Visiting a Neighbor Friend.

I was over reading MizFits blog today and although I won't go into all of it here, since you can read it yourselves here, I will say that I am always amazed by how few people seem to know the definition of health. This is the third time I have come across this in the last two days. I too was shocked when I first read it. I thought at first that I had read it wrong, then I thought the text book was wrong. This lead me to researching the word Health. Sure enough the text book was correct and I had a new outlook on life. The definition is:

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

I am not making this up, google it for yourself. I read all the definitions for health on the first five pages and most of them were some form of the same. The above definition is from Wiki but it was originally from the World Health Organization (WHO).

This definition really got me thinking about what I was putting myself through in the name of "health". I always say that I just want to be "healthy" but I was working out so much and counting calories so strictly that not only was I not seeing results anymore, I was driving myself crazy and avoiding my friends.

Was I eating right? Yes
Exercising? Yes
Sleeping? Yes
Healthy? Absolutely not!

This seemed a little redundant to me. I was doing all of this work for my health yet I was less healthy than before I started. Plus I was not seeing the results I wanted and this was causing me to be more and more strict with myself. In turn my Health was getting worse! So why was I doing this? What was the point when the act was detrimental to the results I was after?

I was unable to answer those questions to my own satisfaction so I went to the other extreme. I quit eating right, quit exercising, quit sleeping (very nearly anyways) and started hanging out with my friends and partying and drinking and having fun. Pizza? sure. Ice Cream? I scream. Pass me another cold one will ya? Thanks a million!

Recently I came across the definition of health again (think the universe was speaking to me?) and realized that yet again I was goofing it up. Sure, my social well-being was great. I had lots of friends whom I saw all the time and I was having fun. Mental well-being was alright mostly. Physical well-being however was bad. Very bad!

Balance is another important word. Homeostasis is the balance of life. This definition at Wiki is:

Homeostasis (from Greek: ὅμος, hómos, "equal"; and ιστημι, istēmi, "to stand" lit. "to stand equally"; coined by Walter Bradford Cannon) is the property of either an open system or a closed system, especially a living organism, that regulates its internal environment so as to maintain a stable, constant condition.

Balance!

So I guess you could say that I was unbalanced! (Insert joke and laughter here)

Now days I am working on Balance and Health so that I can have Homeostasis. I work out, but not to the point that I do nothing else. I hang out with friends, but not to the exclusion of everything else in my life. I spend time alone, for mental health and clarity. I am happy, healthy, and balanced (some might still argue). Finally!

MizFit said she was working on being "the person my dog thinks I am".

My dog loves me! She thinks I am the person who is kind and gentle, who takes her for walks and runs, who plays with her at the park and in the living room, who pets her while I read quietly, who takes her to my friends and family to show her off and let her play with others too.

My dog loves me because I am healthy!

I can deal with that.

Happy Training,
Love Jenn

427 calories in 33 minutes!!!!

That's right folks. I am so proud of myself. I went out there and ran most of a 1.66 mile loop in my neighborhood. That may not sound like much for some of you but that is the fastest I have ever done that distance. I probably ran for almost a mile of that distance (with walking intervals), which puts me just a little closer to my goal of running for a mile straight. Whit is almost as proud as I am. He had to work it a little to keep up with ME! And you know what else? I feel so good right now. My legs are limber and warm and my breathing is deep and slow. I feel like I could go out there and do it again. I really like this runners high thing.

SWEET!!

or should I say SWEAT!!

My cloths are soaked in sweat and my hair is so wet that you would think that I had just gotten out of the shower. But that's ok because I just burned 427 calories in 33 minutes!!!




Happy Training,
Love Jenn

The Calendar and Blog Changes!

Changed to a new blog template out of boredom.

The calendar shows how my workouts will break down. However you can't actually see it, too small. hehehe. Sorry.

So here is the deal. Days that I don't get in my workout will have a red circle, Days that I only get in part of the workout will get just one slash, Days that I get it all in will get the cross, and days that I get in the pushups with get a heart or something. I will have to think about it. Wish I could have figured out how to make it more visible. Ugh.

Work, Work, Work!

Happy Training,
Love Jenn

Good grades, lotsa water, and pushups!

Ok, first of all, my grades came in today for last mod and I am averaging 95.5. Would have done better actually but had a bad test in there. Oh well, I am totally happy with this because it's still an A and I was a little worried about that last week.



Second, I did the bracelet thing today and it totally worked. I had on eleven bracelets and am working on my 13th glass of water. Yikes! Thanks MizFit.



Also Whit and I did day one of the pushups tonight. I thought I was going to struggle more than I did but seeing as I only had to do 2 pushups for most of the sets I should not have been too worried. I decided to do knee pushups because I cannot yet do the regular ones. Whit on the other hand was really struggling with his. He whipped out that 31 the other night and I thought I was done for but tonight he was getting tired by the second set of 10. We both made it to the end however and I am looking forward to seeing what the next few weeks have in store for us. It should be fun.




Finally, I thought a lot about it today and have decided that I am not going to use the build a video after today. It was cool learning some new moves but I think I will do better if I go back to picking the exercises myself. I like to work all of the muscles in the group to near fatigue and I don't feel like I accomplished this today. Yes my quads where screaming by the end but the rest of my lower body was still more than ready to keep going. I may still use some of these new moves I have learned but I will definitly be incorporating them into my own routine. I will try to work something out that I can post or at least link to. We shall see.

Happy Training,
Love Jenn

"I like to Move It, Move It!"

My workouts went pretty good today. I was supposed to do two 30 minute walks outside today, however it was threatening rain. So instead of doing my outdoors walking I did a Leslie Sansone "Walk at Home" video. She is annoying, but she works my butt off for 45 minute intervals. I did a "3" mile walk today and my heart rate was almost as high as when I am jogging outside. I don't really understand why because jogging takes more out of me, but I can sustain the higher levels of heart rate longer with the "walk" videos. This is still a last minute resort but it is working out to be a good alternative as well.




As for my strength training, today was lower body day. I decided to cut that down to just 15 minutes instead of 30 like I had planned because I really don't want to burn out. I want to be able to keep this up for the long haul. As the MizFit's are saying "Consistency is the key".



Also I have decide to do the bracelet thing to remind me to drink all of my 10 glasses of water (because I sweat like a pig and need the extra hydration). I have a bunch of really cute rubber bracelets in pink and black that don't match anything I own anymore because I have not worn them in ten years. They will work perfectly, and when people ask about them, (which I am sure they will) I can explain the theory and pass it on. Just one more thing on my list. *sigh*



Whit and I are not doing the push ups till after I get home from class tonight. The reason for this is that is often the only time we spend together these days and this is a "we" thing. Therefore I will post how we did tomorrow.

Happy Training,
Love Jenn

P.S. I was struggling to figure out why my mouse was not working, I was moving it but to no avail. Then I realized that my cell phone and mouse where sitting side by side and it was not the mouse that I was holding.




Sometimes I am so blonde!

One more thing...

On top of everything else I am taking on these day, I decided that it would be fun for Whit and I to do the 100 push ups challenge. Currently I can't even do one with correct form, while Whit was able to do 31. Some days I just don't know what to do with him. Not only is he in better shape than me and taller and thinner than me but he can also eat everything in sight and not even gain an ounce while just looking at a bowl of fat-free, sugar-free, taste-free frozen yogurt causes a 5 pound weight gain to my hips and thighs. However, I am working on that. Tomorrow I start my plan in full force and my goals for the month are:

1: Walk/Jog/Run at least 60 miles.
2: Work out daily.
3: Get a job.
4: Eat the fruits and veggies from the CSA box before they go bad.

One and two I at least have total control over, number three is up to the gods of Monster.com. I do have some leads and I am passing out my resume like tootsie rolls to trick or treaters (want it or not, that's what you get). Number four will take some skilled planning but I think it's achievable.


more cat pictures


I am a little behind on goal number one actually because Mother Nature decided it was a good time to throw me a curve ball. I have been cranky and sore for the last week, with no signs of stopping soon, but I am determined to work through it. I can and will reach most of my goals this month.

Now if only those gods would take a liking to me, then life would be all rose gardens.

Happy Training,
Love Jenn

I have discovered "icanhascheezburger"...

...and have waisted the better part of the day laughing at the pics. Sad, but true. This one is for Whit!




more cat pictures