Fitness Ridge ... Round 2!

Okay ... I'm back! :) This will be my 2nd trip back to Fitness Ridge and I'm already exhausted on my 2nd day out on the hikes and the gym! I arrived on Sunday, Oct. 3rd to be put into my same exact room that I was in while I was here in January (Room 103)! The only difference is I don't have my bestest roomie ever ... Sandy! I'm sad about that! But, life goes on and I'm doing my thing and working out hard! P.S., I haven't missed one class yet! And, I don't plan on missing any!!!

On Monday, I burned 3200 calories for the 12 hours I wore my heart monitor. 1100 of those were burned just during the 2.5 hour hike! The hike was up on Chuckwalla trail and a total of 5 miles hiked! For breakfast, we had a Fritatta. For Lunch, Vegetarian Chili. And, for Dinner, Salad, Chicken with Mashed Potatoes and Asparagus and a pineapple skewer for dessert. I had a banana for my after hike snack (as I always do). I did good!

Monday's workout schedule was:
Breakfast
8:00-10:30 Hike
11:15-12:00 Stretch class
Lunch
1:45-2:30 Open Gym
2:30-3:15 Core Training
3:30-4:15 Circuit Training (supposed to be in Pool)
4:30-5:15 Circuit Training (again!)
Dinner

On Tuesday, I burned 3000 calories for the 12 hours I wore my heart monitor. 980 of those were burned during the hike. Today due to the rain, we went up paved bike trails instead of the norm. It was still hard though as the inclines were killer! For breakfast, we had Smoothies, but I opted for a bowl of their cereal with almond milk and 1/2 of a banana. For lunch, Squash Soup and a Turkey Pita (which was unbelievably wonderful)! And, for dindin ... Baked Penne Pasta with Steamed Broccoli and 2 Chocolate Covered Strawberries for dessert ... yup, Chocolate Strawberry Tuesdays are still in effect at FR! :)

Tuesday's workout schedule was:
Breakfast
8:00-10:30 Hike
11:15-12:00 Stretch class
Lunch
1:30-2:15 Cooking Class
2:30-3:15 Cardio Intervals
3:30-4:15 Total Toning
4:30-5:15 Cardio Intervals (again!)
Dinner

A lot of changes have taken place since I was here in Jan ... they no longer give out awards for attending every class during the week! Instead, you only get a t-shirt at the end of your stay whether you're here 1 week or several weeks! I asked why that had changed and they said too many people were getting injured and doing the classes anyway while injured just to earn the jacket or the backpacks. So, that's a change!

Another change, NO STOP SIGN HIKE ... Ahhhh! I liked being timed! According to one of the hiking guides, they said there were too many complaints from the locals that there were too many people clogging up the trails. So, Snow Canyon made it where they can only have 2 vans on Saturdays out on that trail. And, when you go out on Stop Sign, there is no longer a timed event! So, if you plan on doing Stop Sign on a Saturday hike, take your own timing device.

Okay ... til next time!

Biggest Loser Meal Plan

Okay ... I couldn't stand it anymore, so I went online and ordered a 7 day meal plan for hubby & myself. I knew I only had 9 days before leaving to go to BL@FR so I wanted to lose weight beforehand & begin a heavier workout schedule. Love it! I've lost 5 lbs in 7 days and I've worked out 1.5 hrs M/W/F HEAVY! My trainer made me take my Street Stryder to his gym where we use it too! Killervworkouts, water, & my BL foods = weight loss! I can't wait for my 2 wks at Fitness Ridge!

More to come! Off to pack!

Dee Dee

Disappointment

I get on the right track with eating "good for me stuff" and working out just to get on the scales and have either stayed the same weight or gained weight!!! Ahhhhh! I need to get back to Fitness Ridge so bad! I have a little less than 5 weeks and I'm there! I can't wait! I seem to have lost that incentive, that drive to get into the gym every day ... I need those cardio classes that are there for me, but just don't have the will power to go drive there to take them! HELP ....

Anyone else feeling this disappointing pain?

Sorry that I lost touch!

Okay ... it's been awhile now since I've blogged! (March to be exact) I lost track of it and I feel bad. I had surgery (gall bladder) and wasn't allowed to work out for 6 weeks and I fell back into my old ways and habits! I had got down to 170 lbs before my surgery! Since then, I've gained back 18 lbs! I figured out that I could't be back up that much when I return to Biggest Loser at Fitness Ridge! So, I got back into the gym and I've been eating good again. I'm now 15 lbs from being back down to the 170 I was at! However, I'm only 5 lbs from being where I was when I left BL@FR in January!

My exciting news: I'm going back to BL@FR to Utah on Oct 3-17!!! I can hardly wait! I was reserved to go to their newest facility in Malibu, California, but I was on the Waiting List at Utah and received my phone call today that I was found a spot to go into! Ahhhh! I can barely contain myself! I jumped up and down so much that my water broke ... and I'm not even pregnant! ba da dum dum! My attempt at humor!

So, UTAH BE PREPARED ... DEE DEE'S COMING BACK!

I'll report more weekly from now until the time I leave for Utah again! Hit me up on my facebook page: Dee Dee Charleston-Palmer or email me if you want to know particulars that this blog didn't help you with! d2dancer@aol.com

March Update

Okay ... I've been home from FR for 2 months now and I must admit that it's been hard to keep up with the foods and exercise as we learned it there. However, I've still lost weight. That's much better than gaining or not losing at all. Here's my updated measurements and weights:

Weight Today vs Weight on Departure from Fr

173 (down 7 lbs) vs 180
Bust 42" (no loss) vs 42"
Waist 35" (2" loss) vs 37"
Hips 38.5" (up .5") vs 38"
Thigh 21.5" (up .5") vs 21"
Calf 15 (same) vs 15"
Rt. Arm 12 (.5" loss) vs 12.5"

So, I'm down a total of 7 pounds and down 1.5" since leaving FR! I'm on the right road, but I need to follow the directions to get there a little easier. :)

It's been rough! I came home with a bum knee and messed up toe (the toe still bothers me). I ended up canceling my trainer since I felt I learned enough at FR to do it myself (I had my trainer for a year prior to going to FR). My problem has always been the getting there to the gym ... the desire to want to work out. That's not my problem at this point! My problem is health issues ... listen to this!

My husband and I went riding the motorcycles last weekend and had a great time. We got home and hubby cooked a rotisserie chicken for me and we had a great dinner and while watching tv that evening, I started having intense abdominal and rib pains which began hurting in the back as well. It only intensified to make me go to the ER that evening. I was admitted into the hospital on Monday morning and they informed me that they advised a emergency gall bladder removal. My gall bladder was so distended (inflated) that they thought it best to do it right then. I'VE NEVER HAD A GALL BLADDER PROBLEM IN MY LIFE! Well, I did it as I remember my hubby's problems with his for 10 years and didn't want to go through that like he did. So, now, I sit here with 4 holes in my tummy and told that I can't work out for a few weeks! This sucks!!! I was doing so good. Why me? I was so enjoying going to the gym every day and taking my Zumba classes at the RDV Sportsplex! I even had my Techogym key reinstalled and updated with my new weight lifting capabilities so I could do my own weights without a trainer with me. I was doing treading and getting on the bike. DAMN! Always something! I did hear that with a weight loss change in your body, that the gall bladder issues show up quicker. Don't know if that's true, but hey, it showed up quick for me after losing 20 pounds! :)

Anyway, I'm still on the weight loss track and enjoying seeing the numbers falling on my scale! I know I can reach my goal of 155 ... it's just a matter of when will I reach it! :) Stay tuned for the end of April results ... I'll be back in that gym as soon as I feel better!

One Month Home ... Still Losing Weight!

I've been home for a month now and I weighed in this morning at a loss of 6 additional pounds since leaving FR! That's exciting! That makes my weight loss a total of 20 pounds now! WooHoo! I'm still working hard at it! I go to a lot of classes during the week: Zumba, Boot Camp, Kickboxing (not like Sharon's), and one on one training with my trainer.

I can't wait to return to FR in Jan 2011! For those going soon ... I hope my journal helps you. :) Work hard and you'll see results!

1st Week at Home

First Pic: My 15 yr old girl, Winter. A 5 pound Maltese
Second Pic: My 9.5 yr old boy, Derringer. A 55 pound Boxer
My babies that I came home to. It was sad that my little Mittens wasn't here to greet me, but I still have these two that make my day! :)

Well, my first week wasn't what I planned for it to be! I got home and was told that I needed to relax the knee. I had to come home early from Fitness Ridge due to a Staph Infection in my Left foot's little toe and a knee sprain on my Right leg. So, rested I am! I did clean my house somewhat and decided to call my fitness trainer and get back on his schedule. I ended up going to him and working out this past Friday. It felt so good to work out again. Even though it was for only an hour and only on upper body and abs. Next week baby!

I did cook all of my foods from the cookbook from Chef Cameron. It was really hard to find some of those ingredients!!! But, I found them and cooked away! I ate like I was supposed to, but found that I didn't drink as much water as I did while at FR! I did face some temptations when I went to the Orlando Magic Basketball games (NBA). Foods there aren't made for diets. But, I did find The Carvery that had fresh roasted carved turkey sandwiches. I asked for the carved turkey minus the bread roll! Good, huh?

Okay, I weighed in today ... I've lost 2.5 pounds this week without even trying (except for my food intake). I now weigh 177.5! Woohoo! I'm happy about that. I was at 180 when I left Fitness Ridge on January 29th.

I plan on putting together my Street Strider today and hopefully begin riding it either tomorrow (knee pending) or Monday. I can't wait! I do plan on taking some classes this week at my gym. I stopped by there and picked up their new Spring Schedule. I'll let you know how that goes this week!

More to come ... I'm still on my Weight Loss Journey! ... Dee Dee
email: d2dancer@aol.com
facebook: dee dee charleston palmer