Sunday bloody Sunday...

Wait... what? Bedtime? How the heck did that happen!? I don't have gym clothes together, I don't have lunches packed, heck I don't even have stuff FOR lunches (I've been severely lacking this past week. Naughty. Not eating enough, is almost as bad, and sometimes worse, than eating too much!). Time is flying a little too quickly for my liking right now.

As for the upcoming week of FitCamp, I'm going to be treating every day like a "Last Chance Workout" on Biggest Loser. I have 5 days of butt busting, before

a) I fly home to see family for the first time in a couple of years

b) I have to stand beside my stunning sister as she becomes a beautiful bride

c) I face my 10 year high school reunion, that will also likely contain my high school sweetheart/ex-fiance whom I haven't seen since we broke up over 8 years ago.

If EVER there was a reason to be working as hard as I can... it's got to be one of those reasons above. So this is the summary of the plan so far: Week 1 - Survival, Week 2 - Adjustment, Week 3 - Kick some serious buttooski.

I'm about to throw some number out to the cyberverse, but let me qualify the quantifiable - although these numbers still show forward progress, it's nothing compared to how I've been feeling, and apparently that's shown outwardly as well. Lately, I've run into a lot of people whom I haven't seen in a while, and their reactions have been rather glee-inducing. Those unsolicited compliments pretty much instantly erase the memories of aches, pains and exhaustion. It's then that you realize it's all worthwhile. But here are the numbers anyway :)

Weight: 146lbs (Same - but much leaner!)
Waist: 32.5 inches (-0.5in)
Hip: 37.5 inches (-0.5in)
Chest: 38 inches (-1.5in)
Bicep: 12 inches (Same - but there's a bump now!)
Thigh: 22.5 inches (-0.5in)
Calf:15 inches (same - two weeks in a row. Apparently I need to start jumping more!)

Change this week: -3 inches/0 pounds
Total Change: -7 inches/1 pound

Nothin' to shake a stick at, but still lots of shrinking/strengthening/stamina-ing left to do. Also continuing to focus on the fact that muscle does weight more than fat, so the way my clothes fit, is more important than the number between my toes in the morning.

This week brings a lot to look forward to - 5 more fantastic work-outs, a visit from an Olympian (more on that soon), and a single digit countdown to a cross country journey. I love it when a plan comes together!

Now, time for some Z's, while visions of LMFAO dance through my head, reminding me that someday - I'll be sexy... and I'll know it. Darn their catchy and appropriate tune.

Wiggle wiggle wiggle wiggle wiggle... YEAH!

Day 10 - Edge of Glory

With thanks to Gaga for today's title. And also apologies on the late post again today. It was the United Way Kickoff Breakfast earlier this morning, and I boogied right there from FitCamp, but couldn't boogie back to the station quick enough to get this up as early as usual. Now for the important stuff

HUZZAH! I'm officially 25% done this challenge, and today has by far been the best day for progress. It was the first day I felt less like I was just trying to survive, and more like I was pushing through, and starting to challenge myself.

Breakthrough #2! (Hence the praise to Gaga - Definitely feeling on the edge of something glorious right now)

If you've been following along, Breakthrough #1 was on Day 3, so don't be disappointed if you're not hitting life changing revelations, or new levels on a daily basis. It takes time. A LOT of adjustments happening right now, both mentally and physically!

Speaking of which - at the end of class today while we were stretching everything out - we all got talking about early morning workouts vs. evening workouts and the pros and cons of such for us, personally.

*listen up if you're opposed to morning workouts... this may make some sense*

Now, I've mentioned on a number of occasions that I am a TERRIBLE morning person - and I am - but here's the thing... as a group we discussed how, during a workout it is SO much easier to face the physical fatigue of getting up early, than at the end of the day when the mental fatigue sets in. It's so much harder to get out of your own way at the end of the day, and it's way easier to justify skipping the workout because you had a busy/stressful/emotional/exhausting/s****y day.

If you start your day with a workout, then no matter what kinda junk piles on you for the rest of the day, at least you had one positive hour, moving you forward in the right direction. You've got that to return to mentally (and THAT is how I have come to crave that "me" time in the morning. Because somedays, the best thing that happens all day, is my hour at the gym.) That's where I'm at with it all. Still loathe 5am. But absolutely love what I have already accomplished, and how much I have to look forward to.

If you are considering trying a morning workout: Don't just do it for a morning and decide that it sucks and you can't do it. Your body needs a couple of weeks to get into it. I'm a full two weeks in and still adapting. If you're just joining this blog now, go back and read some of my earlier posts. TRUST ME - I feel your pain.

Frankly, I'm worthless at 6am in the morning anyway. I can't think, articulate, or for that matter - access any higher functions at all. So I may as well at least be moving my body in an environment where all I have to do is do as I'm told. If it sounds familiar - get thine booty to Bodynetix and join us! We're not as crazy as we sound. :)

Day 9 - Never Surrender

In keeping with the "song lyrics for blog titles" them - today's is with thanks to Corey Hart. (Needed to fit in some Can-Con somewhere!)

This is a bit of a frazzley week. (Don't even care that 'frazzley' isn't a word. You know what I mean).
1) We just found out we've got to move in a month and a half

2) We don't even have time to pack/plan/look for a place because we're about to go away for two weeks, (and anyone who's ever taken a vacation from work knows that it's not REALLY a vacation, because all the work you WOULD do in that time, has to be done before you go anyway!),

3) Tour de Rock is in town (which is totally awesome and I'm cheering them on with all I've got left in the tank!)

4) And today apparently I'm going to be part of a documentary/film about radio! (Oh yes, I still haven't had a chance to shower from this morning's FitCamp because we had a Tour de Rock event... and there's a film crew on their way... ACK!)

Believe it or not, workouts this week are more important than ever, but not for the reason you might think. The other day I mentioned how you can't take personal stuff to the gym. Well as this little vortex of stress temporarily tries to take over, I'm finding myself actually craving time at the gym to escape it. While I still don't look forward to the 5am wake-up call, I DO look forward to my hour away from reality, when the only thing that matters is whatever Megan and Chris are telling us to do.

It's SO easy to make the excuses of "I'm too busy, I'm too stressed, I just can't fit in a workout if I tried!". Know how I know that? Because I've been saying it for years. "Oh I couldn't find a spare minute if my life depended on it...". Well someday your life MIGHT depend on it - but hopefully you can find the time before it gets to that point.

No big revelations, or life lessons today - just gratitude for the Bodynetix crew and classmates who give me a place to 'get away' every morning. When you can clear your brain first thing, it sure makes the rest of the day less stressful, regardless of what your facing - because you take your workout with you.

When you're going through a circuit, you can't think about every single station that you're about to face because you'll just get completely overwhelmed. You can only deal with the one you're doing at that very moment. And when that one's dealt with - you move on to the next. That's how I'm facing this list the universe is putting in front of me right now. One station at a time. Deal. Move on.

A huge thank you to those of you reading and commenting as well. You will never know how much it means to know that there are people on the other side of this keyboard. Back at it with a more focused 'work-out' oriented post tomorrow. Promise!

Today's quote: "I never regret it when I do it, but I always regret it when I don't."

Day 8 - Hurts so good...

You know that moment when you hear a song on the radio, and out of the blue, the lyrics totally make sense? That happened for me today...

I'm on a song lyrics kick for post titles this week. Well, by kick, I mean two days in a row - but whatever. Today's is brought to you by John "Cougar" Mellencamp. I saw him at a toy store in New York once... but that's another story.

Right now - it's all about the fitness (or lack thereof as the case may be) journey with Bodynetix. So remember how the other day I said how great it felt to be past the point of 'pain'? Hahahahahahahaha yeah, I thought that was hilarious too. This morning, the hammies were screaming again. The difference this morning however, was how my brain interpreted that pain. Rather than "omg I must hobble"... it's more like "Yeah baby, that's some new muscle growin' right there!". It has also acknowledged that about 5 minutes into the workout, the pain will be more or less gone so it's not quite so daunting to show up to class when I've struggled to get out of bed.

For those who are facing some simple pains after their workouts, and like myself, dislike traditional 'painkillers', there are some great natural options for you - apart from the Icy Hot I bathed in on day two. :-P

I really like Arnica Gel or Traumeel. The Traumeel comes in both gel AND tablet form. It's all natural and apparently used by some of our Olympians. I originally got it for my mom who has some chronic pain issues, and it has been a very welcome addition to our household medicine cabinet. The gel is really good for tight/strained muscles, along with speeding the healing of bumps and bruises. As a total klutz, I really appreciate that feature. (Keeping in mind I am NOT a doctor, or professional in any way! These are just what I use personally. Ask your doc about these things first, and don't even think about suing me! There... that's my disclaimer)

Something else that kinda takes the pain away is the fact that Tour de Rock is in town this week - and I can't really complain about any pain I might feel from an hour long workout, or my early mornings, when this team of inspirational people are cycling 1000kms from tip to tip of Vancouver Island, and are sitting on their bikes up to 8 hours a day. Kinda puts things in perspective pretty quickly. So my hat is off to them, my heart is with their cause, and I know my sore butt is nothing compared to theirs, so back to the "Suck it up princess" phase.

Don't forget that if you'd like to check out FitCamp for yourself, you've got two more chances to win this week with "The Big Show" with Bob & Bill on 97.3 The Eagle. I'm still looking forward to seeing a few more Eagle-ites in class. ;-)

I will leave you with this view, which we were rewarded with after this morning's rather tough class. Thanks Universe. I think we all appreciated this little pat on the back:

Day 7 - Sunrise, sunrise...

... in the words of Norah Jones. (Or Duran Duran, if that's what floats your boat). Another gorgeous fall morning. I know they won't last forever, so I'm trying to enjoy them while I can! It's amazing how many beautiful sunrises I've missed in my lifetime... and in reality, how many more I'll miss when I don't have to get up at 5am. But after this experience, I might just be inspired to get up a little earlier, a little more often. If you'd asked me how I felt about mornings 12 hours ago - it would have been a different story. I'll tell ya why...

Lesson of the day for me: You can't bring personal crap to the gym. Well you can try, but it just doesn't last very long. I've got a few things going on outside the gym, that are totally stressing me out. Didn't sleep well last night because of it, and was just a bit on edge when I got there this morning. By the time warm-up was over, not one of those things was on my mind. Seriously - not a single one. It's SO easy to lose yourself in a workout. Your mind is mercifully wrapped in a bubble of sweat and burn. That might not sound pleasant at all, but I'm telling you - when life is weighing heavy - come pick up a real weight, and that'll disappear pretty quickly. :-) So not only is my body feeling better, but my mind is a lot clearer and calmer too. Yay endorphins!

Physically, it feels so good to be past the point of "OMG OW!" when I try to move. My muscles are now just battling daily workout fatigue, but that's okay - because that's the purpose of FitCamp. To push your muscles to the brink of collapse, then push a little harder. There is no more disappointing feeling than getting to the end of class, when Megan or Chris call "time", and feeling like you could have done even one more crunch, squat, lunge, or press. There is something to be said for pacing yourself, but I'm getting to the point where my body can more or less recover in the 23 hours between class, so it's time to start pushing a little harder.

I'm in what feels like a 'grey zone' right now - because I don't hurt anymore, but I haven't been at this long enough to really feel my strength or cardio increasing, so I WANT to go harder and I feel like I should be able to, but my body just isn't there yet. It's frustrating, but it's also kind of a good feeling, because the fact that things don't hurt anymore means there HAS been progress. Gotta celebrate the small successes, and know that the bigger ones are in the works, day by day, even when you don't notice them. (Write that down. It's so true, and we all forget about it!) Heck, at this point - I'm celebrating the fact that I've been up at 5am for 7 days, and I'm not completely burnt out! Frankly, that's nothing short of a miracle in my books.

Bottom line for today -- not much progress to report, but generally feeling pretty awesome. Learning to love that feeling of almost stumbling when my legs are wet spaghetti after class. Looking forward to hopefully seeing some new faces in class. Hey - if you can read this blog, you can do these classes.

Okay, let's see - Joey (who was in class again today *high five Joey*) likes motivational quotes, so I gotta find a good one to end on.... Oooo here's a good one for what I was saying at the beginning:

Day 6 - If there is no struggle, there is no progress

(Post title courtesy of one remarkable Frederick Douglass)

Wowza! Today was a toughie, but it was fantastic! I'd give Chris a round of applause, but I don't think I can lift my arms.

Oh whoops... I forgot to start at the beginning...

*Alarm Clock*... :-P

This morning, even though I was still very bleary eyed, I was also totally pumped to get back for class. After the first round of measurements/weigh in, I just wanted to get moving again. Anyone who knows me, knows this is kind of the antithesis of my usual mentality. Although I live a very 'get up and go' lifestyle, it's not really by choice most of the time, and in my own time - I'm an A+ Couch Potato.

But things are happening, and when you start to feel things tightening, and shifting, and strengthening, you just want MORE... which is exciting! (And sure makes it easier to get out of bed.Well... sorta-ish).

It was also very nice to have a familiar smiling face join the class this morning. My friend, and very talented local musician Joey Clarkson was somehow (*cough hand up cough*) convinced that this whole FitCamp thing is kind of awesome, so lo and behold, when her blonde hair bounced in to the Bodynetix studio this morning I couldn't help but grin. 

Proud of her for taking this on, and I'm looking forward to seeing her start to feel the way I do about it. Of course, she made the mistake of reading my first week's worth of posts before class, so she was a little worried... but if you've been following along, and at any point have thought "I couldn't do it" - give your head a shake, because you would be surprised what you can do when you get out of your own way.

For folks local to the Comox Valley area - tune in to our station this week 97.3 The Eagle for your chance to win a week of unlimited FitCamp. Does it hurt? Oh heck yeah, for a couple of days it sure does. But you can only ever feel two kinds of pain... The pain of change, or the pain of regret. I know which one I prefer right now.

Sunday Sermon: Wise Words from Winnie the Pooh

One of my favourite philosophers alive, dead, or fictional - is Winnie the Pooh. That fuzzy ol' bear always has the right thing to say. Today's words are a virtual high-five for all of those currently taking the FitCamp challenge themselves - and also even though there were a few bumps, week one is now behind me and I'm actually looking forward to week two.

An interesting thing happened in my (certifiably cracked) brain this weekend. As I was getting ready to head to the West Coast Women's show this weekend, my brain was absent mindedly coming up with a list of exercises, and arranging them in a circuit that I could do... at home... like on the weekends... That's when I realized that after 5 days, I'm already hooked.

So can anything really change in a week? In a word - Heck yeah!
1) My posture is probably the most pronounced change. SO much better. I'm a lifelong sloucher... being a little, well... "top heavy", it has always been more comfortable to hunch. So this is a rather surprising change for me. That would be thanks to the core, and shoulder work I'm guessing.

2) SLEEP. I've slept so much better. Apparently pure unadulterated exhaustion helps in the R.E.M. department.

3) It all comes down to the numbers in the end....

Weight: 146lbs (-1lb)
Waist: 33 inches (-1in)
Hip: 38 inches (-0.5in)
Chest: 39.5 inches (-1in)
Bicep: 12 inches (+0.5in)
Thigh: 23 inches (-1.5in)
Calf:15 inches (same)

So lost a total of 1 pound, and 4 inches in "problem zones", and put on a half an inch of muscle on my biceps. Yeah, that's right - you can all look forward to the gun show in the near future. ;-) All in all, not bad for 4 1/2 workouts! Gives me tons of hope for the future, knowing that as I get stronger, I'll be able to push harder, and strive for even better numbers.

And before I sign off for the evening, (given that it's past my bed time) - I have a product to shoot your way, after a couple of people were asking about protein sources on a plant based diet this weekend. (Thanks for asking guys! Love any opportunity to chat about this. :-D):

This comes with thanks to Edible Island Foods, and one of their product reps from Prairie Naturals who introduced me to possibly the most delicious protein powder I've ever had... it's called Organic Rice Protein - in Cafe Caramel Flavour. If you have the chance to give it a shot - do it. Om nom nom.Totally gives me something to look forward to in the morning!

With that, I bid you adieu. It's time to catch some winks, and get ready to take on day 1, week 2!

Day 5 - Super Sad Face

Today's level of frustration on a scale of 1-5? Sitting right around 100.

Yesterday I apparently got some mild food poisoning. At least that's what I'm assuming, since I went from fine, to so incredibly and totally not fine in about 10 minutes flat, and only one thing in my routine changed, which leads me to believe something I ate/drank was a little tainted.

Well I fought through it as best I could all day yesterday, and was still feeling pretty crappy last night. Woke up this morning, and felt more or less better, and I was pretty jazzed that my muscles were actually feeling awesome (compared to the rest of this week), so I couldn't wait to get to class and sweat out the rest of whatever my body was fighting.

Without going into too much detail, food poisoning, no matter how mild - dehydrates you a lot. So that was roadblock #1 to overcome. I was already behind the 8-ball before I walked in the door. Class gets underway, and I pretty quickly realize I'm not going to be able to sweat this out like I'd hoped. I put on my best brave face, clenched my jaw, and powered through for about half an hour, but at the first break, I knew I was done. I tried once more to keep going, but this was totally a "know when you're beat" situation. My head was spinning, my stomach was rebelling, and my heart was broken.

Right now it's all I can do not to burst into tears. Not just because I feel awful all over again - but because I'm so mad that my body is letting me down on the last day of week one. I had really been looking forward to posting how amazing it felt to have completed the first big uphill battle, and now all I want to do is go back to bed.

So -- Sorry if you're anywhere near as disappointed as I am. Don't give up on me yet though. I'm going to get through today as best I can, and start looking forward to next week. A setback is not a stop sign. It's more like a yield. I will yield to my body and better judgement for the moment. But Monday... it's go time.

***EDITED TO ADD*** I just realized why this situation makes me so mad. 90% of my body was "GO", yet the 10% won out. I don't like it when my body doesn't work democratically...

Day 4 - Beg for Mercy/Beg for More

*Alarm Clo---* You know what? Don't even bother, I'm awake. I'm up for crying out loud. But you know what else? I'm feelin' pretty good! Happy to say, I think I've rounded the first major corner. Still tight, still sore, but not to the point of total immobility. I've moved from raging burn, to dull ache of a good workout. Can I get a high five? WOOT WOOT!

Onwards and upwards fellow fitness victims.

Now for class:

... It's always the quiet ones. Megan is such a lovely, sweet, soft spoken girl. Until the warm-up starts. Then she's the spawn of Satan

I'm kidding of course. Megan is pure awesome, and runs a seriously kick butt class. But boy does she push your limits.

Have you ever done a minute of squats? How about a minute of JUMP squats? Minute of burpees? And I swear her minutes last about 300 seconds... Again though, for anyone who might be intimidated by that - you're encouraged to go at your own pace. If you need to take a quick break to shake it out, or modify the exercise, do it. On the flip side if you CAN push harder, and you're taking breaks/changing positions... the only person you're cheating, is yourself.

It's a very fine line between pacing yourself, and slacking, I've discovered (a line I tend to toe... *blush*). But I have to remind myself, it's still week ONE... day FOUR. I'm 80% done my first week, but I'm only 10% done the journey so far.

Tomorrow is the final push before my first break. Sunday is a weigh/measure day. I'm bracing for that, because I know I'll have put on muscle, which always pushes the scale in the wrong direction. So for the moment, I'm trying to focus on feeling my clothes fit differently. Everything tightening, and lifting. Energy levels rising. Body adjusting. That's the hardest part to remember. This isn't about a number on a scale.

For those who haven't read the comments sections of past posts, I'll leave you with one of my favourite quotes:

"No matter how slow you go - you're still lapping everyone sitting on the couch".

Cheers. And here's to earning my Pumpkin Spice Latte...

Day 3 - Exercise Killed the Radio Star

With apologies to the Buggles, and thanks to Brian for the inspiration of today's blog post title...

*Alarm Clock*---- Oh come ON!

Time for some unabated honesty. Yesterday SUCKED.

Class was great (with cheers to Megan), but about noon, I hit the wall. An unmovable, unrelenting, unclimbable, titanium wall. Everything seized. I couldn't move. I couldn't keep my eyes open. I couldn't even eat - I was so tired I was nauseated.

I got home after work, and I slept. And slept. And slept. Woke up for a couple of minutes, went back to sleep. Between 3:30 yesterday afternoon, and 9pm last night, I was awake for all of maybe an hour and a half. And you know what I learned?
LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.....

I needed that. I didn't need food, or water, or even a shower. I needed SLEEP. So I let it happen. And miracle of miracles, I woke up this morning and everything sucked a whole lot less.

Oh I was/am still sore and I still wanted to throw my alarm clock through a wall, but I didn't feel like it was the end of the world and there was no way I could keep going.

Hooray! Breakthrough number 1.

(With HUGE kudos to my mother, who did my laundry, helped put my lunch and gym bags together, cooked me plain pasta with butter, salt and pepper which was apparently the only thing my body could fathom absorbing, and then telling me to stop fighting the sleep!)

SO back to the alarm clock - This morning I rolled semi-painfully (hey, my legs can support my weight again! That's cool...) out of bed, pulled myself together, and headed to class. Chris was beyond stellar once again. I told him I'd be a little slower today. He encouraged me to do what I could, pushed me when he knew I could do a little more, and gave me a well timed pat on the back to celebrate day 3.

It's also a lot of fun getting to know the others in the class. Folks have been asking about this blog - so I hope you ladies have found it! Welcome! And thanks for the encouragement. We'll see you again tomorrow... when we take on Day 4. Together.

Day 2 - Survival of the Fitless

*Alarm Clock* Nooooooo! *sob sob*

Snap, crackle, pop. No, I didn't eat Rice Krispies for breakfast this morning... those are just the noises my body made before my feet even touched the floor. Breakfast these days is a couple mouthfuls of vanilla rice milk with chocolate Vega protein powder and a teaspoon of flax oil. Woot. *sarcastic fist pump*

The second day of this adventure brought new people and new pain - (I have a muscle WHERE?). The gym was overpowered by the scent of "old man liniment"... but alas the origin of the odor was actually me. Sigh. Icy Hot, you've saved the day. Bring on the burpees. (If you don't know what a burpee is, consider yourself lucky).

Megan ran a totally awesome class today. I didn't push myself quite as hard as yesterday. It was more about working out the kinks from yesterday. Keeping things moving and stretching. Don't get me wrong, my heart rate was still up there, and the sweat was pouring, and I DID push... but part of this process is knowing your limits. When your muscles stop arguing with you, and it just becomes a flat out refusal - it's time to step back a bit.

Unfortunately, for someone like me, that's incredibly frustrating, so if you find yourself hitting a wall and getting discouraged - YOU ARE NOT ALONE.

This is kind of how the self-talk went today:
Brain: Hey leg, bend further.
Leg: Nope.
Brain: No really, we're supposed to be doing a squat to 90 degrees. BEND!
Leg: Screw you.
Brain: HEY! Listen up you limp piece of spaghetti, I said----
*Leg gives out and I hit the floor*
Brain: Fine. You win this round.

I am well aware that tomorrow will be the peak of the pain, and after that the recovery process will truly begin. Right now it's the rollercoaster pushing through the pain, feeling better, tightening up, pushing through the pain - lather, rinse, repeat.

So for the rest of today, it's all about proper fuel, hydration, recovery food, nourishing my muscles, and forgiving myself for not being able to keep up with the rest of the class this morning. Hopefully someone reading this will join the adventure at some point, and then THEY can be the new kid in class that feels a little defeated when they're not as quick, or strong, or tough. And then I'll be able to look at them, give 'em a high five and say "It gets better". Because I know it will. Tomorrow IS another day.

No picture today. You're welcome.

Day 1 - What have I done???

*Alarm Clock* ---- followed immediately by "Oh dear God why."
Chug protein drink.
Grab lunch bag.
Gym bag.
Work bag.
Feeling like a sherpa, lugging all this stuff around.
WHOOPS - I still need a change of clothes...
5am sucks.

The first little niggling of worry set in when the 5 minute warm-up almost did me in. That worry continued when after the warm-up we had to run around the two buildings outside and I thought my lungs were on fire. More worry when I didn't even understand Chris' explanation of our training circuit. (Side note - that's a "my brain-no-work-in-the-morning issue", not a reflection on Chris!) It sure didn't stop when I looked at the sheet and realized this was the first of 10 stations... my shaking legs were screaming obscenities at my brain and arms were wet spaghetti.

"I'm hooped" was all I could think. "I've bitten off so much more than I can chew".

But while I was telling myself how I wasn't going to be able to do it.... I WAS DOING IT. So I switched gears. "Try this on for size... It's day freaking ONE princess... Suck. It. Up."

The best thing about Bodynetix is that you're only competing with yourself. Yes, there are others there - many faster, stronger, leaner, fitter... but they've been at this for a while. They're a glimpse into your future if you stick with it. The ages ranged from about 20-70. Fitness levels on a scale of 1-10, of 1 (me) to 15 (crazy marathon runner chick, like seriously, why are you even here???)

I geared down and told myself that today, my goal is to survive. It's not to finish first. It's to get my bearings, give what I've got, and still want to come back tomorrow.

And then - it was over.  While Chris counted down our last 30 seconds, the last 49 1/2 minutes disappeared from my mind. Day one complete. The strangest thing happened then. I THANKED him. We all did. It's like we've all got Stockholm syndrome - but the healthy kind! We thanked him for an hour of torture. And you know what? We'll all do it again.

For me - that 'again' is tomorrow. Day 2. The countdown is on.

Puffy, Purple, and Proud.
(Incidentally - that's a picture of Edison in the background with SUCH an appropriate quote for today: "Many of life's failures are men who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.")

T'was the night before Christmas...

...except that it's September, and in this house there are lots of creatures stirring - apart from the cats, the butterflies in my stomach are quite active! I didn't know it was possible to be so simultaneously thrilled and terrified. Tomorrow morning marks the start of what I know will be an amazing journey and one I'm grateful to be taking, but it also means facing a lot of demons.

1) My general lack of fitness
2) My overall lack of preparation
3) My utter inability to function before 10am
4) How to incorporate my plant based diet into a training regime

Over the next 10 weeks, I'll be documenting my experience with the Bodynetix FitCamp, one of the toughest workouts in the Comox Valley I've been told. This blog is where I'll share my pilgrimage of pain, and hopefully in the end, it will turn out to be a triumphant celebration of fitness and health.

Okay - first things first, I've gotta toss some numbers out to the world, which is probably one of the more horrifying parts of this experience. I'll save the 'before' pictures, until I've at least made a little progress, lest I look at them and give up before I begin! :P

Weight: 147lbs
Waist: 34 inches
Hip: 38.5 inches
Chest: 40.5 inches
Bicep: 12 inches
Thigh: 24.5 inches
Calf:15 inches
Bodyfat %: Ugh...

We just finished prepping lunches for the week, and more than anything, I think that's what's keeping me mentally jazzed about this whole thing! Just filled our fridge with amazing food, and my mom cooked up some incredible easy stuff for me to grab-and-go. (Have I mentioned how awesome my mom is?)

Okay - it's off to prep the gym bag, get the morning smoothie ready to go ('cuz lord knows I won't be doing much at 5am) and then hopefully settle my brain to sleep. I truly do feel like a kid at Christmas. But Santa comes in the form of a merciless drill instructor. ;-) (Chris - if you read this... I'm kidding!)