After Mastectomy Day 12

Good Morning!  I have decided to use the word mastectomy in some of my blog titles so it will be more google searchable.  I really hope to encourage and inform women who may need it.

Today's report:  I think I overdid it the last two days.

I was feeling stronger, and I had basically had no discomfort, so I chose to do a little bit of tidying around the house.  At first I said I would set my phone timer and be up and around for 30 minutes, and then get in the recliner and rest.  That worked for a couple of rounds, but I just kept wanting to do one more thing.  On Saturday, I got myself all ready and attended a 70th wedding anniversary reception for a couple from our church.  I sat the entire time, and we only stayed about 30 minutes, but by the time we got home, I was wiped out.  I mean wiped out!  I got in my recliner and slept for 2 hours!  Frustrating.


Yesterday, I did a little bit more picking up around the house.....trying to get the hospital look out of my bedroom and den.  I folded and put away all of the pajamas and other clothes all stacked around my bedroom, tidied up the various books and cards, and put away all of my medicine bottles.  I folded up all of the blankets in our den, and got rid of all of the stacks of my stuff in there too.  I put away several gifts, put all of my cards in one basket to keep and to re-read....and then I straightened my pantry and laundry room.  I think that was too much.  I felt ok while I was doing all of that, but then the fatigue and for the first time in days, some pain set in.  Frustrating.  So I rested the rest of the afternoon.  And then I showered and dressed and attended our evening church service with my family.  And yes.  That wore me out.  I came home straight to the recliner where I stayed until it was time to read to Leah and Sam before bed, and then I went back to the recliner for the night.

Now, that does not sound like a lot of activity for two days, does it?  But somehow, it was too much!  So I had to take a tylenol last night.  I am resting right now and I plan to rest until 10:30 this morning.  And then I have to get ready, because I have my first post-surgery appointment with my plastic surgeon today at 12:00.  And when I get home from that, I plan to rest all afternoon.  I have learned my lesson.  My mind is willing, but my body is still weak!

"Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others."  Philippians 2:3-4 

I am going to look after the interests of my family and take better care of myself, and not look selfishly at my to-do list, that actually in the long run is making things harder for my family.  

Our school plan for this week:  I am going to read aloud our Sonlight books to Sam, Leah, and Clay each day except for Wednesday (when Jimmy is off and I have another doctor's appointment).  I have asked the three older children to do three lessons in each subject this week--at their own pace.  All I will have to do is check Clay's math and maybe explain a new concept to him.  I can do this from the recliner.  By the end of the week I may have Leah and Sam do some phonics and math, but only if feel stronger.

Fun News:  I got an email yesterday from Beachbody saying that they had shipped my Insanity t-shirt!  Hooray!  You can't buy those shirts, they only give you one if you can prove that you have completed the entire 63 day program.  I filled out in great detail a 3 page application assuring them that I did indeed do every single day of Insanity, only resting two days towards the end when I was recovering from my first biopsy.  So it actually took me 65 days.  Anyway, my Insanity shirt is on it's way!  :)

I Finished Insanity!

Tuesday was my 63rd and final day of the Insanity Workout.  I am a graduate!  I have downloaded the paperwork to fill out to get my Insanity t-shirt.  You cannot buy these t-shirts, nor will they give you one unless you prove that you have completed the program.  I am looking forward to receiving and wearing my Insanity t-shirt!

I did not take before and after pictures, and I forgot to take any body measurements (except for my weight) before I began.  However, on day 22 I took several basic body measurements--waist, hips, thigh, arm, etc.  I measured myself again on day 63, and I was shocked!  I lost 8 inches total!  1 in. in each arm, 1.5 in. in each thigh, 2 in. in my waist, and 1 in. in my hips.  I would have never guessed!  I am so glad that I measured.  My weight increased by 3 pounds, so I am guessing that toning up really does develop muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat.

Looking back, the program was not really that hard, however I was intimidated the first week.  I recommend this exercise program to anyone who wants to lose some weight or simply tone up and increase your body strength.  I would not recommend this to someone who is currently doing NO exercise, but if you are already in pretty decent shape, then you can do it!  I will confess that during some (ok a lot) of the workouts I felt like I was going to throw up!  It is an intense workout!  But I kept telling myself, if I can run a marathon, surely I can do a 50 minute workout!  Shaun T., the instructor is very encouraging, and I enjoyed trying to keep up with the other participants.

I am resting for the next week or so, and I am still unsure of my next exercise plan.  I want to do some sort of combination of running and strength training.  I don't want to lose these muscles that I have built up!  I don't have any half-marathons coming up, but I do plan to run the Coke 10K in May with Leah.  This will be her very first 10K.  She is following the training plan that the Coke Commit to be Fit is publishing on Facebook.  She is running 3 days a week, and has just built up to 20 minutes per session.  She is so excited, and I am looking forward to running this with her!

Insanity Day 44

Yes!  I have completed 44 days of the exercise program called Insanity.  Yes, I am insane for doing it!  But I have surprised myself.  When I first began back in December, I was not sure if I could make it through the first week, much less 44 days!  I am no longer sore every day, and my knees are holding out.  Most days I do the workouts at around 6:00 AM, but on days that I cannot do it that early, I make sure that I do the workout before bed.  I have done a workout as late as 8:30 at night, and then at 7:00 or so the next morning.  I have not missed one single workout!  The schedule is 6 days on, and then 1 day off.  One week I had to take the off day on the 6th day, and then exercise on the 7th day when Sam was sick.

I am seeing light at the end of the Insanity tunnel.  There are only two workouts left that I have never done, and I will do both of them this week.  The rest of the 19 days are repeats of various Level 2 workouts.

Here are a few highlights:

• I have not lost a single pound!  In fact, I have gained 4!  I am hoping that it is muscle!
• I did not take my "before" picture.
• I did not take any body measurements before I began, but I DID take them on Day 21.  I plan to take the same measurements on Day 63.  I am hoping for improvement.
• I am loosely following the Insanity eating plan.  The plan recommends that you eat five times a day, beginning with 300 calories at each meal.  When you enter Level 2 (week 5), you can increase each meal to 400 or 500 calories.  I am trying to eat 5 times a day (really not a problem!), but sticking to 1500 calories a day is tough.  Some days I do, and some days I eat over 2000!  Maybe that's why I have not lost weight! 
• I am much stronger than when I began.  I can do 16 push-ups without a break (boy push-ups!).  I can keep up with the people on the video throughout the entire warm-up and usually through the first and sometimes second round of each circuit.  I improve each time I do a workout.
• I have never sweat so much in my entire life!
• Jimmy bought me a heart rate monitor.  I love seeing my heart rate and the amount of calories I am burning. 
• I am much more flexible than when I began.
• I have really enjoyed this exercise program.  Shaun T. is very encouraging.  
• I am comforted by the people in the video collapsing on the ground at the end of the workouts (like me!).

I do miss running a little bit.  I am not sure exactly what I am going to do when the 63 days of Insanity are complete.  I will definitely get back to running, but I don't want to lose all of the strength I have gained.

I am so glad that I chose to tackle Insanity again.

Choose

Choose

Like I said yesterday, choose is my focus word for 2012.  I have many more things to choose in addition to choosing to be spontaneous.

Jimmy gave a short talk/invitation at our Wednesday night church service a couple of weeks ago.  He said that we are not forced to serve and obey God or follow Jesus.  It is our choice.  A choice that we all must make.  By not choosing to serve God, we are choosing not to serve Him.  That got me to thinking....every action and reaction we make is a choice.  And we are in control of our choices.  From the big choices, the ones that affect the salvation of our souls, to the multiple small ones we make on a daily, even hourly basis, that may also affect our service to God.

So this year I want to make myself aware of the choices I make.  I want to choose the better thing, each and every time.  How do I know which is the best choice? Some are easy.  Some are hard.  But the answer is always found in God's Word, which leads me to my first choice.

1.  Choose to spend time in God's Word.  Daily.  More than once a day.  I began reading the Bible in 90 days for the 3rd time on January 2nd.  I didn't start on January 1st, because I just decided that I wanted to do this again on December 31st, and then I spent a couple of days contemplating how I wanted to do it.  Did I want to read the Bible straight through?  Which version did I want to use this time?  Did I want to read the Bible chronologically?  Which chronological plan should I use?  Where were the 90 day chronological plans?  After much going back and forth, and actually starting two different plans on January 1, I decided to use the straight through the Bible in 90 days plan offered on You Version.  I am using my iPad, and I am reading the English Standard Version, the version I read the first time I did this, one year ago.  I still want to read the Bible chronologically, and I found a great one year plan that includes explanatory notes, but I am going to do it after I do the 90 day plan again.  In addition to reading most or all of each day's readings first thing in the morning, I also am going to choose to read my Bible when I have little snippets of time instead of playing games on my iPad/iPhone.  I like to take my turn with Words With Friends, or play a round of Moxie 2 or Solitaire when I have a spare moment....but this year I am going to choose to read one more chapter in my daily Bible reading.  

2.  Choose to continue to exercise.  I met a huge goal for myself last year.  Run a marathon.  In fact, I ran two marathons last year.  Now, that I have met the big goal, I was unsure of what my exercise goals should be.  So my goal is to just continue.  My short term goal is to complete the 63 day Insanity program, exactly as it is prescribed.  I am currently on Day 23, and so far, so good.  After completing Insanity, I am not sure what my exercise program will be, but it will involve getting back to running, and I will choose to continue exercising!

Right now I am going to have to choose to close this post and get on with my day.  I have many other goals/choices to list, and I hope to get to that tomorrow!

Joshua 24:15

And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.  But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

Colossians 3:1,2

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth.

Just Do The Next Thing

That is my motto for today!  After a week (really 3 weeks) of fun and preparation--cooking, baking, cleaning, wrapping, visiting, celebrating, crafting, decorating, etc., today is all about cleaning up and organizing.  I am not even sure that I am going to make a list.  I am just going to start in my den, and do the next thing.  Again and again until all of the Christmas decorations are taken down and neatly put up, and the floors are all vacuumed--or until bedtime comes, whichever comes first!

We had a fabulous Christmas!  It really was wonderful.  I enjoy the whole busyness of December and all that it entails.  I love creating memories for my family when we do our traditions each December.  I enjoy the work and serving my family, and even though there were times that I was truly exhausted, and I texted that sentiment to my dear friend Lynn and my sister-in-law Megan, I was not complaining!  I was just stating the fact that sometimes doing what you love can exhaust you.  And that is a good thing!  My friend Emily wrote a post all about questioning why she exhausted herself in December, and concluded with the idea that it isn't all about her (or me).  It's her gift to her family.  Reading that gave me a jolt and reminded me that service really is uplifting.  Doing things for others leads to happiness for yourself!  I briefly considered simplifying my December activities for next year, but after reading Emily's post, and also after hearing all five of my children and my husband thank me repeatedly for all of our Christmas traditions, I changed my mind.  I am not going to change a single thing next December.  I have 11 months to rest up!

Jimmy was off all last week, and that really was enjoyable.  We had such a nice week!  He took the children to visit his parents for two days (and unknown to me they were all working on Christmas gifts for me!).  I spent that time wrapping and cleaning, cooking and etc., and it was nice to be able to work uninterrupted.  That was a gift in itself.  We all went to see Authur Christmas one night at the 7:45 PM showing.  I haven't been to a movie that started that late since college!  The movie was hilarious!

My handmade gifts from my family were fantastic, and I plan to blog about them with pictures soon.  Right now I better get started on the big Pleaning Day.  Pleaning is a word my children made up years ago.  On the day or days after Christmas they help me get the house back in order by pleaning----play for 30 minutes and then work for 30 minutes.  I set a timer and we alternate working and playing all day.  That way they get to enjoy their new gifts and willingly help me out too!  Cleaning and organizing is play for me, so I will work, work, work until it's all done!

Two more things:
1.  I have done 12 days of Insanity!  Today will be Day 13.  I have completed two weeks of six days of workouts followed by one day off (Sundays).  So far, no injuries!
2.  I joined Pinterest!  What an addiction!

Enjoying Our Break

Our entire family has been enjoying our break from schoolwork!  Friday night we attended two birthday parties (Jimmy went to one for an elderly friend of ours while the children and I attended a 6 year old's party).  Saturday morning Jimmy ran the Rudolph Run 10K (Patrick House, winner of the Biggest Loser ran it too!).  Jimmy got an autographed picture of Patrick for Julie.  While Jimmy was running, Olivia took the ACT for the first time!  She is very relieved to have that over with.  Saturday afternoon I attended our ladies from church annual ornament swap.  My friend Karen hosted it, and it was a delightful afternoon.  A couple of the ladies and I lingered and enjoyed coffee after all of the other ladies left.  I really enjoyed the visiting!

Sunday night Jimmy took the children to spend the night with his parents, and they left me behind to wrap Christmas presents.  Fun!  I stayed up till 2 AM!  I had drunk a cup of coffee at 9 PM, and I was not sleepy!

Last night we joined several other families from our Keepers At Home and Contenders For the Faith clubs to sing Christmas carols at the local retirement home.  We sang several songs, shared small gifts with the residents, and then stayed for about an hour visiting with them.  I know that I was blessed more than they were with the visit.  My children all want to go back on a somewhat regular basis to visit these residents.  They were so appreciative of our company, and my children enjoyed it so much.  It really is rewarding to make someone else happy!

I began the Insanity workouts yesterday.  It is as tough as I remembered!  Maybe worse!  I have now completed two days, and I am reminded of how weak I can get when I am not doing any strength training.  I have done days one and two, and I am already extremely sore!

Today I plan to make wreath cookies and maybe one more cookie with Leah and Sam (and the other kids if they want to help).

Here is the recipe for Reindeer Food.  I don't know why this is called reindeer food, because it is for people, not reindeer!  It is delicious though!

Reindeer Food

1 bag milk chocolate chips

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup butter

1 box rice chex (13 oz.)

3 cups powdered sugar

Melt chips, peanut butter, and butter in the microwave.  Stir to combine.  Pour over cereal, stirring gently.  Pour powdered sugar over and toss gently.  Spread out on waxed paper to cool.  After completely dry, put in small containers to share!

It's Thursday

I thought that I would share some updates on various areas in my life right now.  December is always such a busy month, and this year it is flying by!  I can't believe that it is December 8th already!

• Bible Study:  I finished my study of the book of Mark, and on Monday, I began a study of the book of Philippians.  I am currently reading the entire book each morning using a different translation each time.  After four or five readings, I will then begin outlining each chapter and taking notes on specific verses.  I am tentatively planning to read the entire Bible in 90 days again, beginning January 1st.  If I do it again, this time I plan to read the Bible chronologically.  I am not sure which version I will read this time.  For my first two readings I used the English Standard Version, and then the New American Standard Bible.
• Exercise:  I have completely rested from exercise since my marathon last Saturday.  Until Tuesday, I had difficulty going down the stairs and squatting down.  Well, I had difficulty walking Saturday and Sunday!  I plan to rest until next Monday, and I am going to do the Insanity workouts again.  Only this time I am going to do Insanity only, and not try to continue running as well.  Insanity is a 60 day program, and I want to do the program exactly as prescribed.  We'll see if my knees hold out.  After the 60 days, I plan to start running again, and I will probably mix running with either Insanity workouts or CrossFit workouts.  I am not sure yet.
• School:  Today is our last day of school until January 2!  The children and I are both excited!  All of our brains need a break!  I will need to do a little bit of planning during our break to prepare for the next semester.  Actually, our 2nd semester will not begin until the end of January, but I still need to get things ready.  I have to plan Julie's Mississippi History course, review her American Literature course, and prepare copywork for Leah.  Olivia is taking the ACT for the first time this Saturday.  She is very nervous!  
• Holiday Hints:  As usual, I work very hard to prepare for the holidays in October and November, and then from Thanksgiving until we finish our schoolwork for the semester, I kind of slack off.  I will begin this afternoon in full force!  I need to update my master gift list with my purchases over the last month.  I also need to make one more final shopping list (I have a few gifts left to get).  I want to plan my holiday menus, finalize our baking lists, choose a couple of art projects for my younger children, and wrap, wrap, wrap presents!

I think that's all, and now I better get busy!

School Is Out!

We finally finished the 2010-2011 school year last Thursday!  Hooray!  Everyone was promoted to the next grade!  For the next 2 years, I will have five official students in my homeschool.  It will take most of our five week break for me to prepare for our upcoming school year.  I plan to blog throughout the planning/preparing process in hopes of helping someone else along the way.  I have a couple of new ideas that I plan to implement--things that I have learned by reading other people's blogs.  I love how we can all share ideas via the internet!

I had previously planned to begin reading through the Bible again in 90 days beginning July 1.  However, the next B90 Challenge hosted by Mom's Toolbox is running from July 11-Oct. 8, so I am planning to begin July 11th.  This schedule will actually work better for me since July 1st is tomorrow!  And I am not ready for this challenge yet!

I have not done an Insanity workout in over a week!  I experimented with doing the workouts with no jumping (as in no moves with both feet off the floor at the same time), and my knees almost immediately got better.  My knees had really been giving me trouble--hurting pretty badly every time I went up or down stairs or when I bent down to pick up something.  Instead of doing the Insanity workouts last week, I did CrossFit workouts instead.  Those workouts don't hurt my knees at all!  I have even mastered the box jump!  The one that Jimmy built for me is the perfect height.  He also built/installed us two pull-up bars, one inside our workout room and one outside beside the driveway.  Jimmy also marked out a 1/2 mile length on our driveway, so we are all set for CrossFit at home.  By the way, I cannot pull myself up even one centimeter on the pull-up bar!

I'll post all about our week at Rustic Youth Camp really soon!

My Saturday

Busy, busy, busy.  That's how it's been around here!

This morning began with Jimmy taking Olivia, Julie, Clay, and two of the girls' friends who spent the night running at 7:00.  I stayed home with Leah and Sam and ran on the treadmill and did an Insanity workout.  My knees have really been bothering me, so today I did not do any exercises that required both feet leaving the floor at the same time.  Instead I just substituted another non-impact exercise for each of those 30 second to 1 minute intervals.  I did squats and two different weight lifting arm exercises.  I plan to do substitutions like this from now on during the Insanity workouts.  I am so happy that I was able to do the jumps (power jumps, globe jumps, basketball drills, ski jumps, etc.), but for the health of my knees, and to prevent me from injuring myself to the point of not being able to run, I am going to continue the modifications.

Next, I took Leah and Sam to a picnic at Trace State Park, which was hosted by our friends, the Guptas.  We enjoyed great food and fun company.  The children played near the lake and found all kinds of treasures like frogs and fish heads.  Thankfully, Leah nor Sam touched the fish head!  The Guptas are originally from India, and after I told Shruti that we had just finished studying the Eastern Hemisphere, and that my children had all kinds of questions for her and her husband, she invited us over to look at her saris and other Indian items.  The Guptas have already hosted us in their home for an authentic Indian meal.  It was delicious!

After the picnic, I returned home to deposit Leah and Sam with Olivia and Julie and take their friends home.  (Meanwhile, Jimmy took Clay to visit his parents and other family). Then I ran many, many errands preparing for our upcoming Rustic Youth Camp.  I am helping to teach 21 five and six year olds (Sam's class).  My Bible lessons on the day I am teaching are Jesus calling the Twelve Disciples and Jesus' first miracle, turning the water into wine.  I bought all of my supplies today for those lessons as well as all that I would need for crafts on my teaching day.  I also did a little bit of birthday shopping for Julie while I was out.  Her birthday is coming up in July.  We just got a Joann's store, so I spent a good bit of time in there checking it out.

I picked up a Father's Day present for Jimmy and stopped by Kroger for a few things for his Father's Day lunch tomorrow.  Lastly, I picked up pizza for supper, because it was close to 7:00 PM before I arrived back home.

After our pizza dinner, Clay and Jimmy cut the grass while the girls and I tidied up the entire house, cleaned our kitchen (it had not been cleaned all day!), folded and put away lots and lots of clean clothes, and wrapped Jimmy's Father's Day gifts.

Now everyone is in bed!

I leave you with a recipe for Shrimp Scampi.  This is a little bit different than how I normally make this dish--it was delicious!

Shrimp Scampi

1 pound angel hair pasta, cooked

2 pounds shrimp

2 sticks butter 

4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tsp. jarred minced garlic

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 Tbs. sugar

1 tsp. (or more) Jane's Crazy Mixed Up Salt

Melt butter in skillet.  Saute garlic for just a minute.  Add other ingredients except for shrimp and pasta.  Let simmer a few minutes and then add shrimp.  Cook shrimp until pink. Pour sauce and shrimp over drained pasta.  Taste and add more Jane's Salt if needed.

Insanity Day 31

I did it!

I am still walking around!  In fact, it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be!  I surprised myself.  I made it through the entire warm-up without having to stop.  Then we did the max interval training which is 3 minutes of a series of exercises (45 seconds per exercise) with a 30 second break in between.  I think we did 4 or maybe 6 sets of the 3 minute torture followed by the 30 second try to catch your breath so you won't aspirate the water Shaun T. keeps telling you to drink!.  I lost count.  The total workout was 56 minutes. 

There were some new variations of push-ups that I couldn't master (some I just couldn't even do more than one or two of)--how many variations of the push-up can Shaun T. come up with?  So I just did the best I could on those moves and substituted with the push-ups that I can do after I tried and failed at the new kinds.  I plan to master those push-ups!

Here are some pictures of Jimmy's latest handy work.

 the new pull-up bar

On the floor, you can see the mat that I do the Insanity on.

This is the plyometric (jump) box.

The main box is 16 inches tall (perfect for Lynn, me and the other girls).  In the background you can see a 4 inch insert which will make the box 20 inches tall (for the men).

the 4 inch insert

the plyo box at 20 inches tall

painted and almost finished--Jimmy has to put a carpet covering on the top so we won't slip when we jump up on the box

Today is NOT a vacation day.  Jimmy went back to work today, so we are getting ready to do school.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Insanity Day 30

Here is Shaun T.'s quote for today: (about 25 minutes into the workout)

If you are fatigued, then you just have to be stronger and push through it!

Now that is a good motto for every day life!  I am going to have to remind myself of that quote tomorrow when I begin phase two of Insanity.

Today I finished the first phase of the Insanity workouts.  The last six workouts have been the same thing:  Core Cardio and Balance.  I have really enjoyed these workouts, because I CAN do the entire workout!  These workouts serve as a bridge between phase one (regular insane workouts) and phase two, called MAX insanity workouts (super insane workouts!).

I previewed tomorrow's workout, and my mouth was literally hanging open as I saw what I will be attempting tomorrow.  I may end up in the hospital!  Over the next 24 workouts, there are five new workouts plus the Core Cardio and Balance that I just completed.  The new workouts have names like--Max Interval Circuit Training, Max Plyometric Circuit, Max Cardio Conditioning, Max Cardio Recovery, and Insane Abs.

I'll blog tomorrow if I live to tell about it!

Insanity Day 15

Today was Pure Cardio, and it was Pure Torture!

Actually, it is getting a little bit easier to keep up with Shaun T. and his crew.  I did the entire warm up sequence, all three sets, without stopping once.  Now that's progress!  I am also experiencing greater flexibility, and I cannot believe how much I sweat while doing these workouts.  I have two fans blowing on me constantly, yet still I am dripping, soaking wet.

I am still experimenting with scheduling both Insanity workouts and running.  This week my plan is/was to do Insanity on Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, while running on Monday (4), Wednesday (8), and Friday (4).  Tomorrow I may run and do the Cardio Abs workout from Insanity.

I am going to skip the Fit Test from now on.  I did it again on Sunday, and it made me feel really bad again.  I improved my numbers in all of the drills, but I had some pretty severe knee pain from one of the exercises (an exercise that I did today, pain free--power jacks).  I think that the warm-up in the Fit Test workout is not enough for me, and also there is too much rest time in between each drill (2 minutes).  It is my opinion that the drills are too intense to be done after a 2 minute break--for me, my muscles are just not staying warmed up enough.  Who knows?  But I do know that both times after doing the Fit Test, I felt terrible.    The Fit Test exercises are ones that you do on other days during the regular workouts, so I think that once very two weeks I will just count how many I do in a minute when we do that drill in the middle of a workout.  I can chart my progress that way.

Here are a couple of quotes from Shaun T. during this morning's workout.

"I am really nervous about the workout we are getting ready to do.  Really nervous!"
He said this at the end of the stretching after the warm-up--very encouraging!

"I am so tired that I can't think of the name of my exercises!"
He said this toward the end of the workout, when he was fumbling for the name of scissor kicks.

My friend Celee is also doing Insanity.  She started after me and has already completed Day 16!  She is pretty much doing it 6 days a week like the program intends for you to do.  It is nice to have a friend (even a far-away friend) to share your workout experience with.

Insanity Update

Well, I have survived 12 days of Insanity!  In fact I did 6 days in a row!  I have really surprised myself.  It actually has gotten easier each day.  I still can't keep up with Shaun T. for the entire workout, and my stomach doesn't look like his....but I can tell that I am getting stronger.  I can now do the first full rotation of each set of three, most of the second set, and I am still hanging on (sometimes barely) for the third set.  At first, I couldn't even stay with him for the first set.

I am resting from Insanity until Monday.  I am running a 10K race on Saturday, and I really want to have a good time.  My PR for a 10K is 55:43 (two years ago), and I would really like to beat that.  We'll see.  Many of our Spartan runners and their parents are running this race, plus some of Jimmy's cousins, and I think his brother, so it will be a fun day!

Whatever your fitness goals are--persevere!

It's Monday!

It's Monday, and it's going to be a pretty good day here at the Johnson homestead!

First of all, Jimmy is off work, so we have no school today. Instead, we are have a home economics day. We will be doing yardwork before the rain comes and lots of laundry. We still have piano lessons and running practice this afternoon, but it is nice to not have to fly through schoolwork in order to be ready to leave at 1:30. We rarely have off days on Mondays, so today is a nice treat.

I will do Day 10 of Insanity today. I am so happy that I persevered with this exercise program. And to think that I quit after the first workout! I am finding that I can do to more and more of the workouts each time. Today's workout is my favorite: Cardio Recovery. That means no jumping around! Just stretching and strengthening. I will also run 3-4 miles this afternoon.

I do not have a Menu Plan Monday today. I did not grocery shop this weekend. I took a look at my pantry, my overflow pantry in my laundry room, and all of my refrigerators and freezers, and I decided that we have enough food. We are eating what we have for this whole week, or until all of the food runs out. I will have to buy some milk today, but that is all. We will be having a creative supper menu this week.

My Sonlight order for the next school year arrived a couple of days ago. I have not even opened the boxes, because I know that Olivia and Julie will devour the books! I need to sort them all out before I turn the girls loose! I also try to hide the books that will be read alouds. I will be doing the following cores next year:

Core 4/5: Sam

Core B: Leah

Core D&E combined: Clay

Core 100 Olivia

Poor Julie does not have a Sonlight core for next year. She will be doing Geography using Around the World in 180 Days (modified) and Mississippi History. I will supplement both of these courses with lots of good books!

I ground my wheat berries for the first time yesterday, and the bread was absolutely delicious! It was the best bread we have ever had! It really was that good. So fresh, so light and fluffy. I love my Bosch and my Nutrimill.

Well, I think that's all of the report for this Monday. What are you doing today?

Our Week So Far

First of all, I am always so glad when Megan attends our family events, because she blogs all about the event before I have time to, and then I don't have to! So please click here to read all about the Johnson Easter Egg Hunt.

Insanity Update: I did day 4 yesterday, Cardio Recovery, and that is my favorite workout so far. No jumping! It was just stretching, squats, and lunges. Today I did day 5, and it was called Pure Cardio. Brutal. I felt like I had just run a race a full speed! So after 5 days, I am now convinced that I am going to stick with Insanity for the next couple of months.

Bread Update: I have been wanting to blog about my newest homemade bread recipe and my new bread making equipment for over a week now. I plan to get to that really soon. The recipe is delicious!

Weather Update: We have been plagued with storms off and on for over a week. Last week we had hailstorms twice in one day, tornado warnings, and severe thunderstorms. The children have slept in the basement twice in the last week because of the storms, including last night. Jimmy and I joined them down there last night for about 2o minutes while the worst of the storm passed through. We were awakened by the tornado siren around 12:45 AM. The weather calmed down around 1:45, so it was probably 2 AM before we went back to sleep. We are expecting more bad weather this afternoon, and I think tomorrow too. I am so grateful that we have a basement. No matter how loud the wind is howling, when we are in our schoolroom with the door shut, we cannot hear a thing!

School Update: We are still working very hard! The girls have both finished module 13 in their Apologia science courses, and I think that Clay has only one more chapter in his Apologia Elementary science book. I have been reading extra in our Sonlight read alludes (up to 3 or 4 hours on some days, total), and I have also chosen 3 books to skip completely. This will allow us to finish up our cores before August 31st. I really hope we are done with all school by the middle of July so I will have time to organize the upcoming school year. I want to begin our next school year in August. I ordered our Sonlight books for next year last week. I went ahead and ordered them because I had a 10% discount that expired April 22. I may have to hide the books when they arrive this week, or the girls will have them all read by the end of May!

Bible Study Update: I am still studying the book of James. I am considering memorizing the entire first chapter. I am currently working on verses 1-3.

Spring Cleaning Update: None! I have good intentions of doing some major spring cleaning, but haven't found the time to do it yet. I'll blog about my plan when I actually make it!

One More Insanity Post

I promise not to blog every time I do an Insanity workout! But if you are wavering about trying a new exercise program, I want to encourage you. Try it! After all of the agony I went through last Monday, I still say, "Try it!".

I did Day 3 of Insanity yesterday morning, and just like the 2nd workout, it really wasn't that bad. Of course I could not keep up with Shaun T. and the other people, but I still got a great workout. Just like on Day 2, by the time he got to the 3rd set of intervals, I could barely even do the exercise. I just modified it the best I could.

My soreness has greatly improved. I am barely even sore now! But, last night my right knee all of a sudden began throbbing. Going down stairs was very painful.....maybe it was the yard work I did late in the afternoon. I did a lot of bending and squatting while pulling weeds and trimming bushes. I also had to take the full wheelbarrow down a very steep hill to dump it.....I am hoping it was the yard work and not the workouts that hurt my knee. It feels better this morning, but the real test will be when I run my last 3 miles for the week in a little while.

Thursday afternoon I ran 3 miles and felt great. Leah and Avery (Lynn's daughter) ran the first 2 with Lynn and me, and then Lynn and I finished up the run alone. I have missed running with her! As we rebuild our total mileage we will eventually get back to meeting for a weekly long run. I am looking forward to that. Running has more benefits than just physical.

How is your exercising going? Are you trying something new? I want to encourage you to do something! If you don't know where to begin, put on some athletic shoes and walk for 3o minutes a day.

Happy Exercising!

Insanity Day 2

Ok, I know I said that I WAS NOT going to try another Insanity workout, but after encouragement from several different people, (and the fact that I was less sore today after completely resting from all exercise yesterday, and also I ran three miles this morning pain free) I decided to try one more workout.

I just completed Day 2. It actually was not as bad as the Fit Test, although it was about 15 minutes longer. It mixed circuit cardio with stretching, so that made it bearable. I did the first two rotations pretty well (a whole lot slower than the people on the video, but I could actually do the exercises). The last rotation was pretty much impossible. I just did the best I could, probably doing 1 rep for their every 5 reps! Yes, it was that hard!

I'll see if I can walk tomorrow! My fitness friends convinced me that strengthening my core muscles and improving my flexibility will benefit my running, so I am going to continue to TRY the Insanity workouts 3 days a week.

I may quit again tomorrow when I see how I feel! I'll keep you posted!

Insanity Day 1

This picture of our barn has nothing to do with this post, but I wanted to share it anyway!

Our dogwoods have been so pretty this spring.

Insanity + Running = Torture

I barely survived Day 1 of Insanity--the Fitness Test. The workout lasted only 32 minutes, but it was TOUGH! My three oldest children watched me try to keep up with Sean T. I was glad to provide them with such comical entertainment at 6:30 in the morning!

This workout consisted of a series of exercises performed for one minute, counting how many you could do in that one minutes. There was also a warm-up, stretching session, and cool-down. After I was finished, I could hardly walk! I continued to be super sore all day, and I had a difficult time going up and down our stairs.

Then I ran.

My legs felt like 100 pound weights. I ran two miles with Leah, and thankfully she needed frequent walk breaks. I ran one more mile alone to have 3 miles in all, and it was PAINFUL. Those three miles were as bad as the last three of my marathon. Really. When I got home, and I climbed the stairs from the garage to the kitchen, I was ready to cry. My legs hurt that bad! And they hurt in places that never hurt after my long runs.

I consulted my friend who had done both Insanity and continued to run. She reported that she was extremely sore for 2-3 weeks! And that her legs felt like lead while running, and that it was a struggle to run at first. So, my soreness and fatigue were normal.....but I began to question myself. Do I really even want to torture myself this way? Last week when I totally rested from running after the marathon, and the week before when I ran very little before the marathon, I felt so good. I was not tired all of the time. Yesterday that familiar feeling of fatigue accompanied me all day, and every time I moved, something hurt. Why am I doing this?

After discussing all of this with Jimmy last night, he asked me what my fitness goals were. Here they are:

1. Maintain my current size.

2. Keep up my weekly running mileage so that I can run a half-marathon whenever I want.

3. Train for the St. Jude Marathon beginning in late August.

4. Run the St. Jude Marathon in under 5 hours. I would be thrilled with a time of 4:59.

5. Run a 10K in under 55 minutes. (not going to happen this May!)

Does Insanity help me to achieve any of these goals? Probably not. Insanity is an extreme workout. Super-charged aerobics. Lots of jumps and squats. It is a great workout, and if you follow it, you WILL be in great shape. But I think I am just going to stick with running. I really don't want to be sore for three weeks, and I am really afraid that I may end up injuring myself. Like Jimmy said, I AM 41! And I haven't done aerobics in about 18 years! My muscles are specifically trained right now to run, and I am just going to keep in shape by running.

So now I am going to rest from running until my muscles are no longer sore. I am hoping to be able to run by Thursday or Friday. Then I will finish my 12 miles for this week and run 14 the next.

So that's my one and only Insanity report!

A Week of No Running

For the first time in probably almost three years, I have taken 7 days off from running. I have rested from running four to six days after various half marathons or maybe during a vacation, but I can't remember the last time I went seven days without running.

My body enjoyed the rest.

It took until last Thursday for my marathon soreness to be completely gone. I can now get out of bed and go both up and down stairs with ease. Nothing hurts! I am all rested and ready to go!

So here is my current fitness plan. Beginning tomorrow, I plan to slowly rebuild my mileage base. I will run a total of 12 miles this week. Three miles a day, four days this week. Next week, I will run a total of 14 miles, and then 15, then 16, and so on, adding one or two miles each week to my total until I reach 30 miles a week by the week of August 1. Then I plan to hold at 30 miles a week for the month of August, and if I am feeling good, and if Lynn agrees to train with me, we are going to begin our 14 week marathon training plan again! Yes! I think we are going to do the St. Jude Marathon on December 3.

In addition to rebuilding my running miles, I am going to try something new beginning tomorrow.

Insanity!

The set of exercise DVDs called Insanity, not actually losing my mind (I have already done that!). I previewed some of them yesterday, and I am not confident that I can even complete the Fitness Test, but I am going to try! The workouts are insane! I am not going to do the program exactly like prescribed--you are supposed to do the workouts 6 days a week for 60 days--I am going to just work through them in order, but three days a week. Now this is still just a plan, because I have not actually done a workout, but I plan to do Insanity and run on two days a week, run only two days, and do Insanity only one day--to give me a total of 5 days of exercise a week. A really fit friend of mine had success combining Insanity and running in a program similar to this, and so I am going to try it. I'll post in a week how it has gone...or if it has gone.