A walk on the path and a mystery...

So, since we cut our walk short because of the heat, we started earlier today.  Another sunny day but a little more cloud cover and breeze.  These conditions made for an ideal walking experience. 
We loaded up the grand kid and both daughters then headed to the park to "try again." 

To our surprise, no one was walking.  The path was clean, the grass was freshly mowed and much of the weeding was finished.  Our sweet friend had worked hard between yesterday and today to manicure our "special place."  We were excited to make some "real" progress today because there was no one around and we could really get some laps under our belts.

The wind was blowing and our view of the ocean was so delightful.  It is hard to count this as exercise when the shower trees are releasing a blanket of yellow and orange blooms on  the ground and the fragrance-filled breezes contain a hint of ginger, plumeria and gardenia.  Ocean views are awesome with their various shades of deep blue, aquamarine and turquoise that denote ocean depths. However, the mountains too were also arranged in splendid shades of green.  The high peaks make me wish I was a mountain climber so I could see the views from the great heights above.  Never the less, today we are walking our path and I am enjoy every step.

As we rounded the bend for the third time, we noticed two young boys coming from the direction of the elementary school, just up the road from the park.  The schools are on summer break but sometimes kids hang out at school during the summer.  We approached and almost crossed paths with the boys.  We noticed that they were taking a path, off to the side, behind our park.  This is curious because there are some homeless people that take that path too.  My daughter, who is an elementary school teacher became instantly alerted to the youngsters as is her habit.  we continued our walk around the oval path.  On the next go-around, we saw a car emerge from the dirt path where the boys walked.  The car was leaving the area and the boys were coming out of that area back to the park.  As we got closer, we realized that they were lying across the path.  We were walking nearer to them and I wondered if they would scoot over so we could walk by?  Thankfully, they started to moved as we got closer.  We thanked them and then I asked them if they went to the school, up the hill? They replied yes.  My daughter passed them last but exchanged pleasantries with them as well.

  My daughter actually did some student teaching at that school so always looks out for her former students.  We came around the other end of the park and saw a young man who looked homeless and had a 40 ounce bottle of beer in one hand and a puppy in the other.  He was headed in the direction of the young boys so we slowed our pace just to see if there was an exchange.  As the man got closer to the boys, they got up, talked to the man and went with the man on the other path behind the park.  We became concerned, " who is this man? does he know the boys? where are they going?"  Questions were flowing through our minds as we came around another bend on the path that was near, where the boys went.  We were listening for voices but heard nothing.  We remembered that there was a side path down to a man made water-way near the park.  We thought that if we went up that path, we could maybe see the boys and check on their well-being.  The path was also in an open area that was visible to the main highway with cars traveling constantly.  It seemed like a safe path.  We found the way onto the path and followed it up to near, where the boys went on the other side.  We didn't see anyone.  We walked until the brush got so thick, we couldn't follow the path anymore.  We prayed that the boys were safe and proceeded back up the path to the park.   It seemed that they knew that person.  We tried to comfort each other with our assumptions.  Homelessness is a major problem in Hawaii and there are many homeless in the park areas.  There are many children among them.

Mystery not solved.

By the time we returned to the car, we had walked almost an hour.  This was a very different walk.

Progress:  Almost one hour of walking and a

prayer for those little boys with faith that they are safe.  

Path Pals

What a great morning.....I am still a bit sore from previous workouts  but had a secret desire to go walking at my favorite place, The walking path.  It's such a gorgeous day, no clouds and nothing but Summer sunshine on our faces...and sunscreen of course.  The daughters ended up not working out with our beloved neighbor so when I was expressing my need to take a little jaunt at our park, TD decided to join in with our 4 year old. 

We approached our "special" place and found just a couple walkers on the trail this morning.  It was much later then usual.  The sun was high in the sky and the breezes were gentle.  My anticipation was excited by our little one taking off and us trying to follow close behind.  Her eagerness is so motivating.

I always look forward to certain people at our special place.  The lady that keeps the park clean is such a joyful, sassy, hard working individual that makes the world a better place.  I will never tire of her off-color remarks and her 411-gossip sessions about the latest park happenings.  Luckily, she understands we're walking by and won't stop so she gives us the headlines so we don't break our stride.

Another interesting fellow-fitness seeker is a guy who is always reading while he is walking.  Years ago, we marveled at his talent and watched to see if he could maintain his reading when there was a curve in the path or a crack in the pavement.  We were amazed because we never saw him miss a step.  We always greet our fellow walkers but for some reason, every time we would approach this guy, he was reading and didn't look up to see us.  At first, I thought he was antisocial and used the "reading thing" as a way to avoid socializing.  A few weeks later, we observed "the reader" exchanging pleasantries with another walker.  I realized that my previous estimation of his character was way off.  He probably just didn't want to acknowledge us. With this development, I felt deflated in spirit but would try to greet him anyway.  The days went on and then it happened, I said "Good morning" and then he looked up and responded with a  "HI."  Anyway, he became a cohort of sorts.

Since we have returned to the path this year, "the reader" has reverted into his previous behavior of read-walking with NO social interaction.  I guess we will have to rebuild the trust we shared which consisted of two solid months of almost daily activity and the occasional head-node and an out-of-breath hello.


As I stated earlier, it was hot.  20 something minutes into the walk I really became aware of the sun and the intense heat I was experiencing.  I started to notice that the profuse loss of sweat was accompanied with dizziness.   IT WAS VERY HOT!  I decided that maybe the heat was going to overwhelm my desire to continue on our present course, so we left.  I don't look at our leaving as failure but instead self preservation.  In Hawaii, we have " Peak Sun Hours" which deters a person from being in the sun between the hours of 10am and 2pm.  I feel sure that leaving the park at 11:30am was the best thing to do especially, since there were no trade winds blowing that would have insured a successful walk.

Will try again tomorrow and get an earlier start! Very grateful for TD and Sun's presence today.

Progress:  Walked a little, reminisced about special people on our path and left before the heat-stroke.

Is That Cheating?

     I'm not 100%, but I think I might've cheated on my workout buddy yesterday :(

     I woke up yesterday at 6 a.m., like normal, but my muscles were so tired. My body did not want to move from my bed. Like the warm embrace of a long-time love...okay enough poetry. Anyway, the night before I contemplated taking a rest day, but Tee talked me out of it. Our union is doing exactly what it's supposed to do: discouraging us from wimping out on each other. I laid in my bed, thinking about what I should do. It was agonizing.
     I must admit though, the two-to-three-week mark is when my feet start getting itchy. I come up with every reason in the book not to continue with the program; the predominant excuse this time being "I'm not seeing the results I want." Like I said, I notice my clothes fitting a little better, but nothing as dramatic as what I want. It's a little disappointing. Three weeks of workouts for minimal results? What's that about? (It's because I'm eating junks, but when you're talking yourself out of something you forsake logical reason.)
     Finally I worked up the courage to text. "Good morning! I think I need a rest today, my muscles are really tired!" I was wide awake now, awaiting O's response. Would she be mad? Did I just ruin

Kathy Smith dropping some mad truth. Where were you yesterday morning?!

her day? She replied "Sounds good. Get some much needed rest!" Relief swept over my body. I can go back to sleep now, right? Wrong.
     I came into the living room, trying to hear if she was working out or not without me. I asked Mother if I made the right decision or not, and didn't believe her when she told me I did. I tortured myself long enough for a workout with O plus a post-exercise talk-story before drifting off to sleep. For one hour.
     When I came to, Mother asked if I wanted to accompany her on a walk with my 4 year old niece. I agreed, but decided I would take it slow. We went to our usual park, but by the time we got out,

the mid-morning sun was blazing. We walked for about twenty minutes before my niece tired out and I piggy-backed her to the car. Shortly after my mom joined us and we headed back home. The heat won.
     I walked into the house to the most disheartening sight. There was Tee, sprawled on the yoga mat, half way through Jillian's beloved Shred workout. I watched for a minute before putting my shoes back on, grabbing my iPod and hitting the neighborhood for another walk. The sun was almost overhead when I embarked on my journey.
     It was nice going on the old route again. Not that many people were out since walking in the noonday heat is ill-advised. I walked past the house they've halted construction on near the bus stop; past the plumeria and puakenikeni trees, their fallen and browning flowers littering the ground. Going up the first and second hill was challenging as always, but I noticed being less winded then in the past. I walked to my one mile mark, a rock wall with a line of ceramic ducks in front of it, before turning back toward home.
     Up the hairpin turn, past the elderly care home (that finally got a new driveway), who should I see driving down the road but O. She peered out at me before breaking into a wide smiling and waving. I managed to wave back before panic set in. What must she think of me now? Here I was, ducking out of exercising the morning of, only to be out and about only hours later. Was this betrayal? What have I done? I told Tee who was unsure of the situation's outcome. Had I dashed every hope of our budding friendship on this walk?

     I found out today the answer was no. I texted O this morning, 15 minutes before we usually met to ask if we were still on. She hadn't texted back for a while which meant one of two things: she hadn't received my message or she was angry about seeing me yesterday. It turns out she didn't hear her alarm and asked if me and Tee wanted to exercise. Before I knew it we were Turbo-jamming and all was right with the world.
      All kidding aside, I've really come to cherish this time to workout. Even though some days it's hard to wake up and do it, I always walk away from it feeling better than I did at the beginning. Listen to your body and don't overwork, but I encourage you to do something even when you don't really feel like it. It makes you feel good every single time. Unless you injure yourself. Please don't do that. Stretch stretch stretch!

Until Next Time,
The Daughter

Cheater, Cheater, Pastry Eater

So true

Yes, friends. I had a cheat meal this morning, and when I say cheat meal, what I mean is cheat unGodly feast. Up to this point, I considered myself to be doing quite well, and now, I'm terrified to even attempt logging these calories. I'm almost too ashamed to write this post, but I need to continue to be honest with you all. I'm pretty sure this particular binge was emotionally driven, at least partially. It's not excuse, but it's true what Mom said, so many things can effect one's fitness journey. I'm still looking to quell my emotional eating, but it's a process.

WARNING: I will now go into detail about this morning's magnificent eats purely for the sake of accountability. Brace yourselves, friends.

This morning, per DKK's (boyfriend's) request, we drove out to Cinnamon's in Kailua. Cinnamon's is a spectacular restaurant (by island standards) that specializes in guava chiffon pancakes. For those of you unfamiliar with island cuisine, try to imagine something that amazing. Guava.Chiffon.Pancakes. Ironically, neither of us ordered those. I started my meal with coffee, a standard. The "cream" I think, was some kind of non-dairy, artificial, liquid crap that I knew I shouldn't have been drinking, but drank anyway because I didn't want to drink it black. As I mulled over my options, DKK announced he would get a cinnamon bun, and a breakfast skillet. For whatever reason, "cinnamon bun" didn't register with me until I realized I wanted something sweet with my coffee. The devil (cinnamon bun) tempted me, and I accepted.

The time came to decide on a breakfast entree. For a moment, I considered the chicken cutlet with home fries, but came to the conclusion that was too "heavy" for breakfast. I then wandered back over to the second page of the menu where I found the assorted Eggs Benedicts. Classic, Veggie, Mahimahi, Crab cakes... which one, which one? As my eyes scanned down, I saw it; LOX. LOX BENEDICT. The choice was made. DKK seemed to approve. Now, all we needed was our lovely waitress. As she approached, I played around with an idea, but stopped myself, deciding it would be too sinful. When she took my order first, I heard that sinful idea come through my lips: "Extra Hollandaise". WHAT IN GOD'S GOOD AND MIGHTY NAME WAS I THINKING?! EXTRA ALL-CALORIE, NO NUTRITION HOLLANDAISE SAUCE?! WHAT'S GOTTEN INTO ME?!

WE INTERRUPT YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING TO BRING YOU THIS SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

Here's the thing, I don't know what came over me. I'm not a Hollandaise super-fan. I don't see it as absolutely essential. It can, at times, even be a bit bland for my taste. But suddenly, as I read "Extra Hollandaise" on the menu, my mind took me directly to the movie Julie, Julia. I remembered the jubilation Julie's husband felt as he was eating the artichoke leaves with Hollandaise sauce. You can watch it here if you're really interested and don't understand the reference. I wanted that. I wanted that same ecstasy. Oh, and if you're a foodie and you haven't seen this movie, you must. It's essential. It's basically foreign food porn in that they cook a lot of French food, which, as we all know, is the most food-pornographic cuisine. It's all the butter and pastry. 

WE NOW RETURN YOU TO YOUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED PROGRAMMING

I got over the shock long enough for our pastries to arrive. As I bit into the warm, soft cinnamon bun, I was reminded that there is a God, and He is good. The warm icing stuck to the roof of my mouth, in the most pleasant way, of course. I made short work of it as I washed it down with my coffee. It was utter bliss. By the time my Lox Eggs Benedict came, I was already half-full. My appetite has gotten noticeably smaller, which I am so grateful for considering my swim in this breakfast-food trough today. Honestly, I was a bit less than impressed with the lox; I think I would've preferred the mahimahi. The Hollandaise... was good, but it didn't give me what I was looking for. Ultimately, waves of regret crashed over me as I was sitting in my chair, full to the brim, only halfway through with my half-order. 

I know, Boromir, GAAAAHD.

When I got home and started planning out what to write in this post, I really struggled with what to say. This is, after all, a fitness blog, and not a food blog. Yet, here I am, going into disgusting detail about what I had for breakfast. It wasn't until just now that I realized the purpose of breakfast is to break your fast, not give you happiness. My whole relationship with what I eat is unhealthy because I look to food to fulfill some kind of need, not to keep me going physically. The bottom line is, it's still a struggle, but I can't keep giving myself these passes to go ham just because I think I deserve to. I'm not cheating on my diet, or counting my calories, or my exercise program, I'm cheating myself. By not requiring myself to be more disciplined, I'm actually losing out. I'm not saying you shouldn't be able to eat whatever you want (it's your life), but I'm saying I can't expect my body to do certain things and look a certain way if I don't give it what it needs. I hope to change my attitude, and though it won't be overnight, I can definitely say today, and this post, has been a wake-up call. 

Progress: A smaller appetite, more accountability, and one step closer to ending (or at least changing) my unhealthy relationship with food. 

With Love,

Tee

Another Day, Another Cramp, Another Rejection Letter

You said it, Lilo.

Yes, as the title implies, it's already been somewhat of a disappointing day for the Tee-meister... and the worst part is, it's only 10:30am. I woke up this morning with a mean cramp in my Achilles, and pondered the morning workout with "O". I was relieved to find out from The Daughter that O had canceled. My heart leapt at the prospect of having an easy day, or perhaps, dare I say it, a rest day! And then, my mom drops the bomb: "I'm gonna do Shred, you guys are welcome to join me". Oh. Crap. Please. God. No. I figured I'd be a good daughter by helping my mom and move the couch back for her, and even sweep the floor. I had put my socks on only to avoid picking up dust, crumbs, and various crap left on the ground by the many residents of this house (including bugs and geckos) with my feet. However, The Daughter took this as a sign that I was going to work out with Mom. THIS WAS COMPLETELY UNINTENDED. When I saw The Daughter putting her shoes on, I immediately felt a wave a guilt wash over me for not wanting to participate. The only thing to do was put on the big-girl-panties, and the shoes, and join in the fun.

Courtesy of Jillian Michaels

I usually don't like to go in depth about my workouts, but I will say Jillian Michaels is a crazy bitch, and I wish she would include more stretches in her warm ups. I also wish she would tell you on the first set the way you're NOT supposed to be doing the work out, instead of half-way through the second set. By then you've already injured yourself. And she's all like, "No injuries today. We don't want that". It's like, "Yeah no thanks to you, Jilly". Shred is not for the faint-hearted, or for the already cramping, apparently. My muscle tightness spread from right above the ankle, to my entire calf. Thank you for that, Jillian. It was rough; there's no way around it. I was unprepared and unworthy. Please spare my life, Jillian. I didn't know any better. I give my Mom so much credit for making this her primary work out. When it was done, I practically sprinted to the shower. I wanted out of my now RANK clothing.

From the moment I walked out of my last interview on Friday, I'd been waiting on my rejection letters from the various schools. I had already gotten one and I was still waiting on a few more. When I got out of the shower, the moment of reckoning had come. I heard the mail truck pull up, the mail carrier struggle with our mailbox (it's broken), and then drive off. I put on my slippers and walked down (slowly and painfully) to the box. On the walk back up, I saw it: one more letter, just as expected. If I can draw a positive from the rejection, it's that it was much nicer than the ones I've previously received. It made it sound for a moment like they actually considered me for the position. I also got the token, "we wish you luck on your future endeavors". I think that's pretty nice, even if it is a consolation.

But I'm 23...

I will admit, these rejections didn't come from my "dream jobs". I think the thing that bothers me
more than anything is how it messes with my pride. I'm a very proud person, and I admit that to anyone willingly. It's been something that has kept me on a certain path in my life; one of integrity and perseverance. Also, I feel like the clock is running out in my own life. "If I don't start my career now, I'll never be where I want to be by this time in my life". It's a scary thought. What's scarier is the thought that everything you've done up to this point has been a waste. I truly wonder what I should've done differently. I always took the more difficult road in an attempt to get more "real world" experience. I consistently challenged myself, and worked jobs that related directly to my field and covered classroom and administrative duties. According to every professor and supervisor, I was on the perfect track and would be able to find a job right away after graduation. And yet, here I am, six months later, still waiting for a job. It's embarrassing for someone like me to have to face people and say, "I'm still looking". Well, actually, that's not entirely true. I am a substitute teacher's aide at a preschool, but that's not at all where I wanted to be by now.

Here's to hoping that this is all for a purpose, and that I actually am where I am supposed to be. Maybe something greater is on its way. It may be denial, but what else is keeping me going?

Progress: Survived 30-Day Shred, and confident that something better is on its way.

With Love,
Tee

I really do. How did you know?!

Exciting News/Jill's Revenge

   I am so excited to announce the newest contributor to our blog, Tee (also affectionately known as "TOD" or the Other Daughter). You can find her amazing introductory post here. It has been an interesting last few weeks going through this experience with her, and I'm excited she can share her perspective; not just on this journey, but in her life. I'm also stoked to announce my mother's comeback post! It's been a trying few months for her, so I'm glad she got to start contributing again.

                                 
                                   *                                           *                                            *

     Stoked! My neighbor O and I finished two weeks of workouts! We initially committed to working out three times a week together, and I'm thrilled to say we've done it! I'm sad to say it doesn't reflect too much on the scales, but I see the improvement in other ways--I've gotten stronger and some of my clothes are looser now than a few months ago. Yes!
     O and I decided to do the Biggest Loser Cardio dvd again a few days ago and added Sculpt, the weight training dvd. This time I was able to actually keep up with Bob and the gang and felt that my strength and stamina increased. And the weight training dvd was a joy compared to the cardio. Give me weights over cardio any day.
      I felt great. I overcame my commitment issues and fear of that cardio dvd. I could do anything.
      Then came Jillian.
     While I was moving mountains with Biggest Loser, my mother decided to to dust off the Jillian Michaels Shred dvd (you can read her awesome post about it here). When I got back, her face was red and she was exhausted. She told me what she had done, and I was blown away. I remember doing that workout once at my Aunty's house. I couldn't recall all the details, but I remembered the pain. I must've blocked it out at the time because it was so traumatic.
     This morning O texted she was taking a rest day, and mentally I decided I would do the same. I planned on catching up on my blog posts and sipping a cup of coffee--black coffee. I rarely drink coffee unless it's infused with cream and sugar, topped of with whipped cream and a generous caramel drizzle, but I heard black burns fat. Unfortunately it tastes like burnt water. While I was planning my morning of leisure, my mother and Tee had other ideas.
     I saw our pink foam mat placed on the ground in the livingroom and Tee putting her socks on. The furniture was pushed back and mom left to get her workout clothes on. Decision time: do I continue on my path of cool, sweat-less comfort or a painful, breathless twenty minutes? I know I would feel guilty if I didn't show solidarity in my mother and sister's efforts by working out with them. But I also really didn't want to shower twice.  In the end, I (reluctantly) got up from the table and put my gear on.
    Two minutes into the workout, I was dying. The dvd combines cardio and weights, both standing and on the ground. Pushups, jumping jacks, butt kickers, rows, the whole gammit. I think Jillian Michaels herself adds extra pressure. She literally says during the workout "the pain you're feeling is weakness leaving the body" and "I want you to feel like you're dying." Since I am an emotional powder puff made of spun sugar and rainbows, hearing that scares me.
     Somewhere between the chestflyes and reverse crunches, I looked over at my workout mates and saw them beasting it like champs. It's still a process for us all and we had to take rests sometimes, but no one gave up. In the last five minutes I was able to find some strength to finish out the last cardio combination without stopping. (The bicycle crunches at the very end were too much so I paused on occasion, but nevertheless...!)
     There's a fitness quote floating saying "you'll never regret a workout." In this case, it was right.  Jillian's dvd did everything a good workout is supposed to do: work your body, push your mental limits and put the fear of God in you. All and all, it was a'ight. I'm scared to do it again, but it was a'ight.

For those about to shred, we salute you.

Cheers,
The Daughter




  

JM Shred with TD and TOD

Good morning all,

This morning, two days after the Jillian Michaels "Shred" workout, I was more sore than ever.  The only thing that makes sense, since I spent most of my day yesterday stretching those sore muscles, is to do Jillian again.....Call me crazy, but I don't think I can positively effect my sore body without doing the work out again.  It's the only way to hit those muscle groups and possibly get some relief.

To my surprise, my girls consented to do Jillian Michaels with me this morning.....I was stoked!
As we started our ascent up the mountain that IS a Jillian workout, we realized that her warm-up is simply not adequate enough in terms of giving one enough time to prepare for the "butt-kicking" of your life.  Then, like she heard us talking, she slapped us with a barrage of cardio jumping jacks, windmills, and some type of boxing move....I can't really recall what it was because I was just trying to breathe and stand upright.  Before we could mentally process it, we hit the sheer rock-face, of Jillian's strength circuit which consisted of AB crunches,  reverse crunches, back up to J Jacks and shadow boxing then squats with hand weights.  This went on for a while.... I was grateful that my ear hadn't gotten plugged like the workout before, but my harsh exhaling and deep groaning were an indication that I was holding on for dear life.  We were giving it our all; the sweating, the panting, the cussing (not out loud) was slowing becoming a frenzied escalation of panic and about to spill over into a psychotic fit of rage.   All of the sudden, Jillian said "this is the end of the cardio, strength and resistance segment".....We had arrived atop  the breezy summit of our workout!  Ecstatic smiles washed over our faces as we began to stretch and cool down.  It was like looking down from heaven onto the earth below.  You notice the beauty of the oceans and landmasses and cloud formations, but your view is not obstructed by wars, climate change and the requirement of political correctness which has destroyed our ability to tell a joke, give an opinion, or even tell the truth. ( It's amazing how profound you become when your life has been spared by Jillian Michaels).  I felt like a million bucks.

Breathing returned to normal and muscles stopped quivering.  I even noticed that the severe soreness had vanished which made sense on some level to my body.  We congratulated ourselves on our survival.  It was truly a treat to workout with "the daughters." I felt myself trying to keep up with them.  They are very motivating to me.  I hope they had a good time too.

Progress:  20 minutes of Jillian Michaels.....Like climbing a mountain......maybe more activity later.