I Love Prancercise!

You know I've tried every diet and exercise craze out there.  There is one that came to my attention recently that I knew was right up my alley.

You should also know that the video I'm about to show you is a part of a month long series where I vlog every single day.

The exercise craze I'm sharing with you today is.....Prancercise!

It's fun, it's easy and it's a great workout.  Join me!

Morning Wood

All this week....I've been setting my alarm for 6 am so that I could get up and move my ass.

I'm starting slow....yoga and weights, running in place.  

I have one problem with my plan.  

My alarm keeps waking up my husband.

The good news is that I've lost 2 pounds this week and the bad news is that my husband is very frustrated.

Hiking Red Rocks

On my 39th birthday almost a year ago I made a list of things that I wanted to do before my 40th birthday.  One of these things was to hike Red Rocks. I originally thought I would RUN Red Rocks but I changed my mind. Because I'm not as crazy as I look.

I was so happy when my friend Denise offered to go with me.  She's a true Colorado Girl and loves to hike and go on adventures.  She also likes donuts and we decided to bring some with us next time as a reward for walking up all of the steps.

Plus it would be fun to eat them while watching the boot camp folks.



My lungs were screaming at me to stop and go home...but I kept going! 

I made it to the top!  It looks like that guy is falling down the stairs...and that I'm flipping someone off....

This right here is why I will never do a boot camp.  I don't know what the heck these people were doing.

When I got back to my car...I was conveniently parked at Target, and I was feeling so good and healthy that I bought fresh Wild Salmon for dinner and couldn't wait to go home and make a turkey and avocado sandwich on the Sandwich Thins that I bought the other day.

I feel so good right now that I think I want to do this every single Sunday.  And I learned a new exercise watching a cute little gal.  I'm going to do this every day so that I can have a nice butt like she has.  The boobs will probably cost me a little cash though.





Some interesting facts about Red Rocks....

there are 23 flights of stairs from the road to the stage.
there are 23 flights of stairs from the stage to the top.
there are 46 flights of stairs in the from the road to the top.
there are 196 stairs from the road to the stage.
there are 192 stairs from the stage to the top.
there are 388 stairs total from lower parking to the top.
there are 21 planter boxes total – 9 to the concession stand,12 to the top.
there are 69 rows of seats.
there are 138 steps from the stage to the top on the stairs ( next to the seats ).
if you do add-ons, from the stage to the top, 23 flights of stairs with 8 stairs per flight you will run 4416 steps.
it is a 5K to run all of the wooden bleachers to the top

I found this list on the boot camp instructor's website.  I like the list...except for the fat free stuff.  YUCK!

Top super foods:

1. black beans
2. yams
3. avocado
4. dark vegetables
5. red and black/dark fruits
6. salmon, tuna
7. turkey breast
8. fat free milk
9. fat free cottage cheese
10. almonds, walnuts
11. egg whites
12. water

Worst foods:

1. french fries and chips
2. refined sugar / high fructose
3. white flour / rice / pasta
4. beer
5. soda regular and diet
6. cheese
7. pizza
8. canned soup
9. butter / margarine / dressings     
10. Chinese food
11. sweets and baked deserts

Puddles, Runners and Rats...Oh MY!

I walked in the rain this morning.  I got up, put on my shoes and didn't realize it was raining.  Luckily...I wear a hoodie when I walk so I could cover my head and stash my phone in my pocket.

I was all alone except for this runner guy who was milling about over by Starbucks where the dirt part of the path begins....I walked a short way dodging puddles when he came running past me like a Cullen chasing Victoria and scared the sh*t out of me.  Now I understand why Bella always has that look on her face...it's because the Cullen's scare the poo out of her and she's standing there with dodee pants.

Anyway...I decided that I could not walk in the mud so I turned around and went pack to the paved part of the path and right in front of Starbucks....

A giant black RAT ran across the path!  It scared the crap out of me and I was frozen....and being gawked at by folks in the Starbucks drive thru...so this is when I decided to RUN!!!

I just looked up what it means when a RAT crosses your path and this is what it says.

A rat running in front of you means treacherous servants and losses through enemies.

Thank goodness I just moved into a 990 sq ft apartment and cut all my servants and enemies loose! What the heck does that mean anyway?

So...I ended up walking 1.85 miles and looking a little bit like a drowned rat...

No Excuses Today!

The other day when I went for my walk....I slept horribly the night before and I think it's because I was anxious about going for the walk. I have a little bit of agoraphobia and the thought of leaving my house frightens me. Especially if I'm in a new place.

But I did it!

Last night I told myself that if I woke up around 6am...I would go. I woke up at 6:20. Perfect.

I even ran a little bit but any time I made up doing that, I lost stopping to take pictures. LOL!

See....there really is a Starbucks on my trail.

I'm thinking by next week...I'll be ready to go around the lake twice and then I can stop in for a cup of joe on my way home.  The smell was...heavenly!

Also...I decided to weight myself this morning because TOM is coming.  I lost a pound!
I am now switching my weigh in days to SATURDAY.

I Did It!

I Did It!

I got up and walked the trail by my apartment. I knew there was a lake there...but I didn't know it was this beautiful! I think I want to walk here every day!  I almost forgot to mention...there's a STARBUCKS on the trail.  I'm a lucky girl....




If you look over on the right...you'll see that I went 1.62 miles, in 25 minutes and according to Lose It, I burned 157 calories.  Not too bad.

The great news is that I feel amazing!  I like this feeling....

Eminem made me do it.

My alarm went off at 5:15am this morning...like it does most mornings. For the last two weeks I've been shutting it off in the middle of the night because I'm not getting enough sleep. There is a little boy in my house with sinus trouble and he likes to play in the middle of the night and then he gets hungry. It's really hard to get up at 5:15am when you had to serve snacks in bed to your toddler at 1:36am.

Anyway, I have a ring tone that wakes me up that is somewhat motivating. It is what gets me out of bed most mornings. It's from the Big & Rich Song Big Time.

Today is even better than yesterday

Everything is going my way

I'm living the big time

Once I hear this...it runs through my head a few times and then I get up. Today was tough. For once, I didn't have a headache but I did have a pain in my stomach that I know well. A gallbladder attack.

I haven't had an attack in almost two years but I know why I'm getting one now. I've been eating crap and not drinking water or exercising. It's been an emotional week and I take it out on food. Plus, my sister is here and she buys all kinds of crap and it calls to me from the pantry. Thinking of getting a lock box for her to put her stuff in....

I laced up my shoes, grabbed my water bottle and I was off like a Prom dress. It's really dark in Utah at 5:30am so I've decided to walk through the Adult Living community a few blocks away. It's well lit and there is a little old man that walks there every morning. He's smarter than I, as he wears a flashing red light on his belt. He also bounces a small ball every few steps and his movements are fluid and light. I'm sure he is pushing 80 and he inspires me....

I also ran into the Mormon Barbies that I see ever so often. I wave as they trot by in their perfectly matching workout outfits, tanned limbs and sleek blonde ponytails. I'm jealous of their ability to run....

When I started out this morning,I told myself that no matter what, I was going to go 2 miles....I look at my iPhone and I'm only at 1.26 miles. My knees are sore and my right hip is starting to talk to me.

I'm at a crossroads. I can keep walking straight and go home...finishing just under 1.5 miles or I can turn left, walk up the hill and reach my goal. Before I make up my mind a new song comes on my iPod...Lose Yourself by Eminem.

Look, if you had one shot, one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip?

That was the push I needed and I took the long way home....2 miles exactly!

Are you being consistent?

Last week was kind of tough. I was plauged with migraines so my only REAL workout was last Monday. It was a great one....my furthest yet! I was so proud of myself and felt great afterward.

So here it is Monday again and I'm raring to go. And my legs feel like they are filled with sand and I'm walking through mud. I was so irritated with myself and my body. I felt like all of my hard work the last few weeks was ruined in 6 short days.

I forced myself to keep going and around 1.25 miles...I caught a second wind and I was able to complete my workout with a new farthest distance of 2.06 miles and I even ran a little bit during that burst of energy!

I can't let this happen again! I must be more consistent and that is going to be a challenge since I'm going on vacation next week. However, we've rented a house on a lake and I'm hopeful that I can get up before my family a few times and get in a workout.

Are you being consistent?

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Part of staying consistent for me...is being motivated. I'm motivated by so many of the folks that blog about their journey and I love finding new blogs to read. Over the weekend, I found out (on twitter) about FITROLL. It's a blog roll of fitness blogs and you can add your fitness blog and find other's to keep you motivated. Sounds great right?

Go HERE and find out the details! See you on the FitRoll!

Let's get ready to Zumba?

I like to dance. When I was growing up, I spent hours and hours in my room dancing in front of my mirror. And back in the day when I was a single woman...I was an excellent line dancer. I loved everything about the Achy Breaky Heart! I heard about Zumba the other day and thought it sounded interesting.

Then there was a float in the North Ogden parade with some gals dancing with a sign about Zumba with Amanda! So...I emailed Amanda and I got some info on it and I'm really excited (and scared out of my mind) to try it! I've emailed all my local pals to see if I can get some moral support while I embarrass myself dance my fanny off and a couple of them have agreed to come with me. YAY!!

I'm determined to give this a try because my husband doesn't think I can do it. There is a reason why I've nicknamed him *the wet blanket*. Check out this story that The Today Show did about it.



My husband thinks something like this is more my speed.

I'll show him!!

By the way...RUBY is going to be on The Today Show with Kathie Lee and Hoda. If you can't see it (it's on at 10am in some places) you can see the clip on their website.

Thighs of Steel?

We started Parent/Child swimming lessons yesterday. I was worried about wearing a swimming suit but once I put it on I realized that I didn't look so bad...just really white. I bought a suit last summer from a plus sized store online and it is a very flattering one with a skirt. And I realized that I didn't give a crap what the other mom's thought of me anyway and I was so focused on my beautiful daughter that I never gave it a second thought.

So...I was crouching in 3.5 feet of water, holding my 23 pound 2 year old for 40 minutes. And 15 minutes of that I was crouching/walking in a little circle called the lazy river. My shins had started to cramp up by the end of the class but I didn't really realize just how much exercise I was doing....until today.

I woke up at 5:35am. This is my normal wake-up go for a walk in the neighborhood time during the week. But it's Sunday and I was going to sleep until 7am. I decided that since I was awake...I should go walk. Great Idea, until I got out of bed....and almost fell to the floor!

The fronts of my thighs are in horrific pain! We live in a 4 level house and it is all I can do to get up and down the stairs! And my left arm (the one that was holding my daughter the most) is almost unusable.

On the one hand.....I am in pain but I'm also thinking AWESOME! I got in a work out bobbing in the water! I'm going to have THIGHS OF STEEL by July when this class is over. My legs are going to looks amazing!

YAY EXERCISE!

my beautiful family