the week in review

so its already been a week?
things here have been busy!
a brief rundown-
# of workouts-3
# of miles-16.5
#of houses looked at in person-3
# of homes looked at online-9879021312753
# of houses we saw potential in and liked (not loved,but liked)-1.
# of new words M is saying-2. "cheese" (chee) and "light" (ite) and i think she said "thank you" (ay yoo) but not too sure. she is still signing and getting better at it.
# of times middle daughter has been gotten onto about sucking her thumb- too high to count. she is almost 6 and still sucking her thumb. used to it was only when she was tired and ready for bed at night. but this week it seems like right after school and down time,the thumb is in. I've tried the bitter stuff to put on her nails but bc i make her wash her hands ALL the time,i don't think it stays on long enough to deter her. i know for fact she isn't thumb sucking at school or in public,which is a good thing,but how do i transition her into breaking this yucky habit!?? she started  coughing last night and now today she has a runny nose-all signs she is about to have respiratory issues. I'm sure she will start running a high fever tonight or tomorrow and then the vomiting and wheezing and coughing and breathing treatments and antibiotics will start. well I've already started the breathing treatments,hoping to catch it early....

anyways,in other news,I'm still not feeling that great. this pregnancy has been hard on me so far. i am hoping the tiredness and nausea go away soon. although i do feel queasy,it hasn't stopped me from eating and gaining weight,LOL!!!! when i am hungry,i get HUNGRY and am still craving savory things-steak and potato,and mac and cheese...anything meat (aside from chicken and ground turkey!!!)
old wives tales say this is a sign i am carrying a BOY.
and how i am carrying (according to old wives tales) I'm carrying a BOY
according to the ancient Chinese gender predictor,i am carrying a BOY (and this chart has been accurate for my other 3 children btw!)
according to my gut feeling,i will have a BOY....
17 more weeks (give or take 2 weeks either way) and we will find out!!!

happy Sunday yall!
hopefully this upcoming week will be a good one!

20wks along! rockin the beer gut!!!!

i cant believe how fast the time is going by!
as promised,the monthly belly pic:

and the pic below is when i was 20wks along with M

 and the above pic is me trying to flex my abs 20wks along with baby M

i know with M i measured 28" at 20 week,with a starting waits of 22" (at 7 weeks along)
and with this baby,
my starting measurements
20.2" (at 8 weeks)
29" at 20 weeks
SO i am a full inch bigger this time around!
and the sad thing? i started off almost 2 inches smaller in the waist.
no wonder i am feeling bigger!
its only gonna get bigger from here-LOL!
*sigh*
but for a good reason.

i can sill (barely) squeeze into most my clothes,but they are getting REALLY tight.
i know in the next 2 weeks or so i will have to move up in pants sizes.
I'm in that awkward in between stage where normal clothes don't fit well and maternity clothes are still huge.
i can still hide my belly with big shirts,so i still don't look obviously preggo in regular clothes yet-unless I'm wearing a form fitting shirt,then yeah i have a baby bump!

i STILL don't feel well. i am feeling a lot more sickness and a lot more tiredness this time than with all the previous babies.
I'm only in the gym 2-3x a week. and to be honest,that alone is driving me crazy.
by 16 weeks with M i was good to workout 6-7x per week.
THIS time?
3x a week is a good week.
i am really hoping i turn the corner soon. I'm not used to being this inactive,and i need to just suck up my tiredness/blah yucky feeling and make myself get in the gym. I'm sure i will feel better if i do so,at least mentally.
physically,i know i need to listen my body and rest when i need to,I'm carrying precious cargo here!
 i go for an ultrasound tomorrow,and my husband and i agreed we are NOT finding out the gender.
this is our last baby and we want to be surprised! it is totally killing our families though. they want to know so bad they  cant see straight!
but about 4.5 more months and baby mystery will be here!
my gut tells me its a boy,but we will be happy if its another girl. all we care about is a HEALTHY baby!

anyways,hope all are having a happy Monday!
i will try to get to fitness blogging soon,promise!
someone please give me the get up and go i need so i can get up and get my workouts going on again!!!
:D

bridging the gap

a great article by Nancy Georges
a good read for any who are dreaming big this year and setting big goals!

Issue: #35


January /2012
Happy New Year to you. I hope that 2012 is off to a great start for you and you are well on your way to achieving your goals. It is a popular norm in our society to look back on the previous year, reflect and to look forward to our new year and create goals for the upcoming year, that will help us to stay focused in the direction of our desire. A great idea.



However, something I want to talk about this month is what we do in the meantime. What happens when we create a list of goals that previously did not exist, is we create dissatisfaction. The realization that we want something that we currently don't have--whereas before we were happy and content simply with not wanting anything at all.

So how do we bridge that gap? Do we need to bridge that gap? Do you feel ok knowing that you have a goal that is not yet achieved? How do we feel good about having goals and at the same time, not having them as part of our current reality?



Fitness Tip Of The Month
BRIDGING THE GAP
Going from where we are, to where we want to be can sometimes be a painful process. We think that we are better off for taking that step forward. We establish the goal, write it down, tell all our friends, have all the accountability needed, get psyched up--then we look in the mirror and we are still not there yet. What is going on is that our mind is playing tricks on us. So how do we bridge the gap?


One way that I know of to bridge the gap is to create smaller visual markers that helps let us know we are moving in the direction of our desired goal. Usually we have one image in our mind, and that is the image of perfection. Anything less than this and we look in the mirror and scowl, displeased that we are still not there. When we work from this vantage point, we usually don't get to enjoy the entire process, only the end point which is in our mind, and we won't be happy until we are there.


So where is the joy in a journey when the only time we get to feel good about it, is at the end? I personally don't think that sounds very fun at all.


I like to create visual markers along the way that helps establish a feeling of success all throughout the journey. It is a much more enjoyable process.


We shouldn't need to feel frustrated or discourage until we are exactly where we want to be, rather we should be able to relish in the great achievements that we have gained along the way to our ultimate goal.


Now is a great time to establish mini goals throughout your journey that will allow you the pleasure and satisfaction of a job well done.


In addition to visual markers, I like to create other goals as well that can be achieved on a week by week basis. Even though there is a goal in mind and we are not there yet, establishing mini successes will allow us to feel content for the time being, while we bridge the gap from where we are, to where we want to be.

according to G

to know what I'm talking about
CLICK HERE

lets face it,i and probably most women in general,can be blind sometimes....

for example these pictures posted below....
i hated how i felt. i felt "fluffy",frumpy and dumpy,i didn't like my outfits, i didn't feel sexy at all-i felt awkward and ugly.
i almost cried twice because i felt my cheeks looked chubby and my arms looked meaty...

and now when i look back at those pictures i think to myself--"what was i thinking???these look great!"

and then on this particular show day,i felt like a total GBA

won NGA pro card

                                                      my  first IFPA pro show (above)

                                           won WNBF pro card,almost 8 months after giving birth to 3rd child


its taken me a long time to take the blinders off,sometimes they still get in the way,but not as much.
we can all be blind sometimes!
 now its YOUR turn....
leave a comment and a link where we can find your GBA-ness!

Chinese food,gummi worms, workouts and running on my mind

yeah.........that's how my weekend and day have been.
for the past 4 months i have been craving Chinese food and last night i forced my husband to get me some gave into the craving.
so good but it totally gave me the worst heartburn ever!!!
so looks like no more for a while!
another craving? Gummi worms. and yes i had those today. and since the Chinese food made me feel like i swelled up like i blimp,i headed to the gym for a good sweatfest.
6.5 miles on elliptical (TM's were full) and then a back workout.
again,a very busy gym. i had to sneak and pounce on equipment before someone snatched it!


a brief recap of last week
workouts--eh only 2. this has got to change ASAP.
miles ran-only 13. this too,needs to increase.
red lights ran-?? but actually got a ticket while following my husband to a house....a $160 ticket for passing under the light while it was yellow then it turned red before i passed through. the officer wasn't very nice.
houses looked at-4. still no luck finding one we like.
number of signs Mckinnley knows now-5. she knows "drink", "snack/hungry", "more" and "all done" she also knows "lets go outside" she does this by waving bye bye and going to the door..too cute!
number of dollar bills the tooth fairy left (yes,she didn't have to look for a note)-5. my son was very happy he didn't lose a lost tooth again!
number of new teeth M has-2 and 2 more on the way soon (we hope!!!)
other news....my crazy friend who is doing a bodybuilding show just 2 weeks after she runs the Boston marathon (yeah,and i thought i was crazy for doing a triathlon before a figure show..this gal has me beat!)
she is wanting to have a non conventional posing routine.
first thing that popped in my mind was this-

http://videodisc.tv/video/14867841/bfjhbhefi/Kai+Greene+Posing+to+Michael+Jackson+Dirty+Diana+at+2007+IFBB+Keystone+Classic/

now just imagine a 4'11 asain lady doing that routine!
:D
since I'm helping with her posing,she will be helping me with Marathon-ing....
my goal is to do a full marathon the first weekend in November.....yes about 17 weeks after the baby is born.
my goal,my big goal?
to BQ.
I'm not sure if it will happen,but i will try my hardest
all i have to do is keep an 8:20 mile pace for 26.2 miles.
sounds easy enough,but im sure this will be no east task at hand so soon after having a baby.

oh and speaking of baby, belly pics will be up this weekend,the 1/2way point!!!!
I'm starting to feel the baby kick harder,and my belly is poking out more..
ultrasound next week!!

happy Monday yall!

the week in review

i meant to post this Sunday,lol!
well last week went by fast
# workouts: 3
# miles ran: 13- i actually did a slow preggo-sive run over the weekend and wow it felt great!
mile 1: 9:45
mile 2: 9:12
mile 3: 8:30
last 1/2 mile : 8 minute pace
total time 29:56
average pace 8:33
i actually wore the prenatal cradle during this. even though my belly isn't even big yet,it still helped so much with support!!

# of times the tooth fairy accidentally didn't leave money--- once. ond OMGosh my son was crushed. he lost his very first tooth that popped up in his mouth when he was a baby (he got his incisors first,so he look like a baby vampire!) what made it worse is that he lost the tooth at school. he was so happy that the nurse gave him an awesome tooth holder,and as he was showing me his tooth,he dropped it in the car and LOST it. we couldn't find it so i told him to write a note and leave it for the tooth fairy.
well he left the note on his dresser,a heart felt note explaining how special this tooth was and how sorry he was about loosing it in the car...
the next morning,he thought the tooth fairy "forgot" (oh no!!!! how could this happen??)but trying to be clever,i explained to him that maybe she came in his and room and just checked under his pillow and didn't find a note,maybe she didn't see the note because she was looking in the wrong spot?. he then got the idea that he had to put the note under his pillow and not on the dresser.
he did that and lo and behold the tooth fairy left $5.
never again will the tooth fairy miss a note,or tooth!

#of signs Mckinnley knows---2. she knows the sign language for "more" and "all done". i finally bought a book on baby signs 3 days ago. right now we are working on "drink" and "snack/hungry".
lil M is not talking yet,at least not to what is understandable. she points and grunts and jibber jabbers,but no real words other than"up","eyes","look", "hot" and i think "nigh-nights"....
i guess having 2 older siblings, all the talking is done for her!
but we are working on it.hopefully she will be able to better communicate with signs now!

#of homes looked at but found out they were already off the market or zoned for a school we didn't want---7
house hunting in this area is not fun!

#of times my kids squeeled because the unexpected snowfall yesterday---123,246,989.8
it was only a about 1/4" but enough to make them think school was canceled the rest of the week!

so that about sums it up.
hopefully i can get in some good workouts this week.

happy Tuesday yall!!

17.5wks along....

wow,less than 20 days until the half way point! the beginning of this week marked the turning point. i am finally starting to feel better and feel great in the weight room.i actually ran the other day on the TM and felt like i could have gone at least 15+miles. but i didn't. maybe soon though as long as i feel good enough.
 I'm definitely easing back into running,since its been 7+ weeks since I've been consistent with it.

as promised,a belly picture:

i can still fit in my regular clothes,although they are getting awfully tight! im at that in between stage where im going to need bigger clothes,but not yet maternity stuff. oh the fun!
seems like my boobs and butt are growing faster than my belly though,lol!!!

now if i can just get nutrition under a bettercontrol,things will be good. now granted im not eating pizza and burgers and fries (gah,belh ICK!)or lots of candy,but im not eating 100% how i should. Chipotle burrito bowl is what ive been craving as well as steak and potatoes,ribs,macaroni and cheese,lasagna......just anything hearty i guess.. (which is totally un like me-i HATE Mexican food,and i have never been a red meat fan at all...what gives??)
and yes,i have given into some of the cravings.
chicken,sweet potatoes,rice cakes,ground turkey,plain water are just a few aversions im having right now. any thing contest prep food related are things that still make my stomach churn.
i am however,wanting and having lots of fruit-grapes,apples,bananas,etc

anyways,i could ramble forever but i need to get to the gym and try to knock out some leg as and get some much needed miles in on the TM.....

Hope all are having a great week!!
will be (finally) back to posting workouts now and probably a daily menu-just to keep me in check,and of course the weight gain under 1 million lbs (lol! but really under 30lbs)

goals for 2012 to be coming soon as well
Mckinnleys word of advice for the day:

don't forget to think that you are a rock star...all the time.