Sunday, August 29, 2010

Mamavation Monday

It's that time again...Mamavation Monday!!


First off, I wanted to thank once again Leah Segedie, the founder of Mamavation for making it possible to be a part of this wonderful social media "Sistahood". I want to also thank Earth Footwear for the amazing prizes they offered us in the "Move it and Lose it Challenge. If you didn't already know, I won the challenge. Wahoo! I worked my butt of but, I owe alot of it to my readers and fellow sista's for all the support they offered. There is no way I would have gotten up and got moving if it weren't for all of you. Thank you so much!

So, I know alot of people have been asking what I'll be using the prize money for. I am not 100% positive just yet what I will be using it for but, as soon as I decide I'll let you know! I did however, promise myself that as I hit mini goals I would be "rewarding" myself. I have hit two goals since applying for Mamavation mom. I hit my 10% weight loss goal and, my halfway mark at 25lbs loss. What's my reward? I will be taking a visit to my local shoe store where I will be receiving a gait analysis and purchasing a pair of Fantastic running shoes!! I have not decided what my other reward will be. What do you guys think it should be??


On to my weekly check in:

Strengths: I finished week 2 of C25k. I still feel like I am not running enough on this program but, I know it will help me in the long run so I am sticking with it. I signed myself and, my oldest son up for our next race on September 12, 2010. I will be running the 5k and Big C will be running the 1 mile fun run. I am super proud of him that he is sticking with this! I drank all of my 100 oz. of water this week.

Weaknesses: Last week was my birthday weekend and, I was a good girl cause it was my last week to weigh in for the challenge and I was afraid a crazy weekend out would make me gain so I skipped out. Not to mention I had no sitter available. So this weekend I went out and celebrated with lots of food and, good beer. I had a great time but, I totally know it wasn't the best for me. Sometimes we have to give in a bit...right? lol.

Goals: Monday: 30 min Kettlebell workout
Tuesday: Kick Boxing Class, Week 3 Day 1 of C25k
Wednesday: EAS Active
Thursday: Kick Boxing Class, Week 3 Day 2 of C25k
Friday:  30 min Kettlebell Workout, EAS Active
Saturday: Week 3 Day 3 of C25k
Sunday: Rest Day

One last thing: I have decided to take a small break from weighing in. I felt with the challenge I started to obsess a bit with what my numbers were and, if I gained or loss. I will be putting away the scale for a while and just put my focus back on eating healthy and getting in my workouts.

On to some housekeeping:

MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV.
This Monday we will be welcoming Mamavation's newest Nutritional Coach, Cynthia Pasquella. I am really looking forward to meeting her and listening to what she has to say. I have so many questions to ask. Her website has lots of awesome info too, you should definitely check that out if you have time.
SISTA OF THE WEEK: And a BIG congratulations to Janice @fitcheerldr for being the Sista of the Week! Janice has been so supportive and, so helpful to me! She's one of my inspirations. Running 5k's fully preggo! Thank you Janice...You rock!
BLOGGING CARNIVAL:This week’s blogging carnival is sponsored by SoCal Cleanser, a protein and detox product. SoCal Cleanse organic protein +detox is ideal for detoxifying and cleansing.

Earth Footwear Review

I'm sure everyone has been hearing and, reading about the "toning" type shoes. Reebok, New Balance and Sketchers to name a few. They are pretty popular at the moment. They are designed to help develop muscle tone in your legs and backside area's.

I recently had the opportunity to try out a pair of Earth Footwear Exer-Walks. At first glance these shoes don't look like your normal "toning" shoe. They aren't big or bulky. They were cute, all leather and, pink!! (one of my fave colors) When I picked them up to try on I felt they were noticeably heavier than my normal everyday sneakers. I'm sure this has to do with the fact they are leather with a little bit of mesh for some air. My normal sneakers are mostly made of mesh.

I put them on and, noticed the incline (3.7) immediately on my heel. I thought they felt very comfy on. The BioFoam™ Cushioning was very soft on my feet and, gave a lot of support to my arch. I normally wear a 7 and, got a 7.5 because I had read other buyers say they are a little snug. The 7.5 felt great it wasn't to big on the heel yet left room for my toes to move around. I think these would be great for a person with a wide foot.


I wore mine faithfully all week to see how they held up and, to see if I noticed the "toning" part of the shoe. After the week long trial period. I did feel tightness in my calves a lot more. Not so much in my upper legs and back side. My over all likeness of this shoe though wasn't in fact that they were helping me with "toning" it was actually the comfort of the shoe. Over the week I wore them I loved wearing them. They are one of the most comfortable shoes Ive worn.

Earth Footwear shoes come in a variety of other styles and prices. The pair I tried come in a couple other colors as well. I'm loving at the moment their hot momma Swank boots! I even heard they're coming out with some "healthy heels" Overall they are very nice walking shoes!

*Please note these shoes were given to me by Earth Footwear as a winning prize for entering in The Mamavation Mom Twitter Party. They did not ask me to make this review as part of the contest prize. These thoughts and opinions are my own and, only mine. *

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Sunday, August 22, 2010

My last week and I hit a goal!!

I can't believe it's the last week of Mamavation mom and, the Move it and Lose it Campaign. Jenny and, Lisa have done so well. I can't wait to see their journey to running a 5k!

Well, as everyone who follows my blog knows I entered the Move it and Lose it Campaign 7 weeks ago. It seems to have went by rather quickly. I am very proud of what I have accomplished in the last 7 weeks. I've joined a gym, quit drinking soda, ran a 5k,  loss some weight, but overall I have seemed to accomplish what I thought I'd never be able to accomplish. I have gotten my family on board with wanting to live a healthy lifestyle. My children are eating healthier options and, being a lot more physically active. Next week my oldest son, Big C is going off to Kindergarten. We have already discussed the options he has for food at school. We have opted to pack a healthy lunch and, if he wants he will be allowed to purchase a school lunch every now and again. I now feel that I am ready for the choices ahead on what to pack him because, of what I've learned the past 7 weeks from all the Mamavation Sista's!

So, I know why most of you are here...How much has Shannon lost? This week Ive lost a total of 4.5lbs. I wasn't expecting to lose any this after last week's big loss but, hey I'm not complaining. This past week I completed week 1 of C25k. It went great. I want to also start incorporating a little more weightlifting into my workouts too. I feel I'm losing alot of the weight but I think I might be losing a little to fast. I don't want to lose muscle mass.

My goals for this week:
Work in lifting weights to my schedule
Drink 100oz of water
Help support my fellow Sista's on Twitter
Comment on all the Sista's blogs this week
Take my mind off losing weight (the numbers are starting to get to me) and, put more focus on being more active.

Here are my numbers and, pics this week as Move it and Lose it Challenge comes to an end! Thank you Leah at Mamavation for everything you have done and, continue to do for Mamavation. Since my application for Mamavation Mom I have lost a total of 30.5lbs Wowza!! I'm so happy! Here's to the next 20! :)

164.5


Before 07/9/2010 After 08/20/2010


Before 07/9/2010 After 08/20/2010
I have also learned from the above pictures those shorts were probably the worst thing to wear for these pictures. They dont lay flat and, bunch alot. Oh well.


MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV.

SISTA OF THE WEEK: And a BIG congratulations to Shawnee Halligan @ShawneeH for being the Sista of the Week! Thank you Shawnee for showing my blog some love and helping support me on Twitter. You Rock!

BLOGGING CARNIVAL: This week's blogging carnival is sponsored by Earth Footwear. The Move it and Lose it Campaign would not be possible if it weren't for Earth Footwear. Thank you so much for being such a great sponsor to Mamavation. Their shoes are incredible and, cute too! Come back later this week to check out a review I did on the pair of Earth Footwear I received at the Twitter Party at the beginning of this campaign.

See everyone at Mamavation Tv!!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

I Finished.... With Burning Feet!!


Saturday August 14, 2010 I ran my first 5k since taking a long break from running almost 10 yrs ago.
I decided to run a local 5k with only women participants as my first race. The race I choose was the Women's Distance Festival. The WDF celebrates "the history of women's rights to participate in running events at any distance and at any age." [RRCA]

All the proceeds of this race went to a local fund called The Women's Giving Circle.


 Their Website says, "The Circle’s purpose is to provide opportunities for donors to promote and support programs that enable and empower women in challenging situations to improve the quality of their lives and the lives of those for whom they are responsible."
 
 
 
The early entry is $20 and, later in the week went to $25.  We received a cute black and pink technical tee! The course was a 2 loop scenic route and, walker friendly. I arrived early to pick up my race day packet and, bib. I'm not going to lie I was pretty nervous. The weather was nice out. I had thought it was going to rain but, it held out for us. The race was scheduled to start at 8am. We lined up around 7:50 and waited till a couple minutes past 8:00. I decided before the race started that I was going to go into this with no expectations except finishing. I headed near the back of the crowd. I wanted to start out slow and, not get trampled on. It was a great feeling seeing all ages and, sizes of women participating. I saw as young as 8 and, as old as a women in her late 60's. I was very glad I had chosen an all women's race for my first. Something about women coming together to better ourselves in health was an awesome feeling. 
 


The race started and, I started out pretty slow. I was relaxed the 1st mile through. I made a last minute decision when I left the house to skip my Ipod and, to bring my cell phone so I could keep track on my Run Keeper app. Sometime around my 1st mile I lost service and, my music stopped working. I didn't run much up to this point with out music. It was nice to others cheering everyone along. I had a chance to hear how my body was handling my run. Around the 2nd mile my feet were the only thing that was truly in pain. They were on fire.



The last mile did me in. I truly think it was more mental then my body giving up. I keep telling myself I couldn't do anymore my feet were hurting. I took the 2 hills in the course very slowly. I knew I could have taken them better. I wasn't proud of myself at that point. When I got to the last turn I ran fast to the finish. I heard someone shout out you can make it before 41 minutes!! I tried my hardest to get there before then but fell a bit short. I finished the race at 41:15. A 13 min mile. I'm not 100% ok with my race but, I'm by no means disappointed. I did what I had set to accomplish, I finished. This is just the beginning.

After the race we received lots of race goodies, water, bagels, bananas, and, watermelon. They had a raffle to win lots of cool prizes. The racing community there was so kind and, supportive.

Big C and, I after the race! Yes, I stole it of the photographer website ;)

Also, to those who were wondering about my feet being "on fire" I have come to find out my shoes are horrible for my feet and, for running at all really. I learned that I have what's called a Morton's toe. It's when your 2nd toe is longer than your big toe. Usually when running most of your weight goes on to your big toe. In my case since my 2nd toe is longer my weight is carried on my 2nd toe. This causes trouble for me when wearing a shoe that doesn't accommodate the longer 2nd toe resulting in nail pain. So, I will be making a visit to my local shoe specialty store to receive a video gait analysis ASAP!

I want to thank everyone who cheered for me online and off! The support has been awesome. I don't think I would have gone through this with each and everyone of you.

Here's to training for the next one!!

*Update: Wanted to answer another question I keep receiving. Was I sore afterwards? I'd say yes my body was tired and, my muscles were sore. I did ice afterwards and, took a nice warm shower this might have helped. Like I mentioned above the most pain I had was in my feet. Oh...and, the dreaded "chub rub" is what I call it. My legs did chafe a bit. I did not Body Glide them :( This reminds me to get some for my continued training. Maybe I'll hit them up for a giveaway!! Body Glide if your reading this, lol. Email me ;)
 
 
 

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Semi Wordless Wednesday: A little Teaser!

So how did I do at my first 5k since close to 10 yrs ago?


Ooops..You will have to come back later this week to find out!!

Sunday, August 15, 2010

It's paying off!

This past week has been pretty awesome! I totally felt back in the swing of things.

My successes: I worked out for a total of 30 min everyday! I felt so much better this past week. I drank around 90-100oz everyday. I also managed to eat pretty good as well. I finished a 5k! (More to come about this later on another post!) I actually feel pretty high on life at the moment.

My failures: I can't really call this a failure for the week, it's really a failure from the past couple weeks. I'm not running. I kind of stopped running at some point during this journey to try to lose weight. I am still getting in my workouts but, I really need to get back into running. Another failure for me this week was there are a couple personal things in my life right now that have been bringing me a little down. I haven't been getting alot of sleep and, Ive been pretty stressed about this. I have a really bad ulcer that acts up when I am stressed or eat the wrong types of foods.

My goals for this week: Run!!! I am back to the drawing board. My weapon of choice, Couch 2 5k program. I have another 5k I have signed up to run in September so, I for sure want to beat my time. Another goal for me this week is to get to bed at a decent time. I have been dragging in the morning. Lastly, I still need to get my butt in gear on Twitter. I can't seem to make time to visit. My oldest is starting school next week so I think I'll have alot more time after that happens. Please know I support all my sistah's!!

A quick question I'd also like some input on. My oldest son (5 yrs.) went to the 5k with me this past weekend and now wants to run one with me. There were a bunch of children running and, I think this is why he got kinda bummed about not running and now wants to run one. Do you personally think 5 is too young to run 3.1 miles?

Now for the really great news!! My scale pic...I lost a whopping total of 8lbs this week. Holy Moly! I'm shocked!! I knew I did a pretty good job but had no clue this well! That is a total of 26lbs since my application for Mamavation mom a little less than 2 months ago!! I am super stoked!!




MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV



SISTA OF THE WEEK: A big congratulations to Kimberly @christlikemommy! Congrats girl you definitely deserve this, you are always there supporting everyone!
SISTAHOOD: If you are interested in pledging to the Mamavation Sistahood, Monday is the time to do it. Please go here for instructions. Invitations are done on Wednesday's over Twitter.

See everyone on Mamavation Tv!!

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Get my butt in Gear Monday!!

Happy Monday everyone!! This past week was a pretty good week for me. I reached a couple goals I wanted to reach. There were a couple I didn't quiet reach just yet but, will continue this week to make that happen.

So, this weekend is "The Weekend" I will be participating in my first 5k since last running one 10 yrs ago. I'm extremely nervous. I don't think I'm ready for what I want to accomplish. I think I set to high of standards for myself. I did not train as hard as I wanted to. After I get this race under my belt it will be full speed ahead to train for the next ones coming up in Sept and, Oct. I would love any and all advice to help me reach my goals on these next to races. I'm going to kind of use this race to give me a reminder of what I need to do to finish a 5k. I've ran some 5k's on the treadmill and a couple on the road but, they weren't outstanding. My goal is to finish this 5k with out stopping. Wish me luck!!

Last week I did pretty well with getting in my workouts at the gym and at home. As of this week I will be adding more running to my workouts!

My goals for this week:
Commit time to be more active on Twitter.
Commit time to comment on the sista's post's.
Drink more water. (I have skimped on this and have been feeling super dehydrated)
Add more running to my workout.

My Scale Pics:


I lost .5lb this week resulting in a total of 18lbs since my application to Mamavation Mom!! I'm so happy with my results so far!!




My Measurements:




MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV.



SISTA OF THE WEEK: And a BIG congratulations to Julie Mansfield @jamnsfld76 for being the Sista of the Week!
 
BLOGGING CARNIVAL: This week's blogging carnival is sponsored by Lori @gutimom as an Avon Representative. Here is all the swag she is giving away:

Cherry Blossom Naturals Set - $32 full retail value

Shower Gel, Body Lotion, Body Spray, Cosmetic Bag



Haiku Fragrance and Body Set - $49 full retail value

Shower Gel, Body Lotion, Shimmering Body Powder, Roll On Antiperspirant, Perfume



Foot Works Hodge Podge - $33 full retail value

Watermelon Foot Scrub, Spray Gel, Cooling Lotion; Original Conditioning Foot Soak, Exfoliating Bar Soap; Green Tea & Mint Exfoliating Scrub



Advance Techniques Professional Hair Care 2-IN-1 Healthy Shine Shampoo and Conditioner (Daily Results) - $4.00 full retail value



Skin So Soft Bug Guard Plus - Expedition Insect Repellent with SPF 30 Sunscreen Spray Pump with Vitamin E (Gentle Breeze) - $14 full retail value



Magix Face Perfecter with SPF 20 (Clear) - $10 full retail value



Spafinder Callous Remover - $10 full retail value



Spafinder Gel Eye Mask - $10 full retail value

These items will be divided up for the Blogging carnival winner AND a winner at Mamavation TV.

Wow!!! Thank you so much Lori! I love Avon item's. I actually used to be an Avon rep myself back in the day. I had to stop because I was buying more products than I was selling. Lol.
SISTAHOOD: If you are interested in pledging to the Mamavation Sistahood, Monday is the time to do it. Please go here for instructions. Invitations are done on Wednesdays over twitter.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Getting back on track!

 This week went somewhat better. My overall fitness and eating was alot better. However, I felt extremely lazy this week. Even today as I write this I didn't really want to sit down and write it. I didn't make time for alot of things this week and, totally regret it. I HAVE to make these things priority this week.

Get in more exercise
Eat more clean
Make time to post at least 2 times on my blog.
Make time to visit other Mamavation posts.
Make time to show my support to the other sisters on Twitter!!

The scale pic doesn't look to horrible but, considering I'm loosing the pounds I just gained the past week, I'm not completely happy with it. Total this week I lost 6lbs. These 6lbs make up the overall 17.5lbs lost since joining Mamavation. Not to shabby I'd say!




MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV.
SISTA OF THE WEEK: And a BIG congratulations to Rachel Steffen @RachelSteffen for being the Sista of the Week! Rachel has always been there for me!! She is such a kind person. She def deserved this title!! Congrats girl!
 
BLOGGING CARNIVAL: This week's blogging carnival is sponsored by Gruve Solution. The Gruve is a handy little gadget that learns your body mechanics and then helps you burn more caloris throughout the day. Basically, it monitors how many calories you are burning and encourages you to burn more throughout the day by taking more steps, etc. And then it starts to vibrate on you when you are sitting too long. If you would like to be entered to win one please visit Mamavation's site and sign up to participate in this weeks Mamavation TV!
 
SISTAHOOD: If you are interested in pledging to the Mamavation Sistahood, Monday is the time to do it. Please go here for instructions. Invitations are done on Wednesdays over twitter. (Or later if I get swamped) I can't thank the Sistahood enough for the kind support they have given me the past 3 months now!!
 
See everyone on Mamavation TV!
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