while waiting on the cake, I ventured into the Gap to see if they had any fingerless gloves. It was the first time I could remember ever being in a Gap. Seriously. And while I was there, I picked up a very pretty sweater (but $40 for a sweater, are you KIDDING me???) and said, “Well, what the heck. You should try one on just to see if it will fit.” And to be safe, I grabbed both the “L” and “XL” sweaters. And the “L” fit. It fit just fine, but I was still a tad uncomfortable with the fit (just because the XL was so much bigger and that’s my style). Then I got more brave, and tried on a pair of dress slacks that were on the clearance rack. They were a 16R and I actually think THEY WERE KIND OF BIG! I about died! Seriously. And I was standing in the Gap dressing room, nearly crying, because I was like, “Woah. I can totally shop here now.”

I ventured over to the jeans to see what they had. It was REALLY hard finding any 16 pants. Really hard. And I asked the store clerk if they carried pants for fat people, and she said, “We have sizes up to 16” and I told her I couldn’t find any 16s. She finally helped me find a few pairs (and some 14s as well). So, I grabbed them and took them into the dressing room. The 16s fit just fine, albeit a little big (if you can believe that). The 14s fit, but a tad too snug for my liking (but probably just right for most people). But again, I was just staring at myself in the mirror. I can shop at the Gap. Holy crap! I can shop at the Gap!

Not that I would anytime soon. That place is EXPENSIVE! Holy crap. I couldn't imagine paying more than $10 to $20 on any given item of clothing. That's outrageous to me ($35 for a sweater, seriously???). Jeez. Target and Wal-Mart are my clothing stores of choice! Haha. But, still, I could shop there if I wanted to (and it’s definitely on my Mission 101 list). So, that felt nice.

Anyway...

Oooh! Oooh! Oooh!

Look what I got today:

YAY! I love it!

It's a Large. I'm glad I got a Large, because the Medium would have been too tight (and the Large will shrink anyway). But, I'm also glad I didn't order the XL, which I wanted to do. So, I guess I really am a Large t-shirt gal. So very sweet.

I really didn't do anything Friday. I went grocery shopping after work (using my cloth bags, thank you very much), ate dinner, did some yoga, cleaned the apartment (which is much easier now without Logan here messing it up) watched tv, and went to bed.

Saturday, I got up early at 7:00 a.m. (for a Saturday). I knew registration started at 7:30, and my race didn't start until 9:15 a.m., so there was NO WAY I was getting there nearly 2 hours early. So, I ate my carb breakfast (mini blueberry bagels and a banana), showered, and just hung out. I left the house at 8:00 a.m., arriving at the race at 8:15 a.m. It was pretty chilly at the time, but I saw on TV that by 9:00, it would be around 51 degrees, so I was fine (plus, I love love love to run in the cold). I registered, got my t-shirt, and since I had a ton of time to kill, I headed to the car to drop my t-shirt off in the trunk.

I walked back to the run site, and that's when I realized I HAD LOCKED MY KEYS IN THE TRUNK! I was soooo mad! Ugh! Plus, it was 8:15 a.m. the morning, so I really couldn't call someone to help then (without looking like a complete ass). I also had a giant bag of stuff that I didn't want to leave out (my wallet, camera, etc.). I was so mad! But, I decided that after my run, I'd call a co-worker and someone would help me out. So, I let it go.

The men's race started at 8:30 a.m. The women's race started at 9:15 a.m. So, while the men were running, I basically ran around the parking lot, stretched, and hung out (there were quite a lot of people there...many HARD CORE runners (like University of Alabama track team runners, which just isn't fair. It was pretty intimidating...). One guy finished in 16 minutes! It was insane, and awesome to watch! Oh, and one guy ran the 5K with his dog! I'm glad he wasn't on my race, because as calm as I was, there was no way I'd be calm with a dog running behind me (no matter how sweet he was).

My race started at 9:15 a.m., and it went around the park 6 times. And I kept telling myself, "don't start off fast, and this is the last race you'll run for awhile, make it good." I put on 'N'Sync's "Celebrity" (shut up) and went to town. I started off really slow (even getting lapped once), but I didn't want to get dead tired like my last 5K. On my last lap, I was at 27:00 minutes, and I wanted to beat my last time (32:22), so I hoofed the last lap (last 1/2 mile). Well, hoofed for me. And, golly, I finished the 5K (3.11 miles) in 31:40 which is my BEST TIME EVER! Seriously! I could NOT believe it! That's 40 seconds better than my last 5K! And, it's actually better than that, as our last 5K was a little less than 3.11 miles! My time was a 10:11 mile! Holy moly! So cool.

I was so stoked! I was a little beat afterwards, but I drank a ton of water, gatorade, ate a cookie, and just cooled off! I was so proud of myself!!! I called my co-worker and asked her to please go to the office and get my extra set of keys (I keep an extra set of keys at the office for just this reason). She was tired, but said she didn't mind. So, while she did that, I waited around, met a new running friend I saw at the last race, who was as sweet and helpful as could be (she ran her 5K in 22:00 minutes and answered a lot of my questions), and waited for the "awards." They gave out gift certificates, turkeys (it was the Turkey Trot, after all), and athletic gear to the winners (and random folks).

And then came the division wins. And guess what...I GOT THIRD PLACE IN MY DIVISION!! I was SOOO excited!!! I know there were a decent number of women in my division too (25-29), so I was very excited! Of course, my "prize" was a knife (seriously) with a bow on it (seriously), you know, because it's the "Turkey Trot" and some socks. Still, I WON MY DIVISION! I went out in style, baby!

Wow. I guess I could really get into this running thing. I definitely need to take a break (I'm still going to run once a week until January, but I'm not going to run exclusively), but I do think that with enough practice (and the right injury prevention), I really could do well with it. I will never be fast, but think of how much I've improved from when I first started running! Woo hoo!

But, I think I hurt my back. It was really sore all day (for those who remember, I do have back problems every once in awhile). We'll see how it goes...

Oh, and I can cross ANOTHER thing off my Mission 101 list...I joined an exercise/fitness club (because entry into the race was also membership into the Tuscaloosa Track Club! Sweet.

I have to admit, I again was a little disappointed that I crossed the finish line by myself again. I told my ex husband about the race (in passing) about 2 months ago, and never really mentioned it again. And I haven't spoken with him in well over a week, so, of course I couldn't expect him to come. So, I wasn't really upset about that. More upset that I was, again, by myself. The next person I date BETTER be at the finish line, darn it! haha. I would LOVE that.

Before the race!

TURKEYS!

The men heading off to their start line!

After the race, with my new race buddy, Claudia (she's German)!

They had BBQ catered...All I had was banana pudding!

After the race...With my prizes! haha

My loot!

My knife! ha!


Sunday I woke up with a backache again. Ugh. I hardly ever have my back pain lately, but when I do get it, it's pretty awful. The last year and a half I have not let the back pain stop me from exercising. I did a lite 25 minute Firm workout, just because I didn't want to injure it anymore. But, I HATE BACK PAIN!

So, anyway...

SUNDAY I GOT CONTACTS!!! WOO HOO! After calling several places in town, I settled on Wal-Mart (go figure) as they had the cheapest eye exam ($84). I had my eye exam. I had a hint that I had astigmatism before (but nobody actually confirmed it before), but this doctor confirmed it. He was really nice. He said my prescription has only changed slightly, and not enough for him to suggest paying $200 for a new pair of glasses. I was really blown away by that. I was for sure he was going to recommend me getting a new pair of glasses. So, immediately I liked him. He told me I'd have to get toric lenses, and that he saw no reason for him to push the more expensive kind on me. He prescribed a Biomedics UF Toric contact brand, which is apparently $28/box for a 6 month supply (6 contacts per box). I have to go back in a week to order my first box, as he wants me to try these out for a week and see how I like them.

Today I'm getting my hair cut at a new place I've never been before. I hope it goes well. It’s not like they can mess up my hair…haha.

Well, my second official 5K went well. I WON MY AGE GROUP! hahaha.

Now, I was the ONLY female racer in my age group...but still...I WON MY AGE GROUP! HAHAHAHA.

There were only 15 racers...total. So, my chances of winning the 24-31 age group was pretty good.

My time? 32:22!!!, which is 10:26 mile time! YES! Now, I was THE LAST RUNNER TO FINISH, which was pretty hysterical (and sad). But, I finished. And it was definitely the hardest run I've ever done (many times I wanted to quit). But I didn't. I ran the entire time, beating my last 5K in April by 4 minutes and 32 seconds (and I shaved 1:32 off my mile time).

And, yes, I was last. But, as I learned from a good friend, I'm beating all those bums sitting at home on their couches! I have to admit though, I wasn't expecting to be last! How sad! And, it was hysterical to me! They had police escorts, and the last runner had to be escorted by the police, and that WAS ME! So, I had a police officer follow next to me the entire time! And he was CREEPING by! So funny! And every turn in the race where there were race volunteers, I'd yell, "I'M LAST! YAY!" And they'd laugh and cheer me on. At least I had a sense of humor about it!

Anyway...When it came time to the awards ceremony, turns out...I was the only female runner who was between 24-31, so I won a bunch of cool prizes (well, watch the video, they list my prizes), including a $20 gift certificate to Mellow Mushroom, a free sub, a free lunch at Zoe's, a MONTH MEMBERSHIP to a gym, etc. I WAS STOKED!!! AND I GOT A SWEET ASS PLAQUE, that I'm TOTALLY hanging on the wall! Man, that's going to be my ONLY running plaque...ever! hahaha. I laughed and laughed about it!

The race itself was really poorly set up. But, I totally made my money's worth! And, just because I have to, I'm going to try to run it next year.

Again...let me just say that running is SOOOO hard for me. Seriously. It's definitely the hardest form of exercise for me. I'm ALWAYS way above my max heart rate when I run. Always. But, I run. And that's all that matters to me. I don't enjoy it was much as I enjoy step. But, I feel tons more accomplished when I do run, so it balances out.

I'm about ready for my November 17th 5K (The Turkey Trot) to be done with though...Running is HARD! haha. But, I'm improving, so that's all that matters...

Before the race...Denny Chimes.

Before the race...with my hydration pack! haha. I'm also wearing the t-shirt I got from my first 5K.

My t-shirt. It's a "L" and it fits!

The prizes...

After the race! Yes, I'm a red face! I can't help it!

I WON! I WON!

My prizes!

My first (and most likely last) runner's plaque!


YOU HAVE TO WATCH THIS VIDEO! Watch the last 3 seconds, when he announces my name and LISTEN TO MY HILARIOUS REACTION! Seriously! hahahaha.



And if you can't see the video, here is the direct link...

So funny!

I've been kind of a pig this week though...Back on track I will be...

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Oh, holy moly! I DID IT! I am able to cross off another thing on my Mission 101 List!!

And this one is a big one...FOR ME!

I just ran a 10:00 mile! I just ran a 10:00 mile!

I know. It probably seems so awfully slow to you. But to me, this is HUGE! HUGE people!

I was driving home from teaching last night (after working full time and teaching that night), and I thought to myself, "You can do this. Just try it on the treadmill. You can do this."

So, I came home, got on the treadmill, and WENT TO TOWN! And I did it! I'm so pumped!

I think what also helped was a I played two cycles of the Biggest Loser theme song while I ran too! haha

Anyway...I did it. Now, if I can only run a 10:00 mile for 30 minutes straight or whatever, I'll be golden. This is just so huge for me. I am NOT a runner...and in high school, my best mile time was something like 14:00. So, for me to just run a 10:00 mile (10 years later), is bigger than big! My last 5K (on Friday) time was 11:02/mile, so 10:00 isn't THAT far off, but still...it's HUGE for me! And it wasn't as hard as I thought (I definitely could have gone faster, but I didn't want to risk it)...

YES! YES! YES!

Well, this week starts the official "test." I start teaching college 4 days a week starting tonight (in addition to my full time job). Ugh.

But, I passed my first hurdle. I hauled my fat butt out of bed at 5:50 a.m. to do a short 30 minute Firm video. This is harder than you know. 1) I DO NOT exercise in the mornings. I'm physically weaker and I cannot put as much effort into the exercise. Exercising immediately after work has always been my exercise time, and it works for me (and they say to exercise whenever it works for you, as neither morning nor evening exercise is deemed to be more beneficial than the other). I just CANNOT exercise in the morning. 2) I worked out pretty hard this weekend, so I was sore getting up.

But, I did it. And I'm certainly not going to lose any weight that way! For a 30 minute video, I only burned 190 calories! 190! This is how pathetic I am at exercising in the morning! I barely got my heart rate above 120! Now, this could be that I'm in better shape than the last time I did this video, but I doubt it. So, I'm just going to have to be EXTRA careful with my eating the rest of this semester. Sure, doing this 30 minute exercise in the morning is better than sleeping in and not getting any exercise in today, but overall, if I want to see progress, tracking my eating is going to be the way to go.

So, I'll start tracking today, just to make sure I'm on schedule.

I'm also definitely on schedule to beat my old 5K time of 36:54. Lately I've been just running for 30 minutes straight. This is a big feat, as I am not a runner, and 30 minutes seems like a lifetime to me. But, I am training for my 5K on November 17th, so I decided to step it up yesterday and actually run my old 5K route. I started just going to run for 30 minutes, but after I reached the 30 minute mark, I told myself, "You're so close to finishing, just do it..." and I did! In 35:48 which is an entire MINUTE off my last time! YAY! So, I'm setting my November 17 5K time goal at 34:00 minutes. If I can do that, I'll be very pleased. But, I also have to be realistic. Running is AWFULLY hard for me, and I'm an EXTREMELY slow runner (clearly, an 11:30 mile), so 34:00 is pretty ambitious (less than an 11:00 mile), so I should be happy with just beating my old time.

But, I was sooo proud that I plowed through and finished that 5K yesterday! My goal is to run the 5K at least one time each week until the 17th (and hopefully at least 2 times). I always get excited when I start running, but by the end of the "training" I'm ready to be done and back to my step/sculpting/cardio videos.

I am always more nervous that I'm going to get injured, and I tend to plateau when I run (as for whatever reason, I'm more hungry, probably because it's more physically tiring on the body). In 40 minutes, I burn nearly 500 calories running! CRAZY!

Oh, and does running make everyone else's digestion off? Like, when I run, I always feel like I need to poop! Isn't that crazy? I'll be good for the first 20 minutes, then BOOM! My body has to poop! haha.

Oh! I forgot! I went to Lane Bryant this weekend (we have a new complex where a new Lane Bryant just opened) to see if they had any sports bras. Sadly, they did not. So, I decided I'd try a few items of clothing on, just to see what size I was there! Well, I am DEFINITELY a size 14 at Lane Bryant! And some shirts that were 14 were WAY TOO big! I came out of the dressing room once with a 14/16 sweater on, and one lady said, "Honey, you CANNOT wear that sweater!" And I said, "Well, you don't have anything smaller!" And apparently they have a new "size" chart there for pants, and I got fitted for them, and I was their smallest size (a "1"). Weird. Now, I know sizes vary (and the 14 pants fit fine, not like they were too big of anything), and I'm still a normal 16 everywhere else, but to be the smallest size in Lane Bryant is HUGE for this girl! HUGE! I'm about 20 pounds away from not being able to shop at Lane Bryant anymore! YAY!

One of the sales associates asked if I was interested in getting a Lane Bryant card, and I said "no," as I plan on not fitting their sizes very soon! YAY!

I ended up going to Target where I got a new sports bra (with an underwire). I like my sports bras very tight, and so I ended up getting a size 36DD bra! haha. I'm a sexy porn star!

So, anyway...

So, lately I've been looking at old photos and I came across a "before" picture that I took back in April 2002. And, as I was studying it, I noticed I had the EXACT SAME OUTFIT in the house right then. So, I made my husband take an "after" picture for me, in the same outfit.

Please note that this is not odd that I have clothes 5 years later...and I still wear them. I have clothes from back in 1994, and I still wear them. I'm really good on clothes (I think it's because I hang them up instead of putting them in the dryer). And, even if my clothes have holes and are ratty, I'll still wear them. haha.

But, regardless, below, please find a before picture. I believe this was about at my heaviest, and my calendaring of the time leads me to believe I was roughly 260 pounds, give or take (my official heaviest weight I can remember is 263). I would like to see what I look like in another 17 pounds (making it a 100 pound weight loss). I'll definitely take another one of those pictures. I clearly carry all of my weight in my belly area, which is definitely a health problem. Even 83 pounds hasn't really changed my "shape" per se. I still carry all my weight there. But, maybe another 30 pounds or so will make it much better? Who knows...

Excuse me, as I look like poo and had just exercised. Oh, and excuse the poor quality, as I haven't learned how to do a side by side comparison shot, and have to use print screen instead (don't ask).

Front

Side.

Okay, I had a meeting with a Registered Dietitian on Wednesday afternoon. The meeting went decently well. I don't want to sound like a know-it-all (because I'm not, by any means), but she really didn't tell me anything I didn't know. I went into the meeting and told her that I feel I'm very well read on the subject of nutrition (I guess I felt the need to tell her that). Turns out, I was right. I was sooo proud of myself!!!!

She looked over my food log (I gave her a month's worth of food log) and then talked to me about what she saw. She said I was a "grazer," but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. She liked how I eat small meals throughout the day (I like that too). She said my fat intake was great. In fact, she used the word "great" a lot. That made me feel good.

She did have some concerns. She flat out said that she was really worried I wasn't get enough complex B vitamins OR iron. I completely agree with the B complex vitamins part at least. As a vegetarian, I should know better. She asked me if I was taking an additional B complex supplement (in addition to my daily multivitamin) and I of course said no. She said I should start immediately. While she didn't have any huge problems with the amount of protein I'm getting, she was concerned I am not getting "complete protein." And of course, the lack of complex B vitamins in my diet. And, like I said, I agree with that. She's supposed to email me with a recommended B complex vitamin, but I've yet to hear back from her. She said she'd email me by the weekend though...so I'll give her time.

I'm not so sure about the iron. I don't really think I need to take iron supplements. I'll probably ask my doctor about that...

She did recommend that I keep drinking protein shakes like I have been doing. So, that was okay. She said I was absolutely excellent with my dairy/calcium intake, and that I should probably actually stop taking my additional calcium supplement I take daily. And, even though I'm getting at least 5 to 6 servings of fruit/veggies each day, she wants me to up it to 10 servings! So, I'm going to try that. I'll have to wait really until we move and start a steady income, because that stuff is EXPENSIVE! haha

But...but...but. She did start talking counting calories. And I think my butt twitched a little big while she said that. Seriously. She agreed with my assessment of how/why I'm close to stalling. And she said really the only way to deal with that is to start counting calories. She kept mentioning "1500 to 1600" calories. That just seemed way too low. She said I could counter that with upping my exercise if I wanted to, but to generally not count my exercise calories anyway. We'll see...

I have a meeting with her in about a month to see my progress. We'll see...

On Friday afternoon I met with my personal trainer. I gave her my food logs too, as well as my exercise logs. She was very impressed with me, so that was nice. And, like I said, I've taken this girl's step class since September, so she knows I can exercise. I basically told her I'm up for anything, but that I mostly wanted her to perfect my form with free weights. So, we scheduled 4 sessions during August, the first starting on August 10th. There's just no way I can do it next week or moving week. So, August 10th it is.

And, I've been tracking my calories the last two days: 1565 on Thursday and 1669 on Friday. Well, I guess I'm closer than I thought! Whew. That wasn't even trying! I still refuse to deprive myself. If I have to exercise more, so be it. But, I'm going to really try to track my calories until I meet with a nutritionist again, just to see. Let's hope it goes well...Calorie counting it is...ugh.

Oh, oh! Yesterday I went and finally purchased a new bathing suit for the beach next week! And, holy moly. Guess what size it was?!?! 14!! 14!! Now, I know swimsuits generally run weird sizes. But, I swear, the 16 was way too big. YES! I still look HORRIBLE in the swimsuit. Well, actually my top half is not that bad, but my stomach and thighs are just so bad. 80 pounds have not made a difference on them. So, I got a pair of short cover ups as well. I refused to spend a lot of money on a bathing suit (I wore my other one for several years), so I was able to get away with both pieces for under 20 dollars. Not too bad.

Ooh!!

( Big scale day today...new decade! )

Keep it coming. Maybe this journaling food is working. Who knows. BUT. I did go yesterday and sign up for a special the University Rec Center was having:

I purchased one initial consultation with a Registered Dietitian, and then a follow up consultation. Well, while I was signing up for that, my favorite instructor came in the room. She greeted me and told me I looked like I had lost some more weight since the last time I saw her. That was nice. Anyway...she told me she was personal training now.

Well, that pretty much convinced me. Because the University was running a special where you go could get 2 nutrition consultations (which I already purchased) and 4 personal training sessions for something like $30 extra dollars. So, I totally signed up! I cannot wait!

And this trainer loves me. And she knows that I can push myself really hard (she took that Gin Miller seminar with me...if you scroll down to the picture of me doing step, she's doing it right next to me). Unlike my last experience with a personal trainer (who I really believe just thought I was some heavy person who couldn't do much), I know this will be a good experience. And since I've been exercising at home so much recently, it will be nice to mix it up. And who knows...if I like her style, I might buy more eventually!

And, unless my work buys me a gym membership (I've hinted), I'm not going to buy a gym membership in the fall. It's just silly. I'm going to have my own workout room at home, with probably over 60 workout DVDs (at least), so I DO NOT need to buy a membership. But, I am going to pay the per diem fee of $10 to take a class every 2 weeks. Or, instead of the classes, I might do personal training. We'll see...

I'm excited to see a nutritionist and get personal training. How exciting!