It's been so long!

It's been a while since I wrote about what's going on PV-wise. Well, the bad news is…it's still there. The good news is…I'm down to one dose of medication every three weeks. I've been doing this for awhile now and it seems to be working well. My platelets occasionally rise when I have inflammatory issues (soy and wheat are REALLY hard to avoid, by the way), but for the most part things have been "normal."

Posing at the Finish Line with my good friend, Cheri!

Probably the most annoying side effect/symptom I still struggle with is fatigue. In an effort to deal with that, I've reduced my work schedule to two 12-hr shifts a week and I'm working with a trainer this summer to increase my strength and stamina. At this point, I'd have to say the workouts pretty much guarantee me a nap later in the day, but I'm hoping as my body adapts, it will get easier.

Back in May, I embarked on a 35-mile bike ride in Sonoma County…a pretty humbling experience as I used to be able to pull out 35 miles without even thinking about it, and this ride knocked me on my tush. Regardless, I'm getting out there and trying…mostly I'm trying not to feel disappointed in myself when it is obvious I'm not the same person I used to be. I guess we're all a work in progress, no?

I have workout ADD

Remember when I said I was going to start Body for Life on Monday? Well, as I was cruising the interwebs looking for information about women and weight training, I came across something awesome. The Venus Index.

The VI is a workout designed to accentuate the female shape...basically the hourglass figure. You do some easy calculations based on how tall you are and voila...it tells you the ideal measurements for shoulders, waist and hips...measurements that correlate to the Golden Mean. Yes, I just got all "da Vinci" on yo ass. Ha.

One of the things I LOVE LOVE LOVE about this program is that the workouts change each time. Yes, there are a general selection of exercises but they get mixed up a bit, poke their heads in here and there. One workout may have you doing Bulgarian Split Squats...another has you doing reverse lunges. It's brilliant because I do not at all like doing the same ol' routine week after week after week.

The program also helps you figure out how many calories you should shoot for each day, and this is where I pouted a bit. I HATE counting calories, hate it hate it hate it. (Yes, that was a temper tantrum). But after seeing the amazing (and I mean AMAZING) transformations of these Venus women, I was sold. We're talking about people who worked out, ran marathons and were still fluffy. They start doing the VI workouts and watching calories and BAM...instant goddess. Well, not instant...but goddess, for sure. We're talking fitness model awesomeness here.

Happily, I found a nifty little app called "My Net Diary" that makes counting calories pretty easy. It even has a barcode scanner function so you can log your packaged items super quick. So far, I dig it. Plus, it's helping me be more accountable. I found that I was reaching for some kind of a snack the other day and thought, "Do I really want to log that?" NOPE...drank some water instead, I think. I eat when I'm bored, so this is a very good thing.

After the first workout I thought I was going to die...the muscle soreness had me walking funny for a couple of days. Powered through the second workout though, and am happy to report that I went on a bike ride today...I thought it might help to work out some of the soreness. We shall see. I've got another resistance workout tomorrow, then two days off. Joy oh joy because I work three in a row this week. Blech. Hard to workout with those long shifts and flipped around schedule.

I guess that's it! Stay tuned for more awesomeness... :-)

Callanetics Experiment Part II

The reason I thought the "Great Callanetics Experiment" sounded familiar was probably b/c I keep stopping and starting these "experiments." Not sure why I do that since I am notoriously bad at finishing things...great at starting things, crap-tastically cruddy at finishing them.

Anyway, I am once again embarking into the world of Callanetics. I always peter out right when I'm starting to see results AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHY!!! Probably some weird psychological weirdness, but that's for my future therapist to figure out.

So this experiment entails completing 50 Callanetics workouts by my birthday in 15 weeks. That's 3-4 workouts a week. And because I love rules (as long as I'm the one that makes them), I have come up with some rules for this experiment...I'm calling it the "Fabulous by Forty" experiment. Catchy, eh?

1) If I do 4 workouts in a week, then 1 of them can be one of the short 15-minute workouts (hips or legs) and one of them can be one of the Bar Method videos...don't want to get too bored!
2) Stick as closely to my vegan diet as I can...I'm at about 80% compliance (it's the darn cheese that gets me!)
3) Drink 64 oz of water each day...this is probably a 50 oz increase over my usual water intake.
4) 3 glasses of wine each week (instead of 2 glasses each day...can you say hellloooo to herbal tea?). I expect this little rule by itself to result in a few pounds of weight loss all on its own.
5) Use my whitening toothpaste 2x a day.
6) Never ever ever go to bed with makeup on. Ever. (this is a tough one for me)
7) Deep condition hair once a week (also a difficult one for me to stick to)
8) At least 5 servings of fruits and veggies each day (this one is also tough for me)
9) 2-3 cardio workouts each week...either a walk or bike ride. Running is out d/t my old lady hip issues I've had off and on since I was 30.
10) Measurements and pics after each block of 10 workouts. Oh the shame. Oh the humiliation.


Week 1, Day 1, Callanetics 1:
I did the original Callanetics video today. Not so bad, except I petered out on the first leg exercises and the blasted, evil pelvic rotations. I also had to support my neck during about half of the ab exercises, but I suspect I'll only have to do this for the first 4-5 workouts or so. I was supposed to go on a bike ride, but my friend cancelled and since I can't be trusted to do anything like that on my own, I went shopping instead. Plan for tomorrow is either a bike ride or a walk in the morning. Leaning torward an hour long walk, b/c I have got to get back home and start studying for my Peds exam coming up on Friday. Oh, and I measured...but I'm not posting the numbers until they shrink a little. It's too horrific and this is a family show (ha!).

I can bench press 40 pounds!

Ok, when you look at it written out like that it doesn't sound like much. But I was totally stoked anyway. That means I can probably lift the bar now...no weights on it, just the bar. How cool is that? Ok, it's not totally cool. Totally cool would be racking up some weight, but I'll settle for graduating the to the bar...at least for now!

5 inches in 2 weeks!

Ta da! As promised, I measured today and I am officially 5-inchess less fat than I was two weeks ago. Did you catch that? 5 Inches!!!!! For the first week I did Chicometrics but honestly, that got pretty dull, so I switched it up in the second week to The Bar Method, which goes by lots lots faster. I measured after 4 of these workouts and have lost a total of 5 inches throughout the bod...a litle bit here and a little bit there...amazing!

So, stay tuned as I shrink back into all my adorable clothes. In case you care, which you probably don't.

Call me "Grain Girl" or "Gluten-Free Girl"...your choice

Welcome to Science Experiment #3!

I have been reading about nutrition a lot lately, and one approach that appeals is macrobiotics. Essentially, it's a grain-based diet that includes lots of fresh, local veggies (and some fish, but I'm not too keen on the fish thing). I like it because I like brown rice a LOT and I'm now getting that box o' veggies from the community farm every week. So, for my third Science Experiment, I am "gaining the grain"...this is how one macrobiotic cookbook puts it. The idea is to incorporate more whole grains into the diet (brown rice, amaranth, quinoa, etc...). So there's that...and there's also the gluten thing. I was reading a book last night called "Ultrametabolism", and it has these nifty little check-off boxes so you can determine why, exactly, you are so fat. One of the lists indicated I may have a gluten intolerance so I am conducting part B of my Science Experiment as going gluten free...no wheat, no oats, no soy sauce (yes, soy sauce has wheat in it), no bread, no pasta...you get the idea.

As for other Science Experiments, I am a bit sore from doing my Chicometrics video...and surprisingly, it's in a spot I wasn't sure I was getting effectively. Guess I squeezed my buns juuuuuust right!

Still no word from the hospital....don't they know what a gem I am? And that I barely flinched????

Science Experiment #2

In accordance with my now honored tradition of conducting science experiments on myself, I am embarking on The Great Isometric Experiment!!!

Currently, I own three different exercise videos that are based on isometric exercise...Chicometrics (see my "Got Flab" link to the right), The Barr Method and Callanetics. I am going to cycle through all three (to prevent the major boredome that will ensue if I stick to just one for months on end), recording my measurements (not my weight, mind you!) along the way (yes, I will have to come to direct terms with my fatness).

I have heard really astonishing things about each of these programs...mainly Chicometrics and Callanetics...I think they may be a bit more intense. I will let you know!

Here is my schedule...I will do each video 2-3 times per week for two weeks and then switch to a different video to keep the Boredom Monster at bay:

June 11-23: Chicometrics
June 24-July 7: Bar Method
July 8-July 21: Callanetics
July 22-August 4: Chicometrics
August 5-August 18: Bar Method
August 19-Sept 1: Callanetics

I will take measurements after each two week period so stay tuned!

In other news...Science Experiment #1 is going OK...we had to go to the store last night because Tom refused to eat whole wheat pasta, and I went to the store today while at work because I had a hankering for miso soup. Plus we ate out a lot (at Whole Foods mostly) while we were in Vegas. The Whole Foods in Henderson Nevada is orgasmic...dessert bar, chocolate fountain, tapas bar, asian bar, grilling station, a taqueria...the list goes on and on. Did you catch that...A DESSERT BAR!!!! Of course, I didn't have any of the dessert, but it was comforting and exciting just to know it was there.