From August through October, my BIL and I went to the gym a few times/week. In recollection, I remember it being 3 or 4 times/week, but it may have been more or it may have been less. I'm thankful for having a workout buddy to keep me on track, and to "compete" with. We pushed each other to stay a little longer, or work a little harder. If he was on the treadmill for 30 minutes, I went for 40. I'm not sure if he knew that I was judging myself against him. Guess he knows now!
In that time, I attempted the Couch to 5k on the treadmill. And I got stuck on week 5. I just couldn't mentally push myself past the 1 mile mark. Maybe it was me, maybe it was the treadmill, maybe it was the program. Who knows?
My gym routine was usually:
Couch to 5k on the Treadmill
Arm circuit or leg circuit on the machines (alternating days)
Finish up with a few more minutes of cardio (20 on the bike or elliptical, or 5 on the Stair Stepper)
The machines at that gym were pretty basic. Legs were extensions, curl, press, calf press, and maybe one other that I'm forgetting. Arms were row, press, fly, curl, and again maybe 1 or 2 more that I'm forgetting. Basic things. I would do 15 reps on one machine, hop to the next, the next, the next, all the way to the end of the row. Then grab some water and repeat twice. I lifted more than a beginner probably would, I think because I still had some old soccer muscles buried under the blubber (we lifted in the HS weight room for soccer).
In October 2009, the hubby and I moved back into the City. I transferred my membership to a different Anytime Fitness, that had a wider variety of machines. I upped my work-outs to more like 5-7/week, and upped my cardio (I abandoned the Couch to 5k) to 30-45 minutes on the elliptical (basically, I did it until I got bored). I still hit a circuit of the machines each time (either legs or arms), but started wandering into the free weights area. I tried my hand at squats, and grabbed a bosu ball for some ab work. Most days, I was in the gym for about 1.5 hours. Before going to the office. :)
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| October 2009 I went as an SEC ref :) |
I also overhauled my food intake. No, I won't call it a "diet" because it's not a diet. Before, I was eating whatever I felt like, whenever. During the first round of my transformation, I cranked up the protein, dialed back on the sweets, and tried to eat more sensibly. I won't say that how I ate is right, I'm just sharing what I did.
Breakfast was usually a protein bar after the gym. If I didn't go to gym, then I usually couldn't stomach a protein bar, so I'd have waffles or maybe a Pop-Tart, something I could eat in the car on my commute. Weekend breakfasts were usually pancakes or breakfast tacos. I added in a morning snack, usually a banana. Lunch was always a turkey sandwich on honey wheat bread, a piece of fruit, and 1 cookie (usually a Chips Ahoy). I'm a boring lunch date. Dinner was just a smaller version of whatever we were having. We had always been heavy on chicken and fish, but it was usually accompanied by something cheesy or starchy. So I continued eating chicken, fish, and some red meat for dinner, with a small serving of the side, and tried to incorporate more green veggies. If I had hit the gym after work that day (instead of before), dinner was usually a protein bar or shake after the gym, and then some cheese and crackers later on. That drove my husband crazy. :)
In my personal life, the husband and I had put the option of a baby up for discussion. In April 2009, I went off the pill, and we started saving for an adoption. I had always wanted to adopt, long before I found out about my PCOS. Hubby thought it was only fair for us to be trying at the same time we were saving. Always a good sport, I agreed, thinking there was no way in heck I was going to get preggo.
By August, I still hadn't had a period (thanks PCOS!). I called my ob, made an appointment, got all checked out, and she urged me to consider Metformin. In agreeing to try for a baby, I made it known from the start that I didn't want any drugs to get me there. I wanted to just causally try, and told everyone that I wouldn't consider any IVF/IUI/Clomid/anything. But, my doc had explained that Metformin isn't a fertility drug, it's just a drug that has a lovely side-effect of inducing ovulation in some women that suffer from PCOS. After much consideration, I went on 1500mg/day, in October 2009. At the time, I didn't know that another side effect of Metformin is weight loss. I found that out 3 years later, but I feel like it's worth including here.
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| Dec 2009 |
From August 2009 to December of 2009, I lost 35 pounds. I attribute it to hard work, better food choices, and a kick in the pants from the Metformin.
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