DAY THIRTY-TWO - TIME

"Time flies. It's up to you to be the navigator." ~ Robert Orben

I made it the YMCA this morning. It was really hard to get up and go, but I did it. I worked out on the strive machines and I feel like next week I need to up the pounds on the weights.

After working out Allie, My mom, and myself went to my sister-in-law's ultrasound appointment to watch my neice in the waiting room because she wasn't allowed in. I am super excited about the fact that the baby is a boy!! I can't wait until November. Everyone cross your fingers that the baby is born on my birthday:)

Tomorrow I plan to wake up at 5:15am to workout at the YMCA. I am hoping I can wake up!!

Goal update: Three workouts down ~ three to go.

Melanie :)

DAY THIRTY-ONE - NO SLEEP

"Stress is when you wake up screaming and you realize you haven't fallen asleep yet." ~ Unknown

Last night I did not fall asleep until about two in the morning. I was exhausted at work. It has been stressful two days. I need a vacation :)

Today was bike ride day with the co-workers. It was very fun, but for some reason it was a little harder than normal. Especially in the legs. Maybe it could have been my lack of sleep. On the ride back it was so cold. I had goosebumps. After a few minutes I finally got a little warmer, but still had goosebumps.

Tomorrow I am going to workout on the STRIVE machines.

Goal update: Two workouts down ~ four to go.

Melanie :)

DAY THIRTY - ZUMBA

"It's more like a full-body dry heave set to music." ~ George, about Elaine's dancing in The Little Kicks (Seinfeld)


Today I went to a Zumba class at the YMCA instead of my normal water exercise. It was a fun class, but not as good as the Zumba party I went to on Friday. I can completley tell the difference between the instructor I had today and the the ones from Friday. I wonder now if the ones from Friday teach Zumba elsewhere.

I am trying to increase my fiber again. My weight watchers instructor said that 35g a day is the magic number for weight loss. It is so hard to eat that much fiber. I am going to eat fiber one cereal, fiber one granola bars, and fiber for life aunt millie's bread. Hopefully that will get me close. I am going to try that tomorrow and hope the side effects will be short lived.

Tomorrow's exercise will be bike riding.

Goal update: One workout down ~ five to go.

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY-NINE - REST DAY

"Doing nothing is very hard to do...you never know when you're finished." ~ Leslie Nielsen

Today was my rest day for the week and boy did I need it. I have been feeling a little tired lately. I need to find a way to get more sleep during the week.

I worked on getting my cross stitch threads seperated for a few pieces I am going to work on after I am finished with the two that I have already started. I then went to Jessica's with Allie and my Mom to watch Grace and Molly. Jess was taking her parents out for mother/father's day. I had bought Papa Murphy's cheese de-lite pizza for dinner. Only three points a piece. It was actually not that bad. Next time I will try the Veggie pizza.

After Jessica's I went to Meijer's on Kalamazoo because all of there food was 10% percent off. I got a ton of different diet foods that I have been wanting to try, but were a little too expensive. I can't wait to try my ice cream candy bar from Weight Watchers. I hear that it tastes exactly like Snickers ice cream bar.

Goal update: Zero workout ~ six to go.

Melanie :)

PS: I also won $399 at bingo yesterday. I got to play the Lucky Buck game where I turned over cards until I got three alike amounts. Very fun like I was on Price is Right. Sorry Jessica.

TWENTY-EIGHT - WEIGH IN #4

"When the flower blooms, the bees come uninvited." ~ Ramakrishna

I went to my weight watchers meeting this morning. I lost a total of 1.8 pounds for a total of 11.2 pounds in four weeks. Later I remeasured my body and lost 2 inches in my arms, 1/2 inch in the waist, 1 inch in the hips, and 2 1/2 inches in the thigh.

I went bike riding on the white pine trail today with Becky, Matt, and Allie. It turned into a beautiful day for a bike ride. We rode just a little under 10 miles. About a mile from finishing a lovely bee decided to get stuck under the strap of my helmet by my cheek. I got stung and it hurt so bad. Here's the positive thing: now I know that I am not allergic to bee stings. Yea!!!!

Afterward we went to Subway for lunch. It was so nice to catch up. I am so glad Becky suggested we bike ride together!! Ton of fun!!

GOAL MET FOR THE WEEK: SIX WORKOUTS OUT OF SIX WORKOUTS!!!!

Goal for this week: Six workouts!!

Melanie :)

TWENTY-SEVEN - ZUMBA

"Only your real friends will tell you when your face is dirty." ~ Silican proverb

ZUMBA!!!! ZUMBA!!!! ZUMBA!!!! ZUMBA!!!! I had such a great time tonight. I am definitly not coordinated to do some of these moves, but I know I will get better with time. It did not really matter if you could do everything just as long as you keep moving. Jessica and Allie did really great too!!!! Cammy came and watched us, but could not participate because of an injury. She took a really funny video of Jess and myself shaking our groove thing. The next class is July 23 and it would be fun if more people will come.

Tomorrow I will be biking with Becky, Matt, and Allie!!!!

Goal update: Five workouts down ~ one to go!!!!

Melanie :)

TWENTY-SIX - MORNING

"Blessed is he who has learned to laugh at himself for he shall never cease to be entertained." ~ John Boswell

I woke up early and went to the YMCA to work out again. I sweated the entire hour that I was working out. I walked on the treadmill for thirty minutes and then I used the elliptical for thirty minutes. I burned 400 calories even before I had breakfast!! It felt great.

Tomorrow is the Zumba party at the downtown YMCA. It is $10 for non-members and $5 for members. It starts at 7PM. The difference with this class is that you have a chance to win prizes and there will be a raffle. It would be great if to have a ton of people join me. So far Jessica, Allie, and Cammy are coming down to do the class with me. It will be a blast.

Tomorrow's exercise will be the ZUMBA PARTY!!!!!!!!

Goal update: Four workouts down ~ two to go.

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY-FIVE - STRESS

“Stress is nothing more than a socially acceptable form of mental illness.” ~ Richard Carlson

Woke up this morning and worked out at the YMCA. I was tired, but once I started I felt a ton better. Right after I left the YMCA to go to work it started to pour and the sky looked like it was night time. I had to run from my car to work and I got soaked. Teach me not to keep an umbrella in my car.

I have been stressed the past few days trying to keep up with all my obligations and my new desire to work out six days a week. It takes so much committment to follow through on the exercise. I am so glad I started this blog for the very reason that if I tell everyone I am going to exercise in a certain way I know that I will. I don't want to let my readers down.

Tomorrow I will wake up early to go to the YMCA again instead of going bike riding. My parents are having a few friends over for dinner and I said I would be there.

Goal update: Three workouts down ~ three to go!!

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY-FOUR - EXHAUSTION

“There's no half-singing in the shower, you're either a rock star or an opera diva.” ~ Josh Groban

Darn weather!! How dare you wake me up at one in the morning. Don't you know I have to get my rest so I can go to work and exercise. I was so tired today because of being woken up for an hour. It felt like I only got four hours of sleep instead of the seven I was supposed to be getting. Oh well life moves on and I only hope that tonight's showers don't wake me up or turn into a tornado.

I had a great night exercising despite the lack of sleep. Went nine and a half miles on the bike with my co-workers. Worked up a great sweat!! Tomorrow I will be waking up early to use the strive machines at the YMCA.

Goal update: Two workouts down ~ four to go.

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY-THREE - MONDAY

"I hope life isn't a big joke ... because I don't get it." ~ unknown

Monday - need I say more. I definitely woke up wanting to stay in bed!! I was so tired and a little sunburned from this weekend. Work was not that bad even though I was dreading it.

I had so much fun at water exercise tonight!! Our instructor decided to do Zumba in the water. I love how she keeps doing some of the same and some new exercises each week. It keeps it from becoming boring. I also like how she always asks me if I enjoyed the class. She has so much energy it is hard not to stay upbeat the entire class.

Tomorrow's exercise is biking with my co-workers!!

Goal update: One workout down ~ five to go.

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY-TWO - GOING HOME

"The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs... one step at a time." ~ Joe Girard

Had fun swimming today at Torch. It was very cold, but I loved every minute of it. I was pretty sore today from tubing yesterday. Including a matching bruise on each arm.

My family and I packed up the car and headed home. I hate travelling in the car when I am the one not driving. Oh well, at least I am almost finished with the book I am reading.

Plan for tomorrow: Water exercise class!! Wearing my new bathing suit!!

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY-ONE - TORCH LAKE

"The difference between a mountain and a molehill is your perspective" ~ Al Neuharth

Today was great!! I slept in the same room as my niece Brooke last night, so I got to wake up to her talking this morning. It was nice to see her smile when I picked her up.

After eating my yogurt I went for a seven mile bike ride with my sister, while my brother ran. It felt great.

My sister and I made a very healthy meal for dinner. We chose five reciped from the Hungry Girl cookbooks I have. Everything we made was low calorie and low fat. My favorite was the green pepper pizza. Delicious!!

After dinner I went tubing and I already did better than last year. I think it's my new found muscles :) I also attempted to ski, but that did not go so hot!! Fell a ton, but I think I will eventually be able to ski.

Today is actually the last day of my week and I snuck an extra workout in, so my goal for this week is six workouts!!

Melanie :)

DAY TWENTY - WEIGH IN #3

"The best way out is always through" ~ Robert Frost

I had to weigh in early this week. I am at Torch Lake at my brother's cottage, so I won't be able to weigh in tomorrow. I lost 2.2 pounds for a total of 9.4!!!! I am very excited to be up at Torch. My plan is to bike six miles tomorrow, swimming, and tubing. I am keeping it short cause I have to write this on my phone.

Melanie :-)

DAY NINETEEN - NINE MILES

"People become really quite remarkable when they start thinking that they can do things. When they believe in themselves they have the first secret of success." ~ Norman Vincent Peale

I worked really hard today. I knew that I was going to a tastefully simple part after my bike ride, so I stepped it up. I went nine miles. I sweated my butt off!! I felt so good afterward. The last mile was pretty tough because I went down a part of the Kent Trails I don't normally ride. I am so proud of myself.

After that bike ride I went to the party. I did eat a few things that were not diet food. I wrote every bite down and I am now about to figure out the points as best as I possibly can. The only thing I ate that was super bad was the key lime cream cheese ball. That is my favorite tastefully simple item and I could not pass it up, but I did cut down on the portion size that I would have normally ate.

GOAL REACHED: FIVE OUT FIVE WORKOUTS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tomorrow is my rest day!!!!!!!!

Melanie :)

DAY EIGHTEEN - EARLY WAKEUP

"It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly." ~ Mabel Newcomber

This morning I chose to wake up early and go to the downtown YMCA. I almost didn't wake up in time because my alarm went off, but I had left the ringer off. I guess it was meant for me to wake up and go because my body woke me naturally. I worked out on the STRIVE machines again and I did really well. Thanks again Jacque' for teaching me!!

Next Friday there is a Zumba class being held at the Downtown YMCA. I am trying to get a huge group to go down there. It is $5 for members and $10 for non-members. The class goes from 7 to 8:30pm. I hear that Zumba is fun, but challenging. I am ready to sweat. If you are interested just let me know.

Goal update: Four workouts down ~ one to go.

Melanie :)

DAY SEVENTEEN - RAIN

"Life is like a rainbow. You need both the sun and the rain to make its colors appear.” ~ Anonymous

Went for the 9 mile bike ride with my co-workers tonight. It was so beautiful. It really was the perfect weather. Not to hot or cold. Even the rain wasn't that bad biking on the way back to the cars. I am really beginning to like biking the more that I do it. Now I just need to work on getting my intensity up to speed. I plan on biking again on Thursday and trying to make it up the M6 trail hill faster than I did last week. One thing I will do is stretch before going. I meant to do it tonight, but forgot. I think if I do that my hamstrings will start to not feel so much pain.

I want to hear from all of you!! What is your favorite low-calorie and low-fat snack?

Goal update: Three workouts down ~ two to go.

Melanie :)

DAY SIXTEEN - PAIN

“Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.” ~ Lance Armstrong

Today I am in pain. Yoga literally kicked my butt. I felt it so bad in my legs when I woke up this morning. Especially my hamstrings, they hurt the worst. Hopefully the more I do yoga the less pain I will feel.

I went to my water exercise class today. I was very excited that most of the exercises in this class were not a repeat of last week. It was just as hard though. I like variety and I worked really hard tonight. I even sweated in the pool!! I also completed all of the washup's on the side of the pool. Last week I only did about half of them. After class I sat in the whirlpool for five minutes. What an awesome reward!!

Allie lost five pounds this week for a total of ten and half pounds!! Amazing!! Go Allie Go!!

Goal update: Two workouts down ~ three to go.

Melanie :)

DAY FIFTEEN - YOGA

"I drive way too fast to worry about cholesterol." ~ Steven Wright

I found this quote today and I just started to laugh. Those who know me also know that I drive way too fast!!

Today I went to a beginners yoga class at the YMCA. I never realized just how inflexible I really am, but this class opened my eyes. I found it really hard to follow along because the instructor turned off all of the lights and I could not see her and what she was doing. I had to do it all by looking at other people and by her verbal instructions. One good thing was that I sweated my butt off the entire hour. I know that if I stick with it I will get better at it. The instructor came up to me in the locker room after class and said she was glad I came to her class. I told her I was super beginner and she told me that she could not tell from what I did in class, so that was good right. I did feel better when I left. I will definitely try it again.

I am looking forward to water exercise tomorrow. I think this is my new favorite type of exercise. Now if my new suit would just come!!

Goal update: One workout down - four to go!!

Melanie :)

DAY FOURTEEN - WEIGH IN #2

“People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing - that's why we recommend it daily.” ~ Zig Ziglar

I went to my Weight Watchers meeting today. I was really excited because my friend Vicky joined today and now I have a buddy to go to meetings with. It was nice to have someone to talk to while waiting for the meeting to start and also to discuss what we learned. My official weight loss this week is 3.2 pounds for a total of 7.2 pounds!! I thought because I have been super bloated from the prednisone that I would not lose as much, but I did and was surprised.

After weigh in I went to Ada park to meet up with my brother, Chris. We went to the Ada bike shop to look at bikes. I found one that I really liked, but it was just a little more than I had saved up, so I will go back in three weeks to get it unless I find it cheaper elsewhere. My sister-in-law, Sarah is going to lend me her mountain bike until I buy my own. I am excited to use a better bike. No offence Allie :)

My goal for this week is to exercise five times this week.

Melanie :)

DAY THIRTEEN - BLOATING

"Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow." ~ Helen Keller

Once in a while you just have a crappy day. I managed to spill not only my yogurt all over my work vest, but my fruit cup as well. I also managed to spill that fruit cup on my chair as well. This stupid prednisone has me feeling bloated. I hate that feeling. Plus I put a dent in the wall at work :(

Today is my rest day for exercise and I kind of miss it. I would love to be swimming right now. Speaking of swimming... I ordered a new swimsuit. I am sure this one will be give me more support than my current one. Especially when I do my water exercise.

Tomorrow is weigh-in number two!!

Melanie :)

DAY TWELVE - UPHILL BATTLE

"The trouble with life is there's no background music." ~ Anonymous

Can anyone else hear the Rocky theme song playing? I made it up that hill!!!! It was slow going, but I made it to the top. The only bad thing about my bike ride tonight was the bugs. There were so many of them and one even flew into my eye. It stung so bad and I could not get it out until I made it back to my car. I ended up biking a total of three and half miles.

I have not eaten enough points today and I am running out of time. It is so hard for me to remember to eat my snacks at work. All of sudden I will be working and then I look up at the clock and it is almost time to leave. I have to get better at eating my snacks.

I met my goal for the week. I have exercised four times this week!!

Melanie :)

DAY ELEVEN - STRIVE

"The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs... one step at a time." ~ Joe Girard

Left work today and met my friend Jacque' at the Wolverine YMCA. One of the workers there helped fit the strive machines to my body. It was nice being taught the proper way to work these machines. I have always been intimidated and didn't want to use them because of that. After we used all the machine we played a round of Dance Dance revolution. Very fun. I also used a machine where there was three pillars broken into three sections with lights. You had to kick or punch the section when the light turns on. Very fun. I could see myself getting some aggression out!!

I had called my doctor earlier in the day because my cough has not gone away and I am losing sleep because of it. They decided to put me on steroids for six days. Hopefully this will reduce the inflammation and stop this darn cough!!

Jessica told me tonight that there is 0% chance of rain tomorrow. I will be biking tomorrow on the Kent and M6 trails. I gonna tackle that hill. Wish me luck!!

Melanie :)

DAY TEN - CRAPPY WEATHER

"Don't knock the weather. If it didn't change once in a while, nine out of ten people couldn't start a conversation." ~ Kin Hubbard

I was so bummed today. The rain kept me from biking today!! I didn't get the chance to try out my new bike Capri's. I have decided to try to reschedule my bike ride to Thursday. Everyone cross their fingers for good weather. I will be biking by myself, so I have decided to take the M6 trail again. I will let everyone know if I make it up the hill that I had to stop on last time.

Today at my work we celebrated Cancer Survivor Day. My work provided cake, popcorn, cheese, sausage, and pinwheels. They also brought in a coffee cart for our patients. Everyone loved it!! I did not partake of the lovely refreshment's!! I love that my work is so dedicated to our patients and it was awesome to support them in the fight against this disease.

Melanie :)

DAY NINE - WATER EXERCISE

"The shortest distance between two points is under construction." ~ Noelie Alito

I went to the Visser YMCA today because they have a water exercise class that fits into my schedule. All I can say is wow. The instructor for this class is the best one I have ever had in a water class. I definitely got a full workout. Cardio plus strength training. She did this one exercise where you push yourself up on the side of the pool. You do them in reps of ten and then jog to the other side of the pool and do ten more on the other side. It almost killed me. My arms are my trouble areas. I wonder how I will feel tomorrow if I can already feel it tonight. You know what they say No Pain No Gain!!

Today while I was at work I got a phone call from my sister Allie. She was calling to tell me how much she lost this week!! It was astounding five and half pounds. Way to go Allie!! Keep up the good work.

Two workouts down this week and two more to go until I reach my goal for the week!! Tomorrow is Bike riding!! I am so excited to try out my new bike pants!!

Melanie :)

DAY EIGHT - WALKING

"What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight - it's the size of the fight in the dog." ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

It turned out to be such a gorgeous day!! The rain stayed away and I was able to exercise outside. I asked Allie and my Dad to walk from our house down to festival. This is, according to map quest, 2.04 miles one way. We walked over four miles!! It was so much fun to exercise with a group. It distracts you a little bit, so it goes by a little faster. I am so proud of Allie and myself. Especially when we had to tackle quimby street hill. I officially completed the Weight Watchers walk it challenge.

I am excited because I have a friend who is going to teach me how to use the STRIVE machine's this week at the YMCA. I am feel so insecure about using the weight machines at the YMCA, so hopefully I will feel more sure of myself after my lesson!!

I am beginning to think I can really get into biking. I will let you know Tuesday after I try biking with my new padded Capri's. I want to hear from all of you!! What is your favorite type of exercise and why?

Melanie :)

DAY SEVEN - WEIGH IN #1

"Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true." ~ Leon J. Suenes

Today was my first weigh in with Weight Watchers and DRUM ROLL PLEASE......................
I officially lost 4 pounds!!!! I was so excited when I saw the number on the scale. It was a long week, but I made it through. Thank you to everyone who has followed me on this blog and given me helpful comments and support.

I am preparing myself for week number two. I am going to be walking a 5K tomorrow as part of the Weight Watcher walk it challenge. Hopefully the rain holds off and I can walk it outside versus at the YMCA. My sister is going to be walking it with me. Tomorrow I will be going shopping for the weeks food. I am going to bring my points slider so that I can pick foods that are in the appropriate points range. I am excited to plan my meals for the week as well.

My main goal for this next week is to increase my exercise!! I will walk tomorrow, go on Tuesday night bike ride (wearing my new padded bike Capri's), and go to the YMCA twice.

Melanie :)

DAY SIX - TIME MANAGEMENT

"Make failure your teacher, not your undertaker." ~ Zig Ziglar

Wow!! A diet takes up a lot of time. It takes me a good half an hour extra each day just to make sure I have the right foods packed for the day. Especially when I have to pack my dinner as well as my lunch. It will all be worth it in the end!! I am going to have to plan my meals for the week on Saturday or Sunday because I have more time due to not working.

Well, I am going to keep this pretty short tonight. My Internet is not working and I am typing this on my cell phone! More tomorrow.

Melanie :)

DAY FIVE - WATER

"Try and fail, but don't fail to try." ~ Stephen Kaggwa

Today I spent a lot of time in the bathroom. Increasing my water has made me feel more full and less hungry, but it definitely has made my bladder just as full:) I shoot to drink at least 64 ounces of water daily. I usually exceed my goal every single day. I actually gave up drinking pop back on January 19 of this year, so I least I don't have to deal with the cravings for a caffeinated beverage.

I went to the Doctor after work today because I have been ignoring some symptoms I have been having. I thought it was a sinus infection with an earache, but I started coughing and my chest feeling really heavy. Well it turns out that I have acute bronchitis:( The Doctor I met with was not my normal primary physician, but he was really nice and actually was a weight loss and infectious disease specialist. He noticed in my chart that I had lost weight since the last time I was in and got excited. I told him that I had just started weight watchers and about my blog. He thought that that was really a great way to gain support. I told him that doing this blog has already brought a ton of benefits!! Thanks to all of my follower!! I was prescribed an antibiotic and some cough syrup that will knock me out at night instead of waking myself up coughing. I am looking forward to an awesome night's sleep.

Melanie :)

P.S. Rest in peace Rue McClanahan.

DAY FOUR - FIBER

"It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up." ~ Vince Lombardi

Today I had double the amount of fiber that I have been used to lately. I tried a new flavor of Fiber One cereal. I usually get the Raisin Bran, but this time I tried the Carmel Delight. Not too bad, but I still enjoy the other better. I had 70% of my daily fiber for breakfast. I think fiber is important, but maybe I should have gradually added it in if you know what I mean.

Wednesday is 8 pin no tap bowling with Jessica, Jessica's Dad, and Allie. I was trying to figure out how many exercise points it would be on the weight watchers program. Jessica using her math skills figured it out for me (I still don't understand how). She figured I bowled for pretty much an half an hour at a very low intensity. No sweating at all, but it still worked out to me gaining two points.

I am looking forward to upping my exercise next week. I am going to add at least two more exercise days beside Tuesday night bike ride!!

Melanie :)

DAY THREE - TEMPTATIONS

“Good habits result from resisting temptation” ~ Proverb Quote

Resisting the temptation of dessert is extremely difficult, especially when it comes in the form of peanut butter cup cheescake!! We had a drug rep lunch at my work today and that was just one of two kinds of cheescake he brought. I avoided the situation by completely by taking the lunch I had brought outside to the picnic table instead of staying in the lunch room.

If the cheesecake temptation wasn't enough for my day I had to resist skipping Tuesday night bike ride. None of the nurses could go because they had to work late. We were closed on Monday and they had to treat twice the amount of chemo patients that they normally do. Poor nurses, I am sure they would have rather gone bike riding. I ended up going by my lonesome. I did just over three miles. I was on the Kent Trails and decided to take part of the M6 trail. There was a lot bigger hills on this trail, but I only had to stop on one part of the largest hill that I road!! Next time I won't stop at all.

I want to thank everyone so far for all the advice. I need a lot of it.

Melanie :)

P.S. Thanks to Chris and Sarah for letting me borrow their bike rake, so I don't have try and shove my bike in my car!!