25 minute run! Whew!

So today I started week 7 of the Get Running App. Today's run included a 5 minute warm up, 25 minutes of running, and a 5 minute cool down.

I decided to try some place new to run today since the weather was gorgeous out! I went to Refugio Park in Hercules. I knew they had a trail throughout the small park and leads out and down the road. So that is where I began. 

Before that though, I decided to change up my music on my iPod. I went for some merengue music. Now if you don't know what it is, it is this very up tempo spanish music. I decided it was time for a change, so merengue it was!

I started out my warm up in the park and when it was time to run, I headed out. Little did I know that the trail leading out was mostly up hill. It wasn't ultra steep, but not at all flat! With the new fast music and the uphill battle, my legs were screaming at the 5 minute mark. I was really worried when I was told I had 20 minutes of more running. Wow... fast forward 20 minutes... 

Not only did I do the run, but I did a record distance. Normally in the 35 minutes I cover about 2.2 miles. Today I did 2.6! I credit that to Mr. Elvis Crespo and his merengue music causing my pace to get faster. Not only was it uphill, but I covered more distance! Yeah...I'm a runner now! :)

Slowly Committing Suicide

I know the title sounds dramatic, but it's a phrase that has rocked me ever since reading it. I'll get to that in a bit. Tonight I had dinner with my dad. I was talking to him about my weight loss and what I'm doing right now to get healthy. He told me that he had a picture of me from 2 years ago.

When I got home, I reminded him to email it to me. When I got it, I was shocked yes, but sad. You see, I had seen that phrase in my title in a fitness article. Someone had said that they were slowly committing suicide by the food choices and lifestyle they were living. Looking at that picture, I saw myself doing that. In that moment in that picture, I knew I was overweight, I was not happy, but I didn't realize the magnitude of my problem. I didn't realize that in that moment, I was killing myself. 

Two years later, I am in a better place. I want to live. I want to live a long life. And I don't want to go back there. I have dieted before, lost many pounds, and have gone back up. Not being that person is a day to day struggle. Like a drug addict, leaving the addiction behind is difficult. It's a daily choice to stay "clean." Addicts stay clean by going through rehab, having a sponsor, and a support group. Well I have better than that... I have two coaches, supportive family and friends, and a mighty God who wants the best for me. I believe this time I can beat it and live healthy.

My thoughts to you: Are you slowly committing suicide? Are you limiting the number of days you live? I urge you to today to truly look at your condition, find support, pray to God for strength, and get started. Live.

Then

Now

Another 5K Complete

I just finished week 6 run 3 this week! One of these reasons why I wanted to use the app was to be able to run a full 5k race. I had signed up for one on February 18th and even though I know I wasn't going to be done with this my Get Running app yet, I figured it could help!

Well I did the 5k on February 18th as planned. I finished my first 5k in  56:17. After that 5k, I was sore for 3 straight days. I was sore from my lower back, hamstrings, quads, calves, and down to my shins. But nonetheless, I finished.

This past Saturday for my 5k, I turned on my iPod and ran the app. I'm pleased that I jogged 2 x 10 minutes plus another 5-10 of it. My time was 53:07. I know I could've walked it faster and got a better time, but that wasn't my goal. It was to be able to run it, so I did. Let me just say that it is 2 days later, I have NO soreness. I had a bit of calve soreness, but that was it!! I went out for my 25 minute jog today and it went great.

While my pace isn't fast and my overall time didn't get dramatically better, my body feels sooo much better. I know, thanks to this app, that I will eventually lower my time. I'm so pleased right now with myself!

20 minutes! Yay!

So yesterday was the dreaded 20 minute run. I was a bit nervous as always. It was cold out and I had my baby niece with me. So on top of a 20 minute run, I had to push my niece in the stroller while running!!! The first 5 minutes were FANTASTIC!!! When she came on on my earphones saying 5 minutes passed, I was shocked!!! It went so fast and my legs felt great. I was doing great when she said half way. It was when she came on and said 15 minutes that my legs got a bit fatigued. But a few minutes later, I got a second wind. I didn't want the run to end! I ended up doing an additional 2 minutes. Wow...I'm officially a runner! Yay! I'm so excited and can't wait until Wednesday to move forward! Yay me!

2 x 8 minutes and more!

So yesterday I had my 2 x 8 minute runs! As always, I was a bit nervous with the run. I got started trying to have complete confidence that I could do it. Now I've heard people say that you have good days and bad days running. I've definitely felt bad days and ok days, but I've never had a GREAT day... that is until Friday. Wow! It was an amazing day. My legs felt super strong and had very little fatigue. I felt like I could've ran more. I even did a faster speed during my walks. I normally need to slow down significantly to allow my legs to recover for the next run. Wow... can't believe how my body  has changed. Tomorrow is my 20 minute run. I am definitely incredibly nervous for it, but I know my body always shocks me. I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow!

Happy 30th!

Happy 30th to me! No it's not my birthday. My 30th has long passed! However, today does mark an important milestone for me. As of today, I have lost 30 pounds. I've been waiting for this day for awhile and now that it has arrived, it feels fantastic!

When you make an attempt to be fit through diet and exercise, it is tough work. I have endured many days of ultra sore muscles. I've endured many days of my stomach growling like crazy because it is used to having way too many calories. 

Now I'm onto 40 pounds. Yikes! But that's a good round number and I'm up to the challenge. Here is to the next 10 pounds. Cheers!

Week 5.....EEK!

So today I started week 5. I had 3 five minute runs with 3 minute walks in between each run. I must say it went fantastic! My legs had a burn, but a good burn. I felt tension free, my breathing was great, and my legs never felt like they were about to give out. If was far from being easy, but it felt really good.

On Friday, I move to on to 2 eight minute runs. In between each run, I'll have a 5 minute walk. Not so bad. I'm not really dreading it. I'm looking forward to it. The one that gets me afraid in Sunday's run. I am going to have a 20 minute non stop run! I have so much trepidation with this run. I've been fortunate to read about others, using the same app, make it so I know I most likely will. But, I'd lie saying I wasn't really nervous about it. From there the time continues to increase..EEK.

So from here on out...I'll be blogging about each run until I reach 30 minutes straight! :)

You Are What You Eat

You know that saying right? You are what you eat? Well...in my efforts to lose weight and eat right, I've tried lots of things...You know the "Get rid of all carbs" diet..."Say no to sugar" diet. You get the picture. A few years back I did Weight Watchers and I really liked it.

Weight Watchers basically believes in a well balanced, portion controlled diet. Meaning it's lower points food are high in protein and fiber (which burns calories to digest). The higher point stuff is fatty and bad carbs. It also taught me correct portion size. I did it for 4 months and loss almost 20 pounds before. Once I learned, I got off of it. Once I learned, it was not worth the money I was paying each month.

Fast forward to the present...I once again needed to have that same kind of Weight Watchers tool but didn't want to pay the amount again. So I searched the web for food diaries. I found one called MyPlate. It is fabulous! 

You first need to go to Livestrong's MyPlate and set up a FREE account. Once set up, you will come to the following window.

Before you start entering food, you need to know what your calorie goal is. Click on the "Calorie Goals" link button towards the top. It will bring you to this window:

The calorie goals given to you are based on your age, height, weight, how active you are, and how many pounds you'd like to lose per week. Please note that a healthy weight loss is no more than 2 pounds per week. Don't go higher, though you might be tempted to. Once your info is entered, it will tell you how many calories you can eat per day.

Now you're ready to enter in your food. Go back to the MyPlate page. Under the "What did you eat?" question, start typing in the food. Be specific. For example, if you went to Subway and ordered a turkey sandwich...then type that in. It will bring up a list of entries. I always go with the Verified entry whenever available. Click on the one that matches and that's it! The cool thing is they have a VERY extensive database of food. You'll find most of your brands and restaurants on there!

As you keep entering your food throughout the day, your calorie calculator will keep track of how many calories you have left. This is very similar to Weight Watcher's point system.

The great thing about this website is that you can scroll further down, it will give you a cumulative list of all your food intake numbers and let you know if you go over your recommended daily intake (i.e. did you eat more fat that suggested?)

It's just that easy. But in case you're not convinced, here is my list of reasons why you should do it!

1) They have cell phone app versions, so you can take it with you as you eat all day.

2) If you're going to eat out, you can look ahead of time to see what to order. This way, once you get there you do not need to be tempted by the items on the menu. Go in knowing what you want and order it!

3) You learn very quickly what items will suck up your allotted calories and you'll stay away from them.

4) You'll find yourself measuring your food, since most items are listed by size. Then you'll really know the proper portion size.

5) It's FREE!! No more paying $35 or higher for places like Weight Watchers.

Try it out, even if you're currently on Weight Watchers, and compare it! Remember... weight loss is 80% food and 20% exercise. Get the food under control and you are on your way!

Who Would've Thunk It?

So this week, my running has increased to 5 minutes! I've been reading in my Get Running forum that it is a big jump. Boy was it. I started with a 5 minute warm up walk. From there I went into a 3 minute run, 1 1/2 min. walk....THEN 5 minute run, 1 1/2 minute walk. I do this twice!

My first 3 minute run went really well. My legs were feeling fantastic. I went into the walk and again legs were great! Normally I need that walk for my legs to recover. Now it was time for my first 5 minute run. I was ok at first. Then came the burn... then more burn...then more burn. Then the girl, Claire, came over my iPod telling me I was halfway down. What?!??! Barely halfway!!! I really didn't think I was going to make it. I slowed my already slow pace down to just a tad faster than a walk. I did everything to distract myself. I turned up the music and looked around the park I was running in. I made it through the 5 minutes! Yay me! After that first 5 minute struggle, my next two runs were a lot better. Maybe the initial burn and heat up of my muscles helped loosen then or what...but I even picked up my pace in the final 5 minute run. This has been the most challenging since week 1. I'm glad I survived it. Yay me again!


So that was yesterday. Tonight I had a kick butt workout with my coach. We did different rope exercises. If you've never done them, they are killer. They are intense cardio and it works your leg and arm muscles for sure. Back to running tomorrow. 

I realize looking now that I work out 7 days a week now. I got my boot camp on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. I do my running on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. Crazy. If I would've told the me from a year ago that she'd be doing that, she'd laugh at me. But I think the difference now is that I'm doing this for me. I'm not doing it because my family and spouse have encouraged me to and I want to shut them up. Not because I got teased for being overweight. I'm not doing it because I hate my body...I'm doing it for a healthier me. And it feels good to take care of me and love me this way.

My thoughts for you: Make sure that when you decide to get fit, it is for you, and loving way for you. If not, the probability of keeping it up will be slim. Do it because you want a better you. Do it because you love you. There lies your success.

One small step for Steph and for you

I realize that in making this blog, I've kinda put myself out there in the spotlight. My family, friends, and visitors would see my failures and successes. Well I was really afraid of not only failing this last week's challenge in running, but failing publicly.  
If you read my post No Pain...No gain...No doubt? you know that I've been doing this whole attempt at running. Last week I was plagued with fear and doubt. You see...I was heading into my 3rd week of running. Week 1 was just intervals of 1 minute jogging. Week 2 increased to 1 1/2 minutes of jogging. This last week, my jogging time doubled to 3 minutes of jogging! I really doubted I could do it. One and a half minutes was not easy at all. How was I supposed to double it?!

Well Wednesday the day came. I started off with a 1 1/2 minute jog and walk then it was time for the dreaded 3 minutes. I turned up my music and gave it the old college try! And guess what?!?! I DID IT! Man what a feeling! I can't explain how accomplished I felt by being able to do it! I was so excited and highly motivated. I couldn't wait for Friday to come to do it all again. Friday was just as good! 


Yesterday, I had my morning boot camp. My coach had us to an obstacle course at the local park. Part of it entailed going up and down a flight of stairs 7 times. We also had to do step ups on the stairs. Needless to say, my calves today were incredibly sore when I woke up. I did some stretching, drank water, and also put on my compression running socks for my running today. 

I headed to the park with my students (who are running the 5K with me) and did some more stretching. Off I went. The previous two sessions, my pace was slower since I was getting used to the new distance jogging. Today is shot back up to where I was in week 2. I guess my body is adjusting. 


Next week my time bumps up to 5 minutes jogging! Honestly that fear and doubt that I had last week is not with me. I am so looking forward to getting out there again Wednesday and tackling the new time! I'm also looking forward to my legs resting the next couple of days. I'm truly amazed at my progress. What was small step further in jogging, was a giant step for my confidence.


My thoughts for you: This journey to get healthy can be achieved by taking baby steps. Most people fail or stop completely when they try to do too much. Be realistic people. You can't be Superman (woman) over night. Your body is not built that way. It takes time and increased effort. Set realistic goals. Instead of saying I want to lose 50 pounds, start with a 5 pound goal. Celebrate it when you  make it and keep going. Don't make a goal of cutting out all sugar. Be realistic. Cut out a few things and then gradually increase it. Baby steps lead to a bigger distance covered. Start small and watch your confidence grow.

Cinderella Dressed in Yellow

"Cinderella, dressed in yellow, went upstairs to kiss a fellow. Made a mistake and kissed a snake...." If you are a girl, you probably remember that famous chant. It was sang over and over again as a young child jumping rope. You remember right? Your friends and you would spend hours jumping over and over. Boys you probably remember us too, right? You'd always run through the rope and we'd scream at you! Did you realize you were interrupting some serious calorie burning?!?!?

$5-$8 for a good one!

Yup, I'm going back to my childhood days and bringing back the jump rope!! I'm going old school on my exercise. Did you know that jumping rope is one of the BEST exercises you can do?!?!? I started picking it up again. I do it while watching t.v. How easy of an exercise is that? But do you really know why you should be doing the same thing? Do you?

Check out these stats from Livestrong.com:

Four hours of fast rope jumping burns the caloric equivalent of more than 1 lb. of body weight. Although you may not jump rope for multiple hours per week, you can still burn calories jumping rope. Body weight and speed dictate calories burned during 10 minutes of activity.

125-lb. Person

A 125-lb. person burns 76 calories during 10 minutes of jumping rope at a slower speed and 113 calories during 10 minutes of fast rope jumping. A fast speed uses 37 more calories than slower jumping.

150-lb. Person

A 150-lb. person burns 91 calories during 10 minutes of slow rope jumping and 136 calories during 10 minutes of fast rope jumping. A fast speed uses 45 more calories than slower jumping.

200-lb. Person

A 200-lb. person burns 121 calories during 10 minutes of slow rope jumping and 181 calories during 10 minutes of fast rope jumping. A fast speed uses 60 more calories than slower jumping.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/294818-how-many-calories-will-be-burned-jumping-rope-for-ten-minutes/#ixzz1kRm4ISep

So of course you know I had to put this to the test, right? Well I own a BodyBugg. It is an arm band that calculates the number of calories you burn during activity. The other night I did 8 sets of 25 jumps. I burned 110 calories. It took me about 10 minutes. Can you believe that???? In 10 minutes, I burned 110 calories. I just burned off my Starbucks mocha or that soda you picked up. So if you have the knees for it, pick up a jump rope each night and do some sets. Take a 20-30 second break between each set to catch your breath and a drink of water. Then get back at it. It is the cheapest ($5-$8 for a quality jump rope) and fastest way to get your body moving!

No Pain...No Gain...No Doubt?

Have I said already that I hated to exercise? Well I do. I wish it was easy. I wish I could walk into a workout or hit the track and not feel the burning and pulling of muscles. But I guess something has to be hard!!! Putting on this weight was enjoyable so I guess exercise has to be the hard thing. Perhaps one day, not too far off, workouts will be more enjoyable.

"Putting on this weight was enjoyable so I guess exercise has to be the hard thing."

The thing that has been toughest so far has been this running program. I just finished week 2 of the program. The first week's workout took place over 3 days. It began with a 5 minute warm up, followed by 20 minutes of interval training (1 minute of jogging, 1 1/2 minutes of walking= total of 8 runs), and then a 5 minute cool down. Doesn't seem like much does it? Well when you are carrying as much weight on your frame as me, and it all comes crashing down on your feet with every step....jogging kills. Day 1 I was pretty sure I was going to quit. I have never felt a burn in my legs ever before like I did in that first run. Oh man. I stopped 20 seconds into the first run, paused the program, and once again came to that crossroads. You know...should I continue or should I quit? As you read in my previous post, I really want to run. I stopped in that second and said a prayer. It went something like this...."Dear God...You know my desire to run. You want me healthy. You gotta give me the strength to do this because my body wants to quit, but my mind is saying to go. I'm not quitting, so you gotta do something with my body right away." With that said, I did a bit of stretching...walked..then pressed play and continued. I finished all 8 runs that day. I finished all 8 runs for the next two workouts. They were not easy at all, my legs killed me, and I counted down the finals seconds before I could walk again.

"It never ceases to amaze me how the body responds 
when you push it to its limit! " 

Fast forward to week two....Now my workout began with a 5 minute workout, interval training again but this time with 1 1/2 minutes of jogging with 2 minutes of walking. What?! Thirty more seconds?!?!? Ok I doubted myself so bad. I really believed that I was not going to be able to handle it. To top it off, I had to do this in front of my students who are running my next 5K with me. How embarrassing would it be to have to quit in front of my students?!?! So I began and guess what? It wasn't as bad as I thought! I completed all 1 1/2 minute runs!!!!! At my pace, that is like starting to run at the turn of a high school track to the next turn. That is A LOT for me! Yay me! It never ceases to amaze me how the body responds when you push it to its limit!

So now I have 2 days off. Wednesday starts my week 3 of this running program. I am incredibly nervous and once again am doubting myself. Why? I got from running 1 1/2 minute intervals to 3 minute intervals. My time is doubling. Holy. Crap. I really don't see myself being able to complete it...Not after how my run felt today. But alas, I know I need to change my thinking. I've been communicating with people on the Get Running app forum, and lots of people have said that they went through what I went through at the same stage and are now up to 30 minutes running. I know I have to take it on faith that this too shall pass, and I must believe that I will do it.

Thoughts for you: Your journey to get fit will not be super easy. It's work. Hard work. You'll constantly doubt yourself. You'll constantly be at that crossroad. But, quitting and starting over down the line will be a lot harder than pushing through now. Keep keeping on. WE can do this.

I am a runner? Are you crazy?!

If you read my previous post, you know that I've been in a boot camp for the past 7 months. This process has been insane. Let me first start off by saying that I really do hate exercising. Yeah I know I encouraged you to start, but I really do hate doing it. I'm not one of those people that has a smile on their face or asks their coach for more. Sorry it's just not me. I hate being sweaty. I hate having ultra sore muscles. I hate being out of breath..still. I hate when my coach announces the next exercise. I complain....in a humorous way, but nonetheless I never go a session without complaining. And for some amazingly STRANGE reason...I still show up. But I DO love what I see in my body. I do love the muscles I now feel. I do love my clothes loosening up.

"You can't cross a finish line if you stand at the starting line and refusing to move. 

Take a step, even if it is small, even if it's slow. Take the step."

Seeing yourself progress over time and getting stronger and stronger, strange things start to happen!!! About 2 months into starting boot camp, something birthed inside of me. I believe God put it there. I had this desire to run birth in me! I see myself go on long jobs to unwind. I see myself an athlete competing. I see myself with the wind in my hair, my earphones on, and losing track of time...running. My mind and spirit has this desire, but my body was not ready. You see...just walking half a mile left me with TERRIBLE shin splints. If you've never had them, pray you don't. It's this excruciating pain on the front of the legs. I got these from just walking. What usually causes them is a few things....really tight calf muscles (yup still got those), really weak tendons and ligaments in your lower legs, and the arch of your foot collapsing (from excess weight). Well I had all of these.

Running was not possible. But I didn't give up. I knew I needed to build them up. So I started walking. A little bit at first.

I'd show up early to my boot camp (which took place at a park) and got 2-3 laps around the park in. And then increased it. After months, a few laps turned into a mile...You get the picture.

Well one night on the Facebook, my cousin posted a link for a 5k race (3.1 miles). I felt my spirit stir. I needed to do this, even if I walked the entire thing. So I signed up. On Thanksgiving Day 2011, I completed my first 5K. I walked almost all of it, with a tiny bit of jogging. I mean, really...a tiny bit.

I finished my race in 56 minutes 17 seconds. I didn't finish in last place (yay!). But it was my baseline. I was now an athlete...wow did I just say that? Yup...I am now an athlete. I want to beat that time. What better way to do that? Sign up for another 5K!!!

So I signed up for a 5K set for February 18th. But this time, I want to work on eventually running the whole 3.1 miles. So I looked around for a way of training. My hubby got me a new iPod for Christmas and in my playing around with it, I found this fabulous app called "Get Running." How does it work you say? Well you get your music going, open up the app, and a trainer's voice comes on. The app starts you in increments. You start off with a 5 minute warm up. Then over the course of 20 minutes, you begin with a 1 minute run, followed by 1 1/2 minute walk, and back and forth. After the 20 minutes, you have a 5 minute cool down walk. Each week, then increase your running time. Eventually after 9 weeks, you should be able to run an entire 30 minutes without stopping! After that, you can work on speed. I started it last week and I'll share my experience more in detail later.

Here is my pitch to you: The Bible says that you will be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Which means this, you must think it, believe it, and start stepping out in faith knowing it will come. I am a runner. I thought it last summer. I believe it. I'm stepping out. It will happen.

Do you see yourself healthy and fit? Do you see yourself free of the ailments that come with being overweight? Do you really see it? Yes??? Then believe it and step out. You can't cross a finish line if you stand at the starting line and refusing to move. Take a step, even if it is small, even if it's slow. Take the step.

My Biggest Loser Moment and Nike's Just Do It

After that dreaded doctor visit, I found myself in one of those same crossroads like many of you come to as well. You know...the one that says I keep going the way I'm going and it's just not that serious...and the other than says I need to get my butt in gear. Well I took the second path.


I knew I couldn't just get a gym membership. Been there. Done that. One, I hate the fact that women show up with skin hanging out and all dolled up. I hate men that just stare. Working out is ugly. Sorry. It is. You sweat and you get funky. Period. I also knew that going there gives you no accountability. You can work out as hard or as light as you want. You can walk in for 5 minutes and be back out and nobody knows. It's way too easy. I had been hearing about the new craze called boot camps. It seemed way too hard, but maybe this could be what I needed.

"Working out is ugly. Sorry. It is. 

You sweat and you get funky. Period."

One of my cousins had been attending one and seemed pretty excited about it. I decided that the first week of July 2011 would be my start. It gave me time to relax after a long school year. I showed up the first day determined to show that I wasn't the overweight girl that would slow everyone down. The fat girl that nobody would want to partner up with. Yup I'll show all them skinny girls that really don't need this workout. Boy did I show them. I lasted 10 minutes before I had to sit down because the room was spinning. My coach came over and told me to drink water and rest. I did for about 5-7 minutes. Only 50 minutes of exercise to go! Crap. This time I lasted..oh about 5 minutes. No, no..no dizziness. I felt like puking my guts out. You see....well at least from what I know, when you're heart isn't used to a heart beat that fast and a body that is demanding blood (oxygen), it speeds up like crazy and the rapid blood movement gets you nauseated. I understood now why all the Biggest Loser contestants (love this show) all threw up!!! I sat down again, got my water, but was having a hard time breathing. Now on to my real moment.

My coach had me move to a different area of the room, near a fan. I went and sat there feeling like a failure. Here I was taking my first step and I failed. My coach came over to check on me. He asked me how I was. I couldn't answer. My lip started quivering and then came the tears. I felt like an idiot. "What are you feeling right now?" my coach asked. "Overwhelmed" ...that was the only word that I responded with. "Why?" he asked. Well in that moment, my mind was saying I can do this, but my body was not following along. My coach then said something I'll never forget. He said, "What you are feeling is a release. You've had this monkey on your back for so long and the mutha@$#%$ is finally off.Give me 6 months Steph and watch what I can do for you." I sat there in gratitude. Gratitude for the fact that he even cared enough to ask about my feelings and for believing in me. Boy does that make a difference. I've seen my own students make a big turn around just from me believing in them and telling them that. Here I was the student. I understood the power of belief.

"What you are feeling is a release. 

You've had this monkey on your back for so long 

and the mutha@$#%$ is finally off.

Give me 6 months Steph 

and watch what I can do for you." -Omari

Fast forward 6 months, I'm down 27 pounds. I've stopped snoring at night. I do not wake up with lower back pain. I'm not just dieting, like I did before with just denying myself food. I'm trying to live a lifestyle. I eat almost everything I want in moderation. But...I'm moving. Lots. I'm boxing. Doing lunges. Jumping rope. Walking and jogging. Climbing up hills. Doing yoga. And doing other things I never ever thought possible physically. It's amazing. 

Ok here is my pitch to you...Like Nike's motto. Just Do It! Don't think about getting your life in order, just do it. Stop doubting yourself, JUST DO IT! Stop making excuses...JUST DO IT! ... Stop saying I gotta..I gotta....... JUST...DO...IT!


BTW...If you're in the West Contra Costa area...go to http://www.fit-verse.com. I work out with this coach. Get a week for free! You won't regret it!

Old People, Fat, and The Sputtering Heart

So first of all, thanks for visiting!:) So you're probably asking why I'm starting to do this here blog. Well it really started in the spring of 2011. I had been suffering from headaches, dizziness, fatigue...you get the picture. Add this to the heart palpitations I had and you're left with quite the party of symptoms. So off to the doctor I go. 


My doctor had me wear a heart monitor for 24 hours to catch my palpitations. They did. A few. Thanks heart for not showing symptoms when it mattered. I wanted to be safe rather than sorry so I requested a referral to a cardiologist. Fast forward to the day of my appointment. I walked in, sat down in the lobby, and looked around. What did I see?.....Uh.....All old people. Yup. All cane-walking, shriveled up old people. **what am i doing here?** While wondering this question I hear, "Stephanie Perry? The doctor will see you now." I wait for a few minutes in the exam room and the cardiologist walks in. "First thing I'd like to know is why someone YOUR AGE is doing in my office?"....thanks doc. Needless to say, I was told my heart is in great condition...and here it comes....BUT!!!....you gotta lose weight... exercise ...yadda yadda yadda. It made me wise up and finally do something meaningful about it.


So that's how this journey started.