Zumba for Wii Initial Thoughts: Not bad.

Today I received the Zumba Fitness for the Wii and couldn't wait to give it a go.  I wanted something that I could do at home that would challenge me, be fun and actually burn some calories.  I think that I have found that in the Zumba Wii based on my first impressions.

Mind you, I only spent about 30 minutes total (including the 20 minute workout) messing with it, as I had a hungry infant downstairs and a 3 year old nearing his bedtime, so I'll have to look at it more closely next time.  But...it comes with a belt that you slip the remote into.  You create your profile and then if you decide to play right away you pick "Easy", "Medium" or "Hard/Difficult"(I can't remember which one).  Then you pick a routine to do and there are different levels of that as well, Beginner, Intermediate, etc.  I picked the lowest level on both counts.  I also started to do the Tutorial to "learn" the dance steps and then heard baby girl and decided to screw it and just jump in and try to figure out what the heck I was doing.  For the most part, I got it.  I'm sure it wasn't pretty to watch, but I was huffing and puffing.

Here are the things I really liked: 1) The "instructor" looks similar to the dancers in Just Dance, it's mainly a silhouette that changes colors.  2) Unlike other workout videos there isn't a lot of needless chatter that usually just pisses me off.  The chick says "Now you've got it" and other random encouragements, but not that often, just enough for you to actually be encouraged not annoyed 3) At the end it scored me 4) There's a workout calendar that shows you when you worked out, what routine you did, etc.

I wore my Polar HR monitor that I use when I'm trying to run  running and according to it I burned 300 calories in a 20 minutes workout.  Not bad.

Let's do this.

I recently received a $10 Amazon e-certificate and used it to purchase Zumba Fitness for the Wii.  I think that 1) I should be better at this than I am at The Shred, which leads me to 2) I won't get as frustrated and quit 3) I can do it at home (get up before the kids, during naptime, after Little Man's bedtime) 4) I have to do something.

My last true weigh-in had me at 173.  I'm SO close to breaking into the 160's I can taste it. Literally, it's in all those cookies I just ate, and the mounds of cream cheese that seems to be in everything that I've been making lately. 

But I can do this.  I'm ready to start working out, and after Christmas, if the flu isn't spreading like crazy, I'm heading back to the gym.  It's time.  And that 5K in January is not going to run itself.

Today I am thankful...

That the scale said 174.4 this morning...less than 10lbs from my first goal!

Ugh, blech, grunt

This morning while unloading the dishwasher my mind flashed to how long it had been since I had posted.  In all honesty it slipped my mind.  I've been very busy lately with trying to pile more things on my already overwhelming plate, and posting on blogs (that I'm pretty sure no one is reading) has slipped my mind.  I also have been very down on myself and depressed.  So much in fact that I broke down before my son's friend's birthday party because I could not find a top long enough to cover my sagging flab around my midsection.  I mean it was a literal breakdown.  In my closet.  I caught a glimpse of my face in the mirror mid-scream and it was so red I thought it might pop off.

Uh. I'm stuck at 177.  I am averaging about 2 days a week at the gym.  It's cold as Christmas outside, and hilly.  So outside exercise is a no-go.  I know that I could go to the gym in the mornings starting next week.  But there's that nagging thought in the back of my head that baby girl is only 2 1/2 months old.  She can't sit up, she isn't all that great and holding up her head.  And what if some little germy-germ kid makes her REALLY sick?!  I would never forgive myself for subjecting her to that just because Mommy feels Fat.

I need to eat more fruits and veggies.  Drink more water.  So, yes, there are things I could be doing.  I could do ab work at night while watching t.v.  Lift some weights while watching t.v.  I need to motivate myself to do those things.  When I'm unable to make it to the gym I become so depressed that I just push those things aside.  So I need to get organized and plan some exercise each day and just do it.  It's just that having to think everytime I get dressed, 'okay what will allow me to nurse in public while still covering my stomach' is annoying enough and when I don't have anything that would fit even if I weren't taking into account the whole nursing requirement, it's just enough to make me pull my hair out.  But I've purchased a few sweaters (thank God it's getting colder!) that button in the front and will allow me to wear a nursing cami underneath.  I also just purchased my new running shoes, which were my belated birthday present.  And this weekend I'm going to sign up for that 5K in January.  I can do this.  I just need a few minutes to sit down with my calendar and schedule myself some time to get my exercise in.  Besides helping with the weight, I'm pretty sure it will improve my drab mood.

One step forward, two steps back.

I am frustrated.  I knew this would happen, when I first took the extra weight off back in 2008 I became frustrated, but prepared myself for the weight loss to come slowly.  I had hoped against all that I knew that this time would be different.  Thinking that if I kept the sweets to a minimum, exercised and hello I'm breastfeeding, the weight would come off FASTER.  Notsomuch.  I'm annoyed that I can't seem to get in exercise 5 days a week.  I'm annoyed that I have to wear my fat jeans, the jeans that although they are comfortable, they look bad on me.

When I first set out to lose the weight that I had tried to lose for about 7 years, I made myself a promise that when I had lost 20 lbs (my goal was to lose 30lbs) I'd buy myself some new jeans.  I couldn't quite take wearing my old ones after I had hit 15 lbs so I gave in and bought a new pair.  They are both Lucky Jeans, one is a women's cut and the other (the newer) a men's.  BOTH say the same size waist, but fit differently.  I'm probably 5-7 lbs away from getting those reward jeans locked up.  Unfortunately no ponytail holder exists that will pull those bad boys closed so that I can get out of the baggy fat jeans.

What is even more frustrating is that I weighed myself (a couple of times) and I had gotten to 177 1/2.  I was SO EXCITED!  I thought there would be no way that I could not get to my first OB appt weight by Thanksgiving or the first week of December.  Then I weigh myself the last two days and it says 178 .8.  I try to tell myself that my breasts have been more full of milk those days, adding to the higher number, but is that true?  I don't know.  I know I should focus on how my body looks, how my body feels and not the Number On the Scale.  But I cannot help it!  I want the Number On the Scale that I long for!!!  Okay, 2 more days this week that I'll be able to get workouts at the gym.  Fingers crossed.

One workout week

This week has been a bust.  I have been battling a cold virus since Sunday so yesterday was the only day I did anything.  I did make it to the gym and I did walking/running intervals for 30 minutes around the indoor track.  I felt GREAT afterward.  Today it just didn't work out for me to get there after the hubs got home from work, especially since it was after 5 when he got in the door.  But I am down almost 2 lbs since last week, although other than being too nauseated to eat from being sick and nursing a baby around the clock (growth spurt?) I'm guessing any weight loss is mostly from that.

I did come up with a new "plan" for working out.  Keep in mind this is best case scenario.  I want to go to the gym 5 days a week.  The hubs will call me when he is a certain distance from the house so I can pump milk for the baby and change into my workout gear. Then I'll head to the gym and do a 30 minute workout (I plan and want to do a longer workout but until I can go during the day I'll stick with 30 minutes).  I'm going to do walking/running intervals until I can run the entire 30 minutes 3 days a week, the other 2 I will do the elliptical or some other cardio.  I'm also going to start doing my old ab routine at home 3 days per week and strength training 2 days per week.  I have picked out a 5K for January 22nd, so I really, really want to be able to run the entire thing.  I know some people would laugh at this but I've never been able to do anything physical and since I'm starting from square 1 with running, giving myself until January is pretty ambitious.  I KNOW if I can mostly stick to this routine the weight will come off.  I know that my body will begin to feel strong again, my energy will come back, I will be more patient and my stress will lessen.  Once the baby is big enough that I feel comfortable putting her in the sitter service, I'll keep the same workout schedule but instead will get back to my 8am workouts so that I'm not disrupting our afternoon routine with my workouts.

Eating lots of cookies can help you lose weight.

My motivation to work in workouts has decreased.  I feel frumpy and instead of turning that into an unyielding drive to lose weight I've turned it into a drive to eat lots of cookies.  On the plus side, I did buy some Oreos (to use with the cookie candy mold I bought at JoAnn's, chocolate covered Oreos..oh my!) and have not eaten any of them.  But I also haven't busted out that candy mold either.

I did go for a walk on Saturday, cut it a little shorter than normal because we had some family things planned for the day.  After that I didn't work out again until yesterday.  The kids were both fussy and difficult and by the end of the day when my husband came home I wanted a shower (yes I went all day without a shower) and to relax while not holding a small child.  So by Tuesday I was feeling depressed and fat.  I decided to counteract that by eating a bunch of cookies that I had made.  Imagine my surprise yesterday when I woke up, stripped down and jumped on the scale to see that I was a pound lighter than I was last week!!  I was so excited that the scale was moving in the direction I wanted that I talked my almost 3 year old (tomorrow is his birthday, I can't believe he'll be 3!!!) into actually sitting.in.the.jogging.stroller and we went for a walk with my 7 week old in a front carrier.  It took me 15 minutes longer (our neighborhood has some hills) and I was drenched in sweat so badly I had to put baby girl in her crib so I could shower before nursing her when we got home.  This  morning I was awake before the kids so I did the Shred video again.  I probably won't get to exercise again until Saturday because of all the birthday festivities tomorrow but at least that's 3 times this week and next week I'll make my goal be at least 4 times.  Now if I can actually get some ab workouts in a few times a week I might be getting somewhere....like out of my fat jeans and into my next.size.down.jeans.