Weight and Measures

On Saturday, I went to Cynergy for my weight and measurements to see if there were any body changes.
Here are my results:

Lost 2 pounds of fat and gained muscle

Lost almost 2 inches off my waist

Lost 2 inches off my hips

Lost 2 per cent of my body fat.

Lucky number 2!!

I plan on measuring my bust, neck, arms, thighs, and calves before next boot camp so I can see what changes happen in those trouble areas.

Gut Instinct: Numbers showing lost inches and pounds are important and exciting but more important and exciting is how you feel.
I feel wonderful!!

Boot Camp-Week 4--the Last Day

The last day of boot camp was Friday. Test day. We did the exercises we completed on the very first day of boot camp.We had to count the reps to see what improvement, if any, was made.

Here are my results as I remember them:

Push-ups: first day=11 last day= 40



Sit-ups: first day=15 last day= 40


Squats: first day=26 last day=51

Burpees: first day= 6 last day= 8 (UGH-I find these difficult)



1/4 mile run: Time-first day=3.26
Time-last day =3.05 (with a healing sprained ankle)

Cyndi will be emailing the results so if I have any of these numbers incorrect I will change them later.

I am pretty happy with the results. I had improvement in each area. I surprised myself with the push-ups. I did them full plank and lasted a lot longer than I thought. Admittedly I paused a couple of times for a few short seconds. Same with the sit-ups. I don't do them as fully and as well as I would like but I did better than I usually do.

I am happy and proud that I never missed a day of boot camp and that I challenged myself. I survived boot camp!!

I loved it so much I signed up for the November Boot Camp-the last session of 2007. It starts November 5th but in the meantime I will do the metabolic training (advanced boot camp??) for the week before.


Gut Instinct: If I exercise and eat right, I gain strength and flexibility. Confidence and self-esteem are additional benefits.

Boot Camp-Week 4 Day 4

Today was yoga day at boot camp. No intense cardio. No weights. No sweat. You know what? I missed those things.

A sweet young woman from the Hanson Holistic Center taught the class. I've taken yoga many times in the past but it has been a few years so I was a little rusty and at times I couldn't support my body with my weakened ankle. That's the great thing about yoga though, you can adjust it to your level. We did all the usual asanas such as swan dive, downward dog, upward dog, tree pose, the pigeon, warrior, and my favorite, child's pose.

It was a nice change but I didn't leave boot camp as energized as I usually do. I felt tired more than anything else. I prefer yoga at the end of the day or on days when I can go home and relax afterwards. Several women in my class that had taken boot camp before did not come today so I wonder if they feel the same way I do. I did see one woman from my boot camp class in the earlier metabolic class that was ending as we started.

Tomorrow is the last day and I think we will be retested on the exercises we did the first day: push-ups, sit-ups, burpees and I forget what else, probably squats or weight lifting of some kind.
It will be interesting to see what improvement I have.

Gut Instinct: Yoga is great for the body, mind, spirit. Cardio and Weight training are also wonderful for body, mind, spirit and ATTITUDE!

Boot Camp: Week 4-the last week

It's Wednesday, the third day of my last week of boot camp. And man, it's been an intense week of working out. My ankle is still not 100 per cent but it's getting there.



As usual, I find Mondays the hardest day after not working out all weekend. I have to remember if I do boot camp again that I should try and do at least one workout, walk or something so I don't surprise my body every Monday morning.



Since last week, Cyndi's been warning us about Tuesday the last week. It's a huge challenge and former boot campers remember it with dread. One woman said she felt like crying last time. So yesterday, Tuesday, finally came and I was a bit nervous. I still worry sometimes if my body can handle all this work. The main event was called the Team 1500. We were divided into teams of 3 and the challenge was to keep moving and to build on each other's reps until we got to 1500. I'll try to explain. One person would do the exercise, the second person would be doing cardio (run, hop, skip, high kick and shuffle) and the third person would get to rest. The person doing the cardio would take over the count from the person doing the exercise and then there would always be someone in rest. The goal was to do a total of 100 push-ups, 200 sit-ups, 300 burpees, 400 dumbbell raises and 500 band pulls. ( I think I got all the right exercises listed but I could be wrong about the dumbbell raises).

My heart was racing so fast and hard during this workout but I can honestly say it wasn't as bad as I imagined it would be. Cyndi figures that each person probably does 500 reps total. Amazing. I didn't know my body could do these things. Truly a great workout. My team was great!!

Today turned out to be another intense day. The main event consisted of five stations and each person would work out at their highest intensity for 20 seconds with a 10 second rest for a total of 8 times per station. We had to keep count of our reps and we wrote down on the white board our "lowest set." The five stations were: sit-ups, push-ups, dumbbell squats, burpees, and bandpulls. For example, do as many sit-ups as possible in 20 seconds, rest 10 seconds and do more sit-ups and rest again--keep doing that for a total of 8 times. Then write down the set that had the least number of reps. And move on to the next station. I did the push-ups the full plank way and I think I can finally do them correctly. I was using my knees before because it hurt my ankle but today it didn't hurt as badly and I wanted to challenge myself. Exhausting. I could hear my heart beat in my head. At the same time though I felt such wonderful energy flowing through me. After the main event we did an Indian walk where we walk and throw a medicine ball over our heads to the person walking behind and then the last person has to run to the front of the line when they get the ball. This was the first time since my ankle injury that I could run. Cyndi said it looked like it was getting stronger and that I was running better than I did before the injury! Then we did some cool down and stretches which always feel fabulous after the workout.

Gut Instinct: Don't underestimate your body. Try before you say "I can't."
Your body just may surprise you.

Boot Camp: Catching Up-Week 3

It's been a busy 10 days so I haven't been blogging. I gave myself a graduation party on Saturday. In May I graduated from Curry College with a BA in Communications after 5 1/2 years of night classes. The summer was too busy so I waited until the Fall to have a party. All last week after Boot Camp I came home and cleaned and prepared for the party. No time to blog. So here's a condensed version of what happened at boot camp last week:

My ankle is still swollen and slowly healing so my workouts have been adjusted to compensate for my ankle. I do the row machine instead of running. The workouts each day seemed to get progressively more difficult. More reps. More weight. More running. More cardio. Cyndi said something like, "It's the third week. It should be harder." Even though it seemed harder it was actually more of the same that we had been doing the past two weeks. I enjoy the boot camp days the best when it involves more weights than cardio. But since you have to give your muscles a days rest in between, two days of boot camp are more intense cardio. I enjoy all the workouts and when I'm doing cardio I am so aware that I am burning calories and fat. But building muscles helps to elevate your resting metabolism and as Martha Stewart says, 'That's a good thing."

The cool thing is though, no matter how hard it is, it's fun and I have a great time. A great time working out..did I really write that? Who is this person? I am finding that I enjoy this workout. I enjoy moving my body. I like building muscles and strength. I still don't like burpees but maybe when I can do them right I will (but I doubt it). I don't think I've lost a ton of weight. I cheated and weighed myself and it looks like 5 pounds or so. I'm confident I've lost inches though.
I'll find out on Saturday when I go back for post boot camp testing.

Gut Instinct: Our bodies were made for moving. So get moving, your body will love you for it.

Boot Camp: Last Day of Week 2

When I went to bed last night my ankle looked like a baseball..big and round and hard. I slathered arnica cream on it all night. It's a homeopathic remedy that helps bruising, swelling and soreness. I also took an oral form of arnica as well. When I woke up this morning, the swelling was pretty much gone but in its place was a nice purple and black bruise. It felt stiff and so I stepped off my bed gently and limped my way around to get ready for boot camp. Yes, I was going to boot camp. I did not want to miss one day. It didn't matter to me if I was just going to sit and watch, damn it, I was going. I rubbed more arnica cream and put an ankle support on to help keep any potential swelling to a minimum.

For the first time I was late to boot camp. They had already started the warm-ups so I joined right in with what I could. A few said it was good to see me and I think Cyndi was happy I was there too. They wanted to know how my ankle was and if it was still sore. One woman called me a "trooper."
I told them all I just couldn't miss it. I'm committed to this boot camp, NO, I am committed to myself , my health, for the first time in a long time.

Again the main event was a team activity involving running, dragging a tire behind you, squats, push-ups, sit-ups, high knees, burpees, weight lifting, and carrying a 40-pound bag. I could do some of those but for the running and the walking ones I did the rowing machine. This is going to sound odd, but I was disappointed that I couldn't do the tire dragging and the 40-lb bag. Those are challenges I would have liked to try. But I am thinking about doing boot camp again sometime so I am sure at some point I will get to do them.

I am hopeful that over the weekend my ankle will heal more and by Monday I will be able to do a little bit more. And more each day. Only 2 weeks left and I want the best possible results. This has been an exciting, invigorating and challenging two weeks. I have gotten stronger in just two weeks...body, mind and spirit. This boot camp has been about so much more for me. I am stretching my physical and mental limits beyond anything I could imagine.

Gut Instinct: An injury doesn't mean you have to quit or sit out, just re-adjust the workout to use other parts of your body to keep your metabolism and muscles working.

Boot Camp: Injury-a rite of passage to fitness?

Week 2 Day 4 and yesterday I wrote that I felt like I needed a break. Well, God, or Universe if you will, listens and gives. But I wish it wasn't so literal. Let me explain. Today, raining and grey, I went off to boot camp knowing it was probably going to be a cardio day because we did alot of weight work yesterday. The white board had the word "run" on it several times. UGH. More running. But, hey, I know cardio is what burns the fat and I thought to myself I will do the best I can.

We start by doing some intense rotations of push-ups, squats and sit-ups. And because I struggle doing the standard push-up Cyndi told me she wanted me to try something new. She had me suspend myself from a giant band attached to a pole in the gym and do push-ups that way. The band would support me so I could do plank push-ups and build up my upper strength. It was fun actually. That was all indoors then we moved outside and that's when the trouble began.

We laid our yoga mats on the wet ground and they became spongelike from the rainy mist. We were going to do alternate sets of exercises with a run in-between. The first exercise was a "high knee." We were to step up on this cement, short wall, like a sidewalk, with one leg and bring the other leg up high but not touch the step with it and bring it back down to the street level and do that over and over. The first time I tried I lost my balance but regained it quickly then I thought I had myself in good form and then...boom..crack...I went down on my ankle all the way to the ground. Shit. I thought I heard something crack. I have weak ankles to begin with and my left ankle has been sprained more times than I can remember. It's why I don't ice skate or rollerblade. I heard Cyndi say "Ohmygod, are you all right?" And I said I hurt my ankle. We looked at it, it hadn't started to swell so LeeAnn, a woman in class who owns a holistic center in town came over and performed reiki on my ankle immediately. Her hands emitted such warmth, I could feel the pain leave my ankle and go up my toes and out. Literally that is what it felt like. I laid on the wet ground while she raised my foot and wrapped her hands around my ankle. I laughed and told Cyndi, "Well I guess I don't have to do all that running now." I finally felt ready to sit up and I tried to stand. I could wiggle my ankle so we figured it probably wasn't broken. As Cyndi and I walked back to the gym she mentioned that this particular day of previous boot camps several people had gotten hurt before and that they will have to take a look at this to see if there is something that needs to be changed. She also said that maybe my body wasn't ready for that particular exercise because it does require a lot of stability and balance. I limped my way inside and told Cyndi I wanted to keep working out. She put me on the rowing machine, which I've never tried before, and I did most of my workout there in addition to the push-ups, sit-ups and chest-to-knee pulls none of which involved my feet. By the way, the rowing machine is an intense workout. Upper and lower body. Feel it everywhere. I probably should have gone home and put my feet up but I cannot tell you how mad, how seriously angry I was for falling. I wanted to do the workout. I want to do this boot camp. I do not want to quit.

Yesterday I wrote I wanted a break but I didn't want to break or sprain any bones to get it. I guess I have to be careful what I wish for because I don't know if I'll be able to workout tomorrow.However, I do plan on going and doing anything I can do without hurting my ankle. To top the day off I also got my period for the first time in two months...sorry if that's too much info. But it's relevant because I think it effects the way your body works and it could have affected my balance today, which admittedly isn't great but I felt like I was doing it. Plus I also had to work at the bookstore which means I'd be on my feet all day. I should have called in sick but I was hoping that if I keep moving, my ankle will do better. I got some arnica gel and homeopathic meds to help the swelling and bruising and I also bought an ankle support and a cold wrap pack to put around my ankle while I work. Work was fine and I limped my way around the store. By the time I got home, my ankle was swollen and black and blue. I raised my ankle and put more icepacks on it. Thankfully, my daughter made dinner AND cleaned up.

I am praying that my ankle heals quickly so that I can do the rest of the month of boot camp. I am so mad and sad as I write this I could cry.

Gut Instinct: Ask, believe, receive. Be sure of what you wish for, you may just get it.
(I hope that means my ankle will be better by Monday.)

Boot Camp-weights and men

Middle of week 2 boot camp and admittedly I am a little tired of working out everyday (well Mon-Fri to be exact). Don't get me wrong. I still love boot camp but I could use a break. The momentum is hard to maintain but I am not quitting...HEAR ME LOUD AND CLEAR...I am not quitting. I'm in this for the full 4 weeks. This is for me, my health, my family.

I have callouses on the palms of my hands. I think it's from the weights and also from supporting my body when I do push-ups and plank and pike (like a downward dog) but I noticed them hurting today. We did alot of weight lifting activities today. We had partners to work out with so that made it fun and challenging. There were two men dropping into our class today. It's a little weird for me to work out so closely with men around. Sure, there would be men at the gym I used to go to but this is such a small and intimate group that I sometimes get a little self-conscious. Surprisingly, today I didn't. They were really nice and friendly. big guys too, and kind of cute. I think they're firefighters or EMTs.

I ran the full 1/4 mile today without walking in between which is a first for me so I MUST be building endurance. I patted myself on my back, thank you very much. I'm also getting better at doing burpees. They're my least favorite exercise that we do (well that or push-ups) and Cyndi thinks I can do them but I let my mind tell me I can't. I do a modified version because I just can't lift my legs up in a jump behind me when I am bent over at the waist. She said it is something to with the flexibility in my hip joints. Check out their website at Cynergycoaching.com and click on fitness and boot camp and you can see a video of people doing burpees as well as some other exercises we do.

Two more days this week and then the weekend rest, except I have to work all weekend. UGH.

Gut Instinct: Pat yourself on your back for all your successes, no matter how small or how big.

Boot Camp: the day I almost cried

Woke to a lovely day but I had a slight headache. Boot camp with a headache will be an experience but I don't want to miss a day. I'm like a little kid, hating missing things.I dragged my butt, got dressed but only had time to eat a banana and half a EAS Myoplex protein shake.

First one there again and as I scan the white board for the day's activities, I can feel my heart and head pound even louder. Every exercise involves JUMPING and there will be not one, but TWO half mile runs. My body felt tired already but Cyndi assured me that today's workout will invigorate me. But jumping with a headache?? UGH, No complaining is allowed at boot camp but I did tell Cyndi I had a headache so she'd know why I might not work up to my potential. After doing a series of jumping jacks, jumping lunges, jumping jacks and more it was time for the first 1/2 mile run. I am not a runner and when I do run it is not with long strides. I have short, perhaps some would call stubby, legs. My legs are strong but I don't have a lot of endurance in my legs or more so in my lung capacity. I ran the first 1/4 mile at a slow pace so I could try to keep up. I kept on running the 1/4 mile back and I still had two laps to do. Cyndi ran along with me motivating me to continue. "You can do it. You're almost there.Remember why you're here." I made it. One lap. The second lap I started out running but slowed to a walk the rest of the way. On my way back up I felt like I could run but my hamstrings were screaming, STOP! I felt like crying. This was the first time since starting boot camp I could have cried. My legs hurt, my head hurt, my lungs hurt. So I race walked and again Cyndi called out encouragement and she said, "This is when you're in the fat burning zone. Keep going." Huffing and puffing I made it back to the starting line!! Yay! Cyndi said, "I'm proud of you." And you know what, I'm proud of myself too. I wanted to give up but I didn't. When it hurts, it becomes more of a mental challenge than a physical one to keep going.

Gut Instinct: Your mind is stronger than your body and can get you through anything. Remember the old saying, "Mind over Matter."

Boot Camp: Week 2, Day 1

Mondays are probably the hardest day to workout. Especially Mondays like today. It was pouring out and even though I love rainy days, it's hard to get motivated. Boot camp is never cancelled because of weather (unless I'm assuming there's a blizzard). I knew I had to get up and go. It would have been so easy to stay in bed. The kids were all sleeping and I wanted to crawl back under those covers. But actually I got up early enough to eat a small, light breakfast of fruit salad and cheese, and I even had time to do my morning pages. If you've never read "The Artist Way" by Julia Cameron, I would highly recommend it especially if you are a creative person. In the book she suggests you write 3 pages of stream of consciousness when you first wake up in the morning. It gets rid of all the busyness and crap in your head. But I digress.

Dressed, fed physically and mentally, I made my way to boot camp. Not one person from my group was there and it was five of nine. Cyndi figured the rain was keeping them away, then one of the young girls showed up and Cyndi called us "die-hards." I had to giggle...me a diehard?? Eventually a few more showed up plus a couple from another class. After a short run in the rain we were able to stay inside for today's main event which was a ladder/progressive workout. We split into teams of 2 and we had a list of exercises to do until the count of 10 but we alternated. The first person in the team did one push-up then the other member did one, back and forth until a team reached 10 and 10. We did burpees which I still struggle with, Russian twists, jumping squats, lunges, jumping jacks, over head dumbbell press. I found the overhead press, even with only 10 lb weights in each hand, difficult to do. It seems my right arm is weaker than my left which surprises me since I am right-handed. But whenever we do something where my right hand has to hold my weight or 10-15 lb weights, I struggle, my arm shakes, I can feel slight pain. I can do bicep curls with no problem most of the time. As usual the workout was fabulous and I left feeling very energized.T he main event went quick today and we got into our stretching and the day was done. YAY! Week 2 day 1!!

I went home, had a brunch with one of my daughters and afterwards we put up the Halloween decorations. I love the orange lights on my porch, very festive yet soothing. Lighted haunted houses, black cat candleholders and some wall hangings complete the decorating.

On my way home from boot camp I had stopped at one of those little vegetable stands people have in front of their homes and bought some fresh corn that we would have for dinner tonight. Corn is not the best food because it is a high carb food but we never have it and let me tell you, it was the most delicious corn on the cob I have had in a long time! We had chicken and salad with it so the meal wasn't too carb-licious.

Gut Instinct: One side of your body may likely be stronger than the other. Work out both sides equally and eventually the weaker side will catch up.

Aaahhh, today is a beautiful cool, grey October day. My kids and I were all able to sleep in and it felt great. I woke rested and ready for the day. No work or outside obligations...or boot camp. However, I thought, THIS is workout weather.

My body feels a little ache-y but strong and alive. I'm aware I have muscles where all I could see was fat before. Slowly peeling those layers off pound by pound. My angel therapy practitioner-hypnotherapist-teacher gave me an image, while under hypnosis, of me standing and unzipping the fat layer off exposing the true me, a thinner, healthier me. I love that image. Makes me think of SuperWoman.

Yesterday I pulled a muscle as I turned around to back my car into a space at work. Here I am twisting, jumping, lifting weights at boot camp and I pull a freaking back muscle by driving. A little better today but I also noticed I have a couple of bruises on my ankles and upper arms. Not sure what they're from but I wonder if it's from exerting too much.


Tomorrow, Columbus Day, I have boot camp. No holiday from boot camp. They have boot camp on Thanksgiving morning if you do the November boot camp. Hard core. Mondays are probably the hardest days of any workout. But the body remembers and responds because it likes the work and the attention. I can almost hear my body saying, "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You love me You really love me (a la Sally field)."

Gut Instinct: Our bodies were divinely designed to move. Thankfully, we're also designed to rest and renew after we move. Move. Rest. Renew.

Boot Camp: Week One Done!

Day 5



The final day this week for boot camp. Yay! I made it one full week. Only three (gulp) more weeks to go! I can do it. I can do it.



My body didn't hurt at all this morning. Wow, I'm surprised. But I can feel my muscles getting stronger every day. Amazing.

Apprehensive about what to eat before camp. I didn't get up early enough to eat 2 hours beforehand. So I went light. I had an apple and BabyBel cheese. Cyndi is away today for a wedding in Cleveland, so Kara, a client and some time assistant, is leading boot camp today. I met her my first day. She's cute, motivating and fun. A heavy set younger girl assisted and I spoke with her afterwards. She did boot camp all summer and has been working with Cyndi since February. She's now in the advanced Metabolic Training and has lost 35 pounds. She did all the exercises with no problem. She's very inspirational.

We did some fun stretching exercises across the parking lot such as those programs football players do...shuffles, high kicks, butt kicks and karaoke (walking sideways with one foot crossing over the other).
Today we would be broken into two teams (and we had a few missing women but a couple of different women from another boot camp) and we would be playing cards...well using cards....here, let me explain. Each card number is the number of reps of an exercise that you'd do and the suit represents a particular exercise. One exercise for each suit. For example, hearts were squats, diamonds were sit-ups, clubs were burpees, and spades were push-ups. So a ten of diamonds meant you did 10 reps of sit-ups. When a joker was drawn you'd run a lap and come back and all reps would be doubled until another joker was pulled. Each 4-woman team had their own deck and who ever finished going through the deck first would choose 4 new exercises to do. Actually I found this to be extremely fun, yet still challenging. The sun once again beat down on us and it got to be so bad I did most of my exercising inside the gym where it wasn't really cooler but shadier. Luckily, I didn't get nauseous. My stomach wasn't 100 per cent but much better than the past two days.

So week one is complete. I can rest. There was a quote on the white board again at Cynergy. "The weekend is here, you can rest then, but not now."
I am proud to say that I finished week one and I'm still standing. One day at a time as the saying goes. This boot camp is exactly what I've been looking for. I'm already thinking about November. Not sure if I could do another month so soon. More importantly, I may not want to spend the money...it is close to Christmas. But I would like to do something so I stay working out at Cynergy, that's how much I like it. I will have to talk to Cyndi about it.

Gut Instinct: Food is Fuel. Just make sure it is the right fuel for the exercise.

Boot Camp: Day 4

Day 4
Woke up to a foggy morning, like my brain. Late night because of the ball game and had to make myself get up, but at least this time I wasn't grunting. I actually felt good and my muscles did not hurt like they did the day before. Once again running around to get ready but I knew I had to eat something lighter because I didn't want to be nauseous again. I made myself a smoothie with whey powder and raspberries. I had a little mini BabyBel cheese with it.

By the time I got to Cynergy it was probably close to 80 degrees and HUMID...this is October; I thought it would be nice and cool. The heat and I are not good friends and exercising in the heat is the last thing I want to do. Usually I look for shade. I've started wearing a sweat band around my head because I was leaving boot camp with a totally wet with sweat head. Gross. It dripped into my eyes and burned. I felt like Olivia Newton-John when I put it on. "Let's get Physical, physical." I may look like an 80s throwback but it works, I can leave not looking like a stringy, thin-haired yucky sweat ball. Like the visual?? Not attractive.

After the usual round of warm-ups we got ready for the main event. Relay races...well sort of. Today we were broken into teams of two and Cyndi the trainer was my partner. No losers, only winners because we were doing it. There were 3 stations set out and at each one you would do an exercise for 10 reps and then back, and your partner would go to the same station and on return you'd go to the next station and so on. The three exercises were the kettle squats, 15-lb weight arm raises and sit-ups. We did that for 8 minutes. I'm happy to say that it was great that Cyndi was my partner because she called out encouragements as I struggled to complete the exercise and I think if I had someone else as a partner I'd be slowing them down. At one point I was struggling to get the 15-lb weights up and above my head. Cyndi yelled out, "Dottie, you're doing great. Remember why you're here. Push! You can Do it!!" And I did!!

Then we did 3 different exercises for 8 minutes again...they were burpees (which now I do modified until I build up my hip flexors, squats with weights and arm raises, and the Russian Twister (sit on your butt with your legs bent and preferably not touching the ground, holding a 5-lb medicine ball and twist side to side). Because alot of those exercises involve the core, I got nauseous again!! Plus the sun beat down on us and the air was so thick and icky. "Eat earlier," Cyndi reminded us. I told her I thought an hour before was good but she said even 2 hours would be better. I have a hard enough time getting up at 7:30 to leave by 8. Jen, the new girl who started the day before, was extremely nauseous. She had oatmeal for breakfast and felt very ill. She couldn't do the cool down. She said her head hurt too. She felt lots of pressure. It was so damn hot and humid I understood completely.

However, we took a walk before cooldown and I walked with Cyndi and Jen. "I have a hard time not weighing myself every morning," I said to them. And Cyndi said, "Don't, because you may not show a loss. You're building muscle and some people even gain weight after the four weeks of boot camp." Inside I was screaming, "WHAT!" Muscle weighs more than fat. But still, how can I not lose weight by doing the amount of cardiovascular exercise and weight training that we've been doing all week?? This is hard work and my body hasn't worked this hard in a long time, if ever! Cyndi went on to say that I will notice inches lost on my waist, hips, legs and arms after the 4 weeks. Which is good, no, great...but I really really want to see lots of pounds lost, well at least 8-10 pounds would make me happy.

We all left camp that day knowing we worked our bodies hard. But you know what? I am having a blast! It has been so much fun! It feels good to move my body and challenge it like it has never been challenged.

Gut Instinct: "If you think you can, you can. If you think you can't, you're right." Mary Kay Ash.

Boot Camp Days 2 and 3

Day 2

Woke up a little sore and stiff, but feeling good mentally and excited about the second day of Boot camp. I UGHed and GRUNTed my way out of bed and showered (why do I shower before camp?? seems silly), ate two pieces of 12 grain bread with natural peanut butter again. Have to find some other good, filling, healthy quick breakfasts. Made my way to camp and when I got to Cynergy I checked out the white board. Each day, Cyndi posts the camp's activities. And all I could see was the word "run" written about 3 or 4 times. YIKES! Run? Me? Can't remember the last time I ran...I think I tried jogging in the 70s when everyone was doing it.

We did warm-ups such as jumping jacks, burpees and lunges. Next was interval training...short sprints and a walk back to recover for 4 minutes then one minute of a mat exercise. Not sure of the distances but it probably was something like 100 yards progressively increasing to 400- 500 yards. In between each 4-minute sprint we went to the mats and did sit-ups, prison push-ups (plank position and one at a time lift one arm up to your chest--I had a hard time getting my left arm up, I guess my right arm is weaker than my left which surprised me), squat and jump-ups and butt wiggles (love the name, lie on your back, lift your hips and legs and "wiggle" side to side. Each run I gave it my all or as much as my all is as compared to others. I ran each time. My breath would be labored but my legs could keep on going. I have strong legs but not the lungs to match. Cyndi told me about a woman who had severe asthma and after 2 boot camps she needed less meds. Impressive. Cyndi reminded me that I am building endurance, strength and cardio/aerobic capacity.

To cool down we walked to the end of the parking lot and did some wonderful stretches. AAHH! Day 2! I did it!

My lovely friend, Michelle B, invited me to shower at her house after Boot Camp because I had to be at work at 11 and I would never make it home and shower in time. Thank God for Michelle and her home that is only 10 minutes away! She set out some soft towels and lit a delicious smelling candle. The hot water as it poured over my body relaxed all my tense and sore muscles. I could have showered all day. Got dressed for work but I forgot my shoes. Michelle wears a size 10 and I wear a 7 but I went to work wearing a pair of her shoes...felt like I was five again and wearing my mommy's shoes.

Made it to work on time, thanks to Michelle's proximity to the gym and to the bookstore where I work. With my big shoes on I helped customers and tried to shelve, but every time I had to squat to put a book on a lower shelf, I had a hard time getting back up. It took holding on to bookcases to push myself to a standing position. Pretty funny to look at but not funny to my sore body. Went to my writer's group later on that night and even though we were just sitting there, my arms would start to ache and
I'd have to stretch. Went home and right to bed instead of watching the TV shows I DVRed. At least I can say I'm getting a good night's rest now. Haven't had insomnia for the past two nights.

Gut Instinct: Warm-up before exercising and cool-down afterwards. Like appetizers and desserts--oh so good!



Day 3

When I woke up today, it took effort to roll over. Every inch of my body felt stiff and my muscles ached. Literally I could barely move. Every inch of my body hurt. Cyndi warned us that the third day would be the hardest. Damn it, she's right! To get dressed took every effort as I tried to hook my bra and raise my arms to put my T-shirt on. "How the hell am I going to exercise today feeling this much pain and stiffness?" Not ready to quit on myself, I managed to get dressed, get my sneakers on and out the door. Veeerrrrryyyy slowly however. Because it took me so long to get ready I didn't eat and knew that would be a mistake. I went to Dunkin' Donuts and got a whole grain bagel and cream cheese. I figured the carbs would be good for a workout. No coffee. Water.

When I showed up at Cynergy I could barely walk. Everyone else felt the same way and Cyndi's response to help that was to keep moving and exercise. She explained that the lactic acid is built up around the muscles causing them to ache and exercising moves the acid out of the muscle (or something like that).

A new girl came to camp today. She's so sweet and she is about my size but not my age..much younger. She is a nurse and has never done boot camp before either. To be honest, I am glad she's there. We chatted about the Biggest Loser and weight issues. During the workout, I think we motivated each other to do our best.

Started the day with a short run to the end of the parking lot and back and we always do some stretching to get our bodies ready for the workout such as neck rotations, leg stretches and plank position, lifting one leg at a time up and back. Always feels great. Today's "main event" as Cynergy calls it was 5 stations with different exercises at each one and we would perform each exercise for 30 seconds and immediately move on to the next exercise to increase our heart rates and keep it there..we did this for 30, 40, 50, 60 seconds progressively. By the time we got to the third or fourth rotations you could see we were all fading and having more difficulty. The 5 stations/exercises we did were: 1)Kettle squats (a 10-lb weight that looks like a kettle thus the name) and as we squatted we swung the kettle up and down to between our legs, 2) sit-ups, 3) burpees (bent over you jump your legs back and then forward-I struggle with these), 4) push-ups (I did modified), and 5) bicep curls and lifts with 10-lb weights.

We went on to do this again with 5 different exercises. Surprisingly my muscles ached less than when I started. But remember that bagel I had for breakfast? Not a good idea. My stomach felt upset and every time I did any exercises that involved my core or abdomen I would get a wave of nausea making it difficult to do the exercises well. When I mentioned that to Cyndi and she asked what I had for breakfast, she said it would've been fine except that there wasn't enough time for my stomach to digest it because I ate too late. She said to try eating lighter and simpler carbs like a banana, a smoothie or an egg and toast. A couple of the other women felt nauseous too so we are all learning. To cool down we took an "Indian walk" where everyone lines up and you walk in a line and the first person starts by throwing a 5-lb medicine ball over their head to the person behind to catch it. and when the ball gets to the end of the line that person has to run to the front. I liked that walk; it made it more fun and challenging.

Thank God I could go home and rest because my stomach still felt queasy. I had a bottle of Coke in the car left over from one of my kids and I took a few sips and it helped. I vowed that tomorrow I would eat earlier and better. My body still hurt a little but nothing like earlier. We had tickets for the first Red Sox play-off game against the Angels and I was worried I wouldn't be able to walk but I did well. I had the end seat so I was up and down all night letting people out. I could feel my quad muscles every time I sat back down- felt like squats.

Side note: Red Sox won 4-0 and Beckett had a complete game!

Gut instinct: Eat small amounts of protein and carbs before your work out and eat 1-2 hours before.

I Survived my First Day of Boot Camp!!

One week since my last post and I've missed telling you all everything. I'm working double the amount of hours I usually work at the bookstore because I need to make more money and until I get serious making writing my career, that's where I'll stay. It could be worse. I love the books, my coworkers and customers. What book lover wouldn't love talking books all day?

But I digress-the real reason for today's post is.....drum roll please.....

Today I started the Boot Camp at Cynergy Coaching!!!!!!!!!!!

Before I went to bed last night I did some exercises I saw on the videos Cynergy has on their website. Could only do a couple. Dear God, I need your help. I prayed, please Dear God, don't let me be the fattest, oldest or most out of shape there.



When I got up this morning, I felt excited and nervous, made myself eat two pieces of whole grain toast with natural peanut butter because the trainer said to eat because my body will need the fuel for the workout. Showered, dressed and ready to go. As I drove there, I prayed some more, please God keep me safe as I work out today. Fleeting thoughts of turning around flashed in my head.



When I pulled into the parking lot of the industrial park where the gym is located in a garage bay and saw the door open, I took a deep breath, got out of the car and walked into the gym. I looked around for people my age, my size. A couple. But they were in a different class before mine. I saw the trainer who was busy leading the class that would end before Boot Camp. I realized I must be the first person there for boot camp. A young girl my oldest daughter's age showed up. She looked like an athlete. I asked her if she had done the boot camp before and she said she did in August but took a month off. She said it was a great workout. Two more 20-somethings showed up. Oh God. They knew each other because they both did September's boot camp. Two more women closer to my age but pounds and pounds and pounds away from my size came next and I found out they also did the August boot camp. One is a runner in fabulous shape and the other woman is doing the boot camps to stay in shape. Two more women were expected when finally one made her way to the gym. She is the owner of a holistic center and is a yoga teacher. She is close to my age but she has less weight and much more flexibility. At 9 a.m. we started and that other woman never showed up.



On a white board at Cynergy this quote (as well as I can remember it) was posted, "If you don't have the commitment to yourself to work hard, then leave. It will save you the embarrassment of quitting later." UGH. I thought to myself "Should I leave?" Damn it! NO! I have the commitment. I want to get in shape and this is the place. Out of 7 women I was the only one never to have taken the boot camp, the only one over-200 and the only one completely and indescribably out-of-shape. I'm there and I'm going to do it...work my hardest and to the best of my abilities as they are today.



We started by warming up doing giant knee lift marches across the parking lot which led into kick backs to our butt the way back, on to skipping which I hadn't done since, what?, 1972, then side sweeps back and forth like football players train, and ended with a short run back. Just like in junior high, I was the last one back. But now I don't care about what others are doing, I'm competing against myself, like my friend, Michelle B. reminded me.



Since it was the first day we did some training tests to see how many we could do, such as push-ups (not the modified ones the full plank ones--did 11), sit-ups (15), burpees (bend, jump feet back and then front and jump up--hard only did 6). A half-mile run was next, which I ran down the slope but walked back. Last one back is out of shape--oops--that's me. However, the women were cheering me on and I felt good. Cyndi, the trainer, commented that at least I was still smiling. I can't remember the last time I ran so I consider the run successful. As the sun beat down on us, we did more exercises with names like spiderman, mountain climbing, dive bombers, squat thrusts and push-up twists. Cyndi said only 5 people threw up at the early morning boot camps. But that was because they didn't eat breakfast. Thank God I did because I could see how your stomach could turn.

However, my hair was totally soaked with sweat..really need some sweat bands; when my hair gets like that you can see my scalp because my hair is so damn thin. My face was beet red too. Luckily I warned Cyndi of that but she did ask if I was okay. And I was fine. I'm fair-skinned and Irish with a tad of rosacea. Combined makes a lovely shade of red...or magenta.



Finally...Time for cool down...YAY!! we did a short walk and I actually got to chat with some of the women. Stretching came next which felt glorious. I survived the first day of BOOT CAMP!



I was so excited I didn't want to go home. I wanted to tell someone about my day so I called my friend Michelle and stopped by. I was still so pumped I am sure I told her everything a mile a minute but sharing this experience with her made me believe that I did it and I can continue to do it!! Even if it will be hard to drag myself out of bed tomorrow morning. Ugh. Grunt, Crack. Snap. Pop (Sounds of my body waking up.)

Went home, had a protein smoothie to help muscle recovery, watched the View and wrote this blog. Working tonight but I can tell that I will sleep so well tonight. I am physically and mentally exhausted!!


Gut Instinct: Even when you want to quit, keep going, it will be worth it.