Monday’s Mess Up

Happy Monday! I’m going to share with you the workout that I did this morning but please don’t take it as advice. I have found that I messed up and I’ll be reaping the consequences for the next couple of days, I’m sure.

Before I get into how I messed up, let me tell you that I didn’t even want to work out today. I actually just went there out of habit. It’s Monday morning, and going to the gym is what I have been doing after school drop off, so I just went there! Proud of not following my feeling! Instead, I was following the routine!

So, how did I mess up? Well, apparently you want to start out lighter with bicep curls and I went all out. I started at 40lbs and my muscles are already swollen and sorry about it. My husband said afterward that you actually want to start out lighter than you think with curls. Oof. I’m sure the next couple of days are going to be sore, too. Oh well. Maybe next time I’ll go lighter.

Here’s my full workout from the morning:

Leg extension 25 lbs (3x10) 

Leg curl 30 lbs (3x10)

Back extension 55 lbs (3x10)

Seated leg press 50 lbs (3x10) 

Hip Abduction 40 lbs (3x15)

Hip Adduction 40 lbs (3x15)

Head pulls 25 lbs (3x10)

Tricep Pulls 20 lbs (3x10)

Seated rows 40 lbs (3x10)

Chest Press 40 lbs (3x10)

Seated Cable Lean 40 lbs (3x10)

It took an hour to complete, and I didn’t end up doing any cardio afterward. It was cold and rainy and I was just ready to get home and eat some breakfast. For breakfast, I made myself an egg and hash brown bowl with cottage cheese. 

 

I think the workout made me hungry because I was still wanting more food after that so I had a yogurt with granola.

Morning is almost over now, and I’ve got a lot of laundry to catch up on before school the pick-up run begins. I’ll check back in again, soon!

An Hour Workout

It’s Friday and I just finished my third workout of the week. I am so proud of myself. I tried talking myself out of it because, this is my day off work and the house is a disaster, and I really wanted to get it all tidied up before the weekend began. But, still, I went to the gym and worked out.

Instead of doing 30 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of strength training like I did earlier in the week, I just did an hour of strength training. Here’s what it looked like:

3 sets / 10 reps

- Leg extension 25 lbs (3) 

- Leg curl 30 lbs (3) 

- Back extension 55 lbs (3)

- Seated leg press 50 lbs (3)

- Hip Abduction 40 lbs (push out) (3)

- Hip Adduction 40 lbs (push in) (3)

- Head pulls 20 lbs (3)

- Seated rows 25 lbs (3)

- Seated row lean back 25 lbs (3)

I finished up my second workout with my trainer on Wednesday. We decided that I would continue to workout on my own with what she has taught me, and that I’d reach out again when I’m ready to learn something new. She also runs a cycling class on the weekends that I may attend once or twice a month. We’ll see!

It’s 10:45am now and I just got home. I have a couple hours to run around and tidy the house (there’s my cardio) before school pick ups begin! So, off I go!

A Blessing of a Day

Whew. Yesterday was something! Wednesdays have been wild for me lately. This was the second Wednesday in a row that I had worked out with my trainer, but that didn’t happen until later in the day. Let me start from the beginning!

Yesterday, my youngest woke up with a headache. Uh oh. Judgement call. Do we still send her to school? I hate when it comes down to the wire for these kinds of decisions. 

We took it step by step. First, I gave her some water and had her lay down on the couch to “wake up” some more. I made her some breakfast and encouraged her to play at the table with me a bit. This seemed to perk her up. I thought about it and remembered that yesterday I asked her if she had refilled her water because it looked like only a few sips had been taken. She didn’t refill it. Uh oh, again.

I think this headache was from dehydration. I made sure to tell her about how important it was to drink water, and gave her teacher the heads up that she’d need to be drinking a bit more today, too. I sent her to school, and it all went well. One crisis averted!

I was glad she could go to school because I had back to back meetings schedule in-office. As I drove in, I realized my nicely packed breakfast and lunch had been left behind on the counter. Oof. I was about to walk into the office without any breakfast or lunch packed for the day. I called my husband to commiserate about my fail, sucked it up, and went on with my morning.

I really don’t know how he did it, but it wasn’t even 20 minutes later before someone was beside me in the office, setting a coffee and bagel on my desk. It was my husband! What a sweetheart. It still makes me smile thinking back to it.

After eating the bagel for breakfast and getting a couple emails done, I went in to back to back meetings. After my last meeting for the day, I came out to my desk to find flowers and a note from a friend. 

Another surprise drop off?! This one was from a friend who had been praying for me and my family. We got some hard news about my grandpa’s health recently and this was her way of sharing strength and love with us. God has truly gifted me with such great supports and models of encouragement!

After work, I got to Piper’s school right in time to pick her up. I started getting a headache on my drive home and immediately crashed for about a half hour in bed. I got a quick nap in, and got up right in time to drive to the gym for my personal training appointment. I could have just stayed in bed and called it a night, but I didn’t. And I’m glad that I stuck with my commitment.

My husband made orange chicken bowls for dinner, and had one a bowl waiting for me when I got home. We ended up being two ships sailing past one another in the night as he left with Piper to go to youth group just as soon as I was walking in the door from the gym.

I got to eat dinner, and spend some time with Laney playing games before bed. Then I swapped some laundry and headed off to bed myself. Wednesday was a bit of whirlwind but it was a blessing of a day!

Let’s Help A Heart Out

I’m going to have to watch myself! Yesterday, after I dropped Laney off at school, I almost talked myself out of going for a walk. 

As I drove up to the stop sign where I could turn toward home or turn toward to the place where I like to take my walks, I almost instinctively turned toward home. I had a quick thought that “it’s too cold for a walk”. I caught the thought and made myself turn the other way toward the park.

It’s kind of comical, actually. It wasn’t even that cold! It was 54°F outside. I know! I was cozy in my sweatshirt. I wanted to stay in the warm cozy car. But, this is actually nice weather for walking. It’s going to get colder as the months go on, so I need to enjoy outdoor walks for as long as I can.

I knew that I was going to be working remote from home yesterday, so there wasn’t too much of a rush. I had enough time to get a 20-minute outdoor walk in, and I did it! I’m so glad that I did, too. I forgot how little of steps I get in when I’m working at a desk all day.

I also got some new motivation to go for walks lately, too. Did you know that your calf is like your second heart? It pumps blood upward, helping take some work off of your heart. Well when you put it that way, I’m thinking “let’s get some steps in and help a heart out”!

I can safely say that I’m killing it with my activity lately. I’ve been going to the gym, which is something I haven’t done in years, and I have been walking routinely, 3x each week! I am so proud of myself for getting into this new active rhythm.

Something I want to work on moving forward is my nutrition. That has surely slipped. You haven’t seen a full day of eats from me because I’ve been pretty reactive with my eating. There hasn’t been much planning ahead and I haven’t been tracking what I’ve been eating, either. It will come, though!

I didn’t track nutrition yesterday but I did take some pictures of what I ate while I was thinking of it! So, here’s a peak.

For breakfast I had an oatmilk latte and leftover stuffed peppers from dinner because, why not!

You can take a second look at that pizza sandwich that I made for lunch. It’s my new favorite! It’s basically a sandwich with cheese and pepperoni as the “bread”. I stuffed it with lettuce, tomato and mayo. So good!

For dinner, I made pork chops and mashed potatoes. I actually had two more pork chops because I have been so hungry for protein. It must be from strength training.

This home-cooked meal was a win because I prepped ahead enough to make this work on a workday, and basketball game night! I may be getting the hang of this new season, after all!

After dinner, we went to Piper’s basketball game. I had a fun-size sour patch kids while at the game, and a slice of leftover peanut butter pie that evening when I got home.

I’m hoping to be even more intentional with my eating and tracking habits, soon!

Day in the Life: An Ordinary Monday

Today, I want to share with you an ordinary Monday during this new season. 

It started out with me packing lunches and getting the girls ready to go off to school. Nick drops off Piper at middle school and I drop off Laney at elementary.

On this particular Monday, after I dropped Laney off at school, I drove out to the gym. I had my first meeting with my personal trainer last week and I was feeling pretty confident to try out the machines on my own that she had showed me when I met with her.

I ended up doing mostly leg machines.

3 sets / 10 reps

Leg extension 25 lbs

Leg curl 30 lbs

Back extension 40 lbs

Seated leg press 50 lbs

Hip Abduction 55 lbs

Hip Adduction 55 lbs

My workout at the gym took about 30 minutes and I knew that I wanted to end with a little bit of cardio. I could have either walked on the treadmill or walked outside. Since it was so beautiful out, and since I was close to the lake, I decided to walk outside. I walked for about 15 minutes.

After my walk, I picked up some groceries. When I got home, I had a snack and made myself a latte. I spent the rest of my time at home folding laundry, prepping dinner (stuffed peppers), and tidying up before it was time to start the afternoon-school pick up runs.

What a blessing it was to have an ordinary Monday like this one! God is good.

Fair Week

For those who have been here long enough, you’ll know that we love “Fair Week”! We don’t buy as much groceries as usual during Fair Week because we know we’ll be going down to the local fairgrounds for dinner most evenings. 

Fair Week wrapped up recently for us. It’s always bittersweet to say goodbye to the fair that we wait for all year long.

This year, I told my husband that I would not be getting the infamous “monster cheese” that I had been loving for years prior. First of all, it’s a pound of deep fried cheese. Nobody needs a pound of deep fried anything. Of course, I’d share it with the family, but still.

Our fair food favorites this year included an orange chicken bowl from a Christian food truck, soft pretzels and cheese for Laney girl, corn dogs for Piper and Nick’s favorite Gyro.

The girls got ride-a-rama a couple of times, and we toured the animal barns quite a few times throughout the week. Laney’s kindergarten field trip was on Friday, and Piper got to walk around the fair with friends for the first time this year; getting a taste of freedom (with a walkie talkie in hand to stay in touch).

The change of season is upon us! Now that the fair is over, and homecoming is about to begin at the school, it’s officially feeling like Fall for us! We decorated the house this past weekend, and the dinner menu is changing with the season. I am ready for all the slow-cooked, home-cooked meals! Especially so after eating out for nearly a week at the fair.

I am looking forward to “getting back on track”.

My First Time With A Personal Trainer

On Wednesday, I went to the gym and met up with my personal trainer. That’s a sentence that my younger self would have been surprised to hear. I don’t know why it always seemed to me like personal trainers are reserved for other people. I assumed they cost too much money, or that they wouldn’t be good at helping such a beginner like myself. What a lie I believed for too long.

I know that not all personal trainers are alike, but that’s the beauty of it. You can search and find one that fits your needs. I needed someone to be gentle and encouraging. I needed someone who understood what it was like to be obese and start from there. My trainer is a great fit for where I am starting. She is also encouraging that I won’t need this for long. She is going to show me what to do, how to do it right, and then release me to do it on my own. She’s a gem!

While at the gym, she showed me the leg machines. We did 3 sets of 10 reps. (Pretty sure I got that right.) She showed me how to adjust each machine before I got on so that it was comfortable. I have used machines before but some of them I would skip because they looked too complicated or I just used them incorrectly, come to find. It was really nice to not only have someone to show me how to use the machines correctly but then she monitored my form to make sure I was sticking with it right the entire time through.

Sometimes I wouldn’t be pointing my toes or I’d not be breathing as efficiently during the reps as I could be and she’d correct me. I didn’t realize how much I needed her help. I also tried new machines I definitely wouldn’t have tried on my own. My favorite was the stretching machine at the end!

Our days have been so different with the girls going to school, me working during the day, getting back in time to start the after-school pick ups, and running Piper to her after school activities. Wednesday ended up being busier than ever and had I not had my trainer to meet, I definitely wouldn’t have gone to the gym on this day.

I’m still not sure how long I’ll be with her because she doesn’t seem to think I’ll need this for long, but I’m grateful for all I’m learning in the meantime!

God Did an Incredible Thing

Piper and I were in a car accident yesterday. We’re okay, and the other guy is okay. Praise the Lord!

I was turning into our driveway after picking Piper up from school when a young man on a motorcycle rear-ended us. This could have ended very badly.

I always look in the rear view mirror as I’m turning into our driveway just because people tend to go a little too fast on our road, and don’t typically notice us turning in. When I looked in the mirror I saw it coming too quickly. 

I turned into the driveway just as he collided with the back of our car. I saw him on the ground through my rear view mirror. He wasn’t moving. It felt like a nightmare. I told Piper to stay in the car while I checked on him.

He started moving as I walked toward him, and he miraculously stood up. I expected him to be running on adrenaline and so I asked him if he was okay and if he wanted to sit down. He said he was okay. He said he was sorry. I told him he was blessed!

We both took a moment to process what had happened and I told him that I had been praying on and off all day today, because I had been, and that Jesus was with him. He said thank you.

I am so relieved this kid is okay. His mom came back later on to thank us for taking care of him after the accident, and let us know that he just has a hurt leg, but nothing major. 

What a blessing! She said this was a wake up call for him. He will be joining the military in a few months and since he’s okay he still can proceed with that plan. Praise the Lord! God did an incredible thing! He protected us all from a terrible accident, and I know He has good plans for that boy. 

I am in awe of God’s steadfast love and faithfulness. He takes what the enemy meant for evil, and He turns it for good. Every time.

I Went Anyway

I met with my physical trainer for a consultation!

I tried talking myself out of going because her schedule didn’t align with when I wanted to do this. I wanted to go during my days off work, not in the evening. I went anyway.

We will schedule our training sessions in the evening because she works during the day. It wasn’t my first choice. I could have said no. After all, I waited all this time so I could do this during the day while both kids were in school. I don’t want to give up time with my kids to workout. But, I decided to shift my perspective and think about how I am doing this for my health, which trickles down to my kids benefit. I decided not to let this minor inconvenience deter me. 

I am really excited about my trainer because she lost 120 lbs and knows what it’s like to be obese. She has personal experience that you can’t really learn. She is gentle and encouraging. She knows I’m nervous and she gets it.

My first session with her will be Wednesday! Until then, I am continuing my walks. When I transitioned into the school year routine I made a commitment to go for a 20 minute walk after school drop off. This week, I walked 4/5 days! My goal is to do it at least 3 times each week.

I have already noticed some benefits from my new walking routine. I have more energy, and I’m losing a little of my regain without being full back on track with my nutrition. I hope to start getting a better grip on nutrition by the end of the month, but I’m also taking things a little bit at a time not to overwhelm myself.

I Can Do Hard Things

A few months ago, I realized that I wanted to work on strength training, but I wasn’t quite ready yet. I had a lot of excuses for not starting right then, some of which were valid. I wanted to lose some weight first and I knew that I would have more capacity to jump into this new stage of wellness once both of my kids were in school in September.

Well, it is September now and I am coming to realize that I had more hidden excuses. The thought of having someone looking at my body, as physical trainers must, made me uncomfortable. 

I talked about this in therapy some and realized that I was also believing some lies that were preventing me from taking the first step. 

I was believing the lie that physical trainers aren’t likely able to accommodate for people who are my size. I was letting fear tell me that they might push me too far and I’ll get hurt. I dreaded the thought of how much money this might cost. I was coming up with a lot of reasons of why I shouldn’t do this, and it almost held me back.

After my therapy call this morning, I went onto the website for the gym that I am already a member of. There is an opportunity at my gym for a free consultation with a personal trainer, after that it’s $35-45 per session. Since I will only need 1-2 sessions per week for about 2 months, that’s doable. I don’t need a personal trainer for always, just to help me feel confident in how I’m working out to prevent injury.

I looked through the list of personal trainers and I was relieved to see that there is a lady who has lost 120 pounds. She knows what it is like to be in my shoes. She already knows that my body will not move like the body of someone who is lighter and leaner. I could feel myself let down my guard a bit and trust this might just work out.

So, today I took a first step. I’m hopeful for where this will go and I’m a little nervous about how hard it might be. But, I can do hard things.

A Challenging Week

It’s Wednesday, the second day of September, and I am writing to you from my morning walk thanks to voice to text.

It stormed this morning and the dark clouds are still hanging around, but thankfully I’m not getting rained on at the moment. It is warm and muggy but tolerable. The crickets are still chirping from the night, and it’s a beautiful peaceful morning to go out for a walk.

Yesterday was the first day that I did the morning school routine and headed straight into the office for work. I did not get a walk in like I had planned. I am working remotely from home today, which makes it easier to go for a quick walk before I get started.

Although I can see all the ways that this week is going well, I must say that it has not been without challenge. On Monday night, we got a call from Piper‘s Basketball coach that she hurt her ankle. It was a stressful evening as we tried to figure out if we should take her in to be seen or not. We prayed for wisdom and we kept her home. The next morning was a little better and she was able to go to school with a brace on. She’s doing even better today, thank the Lord!

Yesterday, one of our beloved chickens died. We knew it was coming, but it didn’t make it any easier. The girls came home from school to the bad news, but they are processing it well and in their own ways. Before bed, my husband and I found another chicken seems to be sick and we have isolated her and we’re waiting to see what will happen. The girls don’t know about her yet.

I have very clearly been coping with all of these things with comfort food, which is an idol that I am trying to surrender. An idol is anything that we use to take place of God, even if unaware in the moment.

God is our comforter, not comfort food. Food is a gift that he gave us to enjoy, we can enjoy it but we should seek our comfort from the Lord. Unfortunately, this is a lifetime of habit that needs broken, and it can only be broken in partnership with the Lord. So I’m working on it. I’m bringing it to Him this morning, and I trust him to help me through.

So yes, it’s been a challenging week in different ways, but it’s also been good. I am doing great with going for walks most days. Nick and I are doing well. 

Piper’s thriving in school. She is on a mission to brighten people today with the light of Jesus. And it is so encouraging to see her joy in Middle School!

We expected kindergarten to be a tricky adjustment for Laney, but she is blessed with an amazing teacher who knows how to support her well. 

There is so much to be grateful for, and we will praise the Lord! 

New Rhythm and Routines

It’s the first day of September, and the second week of school for our girls. Yesterday felt a whole lot better than any of the days last week. Last week was a doozy because none of us were used to waking up that early (5:30 am) and we were all quite exhausted by the end of the day.

Monday morning this week went so much better. It had a little bit more of a flow to it, and I didn’t feel like I was just pushing through. Thank the Lord!

After school drop off in the mornings, I have gotten into the routine of driving straight to a local park and going for a 20 minute walk. I know this is only the second week of school, but I haven’t missed a day yet and I’m pretty excited about that!

It has been so nice to start the day with a quiet walk. Right now, I am using that time to listen to a book called “Gods At War” by Kyle Idleman during my walks. It has been pretty eye-opening and a good way to start my day.

By the time that I’m done dropping off at school and going for my walk, I have about four hours to myself on Mondays and Fridays. Some weeks I might still work on those days, too, but I’m hoping to give myself at least one day each week where I don’t work. This will give me time to do some housekeeping, literally and figuratively. 

I put off a lot of things this past year, knowing that I would have some time during the school year to myself, and I’m trying not to be overwhelmed by all that I had hoped to do. 

Blogging is one of the things that I’d like to get back into my daily or weekly rhythm. I also hope that my self-care time will go beyond just walking in the mornings, and will develop into strength training.

On Tuesdays through Thursdays, I will hopefully still fit in my walk and then go straight to work (either remotely or in-office) after dropping off the girls in the morning. I will leave work in time to pick them both up as well. This is something I’m super grateful for in this season. I love being there for them in this way!

I know it’s just the second week, but I can already see how we are slowly settling into this new rhythm and routine.

With gratitude.