Fall Fitness Challenge!!

So a few ladies around the office (and many ladies AND gentlemen in my life) have been aching for a change lately. Not just that, aching for some motivation, some accountability, and some fun...

So I've decided that September will begin my FALL FITNESS CHALLENGE!!!!

What does it mean? 

For the ladies who will join me from the office it will mean a daily ranking system determined by the following: 

1. Physical Activity - SOME kind of physical activity. Goal:  30 min per day, get your heart rate up and/or get a bit sweaty. 

2. Eating Healthy - A GOOD effort to eat within your calorie needs and eat good-for-you foods like fruits and vegetables, lean proteins and whole grains.  Goal: 1200-1500 calories (depending on body size and goals)

EASY right? 

Maybe...

We will rank ourselves by a star system. 

GOLD star - Both Physical activity and Healthy Eating goals were met for the day!

GREEN star - At least ONE of those goals was met
RED star - Not a great day overall...but tomorrow is a new day!

I'm thinking that in order to be effective, this challenge will run between September-December. It's way easier to live a healthy lifestyle if the people around you are doing the same. 

What's the reward?? - Longevity, Health, camaraderie, habit forming behaviours...BUT I'm thinking in the end a day at the Spa would be nice too...More on that later. 

SO, would you like to join us? Print yourself out a Microsoft Word Calendar, get some stars...OR just use a pen and some pictures (Grinning face, smiling face, frowning face?)

You've got 5 days to decide...are you up for the challenge? 

Reflections from the bottom of the pit

I ate icing with a spoon last night. 
I searched my house for anything else terrible and gluttonous that I could follow up the icing for (thank God my cupboards are full of health food)
I played video games for 3 hours instead of leaving my house or calling up a friend.
I used a headache as an excuse to skip out on running group or any workout. 
I allowed myself to feel fat and useless. 

I'm feeling defeated - but what else is new? 

I had lunch with a kindred spirit recently. We're all in this together. 
Hearing her story, hearing her speak of the battle - the SHARED battle - was good for my soul. 
Thank you Barb.

What do I know with absolute certainty? The way that we treat ourselves, the images that we allow "in" and the damage that we do to not only ourselves, but everyone around us is enormous. 

What else do I know?....I can't live there. You can't live there. We can't be angry forever - but we have to be something. Do something, discover something, something different.

Those images and messages affect us whether we rage against them or not. So how to I affect my own internal messaging? I need dig deep into the will power that I know I have. 

Does that mean I have to be skinny? Is thin the magic answer? 

When I lost most of my weight the first time around I was arrogant. I was a self-righteous, annoying bitch who just wanted everyone to know. I made people think it was easy, I used my "thin-ness" to get things I knew Fat me couldn't have...I was also delusional. 

I believed that being thin would change me. That's why it did. I believed that when I was thin I would be okay, and I would stop struggling, and life would be better. 

25 pounds later I realize thin does not equal easy, and it's not getting easier. 
25 pounds later I understand more poignantly what the battle is about. 
25 pounds later I realize that maybe I've never been meant to be a size 8, but a healthy size 12 might not be so ridiculous to aim for.25 pounds later I wish I could gather together every woman and girl who believes she is too fat to live the life she wants and hold her until she knows that she is not a monster, she is not broken and she is better and stronger and smarter than any label, or judgement or bullshit that anyone puts onto her. 

So despite feeling defeated today, I push forward. Not to the magical "thin" Alicia that will finally be okay. 
I'm okay. 
I just need to accept it and live a healthy active life - for me. 

end rant. 

(but if you need to continue to rage on, do so here: http://kateharding.net/2007/11/27/the-fantasy-of-being-thin/)

Triumphant Return

We survived a week in the wilds! 

I have to say, it's weeks like this that remind me of why I do what I do. A group of 20+ youth hanging around and learning and growing...Makes me feel young and refuels my energy! It's more of a spiritual energy that is refuelled however, I'm EXHAUSTED!!!

I was able to get out for one good run with a fellow leader - Sebastian. We did a 6.5k "ish" run around Eden Mills and surrounding area. I was foolish enough to forget that the first 3-4k were all uphill, but the run ends down Ash Street in Eden Mills which is a beautiful tree lined shaded lane sparse with houses and nice and flat. The flat road was the best part, but I was worn out from those hills. By the time we made it back to the cabin my running buddy experienced a back spasm and I was nauseous from the heat. We were quite the pair, but we made it! 

I offered our campers the option of doing a work out every morning, sort of a boot camp style "class" and they were so excited (much to my surprise). Both ladies we took along with us were athletes, taking part in either Hockey or Ringette. As an example of just how naturally athletic they were, at the end of the week I handed them some play-dough to play with during our lesson and they immediately created a ball which they used to play catch... So, true to my word I followed through with what we called an "Early Morning Fitness Challenge" and option offered up to anyone in the camp that wanted to participate. The incentive - the winner of each morning's challenge would be rewarded on Friday with ice cream for breakfast!!! (I realize the duality of the message, but c'mon, it's camp!) 

Sure enough, every morning I had a few youth get up and join me in the field at 7:15am  

Our challenge included a deck of cards, each suit had a different exercise attached to it:

(Hearts - burpees, Spades - Crunches, Diamonds - Triceps Dips, Clubs - Push-ups)
The number of "reps" were indicated by the number on the card:
(Aces, Jacks, Kings and Queens were all 10).
The Camper with the most cards at the end of the work out won. We warmed up each day with 20 jumping jacks and we finished our workout with a jog around cabin line field. 

The Friday morning breakfast ice cream was sweet, the company and the staff were all a delight, and yet I am happy to once again be sleeping in my own bed. This will be a tough week to get back into the swing because it ends in another 3 nights at camp! 

I hope everyone had a great week! 

Running Down a Dream

Hey Friends! 

Time for a bit of a check-in, hope your long weekends have been fantastic, It's been a gorgeous one! 

I'm off this week for an adventure at one of my favourite places in the world, Edgewood Camp. That means I'll be a bit off the grid for the week, so I won't be posting. One of the great things about being out at Edgewood is that there are so many long country roads to discover, so I will be taking my running shoes and exploring! Perhaps some pictures to come next week. Here's an oldie featuring my FAVE CAMP BABE Robyn!!!!! (forgive the picture of a picture) We were too hot for words those days...I believe this was some sort of "Nature" banquet perhaps? 

For all of you, have a great week and keep moving :)

A Positive Spin

I need to thank you. All of you. Those who read silently, and those who speak out. After my last post the responses were overwhelming, and so encouraging. I hate to dwell in the negative, and I'm so honoured to have such incredible friends and family members to help to drag me kicking and screaming out of what could have been a significant rut. Thank you. 

In light of my last post a dear friend emailed me via Facebook and shared a bit of their journey. I'd like to take a back seat on this post and let his story impact you like it did me. For those of us who generally see the glass as "half full" this may ignite something. Thank you so much for sharing. This has really shaped the way I've been thinking about myself and this journey this past week!

I've been fighting my weight every day for the better part of my life, and it's been a losing battle for most of it.

But I wanted to share with you a strange 'shift in mindset' that I've gone through recently.

A few months ago, my wife and I were talking, and we were talking about our weight loss woes. She said something that really got to me. I don't remember exactly what she said, but I'll paraphrase.

Me: I'm going to put a 'fat me' pic on the fridge to guilt me into not snacking. My Wife: How is that going to work? You don't respond well to negativity. Me: *pauses for a real long time, like a 'awkward silence' long time*

It was such a simple statement, but it is so wonderfully true. I do not respond well to negativity. Never have.

I know some people who feed off of negativity. They take it as a personal challenge, either to beat themselves or someone else. I'm not saying that negativity makes me run into a corner and cry to sleep, but I generally just 'filter' it out. It's almost like I just ignore the negative stuff.

So yeah, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I've been fighting my battle with my weight with the wrong weapons.

I put up 'fat me pictures' and weigh myself all the time and say "only 10 more pounds". I guilt myself into not eating. I look in the mirror and lament that it's not happening fast enough, and I critique myself when I'm not keeping up with some arbitrary standard. All this sucks. It just doesn't work for me.

So I'm changed how I look at things. I'm looking at the other side of the coin. It's change in attitude that reflects my normally optimistic attitude. I'm an optimist in almost every sense of my life, except for my weight battle. Time for that to change.

Instead of fighting my weight by looking at how much I have left to go, I look at how much I have done. I put up pictures of 'skinny me', and I put up pictures of my wife and son, to remind myself that I'm doing it for them as much as me. I even put up a picture of a 'StarFleet uniform' reminding me that If I really wanted to be a 'Star Trek' character, I need to be 'fit'. It's weird. I know.

My favourite part of that story is the last line. Fellow Geeks and Nerds unite!

So many thanks for your kind words and encouragement. I hope that you are encouraged as well, we're in it together, and no battle is won alone! :)

Happy Long Weekend Friends!

A Nerdy success picture! Here's to the next few pounds, we're doing great!