Adventures at Ijams

Yesterday our Biggest Winner team met up out at Ijams for our weekly training. It's been years since I've been here, and was delighted to rediscover this awesome place right in our back yard! My teammate Lee Ann & I were slated to complete 8 miles of walking/shuffling in this week' training, but we ended up hiking instead of just walking, so we cut our distance a little short finishing 7.25 miles.

Now for those of you who read this and think, "Oh, they didn't finish their 8 miles," no worries, we burned more calories hiking the 7.25 than we would've walking the 8! And, believe me, I'm feeling every step of it today!

Here's our group that met up yesterday!

After the photo we split up in separate directions -- the runners went towards the greenway, and the rest of us headed towards the Quarry side.

 Needless to say -- some of the trails were kind of muddy...which caused us to move slower in some places, and hard to even pass in others.

But we saw some beautiful scenery, and some really cool historical stuff...

We did a little exploring, and are really excited that local groups are helping repair, restore, and create new trails in this area!

The keyhole is one of the really cool places we visited. At this point in our hike, Lee Ann's FitBit notified us that we'd climbed the equivalent of 51 flights of stairs with all of our steps for the morning.

Lee Ann in front of the Key Hole.

Just in case you're wondering ... we're on the "right side of the tracks!" :)  This is me and Lee Ann as we were finishing about 6.5 miles, before we headed back to the visitors center. When we were finished, my heart rate monitor told me I'd burned over 1800 calories! That's what 3 hours of hiking will do!

This week has been a tough week of sorts. Busy week at work, hard workouts, and the slight feeling of burnout due to some pain. Our Thursday night training session with Chris was tough, but what I needed to remember that I am getting stronger, and that I'm really doing great! Once again it was the laughter with and the support of my teammates that reminded me what great things we're accomplishing.

And, if you haven't met all of us yet, you'll quickly learn how quiet and shy we are ... NOT! :) The photo below is from our Thursday night training with Chris O'Hearn at Fort Sanders Health & Fitness Center. We're all smiling so big b/c the training is OVER! Just kidding...Chris!

So, even though Saturday's training wasn't as cut and dry as I'd originally thought it would be, it turned out to be exactly what I needed. A nice break from the pavement (although about 6 miles in I really would've given anything for pavement), and some much needed "therapy" time with my walking buddy, Lee Ann. It's amazing how therapeutic laughing and commiserating with a friend can be!

Here are some closing thoughts I've collected on Pinterest this week.

This is how I felt much of the week! lol

I was introduced to Burpees Thursday night in training. UGH. 

I hope everyone has a great week! Also a couple of great healthy things going on this coming week if you're looking for something to do!!

Thursday night there's a great event at West Town Mall supporting heart disease awareness for women!http://www.covenanthealth.com/hearttruth




Also, we're celebrating National Wear Red Day the hospital where I work on Friday, and have some great events planned - check it out!

Also, next Saturday is the kick-off of the Covenant Kids Run, part of the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon. Our team will be at the zoo to help out with this great event! There's still plenty of time to sign your kids up for this awesome event!

It'll take more than lightening to stop us!

Yesterday's long walk/run was derailed due to the lovely East Tennessee weather. By 8 a.m. we were enjoying a full force storm, complete with lots and lots of lightening. While this meant we didn't have to walk in the rain (yay!) it meant that we had to get our long distance effort for the week in on our own. Let me tell you, that was the most difficult 7 miles I've ever walked/shuffled. OK, OK, it's probably the only straight 7 miles I've ever traveled on foot, but talk about boring! When you're used to having the social and emotional interaction of teammates during your weekly jaunt, it's pretty bland without them!

My plan was to wait until a little later in the day when some of my teammates might be able to meet for some mileage, but by 8:30 I was bored out of my mind at home and wanting to move! Isn't it funny how once something does become habit it's so much harder to find a work around when things don't flow as planned? I did a little housework and sat down to watch TV, and felt lazy. I decided that I just needed to go ahead and get it done. That may day would feel much more complete once I had finished this.

So I headed to the gym. Note: I hate walking on the treadmill. It's boring. Even with a TV or music - it's boring. I also hate walking around a track-- it's even more boring than a treadmill! After doing the math in my head that 7 miles was going to take me about 2 hours, I set in for the long haul. The first hour wasn't too bad. I caught up on E! celebrity news, and watched some HGTV. I even saw a Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon commercial while walking. I tried to push myself at intervals as Coach Missy recommends for our weekly walks. I actually ran the last 10th of each mile I completed on the treadmill. I know that doesn't sound like a lot ... for she-who-does-not-run, that's a lot! And, believe me, today I'm feeling it!  After and hour (and 3.5 miles) on the treadmill I noticed others circling like vultures looking for empty machines, so I headed to the indoor track. As much as I hate the indoor track, it's redeeming quality is that it's abundantly air conditioned! Yay!

I would like to thank my good pals Justin Timberlake, Kei$ha, 'NSync, Miley Cyrus, JC Chasez, and a plethora of others for the solid entertainment during the walk. While they weren't as entertaining as my teammates, they helped me make it through the second 3.5 miles, and that's what I needed. This afternoon I'm definitely going to work on my workout playlist for my iphone. I'm currently taking suggestions for great walking/running music! Please share your favorites!

Backtracking a bit, I wanted to mention our training session Thursday night with our trainer & life coach, Chris. I really enjoyed that we all got to train in one place! Due to the number of folks in our group we usually split up into two different areas in the gym, however Thursday our core strengthening utilized stability balls, exercise mats, hand weights, and stability bands -- all things that we were able to do in one area of the gym together. I think working together really increases our morale, and our comfort level. For those of us who haven't lifted weights in many years -- or ever -- it's nice to have the support of those who have done it more recently, or might be better at an exercise than you are and can offer some helpful tips. The main bonus of us all being together is the laughter! I have to say, I feel like our team couldn't have been better matched for each other than we are! I think I get most of my ab workout by laughing each week. Whether it's Melody's impression of herself in a recent Zumba class, or Randy bustin' a move while doing his resistance band workout ... my teammates keep me laughing! And if you know me at all, you know how important I think it is to have a sense of humor! If you can't laugh at yourself, or find the funny things in life, I think you're missing out!

Now, don't get me wrong, Chris worked us out! We learned new core strengthening exercises using the stability ball, and incorporated weight lifting with the ball. Every Friday I'm sore in body part I didn't know I had! This week Chris also challenged us with some mental homework for the week. He asked us to write down at least 5 things that we are better at, are learning, or are grateful for as we have started going through the process of the Biggest Winner Challenge. I thought I'd share mine with you!

     1. I am grateful for the support that I’m getting from my friends, family and co-workers. I’m grateful that their support helps encourage me to keep working, and also helps hold me accountable for the goals I’ve set.

     2.  I’m learning that I am capable of a lot more physically than I’ve given myself credit for in the past. With that, I’m learning that even though it may hurt a little at first, it will feel better. Pain is temporary. The feeling of accomplishment from doing a new workout, or running short intervals on the treadmill, far outlasts the temporary discomfort.

     3.  I’m better at making time for me to workout. Other than work, I now schedule my workouts before anything else.

     4.  I’m getting better at saying “thank you,” and meaning it when someone pays me a compliment about how I look. Now that I am investing so much in myself by working on my health, and truly appreciating the challenge I’ve taken on, I’m beginning to really listen when people talk to me about my positive health changes.  

     5. I'm grateful for our amazing team. I’m grateful that my employer, Covenant Health, has given me this amazing opportunity to make these positive changes in my life, and I can’t imagine a better group of folks with whom to experience this.

     As always, I like to try to find inspiration wherever I can! And here are a few things I found on Pinterest this week that I really liked! 

  This is my absolute favorite! We're all unicorns at heart! 

Today I feel sore ... and that's OK!

It's not about the weight ...

OK, I know my post title today may not exactly make sense since I am participating in a weight loss competition...but bear with me!

Today was my one month check up with our dietitian, Barbara, at Covenant Weight Management Center. A little refresher on our timeline:

• November 12, 2011: Team met for the first time, did publicity photo shoot, etc. 
• December 12, 2011: First meeting with dietitian
• January 1, 2012: Official Biggest Winner training starts with Missy Kane & Chris O'Hearn. 

All of our walking, hiking, working out on our own prior to January 1 really was a bonus! It wasn't "required," but was a great jump start for our program.

All of that being explained -- since November 12, I've lost 2 pounds. Yup, you read that right, 2 pounds! I've lost 2 pounds, and 2 pant sizes. Let me explain...

The scales at Covenant Weight Management Center are very comprehensive in that they are able to measure some really cool stuff:

• weight
• BMI
• Fat %
• Fat Mass (how much of your weight is fat)
• Free Fat Mass (how much of your weight is not fat)
• Total Body Water

OK, so now here's the number I'm really excited about (and so was Barbara, even though she's still not thrilled with my sodium intake): Since November I've lost 6 pounds of fat! Yes, you read that right. My Fat Mass has gone from 125.51 to 119.51. In case you want to know what that looks like ... here's a pic of dietitian Barbara holding the 5 pound fat model (I stole this photo from Kelsey's (last year's winner) blog. I googled 5 pounds of fat, and ended up finding this picture!)

So, while I admittedly was disappointed that my weight wasn't lower than it is, I'm ecstatic about this huge achievement!

On the fitness front things are going well. Saturday was our longest walk to date, 6 miles. We met up with the Knoxville Track club at a new store on Gay Street to begin our adventure. It was definitely our coldest training event so far! 

On the greenway by the river with my teammates Lee Ann, Melody and Mike.

Tomorrow I turn 35. I've already celebrated with most of my wonderful family, and am very appreciate of the awesome gifts they've given me off of my list! A new heart monitor watch, and a new exercise mat! I know those may not sound terribly exciting ... but they are! Just a few more tools to help me on my journey. 

One of the other things that's helping me through this journey is a good sense of humor. I think you've got to be able to laugh at yourself, and learn from your mistakes and goofs, and make the best of any situation. Here's just a few little inspirational tidbits I found on Pinterest.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week! I'm enjoying a few days off with my husband! We all need a little rest sometimes! 

It's been quite a week!

I feel like it's been awhile since I've blogged, but it's been "one of those" kind of weeks! Work schedule was nutty, with not much personal down time,  but I've made it through to Saturday!

 I managed to get in 5 days of workouts for the week, including our first training session with Chris O'Hearn at Fort Sanders Health & Fitness Center. It was a great session, and felt good to start doing some more full body strengthening. We did some arm, back & leg exercises using the weight machines & free weights, and then  some other core strengthening stuff like planks, and crunches using the exercise ball. Friday I wasn't as sore when I woke up as I was afraid I would be -- which was definitely a relief!

This morning our Biggest Winner team met up with the Knoxville Track club at the Runners Market in Western Plaza for our training. Today my training goal was to increase my longest by 1/2 a mile ... so 5.5 miles for me today! Although Missy wants me to limit running right now to avoid injury, I did some interval pick-ups to get our heart rate up. Needless to say, my feet hurt after today's walk/shuffle, but the rest of me feels great!! It's 1 p.m. and I have over 14,000 steps in for the day!! I'd call that a successful day!

After our walk most of our team met up at Panera to relax a little. Missy asked us how the nutrition portion of our challenge was going. It was good to hear what everyone was going through, the challenges they were having, or the successes. We all go through the same stuff at different times, so most of us can honestly say "I know exactly what you're talking about!" Also, I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who is not seeing the pounds just melt away! Some of our team members (mostly guys) have lost more than 10 pounds in the challenge so far. I'm fluctuating with the same 2-4 back and forth. I know that I'm building muscle and converting fat to muscle, and I am happy about that ... but it will be nice to see a bigger dip on the scale. Currently I'll be thankful that I definitely notice the loss in the way that my clothes fit. Even if the scale isn't showing it -- my baggy clothes do!

Another cool thing that's been going on this week is that at work we transitioned to a new employee wellness plan endorsed by our health plan Humana. I wasn't so sure about it at first, but now I'm pretty excited the opportunity. Why shouldn't I earn points (that transition into vitality bucks) for all of the hard work I'm putting in?! So, with my new pedometer clipped on, and my HumanaFit iphone app I tracked today's walk. Pretty cool!

I'll leave you with a few motivational tidbits that I pinned on Pinterest.

Oh, I almost forgot to share an article that ran in the Mountain Press, the local paper in the county where I work! Some of you have seen it ... but for those who haven't, here you go!

Ain't no mountain high enough...

Yesterday I climbed a mountain. Literally and metaphorically. Earlier this week I started coming down with a cold, and haven't felt 100% for several days. Friday night while I was drowning my sorrows with hot tea and Kleenex I got the e-mail from Coach Missy Kane that our optional Saturday "get together" would be a leisurely outing to hike the breezy 3.5 miles at House Mountain. My first thought was, "no way, I feel like crap." Then I started feeling guilty that some of my teammates would be going on the trek, and I might not make it. After the guilt subsided I had flashbacks to the last time I went on an "easy" hike with some co-workers. Six miles, and one torn ligament in my foot later, I vowed to never believe anyone again when they said we were going on an "easy hike." 

When I woke up yesterday morning I decided that I was going to do it. If my options were: A: spend the morning being miserable at the house b/c I was sick, or B: spend the morning being miserable while attempting a hike with my teammates...I might was well do something productive! 


Around 10 a.m. Coach Missy, along with her sister & youngest daughter, met up with me, Lee Ann and Melody (my walking buddies & teammates), and several other of their sporty hiking friends (Carl, Sharon & Jerry).  Here we were before we got started: 

Needless to say the next four hours were a huge test and a huge testimony. A test of our strength (literally and figuratively) and a testimony to our sheer will and determination. I remember thinking to myself as we climbed straight up a rocky mountainside, "maybe someday I'll come out here and do this and think this is fun!" 


Thankfully, I had my teammates. I know I probably start to sound all sorts of "lean on me" and "I get by with a little help from my friends," when I blog about my teammates ...but you all have no idea. Yesterday Lee Ann and Melody were my lifeline. There were moments when I considered just sitting down and not going any further, thinking, eventually I can either roll back down this mountain, or I'll get eaten by wild dogs when nightfall comes, but by God, I won't have to worry about hiking back up or down. 


Every step of the way they were there to help me -- whether it was sympathizing with how I was feeling, or pointing out a rock or root that might trip me up, or holding my hand as I made it across portions of the trail that were only passable by climbing over rocks. There is NO WAY I could have finished yesterday's excursion in one piece without them both. To Mel & Lee Ann, thank you!! 


Several things made this hike worth it: 
First: the feeling of accomplishment when we made it back to the bottom of the mountain. I'm not really sure if that feeling was purely accomplishment, or just the euphoria masking all of the physical pains I was feeling ... but whatever it was, I'll take it.


Second: the momentum. When we finished I thought to myself, the next time I come back this won't be so hard. Wait, the next time?! OK, now I know I've lost my mind. I'll have to re-think the next time. 


Third: The workout. We logged over 11,000 steps, and burned 1,000+ calories. 


Fourth: the view. Everyone kept telling me (they'd all been on this hike before) it's an amazing view once you make it to the top! They were right! 


This is almost to the top -- sitting on a huge rock, taking a rest.

When we made it to the top we stopped to have a snack, rest, and take pictures. It truly was such an incredible view. What made it even more beautiful was knowing that the only way to make it to where I was standing was to physically do what I did. 

Thanks to Coach Missy for making me believe that I can accomplish anything. Even if at first it seemed like a a distorted view of reality, I'm determined to make it my reality! 

Since it's New Year's day I'll wrap it up with this ... I want the rest of my year to be like yesterday. Not the pain, the fear or the anxiety that I might not make it back down the mountain in one piece, but that exhilarating feeling of finishing something I was determined to finish! I want to always make the choice to do something instead of do nothing. I want to continue to step outside of my comfort zone, knowing that is the only way I can grow. I want to continue to believe in me, and what I'm capable of achieving.