Dieting for Disney 2008

[sweetpee_1993]

Okay. Went for my monthly weigh/measure/check-in along with my weekly shot at the doctor's office. I also had my shoulder looked at by the doctor. It was good and bad news.

Good news is I'm down another 5 lbs. to make my total lost since early February 16 lbs. I've gone from 179 down to 163. Only 3 lbs. to my goal of 160 (yes, that's a big number for a chick but I'm also 5'8" w/a muscular build). Anything beyond that is lagniappe! More important than just the pounds, my BMI is down to 24.3%. That puts me back in the "healthy" range for my age. :sohappy: I'm really surprised I broke my plateau so easily. In the past I always plateau at 168. It generally takes a lot to push beyond that. I was really surprised at the scale, believe me. LOL!

The bad news is that I do, in fact, have tendonitis in the shoulder. Doc xrayed to make sure there was no calcium build-up & there was none. He had me hold my arm straight up in the air then bend at the elbow like I was trying to touch the base of my neck. That was pretty uncomfortable. Next he had me hold my arm down by my side then reach with my fingertips like I was trying to touch my bra strap. Holy smokes that hurt. He stepped in front of me and pushed on my shoulder. He caught the spot right away. My shoulder still aches from it. Doc says I have to rest my shoulders until it feels better. I gave myself a 4 day rest over the weekend and it hurt worse afterward. I don't know how long this rest is going to take but I am completely and utterly ed about it. There's just no nicer word to describe how I feel. I guess the doctor could tell I was mad. I explained that it's very disappointing because I want to be working these specific muscles and toning them. I'm doing so good. I don't want to stop. He said if after it gets better things deteriorate again then we could see about cortizone shots or therapy. I let him know right off there would be no shots, only therapy. The whole thing just peeves me beyond words, tho. I'm not old by any means. I'm only 33 for crying out loud. I take care of myself. Why will my body not freaking cooperate here??? :fork:

I don't know how well it will work trying to modify my workouts at the gym. I go to Curves. There aren't alternatives if I don't use certain machines in the circuit. There aren't free weights or anything like that. You either do what's there or you don't. It's going to seriously decrease my calorie burn overall. I'm thinking I can do all the lower body, ab, & back stuff there then come home and do the 10 minute ab workout I have on dvd. That's a pretty intense ab workout. I can also add jogging at the park to replace some of the cardio stuff.

The whole thing is just so incredibly discouraging even though my weigh-in was wonderful. I'm not about to give up by any means. I just have to find my way around this.

Oh! And another plus, after the appointments I met my sis-in-law and we went shopping at the mall. I've gone down a size in shorts. WooHoooooo! I'm loving the way clothes are fitting again. I'm having nooooo problem finding cute stuff I looooove to wear on the trip. :animwink:

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Hey gang! How is everyone else doing out there???

I was able to get a good bit of excercise this morning. I went to Curves but skipped all the machines in the circuit that were arms or shoulders. Of the 13 machines (I think I counted them right) I was skipping 5. That still put me using more than I skipped. My report at the end said I still burned 423 calories which I'm not entirely sure I believe. LOL! Compared to my usual 650-750 that's still maintaining more than half what I normally do.

After Curves I went to the local park where all the locals do their walking/jogging. I power-walked 1/2 mile, jogged 1/2 mile, power-walked 1/4 mile, then jogged 1/4 mile. It's been so long since I did any jogging or running. I forgot how much I like it. Now I'm thinking I'll start pushing towards building my distance and endurance like I used to. :animwink:

Hope everyone has a good weekend! Good luck, y'all!

:wave:

 

[santa's surpriz]

Here's a little something I do (among many crazy things):

I use light free weights and move my muscles any way I want to that I would move them in the natural world or not. They aren't conventional and they may look goofy but it ensures I get to do something creative and get a wide range of muscles involved.
For example: I use 7 lb weights in each hand and holding my arms straight, raise them in front of me all th way parrallel to the floor, then rotate my hands so palms are facing OUTWARD and bring the weights so it looks like I am crucified, then raise them above my head, then bring them down so my delts are angled and the weights meet in a V, then bring them up as if I am flinging someone off of me.

Maybe that sounds bizaar and you can't follow it but the point is don't stick with standard arm curls or bench pressesetc.. BE CREATIVE!!!!!


WAIT this is a better explanation: Pretend you are doing something and emulate it, like pouring a pitcher of tea, or starting a lawnmower, or a golf swing,, heck just hold VERY LIGHT weights and windmill your arms around like a little girl attacking someone....doesn't matter.

To target specific muscles:
Stand in front of a mirror and move your arm or whatever in every direction and range you can think of and FEEL with your other hand what muscles are tensing the most. Try to emulate this with light weights. By doing this you'll be able to feel that there are different areas of every muscle that are worked depending on what range of motion you put them through.


As for other machines, ask someone, people LOVE to help out in a gym and show off their expertise. Or just watch others use the machine. I find myself sticking to free weights though as another poster said, it helps your balance and your core and uses more muscle. 100 LBS ON A MACHINE IS NOT 100 LBS IN THE REAL WORLD!

that is too funny...being creative when you workout! I do that too! My Ipod tunes are a crazy mix and I love working out to Disney music, but I also have a few choice songs from the 80's and the Black Eyed Peas that I just move and jump around any way I want. Kinda like the episode of Friends when Rachel was too embarassed to job w. Phoebe. I do that! I am sure that someday it make fall on rear, and break a bone or something but at least I can say I was having fun!

 

[figmentisgreat]

Hey all!

So yesterday I ran again (stupid me) and my leg started hurting, so today, I decided to just walk and do the bike. I did the bike for 20 minutes, walked on the treadmill for 50 minutes (scrubs was on) and then went on the bike for another 5. I don't feel as accomplished as when I run, but hey! it's still exercise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Mybails]

Where'd everybody go?

I was hiding out - embarassed over my lack of exercise and 1/2 lb gain. Damn those sticky buns!! I only had 6! I mean it wasn't a dozen. But I was back on the gazelle for a third of a mile this morning, 5 minutes on the wieght machine and 5 mins on the Ab Lounger.

How's everybody else doing.

 

[figmentisgreat]

I'm doing kind of OK. I can't really do the treadmill anymore (at least not run) because it hurts my legs so badly that I can' t even walk after it anymore. I've been eating healthy, but I don't think I have been losing much weight. I am going to really commit more next week though - tonight I want to try the eliptical and see if that hurts or not. I'm hoping things work out! Also, I really have to commit to doing ab exercises and stuff. Hope everyone else is doing OK!

 

[sublimesting]

Okay. Went for my monthly weigh/measure/check-in along with my weekly shot at the doctor's office. I also had my shoulder looked at by the doctor. It was good and bad news.

Good news is I'm down another 5 lbs. to make my total lost since early February 16 lbs. I've gone from 179 down to 163. Only 3 lbs. to my goal of 160 (yes, that's a big number for a chick but I'm also 5'8" w/a muscular build). Anything beyond that is lagniappe! More important than just the pounds, my BMI is down to 24.3%. That puts me back in the "healthy" range for my age. :sohappy: I'm really surprised I broke my plateau so easily. In the past I always plateau at 168. It generally takes a lot to push beyond that. I was really surprised at the scale, believe me. LOL!

The bad news is that I do, in fact, have tendonitis in the shoulder. Doc xrayed to make sure there was no calcium build-up & there was none. He had me hold my arm straight up in the air then bend at the elbow like I was trying to touch the base of my neck. That was pretty uncomfortable. Next he had me hold my arm down by my side then reach with my fingertips like I was trying to touch my bra strap. Holy smokes that hurt. He stepped in front of me and pushed on my shoulder. He caught the spot right away. My shoulder still aches from it. Doc says I have to rest my shoulders until it feels better. I gave myself a 4 day rest over the weekend and it hurt worse afterward. I don't know how long this rest is going to take but I am completely and utterly ed about it. There's just no nicer word to describe how I feel. I guess the doctor could tell I was mad. I explained that it's very disappointing because I want to be working these specific muscles and toning them. I'm doing so good. I don't want to stop. He said if after it gets better things deteriorate again then we could see about cortizone shots or therapy. I let him know right off there would be no shots, only therapy. The whole thing just peeves me beyond words, tho. I'm not old by any means. I'm only 33 for crying out loud. I take care of myself. Why will my body not freaking cooperate here??? :fork:

I don't know how well it will work trying to modify my workouts at the gym. I go to Curves. There aren't alternatives if I don't use certain machines in the circuit. There aren't free weights or anything like that. You either do what's there or you don't. It's going to seriously decrease my calorie burn overall. I'm thinking I can do all the lower body, ab, & back stuff there then come home and do the 10 minute ab workout I have on dvd. That's a pretty intense ab workout. I can also add jogging at the park to replace some of the cardio stuff.

The whole thing is just so incredibly discouraging even though my weigh-in was wonderful. I'm not about to give up by any means. I just have to find my way around this.

Oh! And another plus, after the appointments I met my sis-in-law and we went shopping at the mall. I've gone down a size in shorts. WooHoooooo! I'm loving the way clothes are fitting again. I'm having nooooo problem finding cute stuff I looooove to wear on the trip. :animwink:

You're more than likely looking at several months of rest (at least 2). Your body has everything it needs to heal if nourished properly. Cortizone, as I've said, is always a bad deal. Your body isn't lacking in cortizone, it just needs to heal itself. Just remember: Don't push. It will be frustrating and especially when it starts to feel better you may think "OK, let's give this a test run and strengthen it up a bit." And that's when you set yourself back by 4 weeks. Athlete's use cortizone to play through pain. Then they pay for the cortizone and playing injured for the rest of their lives...but they make millions and it's their job. Not yours, so take it easy and think of your future not this summer.

Try yoga! You'd be surprised at the muscle definition you can develop with lifting no weights and basically stratching.

 

[OilSlinger822]

I've been doing eh..ok...this past weekend was kind of awful in terms of diet.....darn those cinnamon rolls lol.... but yesterday I worked out cardio for 30 mins and weights for 30 mins...today I'm planning on doing a kickboxing class for 45 mins and maaaybe some weights.... but I do have a question for anyone who can answer this..

I'm pretty much in shape, and I don't consider myself really overweight, but like I've said in another post, Ive gained 15 lbs since August when I started college.... all the weight went straight to my belly. Now I have hards abs underneath....but there's a bunch of flab hiding it and i can't seem to get rid of my pooch or love handles to save my life!! Any tips on the best way of getting it to go away??:shrug:

 

[JessicaB]

I went to WW on saterday and I'm dowm another 1.2pds. I think I need to lay off the eliptical and try something new. But, I can't seem to stay on the tread mill for long for some reason my right foot starts to really hurt after an little while. Kinda strange. I have add some weights recently and that seems to be going well.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I've been doing eh..ok...this past weekend was kind of awful in terms of diet.....darn those cinnamon rolls lol.... but yesterday I worked out cardio for 30 mins and weights for 30 mins...today I'm planning on doing a kickboxing class for 45 mins and maaaybe some weights.... but I do have a question for anyone who can answer this..

I'm pretty much in shape, and I don't consider myself really overweight, but like I've said in another post, Ive gained 15 lbs since August when I started college.... all the weight went straight to my belly. Now I have hards abs underneath....but there's a bunch of flab hiding it and i can't seem to get rid of my pooch or love handles to save my life!! Any tips on the best way of getting it to go away??:shrug:

Belly fat is tough to get rid of. I know from experience. In my case, I gained so much during both my pregnancies and stretched my skin so much that even if I get down to nothing but muscle on mine there's still quite a bit of loose, icky skin. I can improve to a point but then the only way to get the result I'd really like is to have surgery. That's frustrating.

Diet and exercise. Just keep working at burning the fat and calories. It's the only way to get the pooch off and keep it off. Commit yourself and refuse to give up. It can be done. You can do it.

 

[diddy_mouse]

I've lost at least 2 inches around my thighs! I'm very happy! Now I do have a question...is there some exercise I can do (other than crunches) to help out my abs? I'm doing a ballet style work-out at the moment but I'd like to kick the ab conditioning up a notch. Now that my main trouble area is getting under control, I can focus on the whole rest of the package. :lol:

I gotta say, not having fast food as often is doing wonders. I've been eating more Subway and those great Sammies from Quiznos. Also I try to have a salad at least once a day and some type of fruit (I find those smoothie-100% juice-pound of fruit in a bottle-drinks work real well!)

 

[sweetpee_1993]

You're more than likely looking at several months of rest (at least 2). Your body has everything it needs to heal if nourished properly. Cortizone, as I've said, is always a bad deal. Your body isn't lacking in cortizone, it just needs to heal itself. Just remember: Don't push. It will be frustrating and especially when it starts to feel better you may think "OK, let's give this a test run and strengthen it up a bit." And that's when you set yourself back by 4 weeks. Athlete's use cortizone to play through pain. Then they pay for the cortizone and playing injured for the rest of their lives...but they make millions and it's their job. Not yours, so take it easy and think of your future not this summer.

Try yoga! You'd be surprised at the muscle definition you can develop with lifting no weights and basically stratching.

Well thanks for the encouragement and continued advice. I have no intention of letting that doc inject me with cortizone. My father-in-law gets those shots for his neck and it helps but his condition is very different from mine, not one that will ever heal completely. I'm resting and finding that the shoulder is feeling improved already. I'm paying attention to my body and avoiding everything that makes me feel any sort of discomfort (right down to carrying my purse on my left shoulder rather than the right). Also, I've discovered that if I keep my right arm down by my side while I sleep and not curling it up under my pillow that makes a world of difference. Just because it's feeling better doesn't mean I'm going to go back to my vigorous workouts anytime soon. I'm going to give it at least a 2-3 weeks after it feels totally better then gradually work into arms again. I know I can still get a good workout with a combo of a modified Curves circuit, running, and ab work.

I've always wanted to try a beginners yoga class. There's a yoga studio in town I've wanted to check out. I tried a yoga dvd at home once and lasted maybe 5 minutes. Maybe with the proper instruction from someone knowledgable... hhmmm...

Overall, I'm doing ok. We went out of town over the weekend and I still stuck with the basics of my diet. I'm proud of that. Haven't excercised since Friday, tho. Hubby and oldest son started with a stomach bug on Sunday afternoon that I seem to have picked up. I've not been in any condition to physically work myself. :hurl: I went to a doctor's appointment yesterday (tooootally unrelated to the weight, shoulder, or tummy :animwink and stepped on the scale. It could be a difference between scales but I was excited to see 161.8 regardless. That would put me just 1.8 lbs. from my goal. How awesome is that???

 

[OilSlinger822]

Commit yourself and refuse to give up. It can be done. You can do it.

thanks! that definitely gave me some encouragement... it's so hard to do what I'm supposed to do sometimes

 

[LoriMistress]

Well, even though DH and I will not be visiting DLR or WDW this year; I've been still focusing on losing at least 2-3 dress sizes. I have been continuing to drop the weight. Recently I've been playing lots of Rock Band so maybe that's helping me drop the weight?

 

[OilSlinger822]

Now I do have a question...is there some exercise I can do (other than crunches) to help out my abs? I'm doing a ballet style work-out at the moment but I'd like to kick the ab conditioning up a notch.

There are a number of different exercises you can do without doing crunches..here are a few (some involve somewhat of a crunch) but they are the best for working your abs
http://exercise.about.com/od/abs/ss/abexercises.htm

and here's a great article on ab workouts
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/six-pack-abs

hope that helps!

 

[Master Yoda]

I've lost at least 2 inches around my thighs! I'm very happy! Now I do have a question...is there some exercise I can do (other than crunches) to help out my abs? I'm doing a ballet style work-out at the moment but I'd like to kick the ab conditioning up a notch. Now that my main trouble area is getting under control, I can focus on the whole rest of the package. :lol:

I gotta say, not having fast food as often is doing wonders. I've been eating more Subway and those great Sammies from Quiznos. Also I try to have a salad at least once a day and some type of fruit (I find those smoothie-100% juice-pound of fruit in a bottle-drinks work real well!)

There is one very important thing to remember about abs. Good abs are made in the kitchen and not the gym. If you strip away the fat most people will have good looking abs. The problem is that the average person deposits the majority of their fat around there mid section. To make matters worse there is next to nothing you can do to target fat loss on a particular place on your body. Because of both of these factors that elusive six pack is typically the last thing you will see.

Watch out for the hidden, fat and empty calories of dressings, cheeses, oils, high fructose corn syrup, processed flours etc. Continue the good diet, keep burning more calories then you take in, do not starve yourself and the abs will come.

You are on the first course of a big meal. The six pack you get for desert will make it all worth it.

 

[Missymoe4]

It is such a joy to hear that everyone is doing so well! I weighed in tonight, and am now at 37.8 pounds lost. I do need to focus on working out a bit more though.

I do have a question for anyone who has information to share. Has anyone tried using a weighted walking vest? I saw it on Oprah a month or so ago, but when I saw the price I thought no way. However, it seems as though they are becoming a big thing these days. What are the pros and cons of purchasing one to use while walking (if not more at a later date)?

Kudos to all! Keep up the great work! :sohappy:

 

[sublimesting]

There is one very important thing to remember about abs. Good abs are made in the kitchen and not the gym. If you strip away the fat most people will have good looking abs. The problem is that the average person deposits the majority of their fat around there mid section. To make matters worse there is next to nothing you can do to target fat loss on a particular place on your body. Because of both of these factors that elusive six pack is typically the last thing you will see.

Watch out for the hidden, fat and empty calories of dressings, cheeses, oils, high fructose corn syrup, processed flours etc. Continue the good diet, keep burning more calories then you take in, do not starve yourself and the abs will come.

You are on the first course of a big meal. The six pack you get for desert will make it all worth it.

I actually meant to quote diddy_mouse not master yoda but I failed.

Well, there is next to nothing to do to target fat loss in a particular place, you are correct, and fat around the stomach is the hardest and last to go unfortunatley. But I will tell you a quick fix without losing any weight:
Stretch your body by either running or doing an eliptical machine. They both work your core marvelously and will lengthen your ab muscles thus making you appear taller and distributing the fat over more area. In other words try your best to not slouch as it compresses your core and you strat hunching over like an old person.
Now as for ab excercises, if you were to look at which ab excercises burn the most fat and use the most muscle and stress the abs the most it would be these 2:
1. On your back have one knee brought back to your chest with the opposite elbow touching it while the other leg is extended straight out just above the floor. Now switch. You get the idea? Do as many as possible.
2. Knees bent, feet flat on the floor, hands BEHIND your head with elbows out to the side (basically as if you were a prisoner with your hands behind your head if that makes sense). Now sit all the way up. You'll likely be able to do about 1/3 of one. So to start wedge your feet under something and bring your elbows forward. You should now be able to do about 3. But keep it up every day and shoot for more and more. After about 5 days, don't wedge your feet under anything, you'll be able to do less than if your feet were wedged in but it uses more muscle (when you max out wedge your feet in again and keep going until you max out again). Eventually you'll be doing 25 with feet flat on the floor and unwedged. Now work on getting those elbows out and in about 4 weeks you'll be doing good old fashioned sit ups and have a hell of a core!
Crunches are relatively worthless as they work next to nothing but they are a good start but always seek more.

 

[sublimesting]

Tip:

Always try to increase your performance every time you work out. If you can run 1/2 a mile at week 1 it is NOT adequate to still only be doing 1/2 a mile at week 3. It's better than nothing but you aren't pushing your body to better itself. Remember what was hard initially becomes status quo very fast and then you are working out but getting FAR LESS results. In other words maximize your time by increasing intensity! It drives me daft to see people walking on a treadmll at .5 MPH day after day. Sadly those same people will probably go home thinking they had a hell of a day at the gym and eat garbage food.

Don't cheat yourselves!:wave:

Keep up the good work everybody warm weather is on the way, keep thinking about being svelt at Disney.

 

[Master Yoda]

Tip:

Always try to increase your performance every time you work out. If you can run 1/2 a mile at week 1 it is NOT adequate to still only be doing 1/2 a mile at week 3. It's better than nothing but you aren't pushing your body to better itself. Remember what was hard initially becomes status quo very fast and then you are working out but getting FAR LESS results. In other words maximize your time by increasing intensity! It drives me daft to see people walking on a treadmll at .5 MPH day after day. Sadly those same people will probably go home thinking they had a hell of a day at the gym and eat garbage food.

Don't cheat yourselves!:wave:

Keep up the good work everybody warm weather is on the way, keep thinking about being svelt at Disney.

Very good advice. I see the same thing myself and it drives me crazy. I could almost see it if you were 100% satisfied with your current shape and just maintaining your current state of fitness but how many of us are there? Maybe .01% of the population. If you are not whipped at the end of your work out step it up.