When Were You Going To Tell Me?

On Monday morning I got a call for my group to take an afternoon gig in December.  I told the lady with it being in the middle of the day we might not be able to do it, but I would ask everyone to see who could.  I would call her back in the next few days to let her know.

In the meantime I asked her if it was a paying gig and we would need to get $40 each depending on how many could make the show.  She told me she'd find out how much money the group had, but wasn't sure.

Wednesday morning (two days later) I called her back.  She told me she was "going to call" me.  Apparently in the meantime (two days) the high school would be performing for them.  I asked her if it was the band or the chorus.  She said she didn't know.  I wondered when all this happened.  She said the group doesn't have any money.  I am so sick of charitable organizations thinking they can have quality entertainment for free.  What is it with these groups?

Anyway.  I decided to tell her I was "going to" tell her that if she couldn't find anyone I would come down and play for the group.  She could put me down as her "Plan B."  She was quiet for a moment,  I tried to read her to see if she was disappointed and wished she'd waited for me to call back.  We said our socially acceptable goodbyes and the phone call ended.

Plateaus and Platitudes II: Breaking Down Barriers

I ran the second time tonight and forgot to write it down.  Never ran the third time and totally blew off P90X.

Run I
Interval: 9 min
Distance: 3.88
Time: 90 min
Calories: 504

Run II
Interval : 8 min
Distance: ?
Time: 90 min
Calories: ?

Plateaus and Platitudes

My weight has hovered around 168 - 173 for five months.  Worse, I haven't really progressed in distance and time for two months.  August is over on Saturday and I still have not conquered the six minute interval.  I want this.  I've got to bust through this.  Yesterday I ended up doing three rounds.  I will do it again today.  I want to run that bridge and I don't want to do it like some old lady.  I want to do it like a runner a true runner.  Here are my stats for today.  It was supposed to be 12, 11, 10.  I got mixed up and did the 10 minute interval after lunch:

Run I
Intervals: 12 min
Distance: 3.41 miles
Time: 90 min
Calories: 443

Run II
Intervals: 10 min
Distance: 3.73 miles
Time: 90 min
Calories: 485 

Run III
Intervals: 11 min
Distance: 3.56
Time: 90 min
Calories: 463

P90X and Ab Ripper X: Disc #4 Yoga X 5 -- minutes

I still have a P90X workout to make up for.  I may do that on Sunday.

Up In Flames II -- Up and Able to Take Nourishment

I'm awake and feel hung over--bad hung over.  I tried to go back to sleep for a little while.  Eight o'clock is the best I could do.  I was in bed for 11 hours.  I feel like I've been sick for days.  I'm going to eat a sensible breakfast, wait and hour and try to get some exercise.  I thought about it for a moment and even though I have a headache I'm going to try to run.  I figured I could run this morning, work on my Spanish and A+, do my P90X stuff after lunch and then do today's run late tonight.  This morning's run isn't going to be a record breaker, it's going to be more about burning calories and disciplining myself for yesterday.

Up In Flames

I don't know what happened tonight.  I was fine all morning.  I did my sprint.  I had a good and healthy lunch, watched a little TV, came back in the computer room, needed to do my P90X for the day and didn't.  In the back of my mind I knew I was going to be alone all day.  I guess I figured I could do it later.  I sat down to study for my A+ and just got angry.  I got angrier and angrier.  Then the cravings started.  Wild crazy cravings for something chocolatey, fattening, sweet, and high calorie.  I resisted for about five minutes.  I went in the kitchen and opened a tub of icing.  Then I ate two spoonfuls.  I went back to the computer for about five minutes, came back out and ate two more.  By the time all was said and done, I ate six big spoonfuls of chocolate icing probably equaling about 900 calories.  I hid the tub in the back of the refrigerator and decided that if my husband found it I would tell him I put the icing on the banana muffins.

You see the idea of binge eating has become foreign to me.  I used to binge on sweets and then feel like I was going to die.  Over the years of improving my diet and exercise, I've learned I can have a small piece of cake or pie every now and then.  I can even keep muffins, cake or pie in the refrigerator and each from it through the weeks.  This has been working great.  A little hundred calorie bite or two of cake or pie and I'm good.  Not this month.  Not this week and not today.  Something has gone terribly wrong.

I had not experienced binge eating in years.  I immediately felt gross and blamed that tub of icing.  What triggered this nonsense?  I don't know.  I only know I felt a consuming heavy cloud of loneliness, sadness and anger--much like when I was a kid.  I'm not tired.   I won't sleep.  I'm going to bed.

Supplemental

Time: 18 minutes
Distance: 1.10
Calories: 143

Livin' on a $132,000 Prayer

I stopped feeling it.  I don't sympathize anymore.  I can't believe it.  I was reading along at this lovely blog posting a friend had linked me to.  I was instructed to "pray for this young couple."

OK.

I linked to the blog and found a truly heart wrenching story of a young homeless couple that had recently made a decision to live an unconventional lifestyle.  In easy terms they were going to move out in to the country and live off the land.  Now the reality of the situation is, the home they were going to lease is off the market.  The owner "decided" to sell.

I think this means the "agreement" between this endearing young couple and the homeowner was never in writing.  Wow.  That's a leap of faith.  Or, maybe, just maybe, really, really (did I say really?) naive on their behalf.

Now they are praying for "$132,000" so they can just buy the house.

Really?

Hmmm.  I've got a '92 Buick with a smashed door, no a/c, and only the back windows go down in the driveway that sometimes leaves me stranded.  Sometimes I have to bum rides or not go.  I feel God's calling for a nicer car.  I think I'll pray for a Mercedes.

I know this is all relative, but for a couple about to be "homeless," there are many options.  One of which shouldn't be a $132,000 home in the country.  It's the one or two bedroom apartment or duplex in town.  For crying out loud.  This kind of thing sets me off in a big, big way.

Quit bumming off God, people.

Saturday Night's All Right for Fighting

Today I went to the website I joined when I bought the P90X program November 2011--just short of two years ago.  Seeing I'd lost 30+ pounds since then made me happy.  I'd also forgotten how frustrating the website was to use.  I tried to figure out how to say this without it looking like more (or less) than it was.  I've gone down about four inches in most of the major areas of my body.  Four inches from my waist, four inches from my chest and several inches from each of my thighs.  I am the most proud of the loss from my arms and thighs.  I'd sure like to tackle that waist measurement.

I have a party to go to on Saturday.  I've been upping my runs and workouts just a little bit to try to lose a little bit more Saturday.  I know that's not the idea.  The idea is to adopt a lifestyle of health and fitness, not binging exercising for a big party the coming weekend.  It sure would be nice to drop five pounds between this past Monday on this weekend.  Not gonna happen.  Anyway.  I did five minutes intervals and didn't make it much further than the last time I crammed my workout.  I just want to run faster and further.  Isn't that what we're all looking for?  Here are my stats:

Time:  70 min
Distance: 3.69
Calories: 480

P90X and Ab Ripper X: disc #2 5 minutes
Calories: 50

Supplemental

Time: 17 min
Distance: 1.01
Calories: 131

I found a website that calculates the calories (assuming it's average) burned doing the various P90X workouts:

P90X Calorie Counter

I don't know how legit it is, cause it sure feels like I'm burning more than 50 calories in five minutes. *wink, wink*.

Great Day!

Today was a great work out day.  I did my supplemental sprint, P90X, and made it 4.21 miles.  Here are my stats:

Time: 80 min
Distance: 4.21
Calories: 548

Supplemental

Time: 16
Distance: .91
Calories: 118

P90 X and Ab Ripper X: 5 minutes

I found out today my treadmill has 23 intervals from start to seven miles per hour.  I also looked up some stats from last years race and saw some six and seven minute paces in my age group.  Not unreasonable.  My strategy is to be running seven miles an hour by race day.  I'd also like to be able to run eight miles so the seven for the race won't seem like a big deal.  These are lofty goals.  If I don't aim high, I won't aim anywhere.

Winding Down and Cranking It Up

The week is winding down.  I was trying to decide what I wanted to do on Sunday nothing, a half workout, or full steam ahead.  The best I could do was decide to wait until tomorrow and see what I did and didn't feel like doing.  Tonight I didn't feel like working out but it went well.  Here are my stats:

Time: 67
Distance: 3.85
Calories: 474
Disc: #1 plus Ab ripper - 4 minutes

Supplemental

Time: 15
Distance: .75
Calories: 98

Considering starting on Monday with 16 supplemental minutes for the week.  I am definitely becoming a faster runner than I was even a year ago.  After being on the treadmill for over an hour,  I ran one minute at 5.5 mph.  Some might say one minute is not a big deal, it is.

I heard a comment on one of these reality weight loss shows that has been sticking with me.  It's the reason I started working on running faster.  If the work out is not getting me what I want, I need to increase the intensity at which I am working out.  I didn't want to hear that, but it makes sense.  Anyone can walk seven miles if given the chance to amble along, but it takes intensity to complete the seven miles in, say, an hour.

I've been thinking about my goal to run the Seven Mile Bridge race.  I need to add less than two miles to the time I am running.  I'm down to about five or six months. Can't remember exactly when my personal deadline was.  I think I was trying for seven miles in 70 minutes.  That's a six mile an hour average.  So to think this through, I need to get up to running six miles an hour and add time each day or week at a pace that will get me to the six miles per hour for 70 minutes.  With the race now eight months away and I'm still trudging along at barely over three miles an hour, it's time to rethink my strategy.

Afterword: Study the Field

I've been thinking about being done with school now for about a week and a half.  Even though I've been "looking" at job openings and seeing what's out there for about a year, this week has been different.  I has made me see some of the mistakes I made.

My major was Information Security.  Mainly because I originally wanted a degree in Computer Forensics and couldn't find a school that had a four year degree in it.  It was mostly offered in a two year or 18 month format.  I wish that I'd done some research while I was working through school.  I certainly would have started the certification process sooner.

Most employers are looking for tech plus "blank."  For example, the job I recently applied for wanted a tech that could do help desk and monitor a data center.  This has been the story in many jobs that I have seen.  The "tech" part is what I don't have.  I only know what I have learned so far in the book I bought and the videos that are offered from the school I just graduated from.  I only relatively recently discovered this world of certifications.  I'm now pursuing the CompTia approach: A+, Network+, and then Security+.  The A+ book is the thickest at 1600+ pages.  I'm trying to be ready to take the test by December.

I recommend Mike Meyer's All-In-One A+ Certification study guide.  He has test tips and real life application tips.  I paid about $40 for the 2012 edition.  I will definitely go for his Network+ book when I'm ready.

The Excellence Continues

A good day.  Two days of morning sprints to help me wake up.  August record time/distance.  Still doesn't smash June record of 86 minutes but still inching closer and closer.  It kind of felt like I could go further, but after 78 was the next speed up.  I was starting to get tired where my legs wouldn't straighten.  I didn't want to fall down so I quit.  Still happy with my August results.  8 days left.  Sure was hoping to make it to 90 minutes by now.  I'm ready to move up to five minutes intervals.  aargh.


Time: 78 Minutes
Distance: 4.27 Miles
Calories: 555
Disc: #11 and Ab Ripper X - 4 min

Morning sprint

Time: 14 min
Distance: .72
Calories: .93

Set Back? No Way!

Today I blew out my treadmill with the small compressor my son has.  Cat hair dust and black build up came out of everywhere.  I thought I was taking good care of my treadmill.  I guess not.

That said, I think that may be why I was not able to go as far on the treadmill tonight.  By the 74th minute I was running over five miles an hour and had been running that fast for over three minutes.  I made it to 3.95 miles and couldn't run anymore.  I was worn out but realize I'd made it almost four miles in 74 minutes.  That's a 3.2 mph average.  Maybe it was the clean treadmill?  Here are my new stats:

Time: 74 minutes
Distance: 3.95
Calories: 513
Disc: 10 and Ab Ripper X - 4 minutes

I also did a very short morning run:

Time: 14 minutes
Distance: .69
Calories: 90

Super Stoked Tonight!

I made it to 76 minutes at six minute intervals.  I was ready to do yesterday's goal of 73 minutes since I'd done the change up yesterday, but decided as the 73 minute mark approached I could make it to 76.  I did!  Tomorrow's goal (79 minutes) will begin to peek at last month's record of 86 minutes.  If I can stay on track, I will break last month's record by Saturday at the earliest or Sunday for sure.  I want 90 minutes, but 87 minutes is kind of my psychological wall right now since I was not able to beat it last month.  Today I was eight pounds from my next weight goal.

Weight 173.6

Time: 76
Distance: 3.78
Calories: 492
Disc: #9

Did four minutes of P90X and Ab Ripper X.  I really feel the Ab workouts in my posture sitting, standing, and walking.

Change Up

I decided to get my run over faster tonight.  I took five minutes intervals and made my distance goal a little.  It wasn't a good train for distance, but it shortened my time by more than five minutes.

Total time: 66
Calories: 427
Distance: 3.28
Disc: 8

First night of four minutes on P90X and Ab Ripper X!  I made it.  My balance on a lot of the exercises is already getting better.  Feeling my energy may be returning.

The Disappointment of Rejection: Our Amazing Brains

It is so surprising how it only takes 48 hours for our minds to create a reality for us out of an idea.  That's the way it was with this job.  I read about it on Saturday morning and by this morning I was creating scenarios for the new car I would "have" to buy in order to commute.  I was thinking about keeping up my night owl regime so I didn't get out of practice being up all night.  (The job is third shift)  I almost bought a pair of shoes I thought might make me seem more serious about the position.  Sensible, practical shoes.  I didn't buy them.  Now I am thankful.

The job was 30 minutes each way.  I'm pretty sure my application didn't clear the front desk.  It was a strange experience.  I'd heard that companies had a rigorous screening process, but I'd never experienced screening right there in front of me with other people standing around.  It was kind of humiliating while at the same time I felt cheated out of the opportunity to show them I could learn and do.

I was also told in so many words my experience was useless.  "She" could do what I had experience in.  Without looking at the fact I had a degree in Information Technology Information Security.  She turned her nose up at me and insisted I be able to monitor their systems and troubleshoot.  Hmmm.  Very interesting.  Whatever.

I asked her about a term I'd never experienced and tried to research and still could not find.  She said that those that knew how to do that particular thing would know what it was.  Again.  She failed to hear me tell her I knew what the word was, I'd just never heard it used in that context.

I also found out that someone who makes pretty good money and has made a pretty nice little niche for themselves in the company they work for, got started simply because she was bilingual.  That on the coat tails of being told my experience and education didn't fit their narrow criteria.  Suppose I should have been bilingual.  That would have gotten me right in the door.

I'm supposed to resume running tonight.  I'm not going to.  I'm bummed.  I'm going to bed.

Rest Day

Today was a rest day.  I cooked ribs and ruined them.  I baked banana bread and ruined it.  Not a good day.  I'm excited to get up and apply for a job I saw on line yesterday morning.  I didn't do anything.  I don't think I overate.  Bagel and a cup of coffee for breakfast.  I didn't eat the ribs.  Had peas and a few french fries.  I had two glasses of soda.  Just a strange day for not doing anything and eating everything.

Seemed Too Easy

Tonight's run seemed to easy.  Kind of that too good to be true type of night.  I must have managed to not increase my speed at one (or two) of the intervals.  It took me 71 minutes to get where I was at 67 minutes last night.  Frustrating.

Time: 71 Minutes
Distance: 3.27
Calories: 425

Disc #7 and Ab Ripper X two minutes.  Tomorrow is a rest day.

Wear It Out

Well, the treadmill didn't do that thing tonight.  Surprise.  It seemed like it was on its last leg last night.  I was ready to use it 'til it burned up.  Oh well.  Had a pretty good run tonight.  Didn't make it any further or burn anymore calories.

Time: 67 Minutes
Distance: 3.26
Calories: 424

I did Disc #6 and Ab Ripper X as well.  Two minutes.

Is My Treadmill Dying?

I know I've fretted about this before.  I think my treadmill is starting the long decline toward death.  It seems to speed up and slow down on its own.  Once I got into the higher speeds, it didn't seem to do it as much.  I don't know if I can trust the counts.  We'll see what happens tomorrow.  May consider finding and trying a new belt for it.

Time: 64 Minutes
Distance: 3.25 Miles
Calories: 423

P90X: Disc #5 and Ab Ripper X: 3 minutes

Very Little Improvement

Tonight I made it 61 minutes.  I forgot to write down my figures.  The last time I glanced I think it was something like 334 calories and somewhere around three miles.

I also did disc #4 and Ab Ripper X.  Three minutes each.  I'm really starting to feel it in my abs again.  Hoping I can stick with this.  By the end of the month I will be doing 1/3 of the Ab Ripper.  I'd like to be doing the five minutes without stopping.