Weight Lifting Is Where It's At!

The English major ended a sentence with a preposition; we'll just call it "decorative" writing. Truly the title is true! I've made it one week into my alternating workout calendar. I would post it here if I could, but the site where it's housed is throwing fits. Here's a break-down:

a butt-kicker through and through!

Monday, August 13th:

Lots of fun, but not for those choreographically challenged

Tuesday, August 14th:

Janet is lovely, but tough. This one is easiest on my knees.

Wednesday, August 15th:



Thursday, August 16th: Daughter's 12th birthday party (I did enough running around to get my cardio in, truly!)

The express wasn't enough. I look forward to going through the entire workout next time.

Friday, August 17th:



Saturday, August 18th: On a weekend away with hubby.

Jane is awesome! The 80's outfits rock as does the wonderful music.

Sunday, August 19th:

Sandahl makes this a good workout, but some of the moves are a little rocky.

Monday, August 20th:


The weight is coming off slowly, but my body is changing. When I was just doing Turbo Fire (which is great, don't get me wrong), I think I was just shredding away at my muscle mass. I apparently need all I can get because things are happening in a very good way, now. I look smaller, I can see some definition and some of the flabby is disappearing. Tomorrow, I'm doing "Jane's" Abs, Buns and Thighs workout and Wednesday, Volume 4 of the The Firm. The rest of the week will be devoted to moving and unpacking boxes. Ugh! I'm looking forward to the move but, again, not the packing and unpacking part.

My weekend away with hubby was unexpected and oh, so sweet. He was initially planning to visit with a friend on Friday night. The friend is being deployed for a year and the boys were having a going away party for him. I told hubby that I would take the girls to the drive-in to see ParaNorman. This would occupy us nicely while he was away. He left to train his client and then his plans were to leave after this for the party.

I received a call after his training session. At the time, I was in the midst of doing Z's hair. He says, "How much more do you have to do?" I told him. Then, he says, "Tell the girls to pack an overnight bag. I've decided I want to spend time with you tonight." Really?! How wonderful! He went into a spiel about how he'll never know what day it was I found him stranded at the mall, but he couldn't stop thinking about it. He said that it was hot and that he felt like it was the end of summer when it happened. Whether it did or didn't, he admitted that he began pursuing me directly after that day. He aptly named August 17th "Chase Day" in honor of this.  What a softy.

So, we dropped off the kids at his friend's house and drove to Ogden. We stayed at an Express (which serves a pretty tasty breakfast in the mornings), then went to dinner at Texas Roadhouse. I had the grilled BBQ chicken, while he had the road kill. I also indulged in a "Skinny" Margarita. It was okay and was sufficient in giving me the light buzz I was looking for. I asked him if we were going anywhere else and he said he just wanted me to himself. Right on!

Back in our room, we had cocktails and watched a bit of HGTV. We will have satellite again in our new apartment and I have a feeling we'll be on that channel non-stop again. We were pretty bad addicts before. Now, with our own, personal house-hunting only two years away, it will be over-the-top.

After our weekend, we picked up the kids and all went to the movies to see ParaNorman. It's very cute, but has some definite PG moments. It was actually a little jolting to me in some parts and I'm a horror moving queen! Both my girls (6 and 12) enjoyed it. When the six year-old doesn't take a potty break, that's a sign of a good, kid movie. They were even pretty liberal with some of the jokes. The times they-are-a-changing.

I guess it's back to packing for me. We're running out of boxes, so I've put my name down at the local grocery store for more. Tonight we'll bid our side-by-side refrigerator "Adieu". Why doesn't anyone want our twin beds? We've sold everything else! Let me know if you're in the market.

My Oldest Turns Twelve

Where has the time gone? I know people say this constantly when they have children but, I'm really letting that idea sink in. Where did it go?! It was just a short time ago that I was burping and diapering that child. Today? I helped her apply her pressed powder and lipstick for the first time. Soon, she'll be posing for prom pictures. One day, she'll call and tell me she's engaged. Amazing!

The move is nearly here (we'll be moving into our new apartment next week). Here's the layout:

Square footage wise, it's lacking 200 feet from our current place; however, the layout is much better and we have more storage. I'm excited, but wish I had Samantha's method of moving things:





In any case, one week from today, I should be lounging in my new bedroom with my new furniture. We've sold our bedroom furniture of over ten years, along with our sectional couch and chaise and our dining room set. Hubby purchased a lovely wine/bar stand for the nook in our kitchen today. I can't wait to see everything laid out. We even have a nice, long hallway for our pictures.

School starts the day after Labor Day. This has been odd, since we probably would have had kids in school by next week (typically). Their summer break has gone on, it seems like, endlessly. Our district is starting them later this year than ever before (not sure why).

How am I doing with the workouts and weight loss? Initially, I had a terrible stall and couldn't seem to lose anymore weight. I wasn't sure what had happened. At first, I worried that the HCG from before had thrown off my metabolism and that I would not find a way to get the weight off again. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. I did question other reasons.Was I gaining muscle? Was I not drinking enough water? Did I need to increase my workouts to two per day? Nothing was working.

I made a decision during our trip to the lake that more weight training and less carbs were necessary. I know this works for me and I just need to commit to the lifestyle change. So, that's what I've done this week. Amazing! The day after my first low-carb meals and the introduction of my weight training workout, I lost two pounds. I know some of it was water, but that was motivation enough for me to keep going. Now, I'm nearly into a new bracket (I love when that happens).

I put together a calendar that I've been following and hope to follow for the next few weeks. I just have to keep reminding myself that what works for me may not work for everyone else. If I plateau, I have enough "Training" videos to help break it (at least, I hope I do).

I'd like to be able to get back into my 8s and 10s comfortably. I'm still maintaining in a 14 which is not cool at all. The good news is that my body is changing (I can see it) and now the weight loss is starting to catch up. Pray for me. I need it!