product reviews: new year, new tools

So I've done several reviews in the past of products that are important to what I've been doing at the time.  You can find the links below:  

Triathalon Gear

Pampered Chef Gadgets

Nashbar & Exustar

But in the past several weeks, I've added a few really fun things to my kitchen tools, workout essentials, and just daily stuff.  I wanted to share some of these things with you, just in case y'all had been looking for something like it or maybe contemplating buying them in the first place.  

1.  The new 2013 Weight Watchers 360 Kit 

(Available for purchase at Weight Watchers locations, I couldn't find it on the website yet.)

Sure, Weight Watchers launches a new kit annually.  Sure, it has a lot of the same stuff year after year.  Sure, most of the information is online.  Until now.  This new kit isn't like every other Weight Watchers kit that I've purchased, in fact it only shares two things in common with the old kits: it comes with a three month tracker and it includes coupons.  After that you can throw what you used to know out the window!  

The photo above is from a lovely website I folow, and I've included the link to the blog below:

The Daily Mel's Kit Review

See also: Jennifer's Kit Review

So here's the recap (left to right): You get a Success Handbook (sort of like a workbook in my opinion), a cookbook called What to Eat Now, a workout DVD sampler, a silicon measuring cup set, several pages of stickers with Points Plus values on them so that you can label your foods at home, body measuring tape (not pictured?), a three month tracker, and a neat neoprene zippered case to cart all of the stuff around in.  Shown here are the Points Plus calculator and skin, which do not come in the kit itself but you can redeem the coupons that are included at the Weight Watchers locations.  

Here's what they left out this year: The books with the Points Plus values and Dining Out companions.  Why?  Probably because the 360 program doesn't make any changes to the Points Plus values and they realized that we all had that already.  Smart people!  I wasn't about to buy another set of those when I don't use the ones I already have due to the fact that everything I need is online!  

2.  Glam Headbands, Inc. Products

Glam Headbands Website

For Christmas this year, my best friend and triathalon training buddy gave me my first Glam Headband.  

Back story:  I had been contemplating buying all kinds of headbands recently, but I was sticking with my cheap ones from Target for the time being.  They stink.  As soon as I sweat, they aren't stretchy anymore and I end up adjusting them a bunch of times.  

This new headband rocks!  I was so excited when she gave it to me that I couldn't wait to wear it to my next spin class.  Luckily, my next spin class was less than 24 hours away and I didn't have to wait long.  

Here's my mini product review:  The adjustable strap on the bottom of these things gets a HUGE thumbs up from me.  I happen to have a lot of hair, but a relatively small head.  Yah, I'm sort of a pinhead.  Yuck it up.  I was able to slide that thing to the smallest it would go and it fit perfectly!  The sparkly material did not shed a single strand of annoying glitter, because we all know that glitter is awesome until it ends up stuck to everything you own.  The width (1") was great for me personally, but they come in a smaller and larger version just in case you don't like that.  The soft side that went against my hair didn't budge at all during 70 minutes of spin, which meant zero adjustments.  That's unheard of for me!  The only thing that I struggled with were the two little clips to snap it into place.  I ended up just leaving them alone and putting the headband on like a normal headband and it worked great.  I think when I order more, I'll just skip buying the clips.  Sometimes simpler is better.  

3.  My Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 & EVO 4G LTE
Galaxy Tab at Costco
EVO 4G LTE at Sprint
I wasn't always big into technology, but the last 6 months of my life have really got me looking for ways to do things faster and easier.  Enter: my tablet and smartphone.  I don't really need them, but these two things have become two of my favorite tools for making my life better.  I've got a number of applications that help me with this, the first of which is the Weight Watchers Mobile App.  I can still do all the stuff I used to do (track meals, check off good health guidelines, log weigh ins, etc.) but now I can get more tips on how to make the program work for me!  New for this latest update is a way to snap a photo of my meal and track it later, review my spaces, and a place to take a look and get tips to help me change my routine.  I also use the Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner App at the grocery store!

Just about everything else that helps me simplify my life on these two gadgets is free!  I use the calendar app and sync it with my Google calendar.  This alerts me to my meeting times and spin class schedules really easily!  Also, I'm addicted to the Kindle app lately.  My Twitter pals know that I'm always down for a good read!  I've got my Blogger app, Twitter app, and loads of great recipes and blogs bookmarked through my Google Chrome app.

So there you have it, three tools I'm really digging right now.  I'm always looking for new things to try, so keep me posted!  

looking backwards, moving forwards

I feel like people are always telling me not to dwell on the past or that I need to move on & move up. Yaddah yaddah yaddah...

Sometimes, I think they're full of it. If you don't examine your past actions or behaviors then I truly believe you are doomed to repeat all of your previous failures. I know that this is true of my life, so I want to take a moment to reflect.

In July I hit my 25 pound goal, and it felt great. Not long after that I threw my Weight Watchers tracking out the window because I had something new to focus on: a sprint triathalon. I can honestly say this was one of those wacky things in life that I'll never forget. Training, traveling, triathaloning...it was epic. Yes, I said epic. I had so much fun & support from friends far & wide that it was spectacular.

Now here comes the reflection: I spent three months training for the triathalon & ignoring what I was eating. After that event, I spent the last 3 months in the middle of a home renovation from hell & ignoring my eating & my training. I slacked off. Luckily, I have less than 5 pounds of slacking to account for. I realize it could have been a whole lot worse, but I feel as if the last 6 months were a waste of my time.

Now I've mentioned that I'm not one for New Year's resolutions, so I've started this little journey back to healthy a bit early. I realize though, as I sit on my couch eating the Pioneer Woman's Mac & cheese, that as the last 6 months haven't been successful, they haven't been a total loss. I've learned a few things about myself & I believe I have some people to thank:

1. Weight Watchers has truly given me the tools to continue being healthy, even when I'm not 100% focused.

Truly, I don't keep all the bad stuff in my home anymore thanks to what I've learned and that (if nothing else) saved me from completely losing my marbles.  

2. Eating out is not convenient, healthy, or efficient. 

Having my home in pieces for 3 months showed me that when I'm cooking at home I'm able to multi task & cook several things at once, do laundry, & meal plan for the week ahead of me. 

3. Exercise is not a luxury, it is a necessity in my life. 

I used to think that finding that time was a bonus or a treat, now I see how poorly I feel without it. I'm irritable, tense, & lethargic without some sort of outlet. I cannot live that way for long. The last three months appear to have only reinforced that in my mind. 

4. Loved ones that know you're on a journey towards a healthier lifestyle are priceless. Priceless. Priceless. 

I had to say that word multiple times because it is just so true. Twitter family, they're there when I'm stumped, lost, or feeling alone. Tangible family is there at family gatherings to give me the much needed "are you sure you want to eat that?" look. Friends that may as well be called family are always around to split appetizers at restaurants or join me for running, cycling, & spin classes when I need their support. Not a day goes by when one of you lovely people blessed my life & don't think I didn't notice it!

So there you have it. I'm sure I've learned more than what I just told you while I've been reflecting, but those were the big things. May you have a blessed new year & I hope you have plenty of amazing reflections during this time as well!

well hello again!

Two months.  8 weeks.  56 days.  

That's how long it's been since I felt like blogging.  

That's how long it's been since I let myself slide off track.  

That's how long it's taken me to gain 4.8 pounds.  

That's how long it's been since I think I gave a damn.  

Well I'm giving a damn again.  

Not because of the new year's resolutions, because those things are junk and I know it.  

Not because the holidays are over, although I did manage to give myself free reign and it got ugly.  

Not because of anything anyone else said to me.  

I'm giving a damn again because I need to.  

I need to because I miss the way it felt to be getting in better shape.  

I need to because I miss the way people smiled at me when they hadn't seen me for a few months.  

I need to because I miss the way that old clothes became new again.  

I need to because I have invested quite a bit of money in a new bicycle, loads of new workout clothing, and some home exercise gear throughout 2012 and I cannot let that go to waste.  

I need to because I don't feel right without taking care of myself.  

I need to because I need to be in control of something, even if some days I can only control the amount of water I drink or that I ate fruit with every bite of a guilt laden snack option.  

I cannot wait for January 1st to come back and begin taking care of myself.  I especially cannot wait until my meetings resume on January 8th to start acting like a Weight Watcher again.  I cannot delay signing up for my beloved spin classes until after the supposed "New Year's Resolution" rush dies down.  

So I've made a few small changes, but I hope they have a large impact.  Here's where I'm starting:

1.  I logged in to the Weight Watchers main site and I changed my weigh in day to Friday.  

This was completely personal, and I'm not saying everyone has to do it.  I only did it because for the past 14 months I've had my weigh in day on Tuesday which means that I would fall into the following bad habit: I would track on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday but on Friday and Saturday I would consume so much junk that I'd give up tracking on Sunday and Monday and just tell myself I'd start over on the following Tuesday.  This did not work well.  Let me rephrase that, this did not work at all.  

2.  I updated my Weight Watchers application on my phone.  

If you haven't done this yet, go do it.  Don't pass go, don't collect two hundred dollars.  Go update your app.  Now.  There are so many more features now on the program and I want to take advantage of every single one of them.  I want you to take advantage of it too!  The points program hasn't changed and neither have the good health guidelines, but the good people of WW have added a ton of new mental diversions and though process changing tools that I am really optimistic about.  I want to see if they work, because I know the points plus already does and anything on top of that is simply a bonus!  

3.  I logged on to my favorite spin studio's website and I signed up for 5 classes in the next three weeks.  

Back to the good old days.  I was cycling outdoors quite a bit over the summer and into the fall, but when the clocks changed and the weather got cooler I found excuse after excuse not to exercise outdoors anymore.  I've removed my excuse for the next three weeks because my beloved Pedal Spin studio is climate controlled and the rain doesn't change the ride at all.  After I signed up for the classes, I put them all on my calendar so I wouldn't have an excuse to forget...again.  

4.  I made sure that all of my exercise clothes are ready to go at a moment's notice in an easily accessible drawer.  

It sounds stupid, but because I'm putting my house back together after an unexpected and lengthy remodel (which I'll explain later, with pictures!) I had clothes all over my bedroom and in piles of disarray.  Just getting all of the necessary items in one place is going to help me, even just a teeny tiny bit.  Another small part of this equation is going to be getting the residual junk food out of my house, but I'm not going to try to tackle that all at once.  I find that getting rid of all the junk food makes me feel deprived, then I just rebel and eat like crap anyway.  It defeats the purpose.  

5.  Last, but not least, I'm back to my good old grocery shopping list.  

For a long time I had a routine of what foods I would buy and the good thing was that I got really comfortable with knowing the points plus values of my usual goodies.  The last couple of months have been a disaster of me grabbing whatever I could find at my local Target and eating junk food and fast food like it was the end of the world.  By adding my old grocery list to the knowledge that my beloved Trader Joe's has partnered with Weight Watchers to add over 1,000 of their food items into the Weight Watchers points plus database and I feel like I'm setting myself up for some baby steps back to success.  

So there you go, I'm going to coming around again.  I appreciate the "are you alive" emails, text messages, and tweets.  In fact, if you're not connected to me online somehow then I really hope you'll take a second to do so.  The easiest way is on Twitter, since I try to keep the health related stuff there.  I'm not shy though, feel free to get in touch with me in other ways such as Facebook.  I can always use another friendly person that is willing to share some accountability and support, and I hope I can provide the same to all you lovely people as well!  

tri update: regrets part 1

I have to get some regrets off my chest, apologize, and move on right now.  I've got to do this so I can let go, get up again, and scurry on my merry way. 

First of all, I regret that my last blog post was 2 months ago.  I've not felt like talking much about training, I just felt like doing it and feeling it.  I've not felt like talking much about Weight Watchers, I've been falling off and fall back onto plan for a while and subsequently I weight exactly the same as I did 8 weeks ago.  I'm still down a total of 25 pounds, but that's not saying much.  I've not felt like talking much about my personal life, but I think it's time to open up a bit about it.  Apology made, now let's talk. 

Triathalong training has flown by.  Literally.  It just went WHOOSHHHHHH!  Then, it was gone. 

I can start by saying my brick experiences have been such a hard thing for me to accomplish, and they are far more rewarding than I could have ever imagined.  If you don't know, a brick workout is any workout where you combine two or more disciplines, such as a bike ride and a run or a swim and a bike ride. I did about 8 bricks over the course of 8 weeks, even doing two in one weekend!  Of those 8 brick workouts, 3 of them were done with my amazing friend, Amanda. 

Let me pause here and say I have amazing friends and family, Amanda being one of them.  Each of my friends and family has supported me through all of this, asking me how I was doing or simply taking a moment to say (or send me a text message) how proud of me they are.  Words and tears simply cannot explain how amazing this makes me feel, and I have to pause and say thank you to all of you. 

So back to bricks, we rode several times between 10 and 12 miles and then followed up with runs that were usually between 2 and 3 miles.  I.  Was.  Exhausted.  Thank the good Lord above that Amanda is a pretty awesome runner and an even better teacher and running coach.  She taught me to relax my shoulders, find good music, set attainable goals, and stop balling up my fists.  Those teeny tiny lessons have expanded running from something that I loathed into something that I tolerated, and more recently even something that I enjoyed completing. 

There, I said it.  I enjoy finishing a run.  I don't consider myself a runner in any sense of the word, but finishing up 2.5 miles during a sunrise with P!NK blasting in my ear buds has become a bit cathartic for me, and it's helped ease my anxiety a whole helluva lot lately. 

That being said, I regret not doing more brick workouts. 

I also have one more moment I regret.  About 8 weeks ago, I went down to ride with Amanda near Tom's Farm in Corona.  It was my first time riding there, and she warned me about a couple of hills.  I think I let myself get caught up in the warning and on the second to the last hill, I gave up, hopped off my bike and walked it.  Two words come to my mind as I type this: chicken and sh*t.  I regret hopping off my bike.  To this day I'm mad about it, but luckily I was mad enough that two weeks later I sent her a text message that said "I want a re-match with that hill." 

Needless to say, I did not walk my bike up the hill.  I huffed and I puffed and I blew that hill down, well, not really but you get the picture.  I wasn't speedy, I wasn't graceful, and I certainly wasn't lady like about it.  I said bad words, and even Amanda said I could call her names if I wanted to, as long as I was up at the top of the hill when I did it.  That is a moment I do not regret.  I'm grateful for that ride, and the 2.5 mile run that we did afterwards.  In that moment, I felt like I might actually be ready to do a triathalon. 

Before I sign off after this rambling story, I need to tell you that if you're reading this, you need to go read my friend Mae's blog.  She's getting an awesome opportunity to head to NYC and do a photo shoot at Weight Watchers because she is the epitome of a "Success Story" and they finally realized how amazing she is. 

Seriously, go read it.  Fall in love with Mae.  Wish you could snuggle with her awesome Boxer, Bowie.  Then thank me later. 

There are no letters F, U, or N in the phrase "Weight Loss"

I have to admit, I am having a bitter critter moment. Bear with me for just a second and I will try to elaborate without using the eff bomb too much.

Twenty five pounds is quite a success for me, in fact I am quite proud of it. However, as soon as I got that 25 pound charm during my meeting, my brain turned off and my stomach growled. I spent the better part of 3 weeks fighting urges and cravings until this week when I succumbed.

And boy, did I succumb!!!

In just a matter of days I went from moderate self control to brownies, chicken strips, french fries, Pop Tarts, and bacon wrapped hot dogs. Yah, I put an s at the end of the last one because I did not stop after just one.

Bite me.

So what happened? I am not entirely sure. Part of it is because I am a girl, and every 4 weeks I go stark raving mad and eat like a 500 pound man for a few days. But that is only a small part of what I really think happened.

I think I got rebellious. I think I forgot how good it felt to be getting healthy again. I think I wanted instant gratification. I think I gave myself permission to not only fall off the wagon, but to tip the whole damn wagon over, pour lighter fluid on it, and light that bitch up like a bonfire.

I started looking at some of my favorite healthy meals and snacks with such disdain that it was sort of freaking me out. I may have told a banana that I hated it, I cannot be sure. It is all sort of a carbohydrate haze really. I am not sure I was in my right mind.

The good news is that it was a small uptick on the scale thanks largely in part to the fact that my amazing boyfriend has started joining me for bike rides and gym trips. The bad news is that I physically feel ill because of it. Every single bad thing I like, I managed to cram into a 96 hour eating frenzy. It was disgusting. I ate like a teenage boy for a few days, and now my 28 year old female body is pissed. Karma is a beezy.

So there you have it. People talk about trigger foods a lot of times, and I do not know if I have one. I will tell you that I have about a dozen foods that flew quickly into my mouth recently, and I can also tell you that they need to go away for a while.

If you are wondering, I have started my swim training. I am not really pushing myself as of yet, but I have a fairly decent lap pace that makes me confident that the swim portion of the triathalon will not be my weakest event. I am running right about a 1:10 lap for 0.5 miles. That means for about 18 laps, it takes me less than 25 minutes. I also goof around at the ends of the pool, fiddle with my goggles, and check my timer and heart rate. I am so odd.

I have not run in 2 weeks. I do not have an excuse. I worked really hard to bring my pace down to  a 12 minute mile and boosted my distance to 1.5 miles, then I stopped. I am so odd.

I have been biking short distances with a couple of hills lately, and I throw in a couple sprints or tabata drills everynow and then. Except for Sunday morning, when I skipped breakfast before our ride and ended up doubled over on the side of the trail, nearly throwing up. I made my boyfriend ride back in front of me the whole way so that on the off chance I did end up puking, it would not ruin his day too if you know what I mean. I am so odd.

So I leave you with something one of my twitter friends brought up, and it was that everyn should have a saying or a mantra for their journeys. Mine is this,

I would rather be healthy than skinny.

Reality Check!

So the first couple of weeks of triathalon "training" have been, um, well, interesting.

I still spin on Saturday mornings for 90 minutes. I kick ass in that class. Really I do. 1100 to 1200 calories of ass. That is a whole lotta ass.

I have spent 3 weeks trying out the simply filling technique of Weight Watchers. Lost for 2 weeks, then rebelled completely and spent a weekend worshipping chips and salsa only to gain a half a pound. I have forgiven myself. It is over. Damage done. Now get the f*ck over it.

Here comes the anger. I installed my new trip computer on my bike,but not ridden it. Why? I. Do. Not. Know.

Maybe it is laziness.

Maybe it is part of the rebellion thing that I had going on with Weight Watchers. But it has to stop.

The war is over.

The chips and salsa won.

Move on.

And by move, I do not mean figuratively. I mean get that ass up and MOVE!

And the running. Oh, the running. I started at 2 days a week. But the past 2 weeks, I have only attempted to run twice. Each run was about 1.5 miles, and I had about a 13 minute per mile pace. That is not bad, but I know I have a long way to go before I get comfortable with the idea that I will be running 3 miles.

I keep reading about how experienced runners sign up for their first triathalon and get to the run only to hit a wall or have problems. They are runners. I am not. This just intensifies my fear.

Then I stop, ask myself what the fear is, and realize that even if I am walking, I will eventually cross that finish line and complete my first triathalon.

That is my only goal right now.

Finish the race.

But all tri talk aside, I celebrated a big victory last week and I would like to share it. As of last week, I have lost 25 pounds. Even with my. 5 pound gain this week, I am still holding on to that accomplishment.

This goal means I am about halfway through my journey, and my drivers license is only a lie by about 25 or so pounds. When my drivers license is not really a lie anymore, well, I guess I will be a happy, healthy lady.

For now, I am happier and healthier than I have felt in a long while. I stop and shake myself when I realize that running a mile or more was not even a possibiltity for me last June. Spin class terrified me last June. I was a mess last June.

Who knows what July will bring?

Control freak...

Here is a fact, I am a control freak. Totally. I need to plan everything. I have to be in control. If I want something, I plan out the necessary steps I need to take, I complete the steps, and I get what I want. It is easy to me, perhaps because I have practiced it my whole life.

When I was a child, I did not have rules. It sounds odd, but I did not really need rules because I was pretty strict on myself. Oh sure, there was the occassional "Do not run in the street" but it was followed by "unless you want to get run over by a car." That was all I needed to know. I studied fairly well, I loved all things or places educational, and I was fairly well behaved in public.

But there is always one thing I never controlled, food. Early on, it did not matter. I was not skinny, but I was active enough to be a sufficiently chubby but cute kid/teenager. After I stopped exercising, well the eating became my clearly obvious weakness.

I never had control when it came to food. I ate to celebrate. I ate to mourn. I ate when I was bored. I ate when I was nervous. I ate. I ate. I ate.

So when I joined Weight Watchers in 2011, I exercised control...for a while. I would be really good for days or even weeks, then I would lose control. Instead of eating a small portion of something I wanted, I waited until my desire grew so much that I would pratically overdose on it. I was a mess. I was not in control.

So what changed?

I surrendered control. I gave up trying to force my body into submission. I stopped kicking my own ass.

Now I spend more time doing what I want to do, and less time doing what I think I should do. I forgive myself for the bad things (buffalo wings) and I congratulate myself for the good things (spin classes).

I surround myself with the right things and people, but I am not one to shy away from guzzling down a beer or eating dinner out with my girlfriends. I will never be the girl who eats nothing but chicken and salads. Never.

But I eat chicken and salads. And pizza. And bread. And wine.

So here is the deal, since I gave up being so hard on myself I have made my weight loss journey easier.

That being said, I know I would lose weight faster if I gave up cocktails and fatty foods, but no one wants to see the bitch I would be if I did that.

recipe review: brown rice

I like to think of myself as a fairly good cook.  I am pretty fearless, and I generally make good eats for myself and my family.  I've bravely tried out new recipes hundreds of times, and modified them lately to make them my own healthier versions.  However, I have one item that I simply cannot get right. 

I cannot cook brown rice. 

Rice cooker. 

Fail. 

Stove. 

Fail.

Me.

Fail.

So I resorted to purchasing pre-cooked brown rice from Trader Joe's.  You read that right folks.  I can make just about any dessert or dish in a cookbook, but I have to buy ready made brown rice.  I felt like such a failure.  Plus, it would be so much cheaper for me if I just knew the secret to cooking brown rice! 

Well one day, my fair god-blogger whispered down from the heavens I have a foolproof method for making perfect brown rice that is never sticky! To which I replied SIGN ME UP! 

So here goes: From Skinnytaste! 

How to make perfect brown rice

5 servings

4 points plus per serving

1 cup of brown rice

8 cups of water

1 1/2 teaspoons of salt

Rinse the rice with cold water for 30 seconds. Bring the water and salt to a boil over high heat in a large heavy pot with a tight fitting lid.

When the water is boiling add the rice, stir and partially cover (don't cover complete or it will spill over) and cook on medium-high heat for 30 minutes.

Drain the rice in strainer, then quickly return to the pot and cover tightly for 20 minutes so the steam finishes cooking the rice. Uncover the rice and fluff with a fork.

Makes about 3 1/2 cups. Different rice varieties may yield different amounts.

SUCCESS!  I can now cook my own brown rice!  That's amazing!  I'm extatic!  Thank you Gina from Skinnytaste! 

Then I saw this recipe and I drooled.  I'm going to have to try that ASAP.  Like this weekend!  Pulled beef and this side dish would be fantastic! 

want versus need

I am facing a major struggle lately.  I was ounces away from getting my fourth 5 pound sticker, then my birthday happened.  The week before my birthday was great, the week after my birthday I was the same weight, and the second week after my birthday I was battling TOM and a whole lot of snacking and up 1.2 pounds.  

If you're on the outside looking in, you might be saying "Gee, 1.2 pounds isn't a lot, get over it" and you're probably right.  But the point is that I need to nip it in the butt.  I need to stop the needless carbohydrate consumption and start getting more serious about the way that I'm training.  I need to ask myself one simple question: Is what I'm about to do something that I want or is it something that I need?  

It's a simple question, right?

But I'm so horrible about answering it.  

Most nights I'd rather stop at Target on my way home from work than the grocery store or the gym.

  

Most nights I'd rather pick up two pizzas than cook a healthy dinner.

Most nights I'd rather curl up with a good book than go to spin or take Maddie for a walk.  

But we all know that I don't need anything from Target, pizza, or to sit my chubby but on the couch.  I only want those things.  

What I need is to make more consistent and healthier choices.  It's not as hard as it sounds.  I don't need to make some stupid statement like "I'm going to go to the gym every single day."  I'd love to pretend I'm that girl, but I'm not that girl.  All I need to say is "I'm going to make healthier choices."

I'll choose an apple over a candy bar more often.  I'll choose one gym trip over nothing sometimes.  I'll make a healthy dinner more often instead of looking for the easiest take out solution.  

Fear not friends, I may have had a mediocre couple of weeks and I'm feeling super bloated, cranky, and irritated but I'm stepping right back on plan.  

My head is screaming "I WANT THAT LEFTOVER PIZZA!" but my body is telling me softly "I need some yogurt and berries."  Funny what we choose to listen to, isn't it?

Note, if you like the illustrations you should head over to Erin Hanson's website.

i don't f*cking wanna

I have a confession: I'm stuck in "I don't wanna" mode.  

I don't wanna workout.  

I don't wanna eat another apple.  

I don't wanna drink water instead of diet soda.  

Then I wonder why I can't hit that gall darned next goal!  

I can't hit the goal because Pretzel M&M's are quite tasty.  

I can't hit the goal because sleeping in is more fun than workout dvd's.  

I can't hit the goal because beer is delicious.  

I can't hit the goal because I don't wanna try.  

-

And so, I'm going to have a little pep talk with myself.  I'm going to ask myself why I am stopping myself and why I care more about snacks than I do my own personal well being.  

I am at that point in my journey where pants are starting to get more and more loose and old clothes are starting to fit again, but I simply cannot stop bringing myself down.  

I'm going to re-focus, re-center, start a new week with a weigh in and I'm going to forgive myself for whatever that number is and I'm going to move the EFF on!  Get over it!  Get over yourself!  Get over your love of junk and get back to the lovely and healthy foods that you know you love!  Skip the beer and wine for a while because they are a mutha fuggin treat, not a right!  

Start listening to your support group and stop listening to your cravings.  

Start asking for help instead of asking for a second serving.  

Find a darn anchor because you weight as much as one!  That's right, I don't have an anchor.  I need to find a stupid anchor!  It needs to be something I see every single stinking day of my life, otherwise I'll forget about it.  

Start moving your ass more because the last time I checked, thinking about exercise doesn't burn a single friggin calorie.  Driving by the gym on your way home doesn't count as activity.  

activity review: bob harper's bob's workout #2

So about two weeks ago, I reviewed Bob Harper's "Pure Burn Pure Strength" workout.  Then about a week ago, I reviewed workout #1 from his dvd, "Bob's Workout."  Today, I'm going to tell you about the second workout in this dvd.  

I keep waking up early every morning, and instead of trying to go back to sleep like I would have in the past, I've been getting out of bed and starting my day.  One day a few weeks back, I set out to conquer Bob's Workout:

Brief re-cap from the first review I did:  This dvd is really his full 60 minute workout spread in to two-30 minute workouts.  It isn't like the first one is beginner and the second one is advanced, they are both advanced.  You can do workout one, workout two, or play both workouts back to back for a really intense 60 minute workout.  

So here goes, I pushed play on workout #2 and was immediately greeted by Bob explaining that this was mainly an upper body workout.  This was perfect because although I've been spinning 2 times each week, I have been struggling with getting a good upper body workout.  By an odd stroke of luck, I was just complaining about it to one of my spin friends, Angela, the night before.  Also, I had just purchased a set of 5 pound dumbbells and a small kettlebell at Walmart, both of which I figured I'd need down the line.

The dvd starts with a warm up, and it contained no burpees like last time.  Hooray!  It was mainly jumping rope, jumping jacks, sumo squats, and jumping horizontally over a jump rope (or imaginary line in the ground).  I completed this set with relative ease and I was shocked.  The January or February version of me would have been completed winded and doubled over.

(Insert my mini celebration for a non-scale victory here.)

Next up was plyometric push ups, or a push up on an incline (I did mine on the edge of a dining room chair) with a "pop" at the top of the push up.  Hard, but I did the best I could.

From there, Bob has the model grab hand weights and go into dumbbell presses. You could do these on a ball, on a bench, on a set of steps, or on the ground which I did.

Following that, you move straight into dumbbell rows or bent dummbell rows.

There is a bit of an upper body break for some squats, but before you know it you're off and moving again!  You quickly move through standing shoulder presses and bicep curls before you find yourself back at the starting point.  You do this about three more times (and here's the important part) without stopping or taking a break.

It isn't the first round that hurts, and the second round is really just a period of time in which I was sweating buckets.  But before I knew it, I was in the third set and as the sweat poured into my eyes and my triceps and biceps burned, I realized this was going to be a good work out.

There is a small set at the end of the workout that includes dead lifts, step ups, and some more squat exercise.  But you only do this once, and the model really struggles through this last set.  During the model's struggle, I caught my breath, wiped off my sweaty face, got a drink of water, and completed the workout.  Bob really kicked that poor model's butt!

Before I knew it, I was done and into the cool down and stretches.  The total time of the dvd was less than 30 minutes, but I stretched a bit more after Bob was finished.  I love stretching, and my muscles were nice and warmed up!

Pro's: The dvd is fast and effective.  In less than thirty minutes and with only one set of hand weights and a single kettlebell I was able to complete what I feel like was a great upper body workout.  Optional equipment would be a second (identical weight) kettlebell for the dead lifts (I just used my dumbbells), a jump rope, and a bench or a set of steps.  The model was attractive (he looked like Alex O'Loughlin).

Con's: The model sort of pooped out at the end, and they sort of stop and wait for him to catch up.  Now, I was hurting and sweating, but I didn't need all that extra time.  I ended up fitting in an extra set of dead lifts and some more cardio into his breaks.  Also, the cool down and stretches at the end simply aren't enough.  There are about two leg stretches and two arm stretches.  I need more.  It's no big deal, I just tacked a few extra stretches onto the end and I was all set.  Also missing are any dedicated ab exercises, although you do use those muscles to stabilized you throughout the dvd.

Overall, I really enjoyed the dvd.  I'll definitely be doing it more often, as I really feel like I want to tone and work out my upper body and torso.  

activity review: bob harper's bob's workout #1

About a week ago, I reviewed Bob Harper's "Pure Burn Pure Strength" workout.  Now, I'd like to share with you about workout #1 from his dvd, "Bob's Workout."  Yes, he made a dvd about his own workout regime.  Yes, I knew it was going to be tough.  Yes, it was still tougher than I prepared myself for.  

Back on Easter Sunday, I woke up tired and sore from a pretty rough week of work and workouts.  I'd gone 5 days straight with spin, the Lady Gaga workout, more spin, and another Bob Harper dvd.  I knew I should get in some form of a workout, but what I simply didn't want to.  I made coffee, I ate two cinnamon rolls (hey, Mike wasn't awake yet and I didn't want it to go to waste!), and then I got desperate.  

I was either going to (a) eat more or (b) get moving.  So I stomped upstairs, put on some workout gear and my heart rate monitor, and came back down to the living room to workout.  I grabbed my towel, my water bottle, my little dumbbells (it's time for bigger ones!), and the remote control.  I set out to conquer Bob's Workout:

The first thing you need to know about Bob's Workout is that it is really his full 60 minute workout spread in to two-30 minute workouts.  It isn't like the first one is beginner and the second one is advanced, they are both advanced.  You can do workout one, workout two, or play both workouts back to back for a really intense 60 minute workout.  

I chose to start with the first workout and see how it went before I did workout two.  Good choice.  

It opens with a brief cardio set which includes burpees (boo, hiss) and then moves on to kettlebell exercises (I don't have them, I used dumbbells) and then lateral rows from a plank position (with an optional incline used by the model).  I have never done lateral rows in a plank position and surprised myself when I did the entire set!  You move rather quickly through lunges and as soon as you think you've gotten a break, he makes you start over with the burpee segment!  Needless to say, those lateral rows and lunges are about 10 times as hard during that second round.  

That takes you about 15 minutes into the workout where he then introduces the second interval.  This is something I (a) cheated on and (b) will have to continue to work towards.  This interval included things that I simply couldn't do such as a spine roll: stand, crouch, roll onto my back, roll back up onto my feet and stand up again.  I'm 100% positive that this is an excellent abdominal and total body workout, but I simply couldn't do it.  I chose to substitute crunches and Russian twists during this time.  Next up was some wacky exercise in which you hold a dumbbell up towards the sky as you stand, crouch, sit, lie on your back, then get back up.  I did dumbbell side bends.  

There are a few more heart pumping exercises that are like runner's stretches combined with mountain climbers, a few planks, and then you do the whole circuit again.  

There is a brief, but pretty decent stretch at the end of the dvd and then you're done!  It's about 28 minutes total, and Bob very carefully explains that you can make this workout harder (hah!) by simply upping the weights you're using as you get stronger.  We'll see if I ever get that far.  

Wrap up: Okay I know I cheated through this workout, but I focused on keeping my heart rate up even if I couldn't do the exact activity on the dvd and I kept moving the whole time.  I was definitely sweating through the whole dvd, and my legs and arms were noodles by the end of it.  My heart rate monitor showed that I burned over 300 calories, and I could certainly feel it!  

This is not a beginner's dvd.  This is not your old step class dvd workout.  This is not an easy day.  I made the mistake of doing this dvd on a morning when I was already sore, but in fact I'm glad I did.  I can now appreciate how truly challenging this dvd is going to be for me in the future, and I really like that I barely noticed that the thirty minutes were up.  You will definitely not be bored during this workout!  

The model in the dvd got her asphalt kicked if you know what I mean, but honestly the only thing Bob Harper did during this workout was the stretches.  He guided her the entire time, corrected the model as she needed, and gave you tips and tricks for the exercises.  It was a different format than I was used to, but I guess it worked out alright?  

There you have it!  Bob's Workout, part 1!  

progress update

If you've been a Weight Watcher for any length of time, you remember that at one point they called their plan "Momentum."  I never understood why.  

I do now!  

You see, I'm a numbers based person.  In my life, numbers mean everything!  Numbers like how much money is in my accounts or the numerical value of how much of a chemical is in a sample I'm testing.  You could say that I'm sort of obsessed with numbers.  

So a few weeks back, I decided to explore my eTools page on Weight Watchers.  It tracks my food and keeps track of the number of points that I'm shoveling into my mouth, but it also records my weight every week after I step on that scale at my meeting.  

Let's just say eTools rocks.  You can set it up to only show you points tracking, activity tracking, or weight records for a specific date range!  I had to play around with this feature to truly appreciate how hard I've been working.  

Step 1: I asked eTools to show me results from the last week in 2011 into the first week of 2012, basically my first year back on plan.  This was sort of a disappointing year for me, I spent a lot of time hopping on and off of plan and I spent almost no time exercising.  The results weren't bad, but they weren't all that great either.  In twelve months, I recorded a loss of 11.2 pounds.  Less than one pound per month on average.  Actually it is a loss of 0.93 pounds per month.  Like I said, I like numbers.  

Step 2: Then I started looking at some small life changes.  Like when my mom joined Weight Watchers with me back in the fall of 2011.  She's been on plan with me for approximately six months (I don't remember her exact start date, so I'm estimating) and I managed to lose 8 pounds in that time.  Now that means that my average weight loss jumps up to 1.33 pounds per month since my mother has come into this journey with me!  That's a 40% improvement from 2011, when I was faltering and trying to do it on my own!  Yowsah!  

Now let's look even closer, at some more recent changes.  The last week in 2011, I committed to plan 100% and I started taking control.  At the time of writing this blog post, I am approximately three and a half months into these changes and I've lost a total of 7 pounds.  That is an average loss of 2 pounds per month! It is a 107% improvement from my average weight loss for all of 2011 and it is a 50% improvement from my average over the last 6 months.  

What did I do?  Not a whole lot actually.  I started by attending spin classes twice a week.  It is only about 2 hours of my week, which I manage to fit in, and it makes a big difference in my confidence level.  Then I started taking more control of what I was bringing into my house to eat.  In other words, I became a more careful grocery shopper.  I followed the simple rule that you cannot eat something if you don't have it, and it made a huge difference.  If you don't have healthy food in the house, it is going to prohibit you from making good choices.  If you don't have junk food in the house, it is going to slow you down on bad choices.  

Notice I just said  it will "slow you down on bad choices."  This is because I didn't give up things like going out to dinner.  I can still make bad choices if I go out to dinner with friends and family, but I'm less likely to let them occur.  My mom and I have this saying that we got from a past Weight Watchers leader, "Date the enemy, don't bring him home."  What this means to us is that it is okay to go out to dinner and splurge a little, but you need to leave the bad stuff at the table.  It isn't a huge deal if you split ice cream dessert at a restaurant, but it would be horrible if you brought home a 5 gallon tub of ice cream and started chowing down on it!  Date the ice cream, but don't bring the ice cream home.  

It is for this reason that I don't buy frozen french fries at the grocery store, but I still eat them at a restaurant. I don't keep loads of pre made pizza dough in my fridge any more, but I'm not afraid to buy a cheese pizza at a restaurant.  I have also started (sometimes) asking for a box with my dinner, and in some cases that waitress will box half of my dinner before she even brings it out to me so that I don't have to do it myself.  The reality is that I'm usually satisfied (or even full) after eating half of the dinner, and I can eat the rest of my dinner at a later time.  Saves me money, saves me time, saves me points, what's not to love?  

So there you have it, my numerically motivated and highly personal update!  If you have eTools or another way of tracking, I challenge you to take a look at how you've been doing in the past and present.  It's really eye opening!  

the "F" word

No, not that one!  Get your mind out of the no-no's. 

I'm talking about the word forgiveness.  I struggle with forgiving myself and moving on.  I struggle with it a lot. 

I can forgive just about anyone in my life for any harm or hurt that they've caused me, but I simply can not forgive myself for a single thing.  I think this is a very hard post for me to write, because it is an admission of a large problem in my life.  I am harder on myself than anyone else is. 

I have been this way forever.  As long as I can remember, I have always been extremely hard on myself.  In elementary school, I received a "B" on a test and I actually began crying and hyperventilating.  I had such a problem breathing that they actually had to call my mother to come take me to the doctor, where I was given medicine to calm me down.  I was sedated for getting a "B." 

This behavior continued as I got older.  When I was offered the opportunity to accelerate into a grade higher than I was in, I took it.  My parents didn't make me, I did it by choice.  I went from the fourth grade one year, into the sixth grade the next year. 

In junior high school, I was offered the opportunity to begin taking my high school level math classes, and I took it.  Not only that, I began working as an after school tutor in these math classes.  I was supposed to be in the seventh grade, but I was in the eighth grade, and I was tutoring people in the eleventh grade.  Yah, it was really odd.  I was an odd child. 

I won't get into all of the social ramifications of my decisions, such as being a seventeen year old college freshman in a world of fraternity parties and crazy behavior.  I'll simply tell you that it had some extremely awkward moments, and I survived them. 

Eventually, in college I learned to slow down.  Instead of graduating in four years and being a twenty year old with a college degree, I slowed down.  I worked on campus, I took classes that were fun and had nothing to do with my major, and instead of graduating at twenty one years old, I took an extra quarter of fun classes and graduated at twenty two years old like a normal person. 

Now, I see this behavior slowly start to creep up on me again.  I'm negatively pressuring myself, and I need to stop. 

If I have a bad meal, I feel helpless and anxious.  I do one of two things: I stop eating for the day or I go off the deep end and binge.  Neither of these are healthy behaviors, and it is through tracking everything that I've come to discover that I'm doing this. 

If I have a bad couple of days, I feel myself slipping into a sort of anxious depression.  "What is the scale going to say?"  "Why don't I skip my weigh in this week?"  "What is wrong with me?" 

After a couple of weeks in a plateau, all hell breaks loose in my head and I find myself (figuratively) beating myself up.  I start depriving myself of things because I think that is the reason that I've not been losing weight.  Then after a few days of deprivation, I rebel and I eat way too much. 

Lately, I've been working really hard to forgive myself.  I'm not going make it through this journey if I don't learn how to do it.  I need to allow myself a bad meal, forgive myself and move on.  I need to be alright with the fact that I might have a few days of a "hearty appetite" and simply track it and get over it.  I need to see a plateau for what it is: temporary.

This is what I'm trying to do, this is my daily struggle.  I'm not fighting the scale.  I'm not beating up the food.  I'm not battling exercise.  My own dilemna is within my own head. 

And that, my friends, is what sucks the most. 

activity review: bob harper's pure burn super strength (beginner workout)

If you follow me on Twitter, you'll already know that I talked about a big dvd sale that happened at Bob Harper's website a few weeks ago.  Every dvd was on sale for only $5!  At the time of writing this blog, the sale was still going on so you might want to go look!  

In truth, fellow Southern California gal @reducedfatgirl had mentioned Bob's Kettlebell dvd a couple of times and I had already decided that I'd pick it up at Target on my next visit.  I'm glad I waited!  $5 instead of $19.99 is way better!  

So here's what I bought:

Kettlebell Cardio Shred

Pure Burn Super Strength

Body Rev Cardio Conditioning

Bob's Workout

I know that when I bought these that they were probably selling them off for $5 so they could introduce Bob's new line of dvds and sell them for a much higher price.  Did I care?  Not at all.  A workout is still a workout, even if it's last season's workout.  

I should warn you, I don't watch The Biggest Loser so I don't know much about Bob or his training tactics.  I simply know that the Fit Bottomed Girls love him, and I think they're pretty rad.  Also, I'm trying to build up some home gym options, so I bought these dvds.  

Plus, with a body like that he must be doing something right.  Right?  

So here are my thoughts about Bob Harper's Pure Burn Super Strength dvd:  

The first thing you should know about this dvd is that there are two very different workouts: a full blown 60 minute workout and a 20 minute beginner's or express workout.  I had done the Lady Gaga workout the previous day, and I had my weekly 90 minute spin class with Cheryl the following day, so I thought I'd start with the beginner's workout and keep it easy.  

First thoughts: there is a timer in the bottom right portion of the screen (love) that also gives you the name of the exercise that you are currently doing (double love).  I found that I wasn't looking at my watch to check the minutes or scratching my head when I didn't hear what Bob was telling me what exercise to do.  

The way that the dvd is shot is very different than most dvds that I've tried, but I really liked it.  It is a moving camera and when they introduce a new move, the camera focuses on important parts of the models bodies so you can see details.  Also, there is a freeze frame technique that they use to snapshot a couple of the moves so that you can see the starting move and the ending move of each exercise.  This was pretty helpful, even though the moves were pretty basic.  

With that being said, the dvd is pretty basic.  A couple of stretches, some squats, bicep & tricep exercises, lunges, lateral exercises, push ups, planks, and crunches.  That pretty much sums it up.  The guidance was good, Bob was encouraging and not at all mean (I don't like mean instructors).  He definitely pointed out problem areas or techniques to avoid, as well as providing easy/moderate/difficult options.  

I was a bit disappointed at the end of the workout because there was only a 2 stretch cool down.  I like to really stretch and push my body just after a workout because the muscles are warm and very receptive.  I felt as if the way that they kept the workout under 30 minutes was to (a) skip all cardio moves and (b) cut the end of the workout off.  

With that being said, if I'm ever in a crunch I could definitely see myself grabbing a couple of dumbbells and running through this workout.  It's simple, it's basic, and it's complete.  I felt as if it hit all my major muscle groups rather equally, and by increasing my dumbbell size, I could continue using this workout for a long time.  You can start with no weight and move up to large dumbbells if you wanted to, there really isn't a limit to your skill level.  

It was 20 minutes and my Polar told me that I burned about 150 calories.  Not too shabby.  It definitely wasn't a cardio workout, but I felt pretty good after I had completed it.  

So there you have it.  Keep an eye out on my blog for my reviews of the 60 minute workout that's also on this dvd, as well as the other three dvds that I bought!  

"i can't get all the oil out of the tuna"

Every once in a while, something you over hear in a meeting room or read online hits you, and when it does it hits you HARD. 

This happened to me a couple of weeks ago in my meeting room.  We were discussing the upcoming Easter dinners and the struggles that we might encounter, and one of our beloved members, Stephanie, raised her hand with a comment. 

Back story on this woman: She's fabulous in every sense of the word.  She's honest.  She's a New Yorker, and she owns the accent (which I love).  She's funny.  She's open like a book.  I truly am grateful that she's in my meeting. 

So as we discussed all of the problems we might face (hard boiled eggs, chocolates, honey ham, etc), Stephanie pipes up with this amazing note.  She said, "When I joined Weight Watchers for the first time 40 years ago, we had to eat a lot of tuna on the plan and they didn't make water packed tuna, only oil packed.  One woman actually said in the meeting that she wasn't losing any weight because she couldn't squeeze all of the oil out of the tuna!"  

I sat there in sort of a stupor for a moment as I took this in, it didn't seem incredibly far fetched for me, but then Stephanie pointed out the obvious: It isn't one little thing like oil in our lives that prevents us from losing weight. 

BINGO! 

This is the absolute truth. 

It isn't Easter that prevents me from losing weight.  It isn't Christmas or Thanksgiving either!  Now I'm a mathematical person, so bear with me.  If you counted up all of the holidays and birthdays that my family and I celebrate, that means that we celebrate less than 5% of the total year. 

It is the other 95% of the time that is my downfall! 

Skinny people celebrate holidays.  Skinny people celebrate birthdays.  Skinny people indulge. 

But not all the time. 

It isn't necessarily the holidays or celebations that I need to watch out for, it's the rest of the time.  It's the lazy day when I grab pizza.  It's the night I skipped my workout to have some adult beverages with friends.  It's the day I said I'd have two beers, but I never outlined how big that they'd be. 

If I can cut down on those moments of weakness, I will become stronger in the long run. 

final results: monica's birthday challenge

Back in February, one of my Twitter friends decided to host a challenge on her blog.  I've never participated in one of these challenges, so I decided I'd try it out.  

The challenge was in honor of her friend, Monica.  Monica's birthday is April 26th, one day after my father's birthday.  It was to be an eight week challenge (week 0 through 7), and the winner would receive an amazing prize package courtesy of Dacia, the hostess.  

All I had to do was lose weight.  I wasn't even worried about winning, I just wanted to lose weight.  

Here are my results:  

Week 1

Down 0.5 pounds

Down 0.27%

Week 2

Down a total of 2.2 pounds

Down 1.19%

Week 3

Down a total of 3.8 pounds

Down 2.08%

Week 4

Down a total of 3.8 pounds

Down 2.08%

Week 5

Down a total of 3.7 pounds

Down 2.04%

Week 6

Down a total of 4 pounds

Down 2.21%

Week 7

Down a total of 5.8 pounds

Down 3.20%

I know for a fact that I didn't win because during week 6 of the challenge one of our participants was down over 8%.  Eight freaking percent!  That's awesome!  Well, not for me I guess, but still awesome for that person!

To be completely honest, I'm so glad that I chose to do this.  It was constantly in the back of my head, silently motivating me and inspiring me to keep making little changes on my journey.  In a total of eight weeks, I lost nearly six pounds and that was a fairly steady decline for me.  I was proud of the fact that I finished strong and I kept going.  I feel great!

So keep an eye out for a possible challenge coming on my blog!  I like the idea so much that I think I'd really like to host one!

activity review: lady gaga - take 2

In March I posted a review of the Lady Gaga workout from Glamour magazine.  It was a great workout, and like I mentioned, I was done in 22 minutes.  

Well I liked it so much that I did it again, this time my body was being cranky so I added an extra song and an extra circuit.  Sometimes, when my body is bloated or feels icky, adding an extra workout perks me up.  If you think I'm nuts, your probably right.  

(Please don't read that incorrectly, I don't make myself workout when I'm in pain or sore.  I listen to my body.)

Songs #1-#4 stayed the same from my previous workout.  

Song #5

Won't Back Down (featuring Pink) by Eminem (4:26)

I dare you not to feel tough when you listen to this song.  Come on, Pink is freaking awesome.  

I started with 30 tricep kick backs.

Then I went into 30 glute extensions per side.

And finally I did two 30 second planks with a 15 second break in the middle.  I'm lame, I know.  

I still ended with The Last Song by The All American Rejects and kept it to about three minutes of cardio and two minutes of cool down and stretching.  

The whole thing took about 29 minutes for me to complete, and my Polar told me that I burned over 300 calories.  I plugged this into the activity calculator for a total of 6 activity points, but I know that if you're doing the math conversion (80 calories burned = 1 activity point) then I would have only gotten about 4 activity points.  

It's totally up to you, but as for me, I'm putting it in as 6.  Last week I ate every single activity point that I earned.  It was a bad week, I doubt I'll do that again.  

I hope I don't do that again.

Once again, this is a great way to do some circuit training in your own living room.  All I use is my iTunes, a towel, water bottle, and a set of hand weights.  This. Is. Simple.

I like simple.  

top 10 life lessons that i've learned in spin class

I was pedaling away in spin class the other day when I realized that a lot of things that I've learned in spin class can be applied to my every day life.  I have to share these with you!  

10.  Every once in a while, you need to sit back down and have a drink (of water).

So often in life and in spin class I forget that I can just take a moment for myself, and it is something I struggle with daily.  I remind myself to take a moment at work for an apple or a quick walk.  I remind myself at home that I'm not alone and I can ask for help.  I remind myself that when I can't breathe at spin class, that I should sit down and have a sip of water.  

Speaking of water, I picked up a great new water bottle the other day at a cycling store.  

Camelbak Podium Big Chill  

It doesn't hurt that it's name is the same as one of my mother's favorite movies.  Honestly I like it because it keeps the water cooler for an entire spin class and it's really easy to drink from.  I don't have to remove my water bottle top every stinking time I want a drink now.  

9.  The right music can change everything.  

I'm a music lover, it's how I was raised and I truly love the way it makes me feel.  I can play a record from ten years ago or ten seconds ago and I can still remember how I felt the first time I heard it.  I love that in spin class and in life, I can hear a song and it can push me up a hill that I've been too scared to face.  (I dare you not to feel tough with this one!)

8.  Just because everyone around you is standing up and huffing and puffing, doesn't mean you have to stand up to do it.  

Some times in spin class, I take a quick peek around and realize that although the instructor has told us to stand up and peddle in position 3, I'd like to sit down and push myself harder in a seated position.  I don't do it a lot, but sometimes I enjoy the heat and the burn in the tops of my legs when I leave my resistance set really high and push myself in this way.  The same rings true for life.  You don't have to face every hill exactly like the people around you, you can face it any way that you'd like.  

7.  The right gear or tools make all the difference in the world.  

Oh man, never have more true words been spoken.  From the padded shorts and spin shoes to the new heart rate monitor (that I haven't reviewed yet), the tools really make the ride better for me.  Look around yourself, what do you think you need to make your life (or ride) easier?  

6.  Whatever you do, don't stop pedaling.

I don't know if you've ever had this happen to you in spin class, but I've done it a handful of times and it sucks: There you are at a heavy resistance and the song winds down, so you slow down to get your water and towel off your face but you don't realize that you've slowed to a complete stop.  Now you look like an idiot because you're making that horrible face as you push your legs to try to start the bike pedaling again, and finally you give in and take off the resistance and stand up so you can get moving.  

Really, it's true.  Don't stop moving.  If you stop, you've lost your power and momentum and it's a b*tch to get it back.  So follow Dory's advice.  

5.  When the ride gets extremely hard, sometimes you have to stand up and get some momentum.

The same is true in life, you could sit down and make it through most of the drama it's going to throw your way but every now and then you just have to stand up and power through it.  

4.  Some things in life are worth sweating for.

No, really.  It seems so simple, but so forgettable.  Aren't you worth a little sweat?  You sweat taking care of other people in your life, so why not yourself?  I struggle with taking a couple of hours out of my schedule every week so I can sweat, but I feel so much better after I do.  The final out come and the endorphins are well worth the pain of a sweat filled work out.  

3.  There is something about overcoming obstacles that inspires and strengthens friendship.

I look around during and after a spin class, and I see nothing but friends.  These people have cheered me on, yelled for me to work harder, and high fived me at the end of a tough workout.  The same is true for my non-spin friends, and I appreciate all of the support these people give no matter where they give it.  

2.  If you don't love what you do, you'll eventually stop doing it.

If I didn't love spin classes, I wouldn't buy 20 classes at a time.  If I didn't love science, I wouldn't be a chemist.  If I didn't love losing weight while still eating what I want, I wouldn't be a Weight Watcher.  This seems simple enough, but too many times I've tried to force myself into doing something that I didn't love.  I don't love all protein diets.  I don't love to run.  I don't love laundry.  

Well, I guess I can skip everything but the laundry part.  

1.  Ride your own ride.  

Man, I love this saying.  I say it all the time!  At work, I say it when people start complaining about how other people do their job.  With my friends, I say it when I see people trying to tell my ladies how to live their life.  In spin class, I say it to myself when I start to have self doubt.  I'm on my bike, I'm in my shoes, I'm in my own head.  I have to know myself and push myself accordingly.