What is this all about?

I started this blog to keep me accountable in my fitness and clean eating journey. My first post was in March of 2007 and I've been posting ever since. As you will see I've had many highs and lows...but this is all about the journey...not just the destination

Monday, September 27, 2010

The future has a past.... or does it

For my book club, we read The Future Has a Past by J. California Cooper.  It is a collection of short stories that tell of love and triumph over unfortunate conditions.  We spent time during our book club meeting discussing the title. "The future has a past"... what did she really mean by that title? We didn't really land on anything profound.

For some reason, that title popped into my head this morning. I started to think about it in the context of moving to a new city and in the context of my fitness journey.  When you move to a new city, people don't know your past, they take you at face value...they take you the way you show up. Whether that is good or bad, fit or fat etc. They don't know your story nor do they care.  In some instances this is good. You get to create whatever you want . You can start fresh and change your old ways. Just start out the way you want to be. In some cases, it is not so good. Since I gained weight, I feel like a shell of my former self. I feel like this current body is on temporary loan and this isn't the real me. The San Diego version of me is so different than the Seattle version of me. The two are very different women...

For me.. my future has a past..and I'm creating it now. The next chapter in my life will more accurately reflect my the true authentic self and I am just discovering who she is. My future will be whatever I want it to be based on what I do now. The tiny little decisions that I make each and everyday are a part of my future. The decision to eat one more serving, the decision to forgo exercising, even tricking myself to believe that I cannot get back to where I was.. All make up part of my future. I am creating the future today.   
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Thursday, September 16, 2010

Fruit and Kettlebells

This morning I did the week 1 workout from Kettleworx. A friend commented last week that she didn't like the Kettleworx DVD. After doing it for a few days, I can see why.  The exercises are actually good, but the instructor is annoying and the structure of the DVD is ...well insulting. I mean - the entire DVD is made of rearranged slices from  few workout sessions and to make it worse...they are repeated . Sooo you end up watching the same segment twice...same corny jokes..same encouraging words. Really annoying.  That said, the exercises are really good. I'm usually pretty sore the following day. I am still on the 5lb weight. I will move up to the 10lb in a few weeks-- I'm on the lookout for another dvd.

Today's damage:
kettlebell workout 300c

bfast - coffee+creamer 40c
lunch - fruit salad and turkey 430c
dinner - butternut squash soup (I made it and it is fantastic) 280 c
cottage cheese w/pineapples 110c
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Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Spinning to Dexter

Day two with my new bike... and I really love it. I'm making my way through the first season of Dexter and wow what a dark show. Anyway, doing well with food today and as a result managed to have a nice calorie deficit. In the end, no matter how you slice it, losing weight is a math game. It is calories in less calories out. That's it. No funny business, fad diets etc. The diet may help you with food choice or to feel full on lower calories or maybe even give more energy. Whatever the plan, it all comes down to the math. 

So here is my damage:
spinning 1hr = 720c

bfast - coffe + creamer 50c
banana - snack 110 c
lunch - salad (from Panera -- delish strawberry poppyseed salad) 300c
veggie soup (also from Panera) 150
Dinner - Couscous with chicken and broccoli (from Rachel Ray) 500c
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Monday, September 13, 2010

My new love..

So I finally bought the spin bike that I've been eyeing for months!! I got a really great deal from Sports Authority - thanks to a $25 savings coupon located here: $25 coupon from sports authority..   Also I have to shout out my hubby who....donated all of his pocket change savings  ($330) to my purchase.  I saw him counting and wrapping coins and asked what he was doing.. he said I'm helping you buy your bike.  What a sweetie. I was feeling guilty for having a gym membership and wanting to buy this bike.. so he made it a no impact purchase with found money!  Thanks babe!

So onto the bike. So I used it today for the first time and it was awesome. It was pretty easy to put together. I needed a little help lifting it and attaching the pedals, but otherwise it was not hard at all. 

I did an hour this morning while watching an old episode of Dexter. I am super happy with my purchase and I'm looking forward to catching up on more shows.

Plus the immediate endorphin rush was great .
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Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Ring the bells!! Kettlebells that is.

A few weeks ago I saw an infommercial for the Kettleworx program - which is a kettlebell program. The creator of the program Ryan Shannahan, promised a great workout in just 20 minutes a day. I've heard of kettelbells but never had a chance to try the workout.  Until now...
I was at Sports Authority, ogling over my latest craving Proform spin bike at sports authority   and I noticed the Kettleworx program. There were 4 different choices of kettle bell weights. I decided to geg the lightest one (5lbs) and then buy heavier kettle bells as I get the hang of it.  

Well - the the 20 minute workout was not easy at all. In fact it was quite hard.I definitely worked up a sweat and it was quite challenging . Needless to say, I will continue to work out with this program.  I'm looking to build up my arms and get rid of the flab. I'll keep you posted.
I'm also planning to buy this spin bike as well...because I plan to catch up on 24 (the show) and I would feel much better watching it while working out.
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About Me

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West Coast, United States
I am a christian woman, wife, mom to 2 great kids, a member of Delta Sigma Theta, A Jack and Jill mom, sister, daughter . I am also incredibly fit but wasn't always. I am a recovering fat girl - who takes it one day at a time.

Alonda the Triathlete!

Alonda the Triathlete!

The backstory-----How did I become a triathlete...

In February 2006, I went on a ski trip with my new colleagues from work. On the way back, I sat next to a girl named Wendy - a really friendly woman who talked about her experience as a newcomer to Seattle. She told me how her main source of making friends was through her workout buddies. She also mentioned that many of her friends participate in triathlons and that (get this) I should consider doing one too. I thought she might have been delirious from all of the skiing. I assured her that I was not the one. She obviously had mistaken me for someone else. Perhap my heavy coat prevented her from seeing what was underneath (50 lbs of extra weight and lots of evidence of no exercise). She continued with this crazy talk, speaking of how fun it is and how supportive the Danskin Triathlon is. I wanted to be sure that she and I were thinking of the same thing... Triathlon (swim bike run -some huge number of miles -all on the same day right after each other). Yup this was it. I chuckled and told her to have fun.
A few weeks later at the office, she mentioned it again. Now at this time, I had been contemplating joining my company sponsored health club (PROCLUB) and in particular the weight loss program called 20/20. After all, I had really packed on the pounds. I arrived in WA 50lbs overweight and pretty unhappy with myself. I actually started to think that completing triathlon would be a good goal...impossible but a good goal. I decided to go for it. At the same time I also decided to join the weight loss program. My first meeting with my trainer ..Anthony Parker was on 3/14/06. I told him ..in all of my fatness, that I wanted to do a triathlon. He looked at me and said hmmm, ok.
I began this really intense workout and nutrition program and began building my endurance. My first meetings with Anthony consisted of walking on the treadmill for 20 minutes and then doing stairclimber or eliptical for 15 minutes. Followed by a bit of strength training. I did this 3x a week (between 6am and 7:30) and then worked out on my own 2 other days. I had absolutely no endurance and could not run for more than 1 minute. Over the months, my endurance grew ..slowly at first then more rapidly. I also figured that I needed to improve my swimming skills if I was going to swim for 1/2 a mile. I took a Total Immersion Class.. which teaches swimming efficiency. Let's set the record straight here... I could swim well enough to save myself if I was thrown off of a boat. I was a decent (not great) swimmer. At the start of the class, I could do 1 (that's right ONE) lap and then I started breathing heavy. At that point I new the triathlon was totally out of reach. After all 1/2 mile was equal to 20 laps. I left the 1st day of class feeling scared and dismayed that I was too aggressive. Maybe I should have set my goal for 2007.
The next week's class, I asked the teacher what I needed to do to build my endurance. He said just keep at it, it will come. You know what, it did. Each week I got better and better. 4 weeks later I was able to swim 9 laps. I then started swimming before my workouts with my trainer (a little crazy but hey). My trainer was pretty impressed. I also started biking on the weekends. In fact in May I did a 30 mile bike ride as a part of the Tour De Cure for Diabetes. I really love biking...:)
Ok so I still had not tackled the most difficult part, the running. Not only could I not run but I absolutely hated it. I started adding running to my treadmill work. Anthony suggested intervals. We started with 2min run 2 min walk . I did this for weeks extending the time and the speed. I was up to running at 5.5 and walking at 4.0. Then Anthony said ..let's see if you can run a mile. I thought he was kidding. I did not think I was ready for that. This was May 5th (a day after my birthday). Guess what I did it. And I didn't feel like I was going to die. I was on top of the world. All day I had a little extra spring in my step. I just kept replaying in my head the "goal attained" message on the treadmill. I just could not believe it.
I kept it up, continued working out 5x a week. I took another swim class "Triathlon Swim Training" to help even more. This class was filled with drills and specific swim workouts. I really saw progress. By the end of the class, I was able to swim 28 laps. Now the challenge was to swim in Open Water. That's right. The triathlon was going to be in Lake Washington.
I finally felt like I could really do it. I didn't have a specific time goal , my goal was to finish. The week before the race I was sooo nervous. I was doing mini triathlons with a few really good girls. I kept up with them during the swim but one bike ride was particularly hilly and....they left me in the dust. I felt so bad and really began to rethink whether or not I should do the race. I spoke to one of the girsl about my bike performance , and she said that my bike was holding me back. That day, I decided to retire my 35lb mountain bike for a 19 lb feather light road bike. Boy what a differnce. This was a risky thing to do so close to the race but it worked for me.
The other thing to mention is that I met up with a wonderful group of women called the Soul Sistas. They are a group of African American Women of all ages who participate in triathlons and bike races. They are so awesome.We (the soul sistas) took pictures the day before the race... I'll post when available.
So the day of the race..... Everybody in the house is excited and up. My kids and my nieces - who were visiting from NJ are all up and ready to root me on. I left early so that I could get ready.The goal was to meet me by the swim finish. This was alll pretty tricky because there were 40 waves of swimmers starting every 3 minutes. All I can say about the swim is that it felt much longer than 1/2 a mile. I kept focused and didn't get nervous. I focused on keeping my breathing relaxed. It worked ...and by the way I wasn't the last swimmer in my group YEAHHH. I don't know how it all worked out but as soon as I finished my swim, I saw them. Byron , Tyler, Paris, Ahlia and Ivy were all waiting there for me with the most beautiful handmade signs saying GO MOMMY, Go AUNTIE, I love you. It was so terrific. Once I saw them I was energized.... Now on to the bike.
The bike was the best part of the entire race. I love my bike and I love to fly down the road. The entire 14 miles of the race was closed to traffic. Our longest stretch was on the express lane of one of the largest highways. Imagine flying down a highway with nothing in your way (but other riders on your right). It was so amazing. I was going pretty fast but could have gone faster - but wanted to save my legs for the run.
Now the run... I hate running and I am really bad at it. I am slow and not terribly efficient. After biking hard for 40 minutes, your legs are really worked up. During the after bike run, your legs turn into "bricks". They are heavy and hard to move. If you push through , you can get over the feeling and get into a stride. Well I also felt pains in my knee. So instead of running the entire 3.2 miles I decided to walk run. In the end it was actually fine - but while doing it I was a little disappointed. Danskin is great because there are so many supporters on the way. Cheerleaders who are yelling "go for it" from their back porch. It was just what I needed. In fact I heard Destiny's Child Im a survivor , on my way and that was what I used in my head to keep me going.
So when I realize I am about 1/2 mile from the end, I start getting super excited and very emotional. It is all coming together now -- all the training, the visualization of actually crossing the finish line and my waiting family. I got on my cell phone to cal my husband, just to make sure he was at the finisth line. He cracked up that I called:)
When you come close to the finsih line, there are all these spectators lined up waiting for you. It is so great! I ran through a narrow entry to the wide finish line area. And there they were.. my family (My hubby, kids and neices) - with signs and smiles. When I crossed the finish line, my name was announced and the official put a medal around my neck. Well I just lost it and started crying. I could not believe that I had just completed a triathlon. I was officially a triathlete.

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