Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Twelve Weeks Later...

I feel like Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic - "I'm king of the world!" Yes, blog-peeps, today I completed my first Twelve Week Fitness Challenge and I am shouting it from the mountain tops (ok, hilltops are more like it here in Texas) - I DID IT!!! I seriously cannot believe that I actually completed something like this! The old me would have bailed on this long ago..."it's hard, I have to get up early in the morning, my muscles are sore," blah blah blah, excuse after excuse...but I stayed with it, went to every session (and even added a third session for months 2 and 3) and boy do I feel GREAT about myself!!!

When I re-read my post about the first week, I had to laugh because I don't think I've touched the 6 and 8 pound weights since then. It's more like 10, 12, 15 and 20 - depending on the exercise. I can do 100 crunches with no problem, and the amount of squats, push ups and other crazy things have vastly improved. I can run for minutes at a time on the treadmill (Who me? Running?!?), and my endurance in the cardio room has gotten so much better - I am really shocked and happy (shappy - anybody remember that Family Ties episode?) at what I can do.

So...here's the numbers details: I lost about 18 pounds since I started, which is less than I wanted, but it breaks down to about 1.5 pounds/week...which is actually pretty good. Not sure what I was really expecting (beyond a miracle), but I'll take it. I've lost about 8 inches overall, with the most coming off my waist. After looking over my food logs with Brad and Linda, it seems that I'm not eating enough. I'll wait for the hoardes of you to finish nodding your heads with an "I told you so." Fine, fine, I get it now. The plan is to bump up the calories, mostly with protein. I'll shoot for about 1500 on my workout days, and 1200 - 1300 on the others. It will be interesting to see if that revs up my metabolism so I can get the rest of this weight off in a timely manner.

Have I mentioned that I signed up for another twelve weeks? Oh yeah - can't let these muscles disappear now! Bring it on!!!

21 comments:

  1. Good for you!! Oh, that's wonderful, you give me hope and your story is so inspiring, as I'm only on my 2nd week of boot camp, but I've already decided I'm going to sign up for some more classes when the 4 week boot camp is over. Congratulations, you should be proud! :)

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  2. CONGRATULATIONS - 1.5 lbs per week and 8 inches off is fantastic - no wonder you feel great!

    And good for you for signing up for another 12 weeks . . . you're gonna look like a supermodel :)

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  3. You should be proud of your accomplishment. You set goals and saw them though to the end. Good for you. You should also be proud of the fact you are encouraging others.

    cheers

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  4. That is so awesome! Im very proud of you and may you have even more success!

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  5. Shelley,

    Congrats girl! What wonderful accomplishments. You rock.

    I'm still stuck on the 5 and 8 pounders... any tips?

    Have a great night sweetie.

    With Love,

    Emily

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  6. Dang girl. You're awesome.
    Congratulations! *pat on the back and a high five*

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  7. Wow! Congratulations for an awesome workout and a new stronger you!

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  8. Good for you!

    Great that you are signing back up again ... keeping going :)

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  10. Whoo hoo for meeting goals!

    and, um. YES, I am thoroughly jealous of your proximity to Academy...but it is probably better for my wallet that I don't live that close!

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  11. Pictures? Can we see progress pictures? That's awesome! 8 Inches! Wow! See, now that's motivation.

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  12. not to be too too greedy but we need to get you a video camera :)
    this post shouted for , well, a video of you SHOUTING!

    AWESOME JOB

    and yes

    Ill "settle" for pictures.

    :)

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  13. Oh Shelley - that is fantastic news! Sounds like you'll be kicking Sarah Conner's butt in the next Terminator movie. I'm buying my ticket now. You are an inspiration, girl.

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  14. I can't wait to be in that good of shape! Right now, I would crumble under those weights, and 50 cruches at a time is my max. Now I see why you are telling me 2 pounds a week is going to be tough! Congratulations Shelley!! And I am going to follow your lead with the calories. Thanks for sharing the details!

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  15. Oh, I am so jealous you got to do this. Congrats on meeting that challenge. And the stats really are pretty amazing.

    I'm not even going to say "good luck" on your second bout with the challenge. Instead, have fun and keep kicking your ass!

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  16. I am in AWE of your accomplishment! YOU ROCK. I know I would love to join a gym and get a trainer. I just wish I had the money. Your before and after pics really show off your hard work. Keep inspiring me!! Thanks for your posts and the sweet comments I can rely on from you!

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  17. Wow, that is fantastic - sounds like you have made the most of the opportunity and done really well.

    It will be fascinating to hear what you report at the end of the next 12 weeks.

    Well done!

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  18. Way to go! Setting a challenge and sticking with it ;) Maybe the added calories will be a good thing---it will be cool to see if it speeds you up ;)

    How many lbs are you away from goal now? I don't see a ticker so I kind of have forgotten.

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  19. Awesome job on the challenge!!!I've been looking in my area for a challenge but no such luck. It really does keep you motivated.

    Btw, thanks for the sweet comment:)

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  20. WOW, you're amazing! CONGRATS!!! You are a true inspiration. I wonder if I can keep it up, but if you can, there is hope for me, too!

    WAY TO GO!!!!

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  21. Wow, good for you! You are so inspiring. This is exactly the kind of thing I need. I have been more than a little lax in the exercise department lately. You may have just given me the shot of inspiration I needed.

    Keep up the good work!!

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