Day 5 – Nyx

Yes, I posted day 4 and 5 super late, but I’m a student, and I have priorities…

I also didn’t realize that my upload on my WordPress app failed. That was not something I enjoyed waking up to at all. I’ll try to keep up a lot better. This website is one of the things motivating me to keep up with this Adventure. I don’t like people seeing that I am failing, it’s worse than failing myself.

So, here is the breakdown of Day 5:

Warm Up:
Stretching
4.5 laps around the track working up to a brisk walk

Workout:
Elliptical – 35 minutes

Cool Down:
5 laps around the track
Stretching

Day 4 – Nyx

I fully believe in giving your body a rest day once a week. When you work out, you break down and rebuild parts of your body, and you consume resources that you need a chance to replenish.

Yesterday, I took my rest day not because my body needed it, but because I have an exam this morning.

I’m exhausted, stressed, and I needed the time to study. I’ll be leaving for the school soon to do some last minute cramming before my exam, but I will get a work out in today. I’ll need it to clear my mind.

Wish me luck, reader. I have too many expectations on myself…

Day 3 – Nyx

Day 2 – Nyx

Today I opted out of actually going to the gym for three reasons:

1) I was up past 11 studying for my Psych 104 class and 4:30 seemed too early.

2) I have physiotherapy today, and my physiotherapist advised against going on the days I’m getting treatment.

3) I have work and my burlesque dance class today, both which offer me a cardio work out.

I have already been to work, and I pushed myself hard to make sure I got the maximum effect, and I’m currently at the physiotherapy place, enjoying my heat and music. Tonight’s dance class is going to be learning a chair dance choreography that works with the strip tease I learned last week. It should be fun, and an amazing work out.

Tomorrow we return back to our scheduled work outs. I promise you and me.

Day 2 – Morte

Well not much to really say about today that I didn’t say yesterday. I did the same routine that I did yesterday, apart from the stiffness everything went the same as yesterday still hit that wall at around 40 min but I am not expecting it to change anything soon, the last 2 times that I have been on the bike, I have ridden almost 26km in an hour which is a quarter of the race I would like to take part in in november. So now as a goal of mine too is to increase my endurance and be able to last longer on the bike, but it will take awhile to get to I have no doubt about it.

Day 1 – Nyx

Arm: 10.5″
Bust: 39.5″
Waist: 30″
Hips: 39″
Thigh: 22″
Weight: 153 lbs
(I somehow gained 2 lbs in 2 days >.<)

Fitness:
35 minutes on the treadmill. 2.17 miles completed in that time.
Max heart rate: 189
Average Heart Rate: 181
(only measured HR after jog interval)
Average speed: 16:30/mile

Strength:
Lat Pulldown: 50lbs, 10 times, 3 sets
Incline Press: 50 lbs, 10 times, 3 sets
Leg Press: 70lbs, 15 times, 3 sets
Arm Curl: 10lbs, 10 times, 3 sets
Shoulder Press: 20 lbs, 10 times, 3 sets

———

I was up at 4:30 this morning because one of the dogs in the house needed to go outside, so I just got up and started getting ready. I read Morte's post, lazed around for a bit, and then took off for the gym. It is a bit of a drive to get there, and I had to stop to buy water, which sucked.

Note to self: find and wash water bottle for use at the gym.

I walked in, warmed up, did my interval training on the treadmill, did my weights, cooled down, and ran out the door to make it to school on time. It was an amazing feeling to be that energized off so little sleep, especially since I had my first day of classes today. Hitting the gym in the morning is probably the best thing I could do, and I'm happy I've decided to do it this way.

Now, I have a ton of studying to do for my psych class, so I'm just going to wrap this up. Tomorrow is my "rest day", which means I focus on cardio. I'll give you a better write up tomorrow, I promise!

Peace, Love and Frogs,
Nyx

Day 1 – Morte

Well first day in the gym and I my legs are like jelly. They are BURNING like crazy!!! Started with my stretches, and warmed up around the track with a brisk jog then I hit the elliptical which I got off after about 5 min simply because I couldn’t “do it” it felt weird. So I headed off to the bicycle with a target of atleast 30 min, 25 min into it and I decided to go longer, double my target. I hit the proverbial wall at around 40 min, I just wanted to get off this devil of a contraption. Think I thought what would happen to me if Nyx were here with me. Well I stuck at it and made it thru the full 60 min, then I did a cool down brisk walk around the track for a few min. After that I went a did a round of the super circuits which is strength and cardio training all in one. I can definitely feel the workout and can almost guarantee that I am going to feel it even more later on.
Did my intial weight in and I was: 137kgs / 301lbs

What I Want…

I went to the gym the other day just to see how far I could push myself, and I have hurt ever since. I can live with the sore muscles in my bum and thighs as that’s just sign of toning muscles, but the shins are holding me back, and I don’t like it.

Tomorrow is the first day of the fitness adventure for Morte and I. I feel almost jealous that he gets to kick his own ass just as I’m crawling into bed tonight. I feel like the gym is an obsession, an addiction. I can’t get enough, even when I’m hurting. I want to push myself as far as I can go to make sure I reach my goal.

Let’s talk about my goals for a moment. I mentioned earlier how far I wanted to take this, but I want to put down a solid definition down to what I’m doing here. I now weigh 151 lbs even. I wear a size 10-12 depending on the make of the jeans, and my shirts fit somewhere between Medium and Large because of the size of my chest. I am a very top-heavy girl, and I don’t think that will change (nor do I want it to). I would love my cup size to drop down to a DD instead of an F, just so I can buy bras that don’t cost $150 CND. That’s a little pricey for my measly student income. I want to fit into a size 5 pant, and my tops will depend on the size of my chest, so I’m not concerned with that at this point. I want to lose enough weight that I fit into those sizes, and I want to tone my body up so there are no flabby parts.

I’m so concerned with my body image, it’s ridiculous. That stems from my childhood, and now it’s all about what I see when I look in the mirror. I still see the girl who is 250 lbs, unhappy, and lacking any form of self-esteem. If you follow my other blog, you’ll know that 2011 is about 5 Things:

Self-Ownership
Self-Esteem
Self-Confidence
Self-Respect
Self-Love

I’m lacking in all five categories. The gym, to me, focuses on self-ownership, self-esteem, and self-confidence, which will lead me to the remaining two. I want to love myself, and I never want to feel like I do now ever again.

Tomorrow is the first day of the rest of my life, and come hell or high water, I am going to reach my goals and be a healthier person, mentally and physically, because of it. I’m excited to have you join Morte and I on this journey. It’s going to be full of happiness, sadness, frustration, and success, and I’m sure it’ll be fun to watch us change. Make sure you subscribe to our blog, and our Twitter account, should we ever form one.

Peace, Love and Frogs!
Nyx

What We’re Doing…

Morte and I were chatting last night about how we feel, and how we look.  We’re both unhappy about ourselves and I suggested a challenge between the two of us.  Why don’t we push each other to go to the gym, eat better foods and (in Morte’s case) drink less? It would be way more fun to do this together, and we can help each other.  Workout buddies for the win!

There is only one real downside to this plan.

Morte lives in South Africa, I live in Canada, and there is way too much distance to actually push ourselves to go, so I suggested a blog to help motivate us.

Every time we go to the gym, we’re going to blog about it.  Every time we find a yummy, healthy food, we’re going to blog about it.  Every week when we weigh-in, and I take my measurements, we’re going to blog about it. If Morte doesn’t post his workouts and his food, I’m going to blog yell at him, and I expect him to do the same to me.  We’re in this together.

For me, this experience isn’t about what you see.  I don’t care if you think I have too many curves, this is my body and I need to be happy with it.  I’m working out and eating healthier because I want to be healthy.  I want to look in the mirror and know that I worked myself so hard that I’ve made myself healthy again.  I can do that, but I need your help, as my reader, and I need Morte’s help to keep pushing me to reach my goals and be a stronger, healthier person than I am now.

We’re officially starting this Fitness Adventure on Monday, May 2, 2011. The first post from the both of us will be our stats:

Height:
Weight:
Stomach:
Hips:
Thigh:
Arm:

We’ll measure each part and post the totals to give ourselves a starting point, and weekly we’ll post the new totals so you can see our progress. Our goals will be posted with our starting point stats as well, so we can keep on track.

Don’t let us fall off the track, reader. Feel free to comment your encouragement to us!

About Nyx

I have been told my whole life that I’m fat, but everyone was wrong about that.  I’m not fat, and I have only ever been fat once in my life.

I believed them anyway.

I stand just over 5’1.  As a kid, I used to stretch my height out to 5’2, but I’m proud to be short now.  I weigh somewhere between 146-156 lbs, depending on the week, and I’m not ok with that.

I am told every day by former co-workers and former friends that I look amazing these days, but that’s only because they remember what I looked like a few years ago, and how far I’ve come.

I was 250 lbs in 2008, although I didn’t look more than 210-220 lbs.  The day I stepped on the scale and realized just how much weight I’ve gained was probably the hardest and most devastating day of my life.  I cannot remember a time when I felt more self-defeated, more depressed with who I was than that day.  That sensation…that feeling has lived with me for the last 3 years, and I don’t think I will ever forget it.

I have always been so concerned with my weight, but now it’s become an obsession.  In 2005, I weighed 135 lbs, I was skinny, pretty, smart, funny, and for the first time in my life I was “popular”.  I didn’t realize how much weight is part of how people relate to you until I felt both extremes.  When I was skinny, people loved me, when I was fat, people avoided me and ignored me.  I hated that feeling, but I hate them more for making me feel that way.

I decided to do this adventure for myself, and not anyone else.  This isn’t about what YOU see, it’s about how I FEEL…

When I look in the mirror…

When I try on new clothes…

When I go outside this summer in shorts and a tank top…

I want to feel beautiful because I am healthy, not because people like me better when I’m skiny.  I’m going to get healthy.  I’m going to be able to jog 5 km next year without having to stop.  I’m going to be awesome because I want to be.  I am 100% confident that I can do this and NOTHING is going to stand in my way.