First TRUE 3 mile Run

I discovered that my Nike+ was not calibrated, so today was my FIRST TRUE 3 mile run, my official pace is 13:34.

My 4 previous runs with Nike+ were listed as 3 miles, but it was actually 2 1/4 miles. So 4 laps around a high school track IS indeed 1 mile.

Still, I feel really good about it.
I started at 1 mile (11/3) and today I reached 3 miles.
I am not as out of breath as I was in the beginning, and I'm not sweating as much.

Not sure how I'll get to my goal, but here's another week where I didn't miss my run.
YAY!

Official Blog

Hi!
We have set up the official blog for the program.
I did my best to move over the postings over (the images and nike+ gadget have not made it, yet)

Come visit me:
http://jumpingfrogpilates.blogspot.com/

It's really been helpful to have this practice blog and getting your feedback for improvements.
Keep them coming!

I feel really lucky to have this opportunity to change my life, and grateful to have your support to motivate me.
:-)
YES, of course I'm cheesy... Don't you know me by now?

Thank you everyone!

Jully

First Run with Nike+

Really, how cool IS this?
I had some trouble getting the gadget started (probably because I didn't read the instructions), but once I got it going, it was pretty cool. It was a nice surprise to find out that 4 laps around our high school track is WAY over 1 mile.

I'm noticing that running is getting a little easier for me. My goal is to get to 3-4 miles, and run them comfortably. Virginia told us "You should be able to hold a conversation when you run because the body needs oxygen to burn the fat". I'm definitely not there yet.

I have to admit, it was tough to get up this morning for the run, but I reminded myself that today was the only time I could get my run in for this week before tomorrow's session.

Honestly... it's only my 3rd run since the beginning of this experience and I really hope I can keep this up. To me right now, moderation is the key. As long as I don't over do it...

Body Unconscious

Yesterday was my first session at the Tenafly Studio, which had more machines, such as the chair, the cadillac, some kind of semi circle wooden unit, and lots of other props. I didn't get to use them, but guess which one is used for what?



The session flowed much smoother than the previous two, one exercise right into the next. We were more comfortable, understood the intructions, and we began to feel and move along with our breath. The full connection is still not there, but I can sense that I'm getting there.

After each of the sessions, I get in the car and feel tighter in the mid section of my stomach right away. Overall, I have started to notice my body in an unfamiliar way. This is going to be a bit tough to explain. What I mean is, I am now realizing how fat I am. Yes, I'm using the word fat, don't worry, I'm ok with it (now).

For the past week or so, I've been looking at my body a lot differently. First thing, I am "LOOKing" at it. I can see the size of my calf, my waist, my arms, my double chin, and so on. I have looked at myself in the mirror plenty of times before, but I've never noticed it quite this way. I found myself saying, "Wow, I am pretty big."

Now, don't feel bad... because I really don't. I feel like I have opened my eyes and have finally seen what I really look like. Really, I do weigh 188 lbs! In my mind, I think I stopped gaining the weight, and stopped getting bigger visibly even when the scale told me otherwise. What's that called? Body Dysmorphia? Ok, not THAT bad, but I really have been unconscious of how big I've become.

I can now focus on a few parts of my body and feel the muscles. They've always been there, but now I feel them in ways I didn't before. I can only compare myself to the people on the "Biggest Loser". You wonder how people ever allowed themselves to get that big? Well, I get it...

Running

I did my 2 mile run this morning and I feel great about it.

For work today, I attended a conference and one of the presentations spoke of Nike+. I've actually got a pair of Nike ID Zoon Jasari+ last month. The first time I wore them was on 11/3, after my first introductory Pilates session. I was sort of saving it for a special occasion. I only have an ipod shuffle, so I was not able to activate the Nike+ functionality, BUT today during the presentation they talked about the SportsBand, which does not need an ipod. It shows distance, pace, calories, and much more. Of course, during lunch I went out and got it.

Here, you'll be able to see if I meet my goal of 2 runs per week. As you can see, for now it's still empty (even though I've already had 2 runs). My next run will be after my Wed. session. I'm just excited for my next run to see how the nike+ tracking will get updated. Very excited!

My weight

Today I jumped on my friend's scale. I weigh 188 lbs.
This is the number I have to associate with my body for now.
Part of me felt a relief, and another was in disbelief.

Relief because I am not 194 lbs or more. (This is the most I have EVER weighed, so of course to me it's the number to fear.)
Disbelief because at some point during the past year I was 175 lbs and I had not realized how much weight I had gained.

I kept telling myself that I was bloated, I was stressed, and really believed that at any point I would go miraculously stay at 175 lbs.

BUT the scale doesn't lie. I am 188 lbs.

Realistically, I can only imagine losing about 20 lbs, which would put me at 168 lbs.

Ideally, I would love to be in the 150's, which I have not been in a VERY long time. I was probably 17 when I was in the 150's, and came back to that weight again in my mid 20's. After I had reached my max of 194 lbs, I dieted by taking medication. I started at 194 and ended at 154 lbs in a matter of 3 months. I stayed there for about 1 week, before I gained every pound I had lost before the diet.

Eventually, I want to be 130 lbs. That would make me happy. Not 110 or 120... I don't want to be skinny, I just want to be normal, healthy, and outside of the "obese" category.
Of course, this would mean I would have to lose 60 lbs.

My actual weigh in for the program will be this weekend. I hope the numbers will look better by then.

Activity: I didn't go running today, but had a light lunch and dinner. I plan to go for a run in the morning.

Body: My body is still sore in a few areas. At this time, I'm not sure if it's from Canyon Ranch or from Saturday's work out. My ribs are sore (right below my chest), my triceps are tight, my lower abs hurts when I sneeze or when I try to get into the car, and the thighs.

Learning: Just Pilates alone will not do it. I have to do cardio AND become more concious about the food I ingest. Yeah, it's that simple. Right?!?!

2nd Session - 8th Day

We didn't have our weigh in nor our measurements done today, but I had a FULL hour of pilates this morning. Twenty minutes into the work out, I was breaking a sweat.

There were a few exercises I just couldn't do properly. It was difficult keeping my neck and shoulders stable in the right place.
After the class, Shannon, my pilates buddy, and I caught up. This was the first meeting with each other after the first introduction session last Saturday. I asked if she was sore after the first session, and she pointed right to the middle of her stomach, this was where I was sore too. I felt a sense of comfort.

I am still sore from Canyon Ranch, but I'm hoping I'll feel better soon. Ironically, of all the classes I participated on, the "Pilates with Props" was the one class I just could not keep up with.
I'll try to go for a run tomorrow to keep up with the cardio portion of the work out.
One week has passed, and I'm still going strong.

Back from Canyon Ranch

On Wednesday, November 4th I got an amazing opportunity to go to Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Massachussetts. Unfortunately, I had to miss my second class, but in exchange I took tons of classes: 2 hiking trips, body muscle conditioning, mind and body (yoga position + body training), strip class, pilates with props, and 2 mile jog. Intitally I was worried about missing the 2nd class, but I believe I've made up for it. I did TONs of CARDIO.

Tomorrow will be my 2nd class, and the day I will be measured and weighted.
I am a bit nervous to find out my weight.

Day 3: November 3rd, 2008

With the time change this weekend, I decided to take advantage of it and woke up at 6:30 for a run. Good thing my body thought it was 7:30 instead. My goal was to just get through 1 mile, but I surprised myself with doing 2 more laps around the track. I ran 1.5 miles, if you count the walking... about 2 miles. I intended to start slow and safe, so I can't believe I ran faster and longer than planned. So far, so good.

Day 1: November 1st, 2008

November 1st, 2008 is the day Pilates changed my life. Well, at least this is what I'm hoping for.

I met my instructor, Virginia, and my new buddy on this journey, Shannon.

During the first portion of the session we talked about Joe Pilates, the machines, the program, Virginia's background, and our goals. In addition to our 2 sessions per week, Virginia suggested we also add 2 days of cardio for our heart and lungs.

With Pilates I focus more on whether I am doing the exercises correctly. Every exercise requires the right posture and breathing; with NO exception. Some of them were definitely more difficult than the others. Specifically, the ones that required muscles that were not awake: the shoulders, the back of my thighs, and the hips. We used both machines and did about 4-5 reps of each exercise.

After a few exercises, I did get warm, but did not drip in sweat; which is common for me when I do any other type of exercise.

Here's an image of one of the toughest exercise we did:

Virginia explained to us that we would start feeling sore in 2 days, but I admit I feel a few sore spots already. When I sneezed this morning, the center of my stomach is a bit sore. So are the back of my legs when I move in a certain way.

The first session has been educational, and productive. I didn't feel like I was straining my body during the exercises, and the sore spots feel great.

Virginia mentioned that I will notice "something" different with time. I've noticed myself tucking my stomach in, maybe that's it? Or it could be that it's because I'm sore.