In the last 7 months I have grown so much. I have improved my best mile time by several minutes. I actually ran a mile straight in July, the first time I have done that since 8th grade gym class. I completed two more 5K races. And I achieved my goal of completing a 15K  this summer. I have learned about proper nutrition for my body. More importantly, I used that knowledge on my vacation this summer and maintained my weight, instead of gaining the 10-15lbs I usually do when I go home to visit. Planning meals and watching proper portions is becoming second nature now, something I never would’ve believed would happen 7 months ago. We have 5 more months of this program, and I intend to meet each of the goals I set for myself. I have the knowledge now, and the support of a team with the same types of struggles and several personal trainers I am proud to call friends, as well as mentors. But, the best thing of all, I believe in myself and in my ability to achieve all I can dream.

Growth is a post from: Becoming Kelly

In first 8 weeks of our program, we have been working out hard, getting to know they trainers and the other members in our group. I am so lucky to have the most incredible group of people on my team! We bonded right from the beginning. The support we all show each other is incredible, especially since we all just met a few short weeks ago. And this is a really big opportunity for me. I have been struggling with my weight since I had my oldest daughter 14 years ago.  This program will allow me to have accountability and build friendships with others who are on the same journey, as well as building friendships with those who aspire to help us all change our lives from the inside out.

It has definitely been an adjustment for my whole family, as I am now in class 3 evenings a week. We have all had to make sacrifices and changes in what had been our normal day to day activities. Our meals have changed, our family time has changed, but I think overall it has been a good thing so far. We are all eating far better than we ever have. We are all learning to try new things and to step out of our comfort zones. My husband and kids are all pitching in to do what I had been doing in the evenings, and everyone is helping to cook our new, healthier meals.  I’m glad that the weather is starting to get a bit warmer, so we can all be outside more often, and hopefully get some more of the family runs in on the greenways.

In closing, I will try to update more often, and share my triumphs throughout this program and beyond!

Life….. is a post from: Becoming Kelly

In early December I got an email from my gym promoting a contest for a new program they were launching this year. They were calling it Make A Difference 2010, and it included 3 days a week in a 6 person class with a personal trainer, 2x a month with a nutritionist for the first few months, then 1x per month for the remainder of the year. To enter the contest, I had to submit an essay detailing why changing my life and living a healthier life is important to me. I sat down to write and kept struggling to get the wording right when it hit me that I was having a hard time wording it correctly because I had already written my essay–as blog posts! So I cut and pasted and added what I needed to write the best essay I could. And the following week, as I was traveling, thinking I hadn’t been chosen, I received a call from one of the trainers requesting a phone interview with me, since I was on the road. Several days later, I got the call I had been hoping for and my whole family (yep, my husband, kids, and even a few of my siblings, dad and stepmom) could guess what I heard when I started cheering and jumping up and down in the middle of my dad’s kitchen- I had been chosen as one of the 12 participants from my gym to have the opportunity to take part in this program!

I just completed the first of the assessments provided by the program and have another scheduled for this weekend. The  complimentary assessments include: CardioPoint (identify the heart rate zones in which my workouts are most effective), CaloriePoint (learn how many calories my body burns naturally)and  RiskPoint (a thorough analysis of my overall health).  The program actually begins in a little less than 2 weeks- January 25, which also happens to be my birthday! I am so excited to begin this program. I am looking forward to the challenge that it will provide to me, to the consistency and accountability I will have. This will help me stay on track to run that 15k in July that I have committed to. I look forward to seeing what life changes this opportunity will provide to me.

Resolutions is a post from: Becoming Kelly

Achievements is a post from: Becoming Kelly

We started off on the treadmill at a 6% incline. It was a 2 minute interval with a goal of walking/running as far as we could. As soon as the two minutes were up, we jumped off the back of the treadmill  for 2 minutes of squats. After a short recovery, it was back up on the treadmill at 8% incline for another 2 minutes. Followed by 2 minutes of full sit ups. Then up to 10% incline, reverse lunges, 12% incline, push ups, 15% incline, and finally squat thrusts, or burpees , as they are also known.  My heart rate was up to 190 bpm for a good majority of the incline work, as I ran as much of it as I could. I did alright at the lower inclines, but it is not easy for me to run up the steep inclines. But I gave it my all and managed to run for at least half the time on the higher 2 inclines.

They told us we were done, so I turned off my heart rate monitor, but not before checking to see the calories I had (maybe) burned- 508 calories in just 40 minutes! Now, I love seeing big numbers like that, but I do know that there can be large discrepancies in the readings. But that just added to my motivation.  And its a good thing it did, because we really weren’t done. We still needed to weigh in and have our body fat recorded, so we can calculate the changes when the challenge comes to an end. My numbers had gone the wrong way since that last time I had all of this done, but I did expect that, since I haven’t been working out as much since I got sick in April. For almost 14 weeks, I was too sick to get a good workout in, between bronchitis and double ear infections. After we had our measurements taken, one of the trainers invited the few of us left to join the second half of his class. So 20 more minutes of strength training! I wonder what my heart rate monitor would have said by then?!

Once our workout was completed, one of the trainers was nice enough to stay after to talk with my friend and I about what we are struggling with and how we can effectively lose the extra weight we are carrying in a healthy manner and keep it off. We talked about resting metabolic rate, or how many calories our body burns each day when it is at rest. Another topic was working out in the right heart rate zones for optimal results…whether one is looking for better performance or weight loss. Nutrition was touched on. So were doctor visits and complete blood work, to determine possible areas of concern.

Overall, I feel like tonight was very beneficial to me. I have my benchmarks now, and I am ready to work hard over the next few months to achieve the best results I can. Stay tuned!

Weight Loss Challenge 1 is a post from: Becoming Kelly

For 14 years I have pretty much been home with my babies aside from some occasional work  here and there. Motherhood has defined me since I was sixteen years old. And really soon, I will have all of my days to fill with…..whatever I want to do. Not what my kids want or need. Not whatever doctor appointment I have to run whichever child too. No more days filled with trips to the park, daddy-daughter dates for lunch (where mommy tags along!), story time at the bookstore or library, trips to the pool to play with friends,  afternoons snuggled on the couch watching movies or cartoons or even just talking. It all hit me this afternoon when my daughter looked up at me with big tears in her eyes and said, “I’m gonna miss you when I go to school, Mommy. I really want to go, but I think I just want to stay home with you again this year.”  It was all I could do to hold back my tears when she asked if I would miss her too. Yes! Yes, I will  miss her! Just like I miss my other 4 sweeties. Each and every day.

But on the other hand, I am so excited to have a chance to breathe each day. I will have a new found freedom when she joins the ranks at school. I can take a shower without leaving the door open, just in case she “needs” me. I can go to the gym when I want and even  take my time getting ready after I workout, because I won’t have to rush to pick up a child from the child center. I can swim laps after running on the treadmill or elliptical. I might even lay out at the pool…just because I can! I can get  a haircut, meet friends for lunch and even just sit and blog, without having to worry about entertaining my kiddo or finding a sitter for her. For the first time in nearly 14 years, I have an entire day to do what Kelly wants to do. A day to myself. Days upon days to myself. To take a nap if I want, to watch a movie I want to watch, to grocery shop without a little one asking for treats or crying that they need to go potty. Heck, I can have a lunch date with my husband and actually talk about grown up stuff! I will be able to volunteer at the school and in the community. I’ve dreamed of going back to school for my nursing degree. This would be a great time to do that. It would also be a great time to find a part time job to feel like a person again, not just a mom.

I have loved every moment of my children being home with me. Some moments more than others, of course, but my kids are my world. I love each one of them with all I have. And as sad as I am that this chapter in my life is coming to a close, I am ready for the new chapter that is beginning. This is going to be a great opportunity for me to really focus on Kelly, to really find what I am capable of. To redefine myself. To become Kelly.

School Days is a post from: Becoming Kelly